If you are looking for a simple breakfast recipe to whip up on the weekend, look no further than this strawberry buttermilk cake! It's a one-bowl cake that you can have ready in under an hour that takes full advantage of fresh summer strawberries.
About the recipe
This simple but charming Strawberry Buttermilk Cake recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks - the Back in the Day Bakery Made With Love book by Cheryl and Griffith Day. The cake has the lightest, most tender crumb - it's like a slightly sweetened cloud with strawberries baked into it!
I bought this cookbook on a whim one day because I was drawn to the adorable vintage cover. As I flipped through the book in the bookstore, I was astonished at how many of the recipes reminded me of foods my sweet Nana used to make when we would visit.
Although I've never been to the Day's bakery, their friendly way with words and the homeyness of their recipes reminded me of my grandparents and some of their favorite things, so I knew I had to get the cookbook! Visiting Back in the Day Bakery in Savannah, GA is now on my travel bucket list; and hopefully, I can get the Days' to sign my book when I visit.
In the meantime, I'll just enjoy making their recipes from home to share with family and friends!
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Ingredients
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder and salt
- Softened butter
- Granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- Lowfat buttermilk
- Vanilla extract
- Fresh strawberries
Instructions
- Prepare a pan by lightly greasing it. I love to bake this cake in either a deep-dish pie pan or a springform pan with removable sides.
- Combine the dry ingredients - flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Cream together the butter and sugar until the mixture is pale yellow with a light and fluffy texture.
- Add the egg, buttermilk, and vanilla, mixing until well combined.
- Add the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined and a thick batter has formed. Be careful not to overmix!
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and arrange the sliced strawberries in a nice design on top.
- Bake and enjoy while warm!
Substitutions
- Reduce fat: sometimes I will cut the saturated fat in this recipe and use softened Earth Balance Vegan Butter sticks.
- Make it gluten-free: for most baking recipes, I like Cup4Cup gluten-free flour blend.
- Buttermilk substitutes - you can substitute ½ cup of sour cream or Greek yogurt mixed with 1 tablespoon of water for the buttermilk if you like.
- Make your own "buttermilk" - use a scant cup of 2% milk and combine it with 1 tablespoon of freshly-squeezed lemon juice or distilled white vinegar. Stir and let the mixture stand 10 minutes before using it.
- Berry substitutes - you can substitute fresh blueberries, blackberries, or raspberries for the strawberries in this buttermilk cake, or get creative and use a combination. Only use FRESH fruit in this recipe, as frozen fruit will lose its shape and bleed into the batter as the cake bakes.
Top tips
Use room temperature butter, egg, and buttermilk for easy mixing and to ensure a smooth cake batter. The butter should sit out at room temperature for about an hour, and the egg and buttermilk need about 30 minutes.
Freshly slice the strawberries just before using to ensure they retain all of the juices and shape as the cake bakes.
For a pretty presentation, use a springform cheesecake pan with removable sides. Once the cake has cooled for 30 minutes, remove the sides, and serve. This way, you can see the pretty edges of the cake!
Favorite strawberry recipes
Next to peaches, strawberries are my favorite fruit! I love to pick them at a local farm every May and then bake up as many strawberry recipes as possible. We all can use a good strawberry breakfast recipe like this cake, but here are some other favorites:
- Strawberry Lavender Syrup
- Strawberry Tomato Bruschetta
- Strawberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Jalapeno Cream Cheese Sliders with Strawberry Jam
- Strawberry Balsamic Pie
Are you ready to make this Strawberry Buttermilk Cake? I’m so excited for you to try this recipe. Once you get the chance to make it, please let me know how it turns out for you!
Leave a comment and rate the recipe below. This will help me with the creation of future recipes!
I’d also love to feature your creation in my monthly newsletter, so you can upload a photo to Instagram or Twitter with the tag @sweetcayenne5 to be featured!
Recipe
Strawberry Buttermilk Cake
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups unbleached all purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature and lightly beaten
- ½ cup buttermilk (lowfat is fine)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 pound strawberries, hulled and halved
- Optional: confectioner’s sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and make sure you have a rack in the center. Butter and flour the bottom and sides of a 9-inch deep dish pie pan or springform pan. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar on medium-high speed with a hand mixer until the mixture is light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of bowl as needed. This should take 2-3 minutes.
- Add the egg, buttermilk, and vanilla, mixing until just blended, about 1 minute.
- Gradually add the flour to the butter mixer with the mixer on low speed until just combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and use a rubber spatula to fold in any flour residue into the batter.
- Add the batter to your prepared pan and use the rubber spatula to smooth out the top. Tap the pan firmly on the counter to remove any air bubbles and ensure the batter is evenly distributed. Arrange the strawberries on top of the batter, cut side down, into a design of your choice.
- Bake the cake for 10 minutes, then reduce the oven heat to 325°F and bake for 45-55 minutes more until the cake is set, the edges are golden, and a toothpick inserted into the center of cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack.
- Dust the cake in the pan with powdered sugar before serving. You can slice it straight out of the pie pan.
- Store the cake in a airtight container in your refrigerator for up to 3 days. It’s wonderful chilled or warmed!
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Adriana says
This recipe was a hit! Ive made this recipe it was delicious but I took my own spin to it and made it into a cinnamon apple buttermilk crumb cake so delicious 🤤
Whitney Reist says
Thanks for rating and reviewing the recipe, Adriana! That apple version sounds amazing!
Stephanie says
How thick is the cake? Is it like a pancake?
Whitney Reist says
It's about 1 1/2 inches thick!
Audrey says
This cake was fabulous. I had my doubts when I was adding it to the pan because my batter ended up being so thick. It clearly states how long this cake takes in the recipe and I kept checking it early thinking there was no way the 1.5" of batter would take 55-60 mins, but it did! It turned out beautifully, with the perfect amount of sweetness. We made it as a breakfast treat and it will certainly stay in rotation this summer with all the yummy fruits that come into season. Thanks!
Whitney Reist says
That's wonderful, Audrey! Thanks so much for the great feedback and for trying the recipe 🙂
Kathy Larson says
Shame on me! We have a big bowl of berries probably going bad in the fridge now. I’ll try to salvage out enough to make this for my grandsons this weekend. I think they’ll love it. I also have vanilla ice cream to go with it. My hubby and I are terrible at letting food go too long without eating it. Must try to improve on that!!!
The recipe looks wonderful! Anxious to try!! Hope all are making it through this trying time okay. We hopefully won’t see anything else like this in our lifetimes. Kathy 6/11/20
lynn @ the actor's diet says
Love the way the strawberries look in this cake!
Whitney Reist says
Thanks so much, Lynn!