Strawberry crunch cake channels the flavors of a strawberry shortcake ice cream bar! I love the sweet, moist vanilla cake contrasted with tangy, crushed freeze-dried strawberries in the frosting and strawberry crunch topping.
This strawberry crunch cake recipe is an easy strawberry dessert inspired by Good Humour strawberry shortcake bars. Who else loves those?!
Like the frozen bars, this strawberry crunch cake has layers of strawberry and vanilla flavor in the form of my homemade vanilla cake covered with strawberry frosting and a buttery homemade strawberry crunch topping.
I make the topping without strawberry gelatin, and it still has plenty of signature strawberry crunch flavor, with powdered freeze-dried strawberries and crushed Golden Oreos. Beneath all that, the single-layer cake is simple to make in a 9×13-inch pan, but you could absolutely use a boxed vanilla cake mix as a time saver.
This would make a fun birthday cake or celebration cake for the strawberry crunch lover in your life. Just add a scoop of strawberry ice cream!
Ingredient Notes
This strawberry cake recipe uses simple ingredients, but the results are totally bakery-worthy. See the recipe card below for the full list with measurements.
- Sour Cream – Another key ingredient for a moist, flavorful cake. Greek yogurt is a good substitute for sour cream if needed.
- Freeze-dried Strawberries – Crushed into a powder in the food processor to flavor the strawberry frosting without watering it down (possibly the best baking hack of the last decade!). I use freeze-dried strawberry powder in my strawberry whipped cream, too.
- Cold Butter – My frosting recipes start with cold butter, not at room temperature. The extra whipping it takes to soften cold butter creates a luxurious, airy frosting that’s more stable. Give it a try, and you’ll see.
- Golden Oreos – You’ll crush the Oreos with freeze-dried strawberries and mix them with melted butter to make a strawberry crumble just like the crunchy coating on strawberry ice cream bars. Any vanilla cookies will work, including store-brand vanilla sandwich cookies, vanilla wafers, and shortbread cookies.
The Secret to Strawberry Crunch Flavor Without Gelatin
Many homemade strawberry crunch recipes include Strawberry Jell-O powder along with freeze-dried strawberries. I’ve found that freeze-dried strawberries give enough natural flavor to the topping without gelatin powder or artificial flavoring.
Freeze-dried strawberries are simply fresh strawberries with their moisture removed, so they’re lightweight and crunchy. When crushed, they create a bright red powder with concentrated strawberry flavor and a hint of tartness.
How to Make Strawberry Crunch Cake
Ready to make this easy strawberry cake? Follow the steps below to prepare the cake and frosting.
- Mix the wet ingredients. Beat the sugar with vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla extract. Next, mix in the sour cream.
- Add the dry ingredients. Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a separate bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, alternating with the milk, until everything is well mixed. Remember to scrape down the sides of the bowl as you go.
- Bake the cake. Pour your cake batter into a 9×13-inch pan. Bake at 350ºF for 28-32 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Afterward, let the cake cool completely.
Strawberry Frosting
The base frosting starts with a vanilla buttercream; note your should use cold butter, straight from the fridge.
- Grind the freeze-dried strawberries. To make the frosting, pulse the freeze-dried strawberries in the food processor. Once you have a fine powder, sift through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any larger chunks.
- Make the frosting. Next, beat cold, cubed butter for 5-7 minutes, until it’s light and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar to the whipped butter in thirds. Alternate adding the vanilla extract, freeze-dried strawberries, heavy cream, and salt with each addition of powdered sugar. Lastly, beat the frosting for 2-3 minutes on high speed so it’s creamy and smooth.
- Frost the cake. When your vanilla cake has cooled, spread the strawberry frosting in an even layer on top of the cake.
Julianne’s Strawberry Frosting Tips
- Sift the powdered strawberries for the frosting. Sifting the powdered freeze-dried strawberries for the buttercream removes any large pieces that would make the frosting gritty. Save the chunks left over in the sieve; you can add them to the topping. You don’t need to sift the strawberry powder for the crunchy topping, since it’s already crumbly.
- How many freeze-dried strawberries will I need? I use 2 ounces of freeze-dried strawberries and divide them evenly between the strawberry crunch topping and strawberry frosting. The flavor is quite intense, so a little goes a long way.
Making the Strawberry Crunch Topping
The topping comes together like a classic Oreo crust, with crushed Golden Oreos and melted butter. Instead of going underneath the dessert, you’ll mix in freeze-dried strawberries and sprinkle the crunch on top:
- Make the crunch. Pulse additional freeze-dried strawberries in the food processor. Then, crush the Golden Oreos into pea-sized crumbs using a Ziploc bag and a rolling pin. Mix the powdered strawberries, Oreo crumbs, and melted butter in a bowl.
- Finish the cake. Sprinkle the crunch mixture over the frosting. If you’re not serving this cake right away, I suggest adding the crunch topping just before serving, so it doesn’t become soggy.
Crunch Cake Variations
- Love strawberry flavor? I opted not to add strawberry preserves to the cake as in my original strawberry cake recipe because I prefer the tangy strawberry flavor with the vanilla cake. However, you could make this strawberry crunch cake from a box of strawberry cake mix or a homemade strawberry cake with strawberry filling for even more flavor.
