This moist, vegan vanilla cake is topped with fresh strawberries. Oil-free and only 1 gram of fat per serving.
A couple of weeks ago I was contacted by Sherry Lucas, the food writer for our local newspaper, who asked if I’d like to be the subject of an article. Though naturally camera-shy (as well as people-shy), I agreed, and when she suggested that I cook a dish using something seasonal, my very first thought was strawberries.
Besides being pretty (I hoped the photographer would be smitten by them and forget to take any photos of me), juicy strawberries from Florida have been available in our grocery stores for the past few weeks, and we’ve been able to get Louisiana strawberries since early February from “The Strawberry Man,” a farmer from my hometown in Louisiana who drives them up every day to sell from the back of his truck.
So I set to work on making the best, low-fat strawberry dessert I could, baking 4 different versions of the same recipe…and gaining 5 pounds in the process! All the experimenting paid off; the final version was light and tender. But after all that cooking, testing, and tasting, the newspaper chose to use the other recipe I made–a quinoa and asparagus dish–in the article.
Never fear–the newspaper’s loss is your gain. I’ve got the recipe, as well as these photos of the cake, right here! Be warned that though fat-free, it’s no health food because of the sugar and white flour. But sometimes during strawberry season, we just have to indulge ourselves a little.
Strawberry Snack Cake
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups cake flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup soy or other non-dairy yogurt see note
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup vanilla soymilk
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 pound strawberries stemmed and sliced
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup water
Instructions
- Mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add yogurt, vanilla, water, soymilk, and lemon juice. Mix until just blended–do not overmix. Pour into oiled 8×8-inch pan and bake at 350 F until a toothpick comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Remove and allow to cool completely.
- Combine the strawberries, cornstarch, sugar, and water in a saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat until sauce boils and thickens. Spread over top of cake. May be served warm or chilled.
Notes
Nutritional info is approximate.
Ready to Pin!
Annette Webb
June 15, 2020 at 10:51 pmYears after you first posted this, you keep getting rave reviews for this recipe! I’m making this again for Father’s Day. I want to double the recipe, What is the best way to do this? Bake it in a 9×13 pan? Or bake it in two round layer pans, and put the berry sauce between the layers and on top? If I do layers, will it hold up if I put it together the night before? You mentioned it’s best to keep the cake and topping in the pan rather than remove it. I’m eagerly awaiting your advice! 😋🍓
Susan Voisin
June 16, 2020 at 8:41 amI recently made it for my daughter’s birthday in two 8-inch rounds stacked in layers. The only problem I had was that some of the strawberries wanted to slip out between the layers, so I suggest chopping them into small pieces rather than slicing—at least for the part between layers.
Annette Webb
June 16, 2020 at 9:41 amOK, thank you!
Char
November 25, 2021 at 7:39 amHello! Thank you for this recipe. It looks lovely! I plan to make this soon. Is it possible to use frozen strawberries instead and just omit the water? Thank you!
Susan Voisin
November 25, 2021 at 10:09 amYes, that will work well. Hope you enjoy it!
Annette Webb
June 18, 2020 at 9:33 amOne more question: Every store (!) around me is out of cake flour! I have about 1/2 the amount I need to double the recipe. What other flour type would you suggest I combine it with? I have some Bob’s Red Mill Unbleached White All-Purpose flour. I also have whole wheat pastry flour.
Susan Voisin
June 18, 2020 at 9:59 amI think both of those would work, but the Unbleached would probably give you a little lighter results. Good luck!
Annette Webb
June 19, 2020 at 9:48 pmThanks for your input on the flour:))
Lisa
June 24, 2021 at 8:39 amI don’t know what I did wrong here. I tasted the batter before it went into the oven, it was delicious. I baked it, it looked great, I bit into it…. the flavour was nothing but baking soda. I used the usual Arm & Hammer stuff. Is there some chemical reaction that didn’t happen here? I want to make it again, but I’m scared now.
Susan Voisin
June 24, 2021 at 12:33 pmDid it taste that way all the way through? I’ve had times when I didn’t mix a batter up well and there were clumps of baking soda. If it tasted that way throughout the cake, is it possible you misread the amount and used too much? I use regular Arm & HAMMER (or store brand) baking soda, and I’ve never had that result. I’m sorry yours didn’t turn out right.
Arac
December 13, 2021 at 1:53 pmCan you use all almond milk in this recipe instead of water?
Susan Voisin
December 13, 2021 at 5:30 pmYes, that should be fine.