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French Strawberry Cake

French strawberry cake with a delicate yellow sponge layered with pale pink pastry cream and jewel-like whole strawberries for an elegant, sliceable finish. Baked in a single 9-inch round, then layered and chilled until set.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
chilling 1 hour
Total Time 2 hours
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: French
Calories: 420
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Dry ingredients
  • 2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1.5 tsp baking powder
  • 0.25 tsp salt
Sponge cake
  • 4 large eggs separated Separate yolks and whites.
  • 0.5 cup granulated sugar
  • 0.25 cup vegetable oil
  • 0.25 cup water
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Assembly
  • 2 cup whole strawberries
  • 1 cup pastry cream
  • 2 tbsp powdered sugar

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan
  • 1 9-inch round cake pan

Method
 

Bake the yellow sponge
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F and set out a 9-inch round cake pan for batter. Whisk all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt until evenly combined.
  2. Beat egg yolks with granulated sugar until pale and thick, about 3 minutes. Mix in vegetable oil, water, and vanilla extract until smooth.
  3. Fold the flour mixture into the yolk mixture until no dry streaks remain. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form.
  4. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter to keep it light. Pour batter into the 9-inch round cake pan and bake for 30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
  5. Cool the cake completely before slicing. Aim for room temperature so the pastry cream spreads without melting.
Layer and chill
  1. Slice the cooled cake into two layers. Spread half the pastry cream on the bottom layer and arrange half the whole strawberries on top.
  2. Add the top cake layer and spread the remaining pastry cream. Arrange the remaining whole strawberries on top in a decorative pattern.
  3. Dust with powdered sugar right before refrigerating. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

Notes

For clean layers and neat strawberry placement, let the sponge cool fully and refrigerate the assembled cake once assembled; it will set nicely after at least 1 hour and stays fresh in the fridge for up to 3 days. Do not freeze because the whole strawberries can weep and the pastry cream texture can break down after thawing. For an egg-allergy friendly swap, use an equal amount of store-bought egg replacer for baking (follow package directions) to reduce egg dependence while keeping the cake’s light crumb.