Whether you're looking for a sweet treat to enjoy with your morning coffee or a show-stopping dessert to impress your guests, this strawberry spoon cake is sure to delight you! This simple cake is loaded with fresh strawberries and a moist, buttery crumb. The best part? It's so easy to make! All you need are pantry staples, fresh berries, and vanilla ice cream for the ultimate treat.
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💭 Why you'll love this recipe
- Deliciously sweet. The combination of fresh strawberries and moist and tender cake is a match made in heaven. The natural sweetness of the strawberries adds flavor to every bite (like my strawberry shortcake cookies).
- Easy recipe to make. Strawberry spoon cake is a quick and simple dessert that can be whipped up in no time and with minimal effort. All you need is a few basic pantry ingredients and a little bit of mixing, and you'll have a tasty dessert in just a few minutes.
- Perfect for summer. Warm spoonfuls of this strawberry spoon cake topped with vanilla ice cream make for a perfect dessert on a hot summer day!
📋 Ingredients and notes
To make strawberry spoon cake, you'll need unsalted butter, fresh strawberries, light brown sugar, whole milk, salt, all-purpose flour, and baking powder. To serve, I highly recommend a couple of dollops of vanilla ice cream.
Notes and variations
- Strawberries. For this easy strawberry dessert recipe, I opted for fresh strawberries; however, frozen ones could be just as delectable!
- Milk. For this recipe, you have the option of using either whole milk or buttermilk. You can also use plant-based alternatives to make it vegan.
- Butter. I used unsalted butter for this recipe, but you can also use salted butter if you forego adding salt to the recipe. You can also use vegan butter as a plant-based alternative.
- All-purpose flour. You can substitute all-purpose flour with almond flour or gluten-free all-purpose flour with a 1:1 ratio.
- Add a dash of vanilla extract (or even almond extract) to enhance the flavor.
📖 How to make strawberry spoon cake
Preheat the oven to 350°F and butter an 8-inch skillet or baking dish that is safe to use in the oven. Keep it aside.
Press the berries with your hands or the back of a fork to extract the juices, then mix ⅓ cup of the brown sugar into it. Reserve.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, melted butter, remaining ⅓ cup of brown sugar, milk, and salt and whisk until smooth.
Add the baking powder and whisk gently. Pour the flour mixture into the greased baking dish and spread it evenly in the corners using a rubber spatula.
Pour the strawberries and all their juice over the top of the cake batter. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean in the center.
Take it out of the oven and let it cool for 3 to 5 minutes before serving it in bowls. Serve warm with scoops of vanilla ice cream over the top layer of jammy strawberries!
👩🏽🍳 Top tips for the best strawberry spoon cake
When making this delicious dessert, keep these three key tips in mind:
- Use fresh strawberries. The key to a delicious strawberry spoon cake is using fresh, ripe strawberries. Look for berries that are deep red, firm to the touch, and fragrant. You can also use frozen strawberries, but they will not be as flavorful and won’t provide the same texture.
- Don't overmix the batter. When mixing the batter, be careful not to overmix it. Over-mixing can lead to a tough, dense cake. Mix just until the ingredients are combined for a soft and fluffy cake.
- Serve with whipped cream or ice cream. Strawberry spoon cake is best served with a dollop of whipped cream on top or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. The creamy sweetness of the whipped cream complements the tartness of the strawberries perfectly!
👩🏽🍳Troubleshooting FAQs
Strawberry spoon cake is a dessert that is somewhat like a cross between a cobbler and a cake. It consists of an even layer of fresh strawberries baked in a buttery cake batter. The delightful cake is typically served warm and topped with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
It is called a spoon cake because it is so moist and tender that it can be eaten with a spoon, rather than a fork. Unlike traditional cakes, a spoon cake has a barely set center and is meant to be scooped up and eaten directly from the dish with a spoon.
Fresh strawberries are recommended for this recipe, but you could use frozen strawberries that have been thawed and drained. Just keep in mind that the texture and taste of the cake may be slightly different.
🍴 How to serve, store strawberry spoon cake
Serve: The strawberry spoon cake is best served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or some freshly whipped cream. You could top it off with some berry compote or fresh mint as well.
Store: To store, place it in an airtight container such as a plastic wrap or aluminum foil. You can leave it out on the counter at room temperature for up to 2 days. This will allow the cake to retain its moisture and texture, while also preventing it from becoming too dry.
You can refrigerate the spoon cake for up to 3 days. However, the texture of the spoon cake can become dry and dense after a few days in the fridge, it is best to eat it fresh from the oven.
Freeze: We don't recommend freezing this spoon cake, as this can cause the cake to lose its texture and flavor when thawed.
Reheat: Reheat individual slices in the microwave for 15-20 seconds or in a preheated oven at 350°F for 5-10 minutes until warmed through.
🍴 Other simple but delicious desserts
Check out these delicious desserts that are super simple to make:
Did you make this recipe?! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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📖 Recipe
Strawberry Spoon Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted, plus for greasing
- 5 ounces fresh strawberries, hulled
- ⅔ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ½ cup whole milk, at room temperature
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- vanilla ice cream, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and butter an 8-inch skillet or baking dish that is safe to use in the oven. Keep it aside.
- Press the berries with your hands or the back of a fork to extract the juices, then mix ⅓ cup of brown sugar into it. Reserve.
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, melted butter, remaining ⅓ cup of brown sugar, milk, and salt and whisk until smooth. Add the baking powder and whisk gently. Pour the batter into the greased skillet baking dish and spread it evenly in the corners using a rubber spatula.
- Pour the strawberries and all their juice over the top of the cake batter. Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean in the center. Take it out of the oven and let it cool for 3 to 5 minutes before serving it in bowls. Serve warm with ice cream.
I made this with a GF flour and oat flour blend - what a great simple dessert! We ate it right out of the skillet warm with some ice cream. Delicious!
This strawberry skillet cake was a hit with the family. It's a great summer dessert served warm with a scoop of ice cream.
Oh yeah!!! This was delish -- I am such a fan of fruity desserts with vanilla ice cream! thanks for the tip on adding the sugar and letting them berries sit for a few minutes to juice up!
I used strawberries from my garden for this recipe and it turned out fantastic. I wasn't sure how it would cook in the cast iron pan, but it was really easy to bake. The cake turned out soft and had a tangy with sweet flavors. I Topped with vanilla ice cream.
Strawberry is the ultimate comfort food of the kids and this strawberry spoon cake recipe just pleased them! They love the right sweetness of this cake! Highly recommended!