I am obsessed with strawberries, even though it is not yet peak season for fresh strawberries. I love anything "strawberry" and the urge to pick up a big basket is more than I can resist. It was one of those urges that inspired this Strawberry Lemonade Pound Cake recipe. Tastes just like an iced cold glass of strawberry lemonade on a hot summer day. If you find yourself hoarding strawberries this is a great way to enjoy them. Perfect for a Mother's Day brunch.
My Strawberry Lemonade Pound Cake features an abundance of fresh strawberries, lemon juice, and tart Greek yogurt.
Ingredients
The glaze is what takes this Strawberry Lemonade Cake over the top. Flavor and color are coaxed out of fresh strawberries via osmosis by letting the berries sit for a few hours or overnight in a mixture of milk and sugar. I learned all about osmosis during a 20+ year stint as a dialysis nurse. It is nice to occasionally put a tidbit of knowledge from the past into use in the present. Using osmosis to make strawberry glaze is my gift to you.
Ingredients for the glaze:
- Powdered sugar
- Milk, half n half, or cream (your choice, they all work)
- Sugar
- Strawberries
For a tart variation to the strawberry glaze, make a lemon glaze by adding a bit of lemon juice, fresh lemon zest and milk to the powered sugar. You could also use a ¼ teaspoon of lemon extract. Warning: Lemon extract is strong. A little goes a long way. You can always add more, a drop at a time, but you can't take it away, except by adding more powdered sugar.
Ingredients for the cake:
- Greek yogurt
- I love using Greek yogurt in place of sour cream in dense cake recipes. Not only does it cut the sweetness with a little tart, but it makes the cake less oily. I use plain, 0% fat Greek yogurt.
- Sugar
- Lemon, juice and zest.
- I don't add vanilla extract to this cake because the lemon flavor complements the strawberry perfectly.
- Strawberries
- Let's discuss strawberries for making Strawberry Lemonade Pound Cake. Many of the fresh fruits in the supermarket were picked before ripening and often lack the flavor and aroma of vine-ripened fruit. This is true of strawberries. Try to buy them at a fruit stand, organic market or the farmer's market. If they don't smell like strawberries, they won't taste like strawberries either. We are blessed to have many home-grown strawberry stands in our area where you can buy strawberries, straight out of the strawberry patch.
- Salt (use kosher salt)
- Baking powder
- (If using all purpose flour, double the amount of baking powder.)
- Eggs
- Butter
- Bakers are reporting lackluster results with ordinary brands of butter recently. Whether the issue is palm oil from the feed of the cows, to water being added, or to any of the butter-related conspiracy theories, good butter yields the best results. Read A Baker’s Golden Rule: Not All Butter Is Created Equal. I am a bit of a rebel because I use salted butter for baking and adjust the salt accordingly.
- Cake flour (I prefer cake flour but all purpose flour will work.)
Instructions for the Cake
Steps 1-4:
Steps 5-8:
Steps 9-12:
Steps 13-15:
Top Tip
Tossing the diced strawberries in a little all-purpose or cake flour helps keep them evenly distributed throughout the cake, versus sinking to the bottom. Put the dry fruits in a strainer with the flour. Toss to get the fruit coated with flour and the excess flour removed. This trick that works with other fresh fruits as well.
I used a Bundt pan for this Strawberry Lemonade Bundt Cake, but it would do well as a sheet cake or even muffins. The cake is dense but still very moist. This cake gets better if allowed to sit overnight.
Strawberry Lemonade Pound Cake
Equipment
- Bundt cake pan optional cake pans, loaf pans, or muffin pans
- Small bowl
- Electric mixer optional stand mixer
- Strainer
- Large bowl
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 cup butter softened, room temperature
- 2 cups sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 2 ½ cups cake flour plus five tablespoons
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 12 ounces fresh strawberries diced small or pulsed a couple of times in a food processor
For the glaze:
- 6 large. very ripe strawberries stemmed and crushed
- ¼ cup half and half or whole milk
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar plus extra for dusting
Instructions
Prep the strawberries for the glaze:
- Several hours before baking the cake or the night before, mix the 6 crushed strawberries, half and half or milk, and 2 TBS granulated sugar in a small bowl.
- Stir, cover with plastic wrap, and store in the refrigerator. This will be used to make the glaze.
For the cake:
- Preheat the oven temperature to 325 degrees.
- Spray a Bundt pan with non-stick baking spray and set aside. If you do not have baking spray see alternative method of pan prep in the next step.
- If you do not have non-stick baking spray generously grease the pan with butter or shortening and dust with ½ cup of flour. Tap pan again the edge of the sink to remove any loose flour.
- Whisk together in a medium bowl the 2 ½ cups cake flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- Cream butter and sugar together using an electric mixer on high speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing lightly on low speed to medium speed after each addition.
- Stir in the lemon juice and zest. Alternate mixing in the dry ingredients and the yogurt. Avoid over mixing.
- Just before folding the strawberries into the batter, toss them with 5 tablespoons cake flour. Do not over mix. Gently fold the strawberry flour mixture into the batter.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Place in the preheated oven on the middle rack. Bake for 60 -70 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Cool 15-20 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a wire rack or directly onto a cake stand to finish cooling completely.
For the glaze:
- Remove the strawberries and milk mixture from the fridge. Pour through a fine mesh strainer, saving the pretty pink strawberry milk in a small bowl.
- You will only use the liquid for the glaze. Sift the powdered sugar through large strainer to get out any lumps.
- Slowly add the strawberry milk, whisking as you go, until the glaze is the consistency you desire.
- Drizzle the glass over the cooled cake, dust with powdered sugar and enjoy.
Nutrition
Approximate nutrition information is provided as a convenience and courtesy only. You are encouraged to do your own calculations if precise data is required.
