Vanilla cake with strawberry banana filling is a dessert that combines a light and fluffy vanilla cake with a sweet and fruity strawberry banana filling.
Vanilla Cake With Strawberry Banana Filling Ingredients
- Cake flour: Cake flour is a special type of flour that makes cakes soft and fluffy. You can find it in the baking section of most stores.
- Baking powder: Baking powder makes the cake rise and become light and fluffy. It’s in a small can or jar in the baking aisle.
- Butter, melted: Butter adds flavor and moisture to the cake. Melt it in the microwave or on the stove.
- Ultrafine baking sugar: This sugar dissolves easily for a smooth batter. You can use regular sugar if you can’t find this kind.
- Eggs: Eggs hold the cake together and help it rise. Use large eggs.
- Vanilla Greek yogurt: Greek yogurt adds moisture and a little sour to the cake. You can use plain or vanilla flavored.
- Vanilla extract: Vanilla extract adds flavor. It’s made from vanilla beans and alcohol.
- Chopped or sliced strawberries: Strawberries add a fruity flavor. Chop them up small or slice them thin.
- Sliced banana: Banana adds sweetness and moisture. Use ripe bananas.
- Mini chocolate chips: These add bursts of chocolate flavor. Use small chocolate chips.
- Unsalted butter, softened: This is for the frosting. Soften it at room temperature.
- Sifted powdered sugar: Powdered sugar sweetens the frosting. Sift it to remove lumps.
- Heavy cream: This thins the frosting. It makes it creamy and smooth.
- Pinch of salt: A little salt enhances the flavor of the frosting. Just a tiny bit is enough.
How I Made Vanilla Cake With Strawberry Banana Filling
Preheat and Prepare Pans: First, I preheated my oven to 350°F (175°C) and greased three cake pans. This ensures the cake won’t stick to the pans after baking, allowing for easy removal.
Mix the Wet Ingredients: I started by mixing softened butter and ultrafine baking sugar in a stand mixer until fluffy. This step is crucial as it helps aerate the butter and sugar, which contributes to the light texture of the cake. Then, I added eggs, Greek yogurt, and vanilla extract to the mixture. The yogurt adds moisture and helps the cake stay tender.
Add the Dry Ingredients: Slowly, I stirred in the dry ingredients – cake flour, baking powder, and a pinch of salt. The key here is to mix gently to avoid overworking the batter, which could result in a dense cake.
Bake the Cake: The batter turned a bright pink color (from the strawberries) as I divided it evenly between the three pans. I baked them for about 25–30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center came out clean. During this time, the house smelled amazing!
Cool the Cake: Once baked, I let the cake layers cool completely. It’s important to let them cool fully before frosting so that the frosting doesn’t melt when applied.
Make the Frosting: While the cake was cooling, I made the frosting. I beat softened butter in the mixer until smooth, then slowly added sifted powdered sugar. Once combined, I added heavy cream, a pinch of salt, and vanilla extract to create a creamy frosting with a perfect consistency.
Assemble the Cake: Once the cake layers were cool, I leveled off the tops to make them even. I placed one layer on a cake plate and spread a generous amount of frosting over it. I layered thin slices of banana and fresh strawberries on top of the frosting to create the fruity filling.
Frost and Decorate: After layering the filling, I added another layer of cake and repeated the process with frosting and fruit. The final layer of cake was topped with more frosting. To finish it off, I pressed mini chocolate chips onto the sides of the cake for decoration.
Chill and Serve: After the cake was fully assembled and frosted, I let it chill in the fridge for a bit to set the frosting. The end result was a moist, flavorful cake with the perfect balance of sweet strawberry banana filling and rich frosting.
Variations
Filling Variations: You can swap the strawberries and bananas with other fruits such as blueberries and peaches for a different fruity flavor.Add some lemon zest or juice to the filling for a tangy kick.
Frosting Variations: Use cream cheese frosting instead of regular buttercream for a tangier and richer flavor.For a vegan version, substitute the butter and cream with plant-based alternatives and use dairy-free yogurt.
Additional Mix-ins: Incorporate other add-ins like crushed nuts (e.g., walnuts or almonds) or shredded coconut to add texture.Add a few tablespoons of fruit puree (e.g., strawberry or banana puree) into the frosting for extra fruit flavor.
Flavoring the Cake: If you prefer a more pronounced vanilla flavor, you can add a little vanilla bean paste to the cake batter along with the vanilla extract.For a twist, you can infuse the cake with some almond extract or coconut extract.
Cake Texture: To make the cake even lighter, you could fold in whipped egg whites after the batter has been mixed, giving it an even fluffier texture.
More Cakes
Vanilla Cake With Strawberry Banana Filling
Equipment
- Three 8-inch round cake pans
- Wet cake straps (cake baking strips)
- Pastry brush (optional, for brushing cake layers with simple syrup)
- Mini cupcake pan (if making mini cupcakes with leftover batter)
Ingredients
- 315 grams (2 1/2) cups cake flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/8 teaspoon baking soda (approximately 1/4 teaspoon)
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, melted
- 1 1/2 cup (300 grams) ultrafine baking sugar
- 1 1/2 eggs (whisk two eggs together and use half of it)
- 6 tablespoons vanilla Greek yogurt
- 1 1/8 cups 270 mL) milk
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Chopped or sliced strawberries
- 1 sliced banana
- Mini chocolate chips (as desired)
Frosting Ingredients
- 3/8 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups sifted powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Prepare one 8-inch round cake pan by greasing it with nonstick baking spray and lining it with parchment paper.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together 2 1/2 cups of cake flour, 3/4 teaspoon of baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon of salt.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together 3/4 cup of melted butter, 1 1/2 cups of ultrafine baking sugar, 1 1/2 eggs (whisk two eggs together and use half), 6 tablespoons of vanilla Greek yogurt, 1 1/8 cups of milk, and 3 teaspoons of vanilla extract until well combined.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, scraping down the sides as needed, and mix until no lumps remain.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then refrigerate until fully cooled.
- For the frosting, beat 3/8 cup of softened unsalted butter until fluffy. Gradually add 1 1/2 to 2 cups of sifted powdered sugar and beat for an additional minute. Add 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 tablespoons of heavy cream, 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt, and beat on high for 2 minutes. Add more cream if needed to achieve the desired consistency.
- To assemble the cake, level the cake and slice it in half horizontally. Spread a layer of frosting over the bottom half of the cake, then top with sliced strawberries and banana. Place the top half of the cake over the filling.
- Use the remaining frosting to frost the top and sides of the cake. Press mini chocolate chips onto the sides of the cake and decorate the top with additional frosting, strawberries, and banana slices.