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Strawberry Pound Cake

Strawberry pound cake is a dense, moist Bundt-style cake with visible diced strawberries and a vivid pink strawberry glaze that drips down the ridges. This fresh strawberry pound cake bakes to a clean-toothpick center, then gets a smooth glaze and a light fresh-fruit garnish.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 420
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Butter, softened
  • 1.5 cup butter Soften until spreadable for easy creaming.
Granulated sugar
  • 2.5 cup granulated sugar
Eggs
  • 6 large eggs Add one at a time for a smooth batter.
All-purpose flour
  • 3 cup all-purpose flour
Baking soda
  • 0.5 tsp baking soda
Salt
  • 0.5 tsp salt
Sour cream
  • 1 cup sour cream Stir in until just combined.
Vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Strawberry extract
  • 1 tsp strawberry extract
Fresh strawberries, diced
  • 1.5 cup fresh strawberries Dice small and pat dry so they don’t waterlog the crumb.
Strawberry glaze - powdered sugar
  • 1.5 cup powdered sugar
Strawberry glaze - strawberry juice or puree
  • 3 tbsp fresh strawberry juice or puree
Strawberry glaze - lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice

Equipment

  • 1 Bundt pan

Method
 

Prep and bake
  1. Preheat oven to 325°F and generously grease and flour a Bundt pan so the cake releases cleanly. Look for a fully coated pan surface, including the ridges.
  2. Beat butter and granulated sugar until very light and fluffy, with a paler color and airy texture. Continue mixing until the batter looks thick and smooth.
  3. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition until combined. The batter should stay glossy and cohesive, not curdled.
  4. Mix the flour, baking soda, and salt together, then alternately add this flour mixture and the sour cream to the batter. Stir just until you don’t see dry streaks.
  5. Stir in vanilla extract and strawberry extract until evenly distributed. The batter should smell strongly of vanilla and strawberry with no streaks.
  6. Fold in the diced fresh strawberries that have been patted dry. The strawberries should be dispersed throughout the dense batter.
  7. Pour the batter into the prepared Bundt pan and smooth the top. Bake at 325°F for 60-70 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
  8. Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes. The cake should feel set and slightly firm before inverting.
  9. Invert the cake onto a rack and cool completely. Make sure it’s fully cool to prevent the glaze from melting off.
Glaze and serve
  1. Whisk the powdered sugar, strawberry juice or puree, and lemon juice until smooth. The glaze should look thick and pourable with no lumps.
  2. Pour the glaze over the completely cooled cake, letting it fall dramatically into the ridges. Stop when the top is coated and the glaze glistens.
  3. Let the glaze set before slicing. The surface should look slightly firm while still shiny.
  4. Garnish with fresh strawberries right before serving. Arrange them alongside so the pink glaze and golden cake stay the focus.

Notes

Pro tip: pat the diced strawberries dry so they stay bright and don’t loosen the crumb. Store covered at room temperature up to 2 days or in the refrigerator up to 5 days; slice portions stay best when chilled. Freezing: yes—freeze the unglazed cake up to 2 months (wrap well), then thaw and glaze for best texture. For a lighter option, swap half the butter for an equal amount of neutral oil or reduced-fat baking spread to reduce richness while keeping the dense pound-cake structure.