Strawberry Crunch Cake
This Strawberry Crunch Cake recipe is out of this world good! If you love strawberry crunch ice cream bars, then you will fall in love with this fluffy, homemade strawberry cake. It’s topped with a rich and creamy vanilla frosting, then finished with a perfectly crunchy strawberry and golden Oreo topping. This is the perfect summer dessert!
For more delicious strawberry dessert recipes, be sure to check out my Strawberry Lemon Cupcakes, Fresh Strawberry Pie, and The Best Strawberry Crisp.
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I am so excited to be sharing this fun and delicious dessert with you today! When I say this is one of those times where a dream that you’ve had for a long time finally comes to fruition, I really and truly mean it!
Do you remember those awesome strawberry crunch ice cream bars? I used to get them for lunch when I was in middle school/high school. Probably not the healthiest thing to eat for a full meal, but I digress.
I crave them a lot, especially during the summer months. I love making cookie or cake versions of some of my favorite treats (like Cosmic Brownie Cookies), and have wanted to make a Strawberry Crunch Cake recipe for a long time.
If you love those sweet and delicious crunchy ice cream treats, too, then you are going to fall in love with this cake!
Ingredients for Strawberry Crunch Cake (See Measurements in the Recipe Card Below!)
- granulated white sugar
- eggs
- milk
- unsalted butter
- strawberry jello
- vanilla extract
- all purpose flour
- baking powder
- baking soda
- salt
- heavy cream
- powdered sugar
- freeze dried strawberries
- golden Oreos
How to Make Strawberry Crunch Cake – Step by Step
Step 1: Preheat oven
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a 9×13-inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
Step 2: Make the batter
Beat 1 stick of room temperature butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the granulated sugar and beat again until creamy. Add the egg whites and egg and beat until fluffy, about 2 minutes on high speed.
Step 3: Add wet ingredients
Pour in the milk, jello powder, and vanilla extract and beat until combined.
Step 4: Combine dry ingredients
Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large separate bowl. Add it to the wet mixture and beat on low speed until just combined.
Step 5: Bake
Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake your strawberry crunch cake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cake. Let it cool for at least one hour before frosting.
Step 6: Make the frosting
To make the buttercream frosting, beat 2 sticks of softened butter over medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Pour in the heavy cream, vanilla, and salt and whip again until fully incorporated. Continue to beat over medium speed as you gradually add the powdered sugar. Beat over medium speed until frosting is light and fluffy.
Step 7: Make the crunch topping
Crush the golden Oreo cookies and dried strawberries together in a Ziploc bag with a rolling pin until it forms a rough, pea-size crumb. Pour in 4 Tablespoons of melted butter, seal the bag, and toss to combine.
Step 8: Decorate and serve
Spread the buttercream frosting on top of the strawberry crunch cake, then sprinkle the crunch mix evenly over the top. Serve and enjoy!
Strawberry Crunch Cake Recipe – Tips and Notes
- Use room temperature eggs. This will help your ingredients to incorporate smoothly. If you haven’t had time to let your eggs come to room temperature, simply place them in a bowl of warm water for five minutes before adding to the strawberry crunch cake batter.
- Where to find freeze dried strawberries: most grocery stores carry freeze dried strawberries, and they are usually located in the aisle with snacks or other dried fruit, like raisins. You can also order them online from Amazon here.
- For a shortcut version, you can use a boxed strawberry cake mix for the cake, and a container of store bought vanilla frosting. The crunch topping is essential though, so you’ll need to make that from scratch!
Making in Advance
This Strawberry Crunch Cake can be made and frosted 1-2 days ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator, though I recommend waiting to make and add the crunch topping until right before you are ready to serve. This will prevent the crunch coating from getting stale or soggy.
How to Store your Strawberry Crunch Cake
Any leftover cake can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days. You can also store the cake in the refrigerator.
More Amazing Cake Recipes You Should Try!