- Poke cake. Try a variation of my strawberry poke cake recipe topped with strawberry frosting and strawberry crunch.
- Lemon cookies. Instead of Golden Oreos, make the topping using Lemon Oreos for a bright twist.
- Gelatin powder. For a more traditional strawberry crunch topping, add 1-2 tablespoons of strawberry gelatin powder, like Jell-O, to the dry ingredients before mixing with the melted butter.
- Nilla Wafers or Shortbread Cookies- I tested multiple combinations of cookies with the freeze-dried strawberries. Nilla Wafer give a sweeter, more vanilla-forward taste, and a finer crumble. Shortbread cookies also work, but you will want to adjust the ratios to include more cookies. The crumble is also less crunchy.
Storing and Freezing
To store, keep this strawberry crunch cake covered in a cool, dry location at room temperature. It’ll be fine for 2-3 days. However, if you live somewhere warm or humid, consider storing your cake in the fridge and taking it out to serve at room temperature.
Freeze this cake in advance. I recommend freezing this cake after it’s frosted and before adding the crunch topping. While you can freeze the topping in a pinch, it softens the texture. If you freeze it with the topping, thaw the cake uncovered to avoid condensation.
More Strawberry Dessert Recipes
Strawberry Crunch Cake
- Prep Time: 60 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 12-15 slices
- Category: Cake, Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This strawberry crunch cake is a moist homemade vanilla cake topped with creamy strawberry frosting and a buttery, crunchy strawberry and Golden Oreo crumb. Inspired by the classic strawberry shortcake bars!
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 2 cups (380g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (118 ml) vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon (14.8 ml) vanilla extract
- ½ cup(120g) sour cream, at room temperature
- 2 ½ cups (350 g) all-purpose flour, sifted
- 3 teaspoons (11.2 g) baking powder
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) salt
- 1 ¼ cups (296 ml) milk (any type), at room temperature
For the Frosting
- 1 oz bag of freeze-dried strawberries
- 1 1/2 cups (339g) unsalted butter, cold
- 6 cups (780 g) powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons (10ml) pure vanilla extract
- 1–2 tablespoons (30ml) heavy cream or milk
For the Topping
- 1 oz bag of freeze-dried strawberries
- 16 Golden Oreos
- ¼ cup (4tbsp or 56g) butter, melted
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Mix the wet ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, beat together the sugar, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla extract until well incorporated. Scrape down the bowl as needed.
- Add the sour cream and beat until well combined.
- Combine the dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, combine the remaining dry ingredients and sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add half the dry ingredients and half the milk, and beat on low speed just until the flour starts to incorporate. Repeat until all ingredients are added and combined. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl and stir the batter from the bottom to the top to ensure it’s well mixed.
- Pour the batter into a 9-inch by 13-inch pan and bake at 350°F for 28-32 minutes. Test the cake for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of the cake. If the toothpick comes out clean, your cake is done. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before frosting.
For the Frosting
- Pulse the freeze-dried strawberries in a food processor to a fine powder. Sift the powder through a fine mesh sieve to remove any larger granules.
- Cut the butter into pieces. Using the paddle attachment, whip the butter for 5-7 minutes, scraping down the bowl occasionally, and beating until the butter looks light in color.
- Add 2 cups of powdered sugar and the vanilla extract and mix on low speed until incorporated, then increase the speed to high, and beat for approximately 60 seconds or until well combined.
- Next, add the freeze-dried strawberries, 2 cups of powdered sugar, and 1 tablespoon heavy cream (reserve the other tablespoon only if needed) and beat on low speed until incorporated; then increase speed to high and beat for 3 minutes.
- Add the remaining 2 cups of powdered sugar and salt. Beat on low until the ingredients start to mix. Increase speed to high and beat for another 2-3 minutes until it reaches desired consistency. Spread over the cooled cake.
For the Topping
- Pulse the freeze-dried strawberries in a food processor to a fine powder.
- Roughly crush the Oreos in a large Ziploc bag using a heavy kitchen tool (such as an ice cream scoop or rolling pin) to smash the cookies into pea-sized crumbs.
- Combine the powdered strawberries and golden Oreos in a bowl, pour the melted butter over top, and stir until incorporated. Spread over the top of the frosting.
Notes
- Storage: Keep the cake covered in a cool, dry location.
- Freezing: To prepare in advance, cool completely and frost, then freeze. Thaw to room temperature and add the topping. The topping can be frozen, but does soften the overall texture. If you are thawing a cake with the topping on it, I recommend removing the cover or plastic wrap from the cake to prevent condensation from forming, which makes the topping too soft. Thaw the cake on the counter.
- Nilla Wafers or Shortbread Cookies- I tested multiple combinations of cookies with the freeze-dried strawberries. Nilla Wafer give a sweeter, more vanilla-forward taste, and a finer crumble. Shortbread cookies also work, but you will want to adjust the ratios to include more cookies. The crumble is also less crunchy.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Slice
- Calories: 686
- Sugar: 77.5 g
- Sodium: 204.8 mg
- Fat: 32 g
- Carbohydrates: 97.5 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 5.1 g
- Cholesterol: 97.8 mg
