This small batch of gluten-free strawberry shortcake cake is bound to become your new summer favorite. With soft and fluffy vanilla sponges, luscious, whipped cream, and also an overabundance of juicy strawberries. With a generous drizzle of strawberry syrup, it’s the ultimate summer showstopper.
The recipe makes a two-layer, 6-inch cake that serves 4-6 people, but it’s easily doubled to make an 8-inch cake.
Regardless of what you call this dessert (is it a strawberry shortcake cake or is it a strawberry & cream cake??), one thing is for certain: it’s the ultimate summer showstopper.
It’s delightfully messy, in a deliciously decadent manner – with dollops and swoops of softly whipped cream peaking over golden sponges. The whole thing is laden with juicy, ruby-red strawberries, the latter drizzled with their juices that have been reduced until thick and sticky, and syrupy.
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Here’s Why You’ll Love This Gluten Free Strawberry Shortcake Cake
The gluten-free vanilla sponges – they’re perfectly soft and fluffy, with a delicate, melt-in-the-mouth texture. That’s largely due to the so-called “reverse creaming method”, which I love using for layer cakes as it always produces the most delicious results (more on that below)
Whipped cream, stabilized with cream cheese – it’s switched to the soft peak stage and holds its shape beautifully thanks to the addition of cream cheese. In addition to stabilizing it, the cream cheese also adds a slight tang to the frosting, which pairs beautifully with the sweet strawberries
The juicy strawberries – the cake is packed with strawberries. They’re macerated for about an hour or so, which allows them to release their juices and become even more aromatic and delicious. The juices are then reduced down to a syrup, which I like to liberally drizzle all over the finished cake (and over the individual slices as well, just for good measure)
It’s a small-batch cake! This recipe makes a 6-inch, two-layer cake that serves 4-6 people – though you could easily double the recipe to make an 8-inch cake instead
It’s gluten-free – not that you could guess
It’s drop-dead gorgeous. Just look at it
Assembling The Gluten Free Strawberry Shortcake
And now, it’s time for the fun part: assembling the cake! Here’s how:
Make sure that your sponges are completely cooled. If needed, level them off with a sharp serrated knife. Place one of the sponges on a cake stand or serving plate of choice, so that its bottom faces downwards
Dollop half of the whipped cream on top and use a small offset spatula to spread it out. Arrange half of the strawberries on top of the cream in an even layer
Place the other sponge on top, so that its bottom faces upwards. This will give your cake a nice flat top
Spread the other half of the whipped cream on top of the sponge
Arrange the remaining strawberries on top of the cream. Gosh, it’s already looking gorgeous
As the perfect finishing touch, drizzle the strawberry syrup over the top of the cake, allowing it to drip down the sides. I recommend drizzling the cake just before serving for the most beautiful results. And, of course, you can drizzle the individual cake slices with the remaining strawberry syrup as well. Trust me, there’s no such thing as too much strawberry syrup. It’s just SO GOOD!!
I could eat this gluten-free strawberry shortcake cake all summer long. There’s just something about the combination of soft vanilla sponges and luscious whipped cream. An overabundance of juicy strawberries that’s pure magic. And also when you add the strawberry syrup into the mix… expect flavor fireworks.
Small Batch Gluten Free Strawberry Shortcake
This small batch of gluten-free strawberry shortcake cake is bound to become your new summer favorite. With soft and fluffy vanilla sponges, luscious whipped cream, and an overabundance of juicy strawberries. With a generous drizzle of strawberry syrup, it’s the ultimate summer showstopper. The recipe makes a two-layer, 6-inch cake that serves 4-6 people, but it’s easily doubled to make an 8-inch cake.
Ingredients
Gluten-Free Vanilla Sponges:
150 g (1 ¼ cups) plain gluten-free flour blend (I used Doves Farm Free plain gluten-free flour, which doesn’t contain xanthan gum. You can also mix your blend from 50% white rice flour, 30% potato starch, and 20% maize flour by weight.)
20 g (3 ½ tbsp.) almond flour (You can substitute it with an equal weight of the gluten-free flour blend if you’re allergic to nuts, but note that the cake will dry out a bit faster.)
150 g (¾ cup) caster/superfine or granulated sugar
1 ¼ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp xanthan gum (Omit if your gluten-free flour blend already contains xanthan gum.)
