Strawberry Pound Cake
This strawberry pound cake is a simple yet elegant dessert! It’s topped with a three-ingredient strawberry glaze that takes the berry flavor of this dessert over the top.
Pound cake was originally made with one pound of each of its ingredients — eggs, butter, flour, and sugar. While I can appreciate the simplicity of traditional pound cake recipes, I much prefer making my own variations.
First, I created this ultra moist cream cheese pound cake recipe. And to ring in the warmer weather, I’ve created this easy strawberry pound cake.
But here’s the big secret about this pound cake recipe: you can make it year-round! Instead of spending 30+ minutes reducing fresh strawberries on the stovetop, I flavored the batter with strawberry extract and freeze-dried strawberry powder.
It may not be the traditional method, but I promise this strawberry glazed pound cake tastes like it was made with in-season berries! Serve slices of this pound cake with fresh strawberries and a generous portion of strawberry glaze for a decadent treat.
Ingredients in This Recipe
This scratch recipe calls for a couple of special ingredients you may not keep on hand, but the rest of the ingredients list is very basic. Here are a few key ingredients you’ll want to stock up on before preparing the pound cake.
- Freeze-Dried Strawberries: Freeze-dried strawberries add a concentrated strawberry flavor to this cake. I used two 1-ounce packages (2-ounces total) of freeze-dried strawberries and was able to get 1/2 cup for the cake and 2 tablespoons for the icing. You can blend them up in a small blender or food processor until they’re powdery. It doesn’t take very long and it’s much easier than reducing strawberries on the stove for 30 to 40 minutes!
- Strawberry Extract: Can be found in the baking aisle of your local grocery store. Don’t omit the strawberry extract or replace with additional vanilla extract otherwise the strawberry flavor won’t be as pronounced.
- Cake Flour: Contains less protein than all-purpose flour, which results in a lighter pound cake.
- Red food coloring: This isn’t necessary, but it turns the batter a lovely shade of pink. I used liquid food coloring and only needed about six drops total.
- Hot water: I recommend using hot water to make the strawberry glaze for the pound cake. It helps to dissolve the freeze-dried strawberry powder and makes a smoother glaze than milk would.
How to Make Strawberry Pound Cake
For this recipe, you’ll first prepare and bake the pound cake. Once the cake has cooled completely, you can drizzle the strawberry glaze over the top. Don’t try to glaze the cake while it’s still warm, otherwise the glaze will slide right off!
- Prepare your bundt pan: Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Then, spray a 10-inch bundt pan with cooking spray. Make sure your bundt pan has a 10 to 12 cup capacity!
- Combine the dry ingredients: Add the flour, freeze-dried strawberry powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to a large mixing bowl. Stir to combine, then set aside.
- Cream together the butter and sugar: I prefer using my stand mixer for this step. You’ll first need to beat the softened butter until smooth, then add the sugar and continue beating for about 5 minutes. You’re looking for the mixture to become light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs to the butter mixture: Add one egg at a time, waiting until each is fully combined before adding the next one.
- Add the remaining wet ingredients: To the butter mixture, stir in the oil, vanilla and strawberry extracts, and the food coloring.
- Combine the wet and dry ingredients: Add the dry ingredients to the wet in two additions, alternating between the flour mixture and the sour cream. Be careful not to over mix the batter!
- Bake the pound cake: Turn the batter into the prepared bundt pan, then bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool the pound cake: The cake will need to cool in the bundt pan for about 30 minutes before you can safely invert it onto a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
- Make the strawberry glaze: It’s a simple mixture of freeze-dried strawberry powder, powdered sugar, and hot water. If the icing is too thin, add more sugar. If it’s too thick, add more hot water.
- Glaze the cake: Drizzle the strawberry pound cake glaze over the cooled cake. Let it sit for about 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Recipe Substitutions
The freeze-dried strawberry powder and strawberry extract are two non-negotiable ingredients in this recipe. However, there are a few other ingredient swaps you can make as needed.
- Cake Flour: You can make DIY cake flour if you don’t have any in your pantry.
- Unsalted butter: You may use salted butter, just be sure to omit the additional salt called for in the recipe.
- Red liquid food coloring: May be omitted, just note that the batter won’t be as pink as shown in my photos.
- Oil: Any neutral oil, like canola, vegetable, or coconut oil will work.
- Sour cream: Plain, full-fat Greek yogurt would be a suitable alternative.
Baking Tips
- It’s best to use hot water instead of milk for the icing. It helps to dissolve the strawberry powder and makes for a smoother icing!
- Freeze-dried strawberries may not be in the baking aisle of your local grocery store. Check the snack aisle as well, or anywhere you’d normally find the dried fruits.
- If you prefer a cake made with fresh strawberries, try my strawberry cake recipe instead. The baking time should be similar to this recipe.
More Strawberry Desserts You’ll Love!
