Strawberries and chocolate are a match made in dessert heaven!
One of the most romantic treats you can make or give to someone is chocolate-covered strawberries. The chocolate coating and the fresh strawberry taste make me think of Valentine’s Day and desire. It also reminds me of fun parties where there’s a chocolate fountain and fruits to dip! Any way you look at it, chocolate plus strawberries is delicious. This Chocolate Strawberry Cake is an indulgent, fun, and potentially romantic dessert capturing the best berries and chocolate have to offer!
You don’t have to wait for Valentine’s Day or even have a romantic reason to show your love with a chocolate strawberry cake. You can make it for birthdays, Mother’s or Father’s Day, an anniversary, or a graduation! Any celebration or get-together is a good enough reason to make a delicious cake.
Every layer of this cake is full and fantastic. Sometimes, when you’re eating a cake, you skip over the cakey parts, or you eat around something like fondant. With this recipe, there isn’t a chance you’ll want to miss a single bite of any element, as long as you’re someone who loves a rich and delicious treat.
Fresh Strawberry Fields Forever
Fresh strawberries will give you the best taste for your buttercream and garnish. There are pre-packaged pureed strawberries you can buy, but it’s very much worth it to use fresh strawberries that you puree yourself for a better flavor. You can easily do this by putting your strawberries into a food processor or a blender and turning it on until you get a smooth puree. Put this puree into a saucepan and cook at medium heat for up to 10 minutes. Turn the heat down to let it simmer for around 15 to 20 minutes. Continue the process of evaporating the liquid until it’s reduced to half of what you started with. Take it off the heat and let it cool thoroughly before using.
FAQs & Tips
How to Make Ahead and Store?
You can make this cake a day in advance and keep it at room temperature before serving. After a day, you should keep it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, covered. You can also make the frosted cake or separate puree and freeze them for up to 3 months. Make sure to keep them in airtight containers to prevent freezer burn.
Coffee Kick
Another great flavor that goes well with chocolate and strawberries is coffee! You can intensify the flavor in your chocolate cake by switching the 1 cup of boiling water (used for your cake batter) with 1 cup of hot coffee. It’s a delicious way to add depth of flavor, and you can make extra coffee to serve next to your cake.
Cool It Down
When you have your cake out of the oven, you want to make sure it’s thoroughly cooled down before you apply your strawberry buttercream. If you put your buttercream on too soon, it will melt and soak into your cake, which ruins the texture and flavor. Overall, you’ll want to be patient with cooling! Letting your cake chill for up to 4 hours once assembled will allow the flavors to meld just right and the filling to set.
Serving Suggestions
A good idea for your garnish isn’t just fresh strawberries but chocolate-covered fresh strawberries on top! You can use some extra Chocolate Ganache to dip your strawberries in and place them in an aesthetically pleasing way around your cake. You can also make Sweetened Whipped Cream to serve with your cake, as whipped cream always goes with cake!
Chocolate Strawberry Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup whole milk room temperature
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup pureed strawberries
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- Fresh strawberries for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour into prepared pans.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in the pans, then remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely.
- For the strawberry buttercream, beat butter until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, pureed strawberries, vanilla, and heavy cream. Beat until smooth and spreadable.
- For the ganache, heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan until it begins to simmer. Remove from heat and pour over chocolate chips. Let sit for 5 minutes, then stir until smooth.
- To assemble, place one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread with half of the strawberry buttercream. Top with the second cake layer. Spread remaining buttercream over the top and sides of the cake.
- Pour ganache over the cake, allowing it to drip down the sides. Garnish with fresh strawberries. Let set before serving.
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