This strawberry shortcake is fresh, moist and super easy to make. One layer homemade vanilla cake, whipped mascarpone and juicy strawberries that create the perfect spring/summer dessert!
What’s Strawberry Shortcake?
A popular dessert made out of layered cakes with strawberry toppings. This one layer strawberry shortcake is easier and more convenient to make than layered cakes yet still tastes amazing.
Why You’ll Love this Strawberry Shortcake:
- Easy to make: you just have to bake the vanilla cake, prepare the mascarpone whipped cream and garnish with fresh strawberries.
- Cake for a small group of people: perfect sized dessert for a small group or if you crave a cake but don’t want leftovers.
- Convenient: easy to bring with you at a barbecue or the park for a picnic.
- Light and moist: the texture of this vanilla cake is just perfect!
How to Make Strawberry Shortcake?
Vanilla cake
We’re using basic ingredients such as all purpose flour, neutral oil, sugar, milk and vanilla extract. We also add mascarpone cheese to the cake to make it super moist.
We decided to make this cake in a 8×8 square pan, but feel free to make it with a circular pan if you prefer.
Whipped Mascarpone
A twist on the traditional recipe that uses regular whipped cream, mascarpone whipped cream is even better! It’s thicker and richer, plus it pairs so well with this shortcake. We start by whipping 35% cream and we then add mascarpone as well as a few tablespoons of powdered sugar.
Juicy Strawberries
Fresh summer strawberries are just THE best! We toss them in a little bit of sugar to macerate the strawberries before assembling the cake.
Tips to Perfect This recipe
- Use room temperature ingredients when making the cake. Make sure you leave eggs, mascarpone cheese and milk on the counter for a few hours.
- Strain the flour to make sure you break up any lumps.
- Assemble the cake when you’re ready to eat. It’s best enjoyed fresh.
- Use fresh strawberries. The sweeter, the better!
Can You Make Strawberry Shortcake Ahead of Time?
You can easily bake the vanilla cake the night before, but I recommend assembling the cake just before eating.
Can You Freeze Strawberry Shortcake?
You can freeze the vanilla cake for up to 3 months. I don’t recommend freezing the strawberry shortcake with mascarpone cream and strawberries.
Easy Strawberry Shortcake with Whipped Mascarpone (One Layer Cake)
9
slices25
minutes35
minutes1
hourThis strawberry shortcake is fresh, moist and super easy to make. One layer homemade vanilla cake, whipped mascarpone and juicy strawberries that create the perfect spring/summer dessert!
Ingredients
- Vanilla cake
⅓ cup of mascarpone cheese, room temperature
⅓ cup of neutral oil, such as melted coconut oil or vegetable oil
2 eggs, room temperature
1 tbsp of vanilla extract
¾ cup of sugar
½ cup of milk (cow milk or plant-based milk)
1 ¼ cup of all purpose flour
1 tsp of baking powder
Pinch of salt
- Whipped Mascarpone
¾ cup of 35% whipping cream, chilled
¾ cup of mascarpone cheese, room temperature
2-3 tbsp of powdered sugar
- Strawberries
2 cups of sliced fresh strawberries
2 tbsp of sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F and place the grill rack in the middle. Grease a 8×8 square pan and add parchment paper.
- Prepare the vanilla cake. In a big bowl, whisk mascarpone cheese with neutral oil. Add eggs, vanilla, sugar and milk. Whisk again to combine.
- In another bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Mix well to combine. Pour into the baking pan and bake for about 35 minutes. Place a toothpick in the middle of the cake and if it is clean, the cake is baked. Remove from the oven and let the cake rest for 5 minutes. Afterwards, remove from the pan to allow it to completely cool down.
- Prepare the strawberry topping. In a small bowl, macerate the strawberries with the sugar.
- Prepare the whipped mascarpone. In a bowl, add the whipping cream. With a standing mixer or electric batter, slowly whisk the cream for a few minutes. When it starts to form, add mascarpone and whisk until stiff peaks form. Add powdered sugar and mix to combine.
- Assemble the cake. Spread the mascarpone whipped cream evenly on the cake and garnish with juicy strawberries.