- Strawberry Cupcakes
- Strawberry Shortcake
- Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Cupcakes
- Mini Strawberry Cheesecakes
Recipe Video
![A strawberry pound cake topped with strawberry icing. A few strawberries rest on top of the cake.](https://i0.wp.com/www.livewellbakeoften.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Strawberry-Pound-Cake-10.jpg?fit=200%2C200&ssl=1)
Strawberry Pound Cake
Ingredients
Strawberry Pound Cake
- 3 cups cake flour spooned & leveled (345 grams)
- ½ cup freeze-dried strawberry powder (40 grams) see recipe notes
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened (230 grams)
- 2 cups granulated sugar (400 grams)
- 4 large eggs at room temperature
- ¼ cup canola or vegetable oil (60 ml)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon strawberry extract
- 6 to 8 drops red liquid food coloring or a small squeeze of red gel coloring
- 1 cup sour cream at room temperature (240 grams)
Strawberry Glaze
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar (180 grams)
- 2 tablespoons freeze-dried strawberry powder (10 grams)
- 3 to 4 tablespoons hot water use more as needed (45 to 60 ml)
Instructions
- To make the strawberry pound cake: Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Generously spray a 10-inch (10 to 12-cup) bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the cake flour, ½ cup of freeze-dried strawberry powder (40 grams), baking powder, baking soda, and salt together until well combined. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large mixing bowl using a handheld mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the granulated sugar.
- Once all of the sugar is added, increase to medium speed and continue mixing for another 5 minutes or until the mixture is light in color and fluffy.
- Mix in the eggs, one at a time, making sure to stop and scrape around the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed.
- Mix in the oil, vanilla extract, strawberry extract, and red food coloring until fully combined.
- Add the dry ingredients in two additions alternating with the sour cream (begin and end with the dry ingredients) on low speed. Mix in each addition until just combined, making sure not to over mix the batter.
- Use a rubber spatula to scrape around the bottom and sides of the bowl to ensure that everything is well combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan and spread it around into one even layer.
- Bake for 55 to 70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for about 30 minutes. Slide a knife between the outside of the cake and the pan to loosen it, then carefully remove the cake from the pan, and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the strawberry glaze: Add the powdered sugar, strawberry powder, and hot water to a large mixing bowl and mix until well combined and no lumps remain. If the icing is too thin, add more powdered sugar as needed. If the icing is too thick, add more water as needed.
- Drizzle the icing on top of the cake and set aside for 10 to 15 minutes so the icing has time to firm up slightly.
Hello, As to the Freeze dried strawberry powder, just were do you get this? I haven’t ran into that in the grocery store, nor on the King Arthur site that I remember. As far as I know the closest to that is Strawberry jello.
Thank You.
Hi Mark! I can usually find freeze-dried strawberries at Walmart, but you can buy them on Amazon too. If you can’t find any or don’t want to order them online you can try my strawberry cake recipe instead and just bake it in a bundt pan. It’s similar in flavor to this cake, but uses fresh strawberries.
Where do you get freeze dried berries?
Hi, Danielle! I usually buy mine at Walmart, but you can buy them on Amazon as well.
I looked at two stores for freeze dried strawberry powder and couldn’t find it. Can you tell me where you got yours? I want to make this cake by July 27 so here’s hoping you can help me. Thank you
Hi, Judy! I usually buy mine at Walmart, but you can find them on Amazon. If you’re not able to find any, you can use my strawberry cake recipe that uses fresh berries instead.
I went to Target today and guess what i found? Freeze dried strawberry slices!! I was excited so I bought 2 pkgs. I will put them in my machine and mix till their powdered. I will get this cake make by date I need it for and not order from Amazon if Walmart is out. Just want to let people know who are looking for them.
Thanks for sharing, Judy! Glad you were able to find some at Target!
Got better overnight! I made this yesterday and it was a little too dry (it’s possible I over mixed my batter), but when I cut a big slab for breakfast this morning I discovered it had settled into itself a bit, and now it’s wonderful. The flavor seemed to intensify a little as well. Using freeze-dried strawberries was easy, and such a great idea for natural flavor without the fuss of prepping fresh berries. (I found them at Harris Teeter.) The only change I made was 1/2 salted, 1/2 unsalted butter. The hot water (vs milk) for the glaze was spot on, too. I needed the full 4 Tbsp. It hardened once pored on. Beautiful cake, and delicious with a cup of coffee.
Glad you enjoyed the cake, Tammy! If you found that it was a bit dry, it may have been a little over baked. You can try reducing the baking time by 5 minutes next time and see if that helps.
Thanks for the tip! I will write that down and give it a try next time.
I don’t have a bundt pan. Can I just use a 23cm round cake tin? Do you think the cooking time would still be 55-70mins?
Hi, Marisa! You could bake this recipe in two 23-cm (9-inch) round cake pans or cut the recipe in half and bake it in one. Baking time will probably be 25 to 35 minutes.
Wow, one of the best cakes I’ve ever made. Thanks for the recipe.
The absolutely best. It was so moist and flavorful. Got rave reviews and everyone said never lose this recipe.
The cake was a very good texture and it was a easy recipe to follow, but, surprisingly, not the intense strawberry flavor I expected, especially given the amount of strawberry powder in the batter. I thought 2 teaspoons of vanilla may have softened the flavor a bit so I might try to replace ½ to 1 teaspoon of the vanilla with strawberry extract. The glaze was not the light pink color as pictured. It was deep red like a ripe strawberry, so milk instead of water would be necessary to achieve the light pink color. But I’ll definitely use the full red strawberry glaze for sugar cookies, since the flavor was great using the strawberry powder. I’ll make the cake again and see how it turns out with a couple tweaks.