¼ tsp salt
85 g (¾ stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 UK medium/US large egg, room temperature
135 g (½ cup + 1 tbsp.) whole milk, room temperature
½ tsp vanilla bean paste (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
For macerated strawberries & strawberry syrup:
320 g (about 2 ½ cups) strawberries, halved (for smaller strawberries) or quartered (for larger strawberries)
50 g (¼ cup) caster/superfine or granulated sugar
1 tbsp. lemon juice
½ tsp vanilla bean paste (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
For Stabilized Whipped Cream:
230 g (1 cup) cold double/heavy cream
115 g (½ cup) hard full-fat cream cheese
80 g (⅔ cup) powdered/icing sugar
½ tsp vanilla bean paste (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
Instructions
Gluten-Free Vanilla Sponges:
Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Lightly butter two 6-inch (15cm) round cake tins and line their bottoms with rounds of baking/greaseproof paper
In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer if using it), sift together the gluten-free flour blend, almond flour, sugar, baking powder, xanthan gum, and salt
Add the softened butter and, using your fingertips, work it into the dry ingredients until you get a mixture resembling breadcrumbs. You can also use a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a hand mixer fitted with the double beaters
Tip: This order of adding the ingredients (that is, working the butter into the dry ingredients plus sugar before adding the wet) is known as “reverse creaming”. It gives the cake sponges a very even aeration, a delicate melt-in-the-mouth texture, and a uniform rise (with minimal doing)
For Sponge
In a separate bowl, mix together the egg, milk, and vanilla bean paste, and add them to the flour-butter mixture in two batches, whisking well after each addition, until you get a smooth cake batter with no flour clumps. (Again, you can do this by hand using a balloon whisk, or using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or a hand mixer fitted with the double beaters)
Evenly divide the cake batter between the two lined cake tins and smooth out the top
Bake at 350ºF (180ºC) for about 22-24 minutes or until well risen, golden brown on top, and an inserted toothpick comes out clean
Allow cooling in the cake tins for about 10 minutes before turning them out onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely
Evenly divide the cake batter between the two lined cake tins and smooth out the top.
Bake at 350ºF (180ºC) for about 22-24 minutes or until well risen, golden brown on top, and an inserted toothpick comes out clean
Allow cooling in the cake tins for about 10 minutes before turning them out onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely
For Macerated Strawberries & Strawberry Syrup:
In a large bowl, combine the halved and quartered strawberries, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla. Mix well until the strawberries are evenly coated with the sugar
Cover and allow to sit either at room temperature for 1-2 hours or in the fridge overnight, stirring occasionally
Once the strawberries have released their juices, pass them through a sieve to drain the juices, then return the strawberries back to the bowl and set aside until needed
Pour the juices into a saucepan and cook over medium-high heat with frequent stirring until thickened and syrupy, but not quite jam-like. This should take about 5 minutes. Once reduced, set aside to cool
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What is the difference between shortcakes and cake?
What is The Difference Between a Shortcake and Cake? Although they both look the same to the untrained eyes, it all comes down to texture. Shortcake is more crumbly and crisp, while cake, most of the time, is rich, light, and airy.29
What are Strawberry Shortcake crumbs made of?
Homemade Strawberry Crunch, also known as Strawberry Shortcake Crumble is a mixture of Golden Oreos, strawberry Jell-O, and butter. It creates a truly irresistible topping that you can sprinkle over ice cream, dip homemade popsicles in, or sprinkle over Strawberry Crunch Cake.
What is strawberry jam gluten-free?
Smucker’s jams do not contain gluten ingredients and should be safe for those on a gluten-free diet.
Conclusion
Gluten-free strawberry shortcake cake is bound to become your new summer favorite. With soft and fluffy vanilla sponges, luscious whipped cream, an overabundance of juicy strawberries, and a generous drizzle of strawberry syrup, it’s the ultimate summer showstopper.
It’s delightfully messy, in a deliciously decadent manner – with dollops and swoops of softly whipped cream peaking over golden sponges and the whole thing is absolutely laden with juicy, ruby-red strawberries, the latter drizzled with their juices that have been reduced until thick and sticky and syrupy.
Apart from telling you all about the gluten-free strawberry shortcake, I have also given you various recipes you can try at home whenever you like.