- Easy Coconut Cake
- The Best Homemade Chocolate Cake
- Banana Cake with Vanilla Frosting
- Pina Colada Poke Cake
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*If you try this recipe, please leave a comment and rating below. I love to hear from you and always appreciate your feedback!
Recipe: Strawberry Crunch Cake
Ingredients
For the cake
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, 1 stick, room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups granulated white sugar
- 3 egg whites
- 1 egg
- 2/3 cup milk
- 3 ounce package strawberry jello, just the powder
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the frosting
- 1 cup unsalted butter, 2 sticks, room temperature
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups powdered sugar
For the crunch topping
- 12 golden Oreos, separated and cream middles removed
- 1 cup freeze dried strawberries
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a 9x13-inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
- Beat 1 stick of room temperature butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the granulated sugar and beat again until creamy. Add the egg whites and egg and beat until fluffy, about 2 minutes on high speed.
- Pour in the milk, jello powder, and vanilla extract and beat until combined.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large separate bowl. Add it to the wet mixture and beat on low speed until just combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cake. Let it cool for at least one hour before frosting.
- To make the buttercream frosting, beat 2 sticks of softened butter over medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Pour in the heavy cream, vanilla, and salt and whip again until fully incorporated. Continue to beat over medium speed as you gradually add the powdered sugar. Beat over medium speed until frosting is light and fluffy.
- Crush the golden Oreo cookies and dried strawberries together in a Ziploc bag with a rolling pin until it forms a rough, pea-size crumb. Pour in 4 Tablespoons of melted butter, seal the bag, and toss to combine.
- Spread the buttercream frosting on top of the cake, then sprinkle the crunch mix evenly over the top. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Use room temperature eggs. This will help your ingredients to incorporate smoothly. If you haven’t had time to let your eggs come to room temperature, simply place them in a bowl of warm water for five minutes before adding to the batter.
- Where to find freeze dried strawberries: most grocery stores carry freeze dried strawberries, and they are usually located in the aisle with snacks or other dried fruit, like raisins. You can also order them online from Amazon here.
- For a shortcut version, you can use a boxed strawberry cake mix for the cake, and a container of store bought vanilla frosting. The crunch topping is essential though, so you'll need to make that from scratch!
- Storage directions: any leftover cake can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days. You can also store the cake in the refrigerator.
Wow! This is so good! First time I made it and we loved it! Will be making this often in the summer for sure!
This was insanely good. I made the recipe into cupcakes and it tastes *exactly* like a strawberry brunch ice cream bar. I ended up putting some frosting on each cupcake then rolling it in the topping to get it to stick. Big fan. Will 100% make again
Currently baking in the oven and it smells amazing! Tried some of the batter and it’s so refreshing and sweet, making this for my mom’s birthday tomorrow. Thank you for this recipe!
You recipe sounds delicious. I had a quick question can I make this with 2 round cake pans instead and if yes what size pans do you recommend?
Hi Samantha, yes you can definitely do that. I would use 2 9-inch cake pans.
I made this and it was outstanding! Thank you for the recipe.
I love strawberry crunch ice cream pops. I’m going to be making a plant based, gluten-free version of this cake for my church this Sabbath. I’m doubling the recipe, so I hope every comes out ok. I’ll keep you updated.
I would love to hear how it comes out ! We celebrate Sha’bat also!
How would you convert this recipe into cupcakes?
I would reduce the bake time to 15-18 minutes for cupcakes.
Just made it and it turned out great!
Oh, I would never have thought of this cake idea but now that I see it I would definitely like to make it. Thanks.
This is such a yummy looking recipe it reminds me of those ice bars we would get in school, my husband loved those.
I got a confession to make. I’ve never had strawberry crunch ice cream,. After reading your blog post, I think I’d enjoy the cake version much better anyway. Can’t wait to give it a try!
I Love strawberries, definitely need to give this one a go
I love strawberries so I am excited to try this cake out. It looks amazing!
This looks delicious, I love anything with strawberries and a crunch