Strawberry Buttermilk Cake Recipe

By Becky Hardin

Updated May 26, 2026

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This Strawberry Buttermilk Cake is soft, light, and moist. I find it’s the perfect summertime dessert featuring juicy strawberries and a tart citrus flavor. To me, nothing says summer more than fresh strawberries, so I created this cake and loaded it up with chopped strawberries, sour cream, buttermilk, and both lemon and orange zest. I like to garnish it with a few more strawberries and a sprinkling of sugar.

Easy Buttermilk Cake Recipe

Buttermilk Cake is one of my favorite desserts. I can never get enough of it. It’s light, soft, moist, tender, full of flavor…it’s everything I could ask for in a cake. When strawberry season hits, I can never resist the urge to make this pretty cake. Fresh, chopped strawberries mixed into the buttermilk and sour cream batter create the perfect balance of sweet and tart. And the lemon and orange zest add a subtle zing that really takes the taste over the top.

I love serving this cake at summer gatherings, taking it to potlucks, or just serving it as a fancy dessert with tea or even a glass of champagne. It comes together fairly easily and bakes up in just about 35-45 minutes.

Tips for Beginners

• Use cake flour. For an even lighter and more delicate cake, replace the all-purpose flour with cake flour.
• Make your own buttermilk. Measure 1 cup of milk, remove 1 tablespoon, and mix in 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar. Let this mixture sit for 5 minutes before using it in the recipe. Alternatively, you can use whole milk.
• Fresh strawberries are best. But, if you want to use frozen, thaw and blot them of any excess moisture, or the cake will be soggy.

Recipe Card

Strawberry Buttermilk Cake

Difficulty: Easy

4.49 from 68 votes

Prep: 10 minutes mins

Cook: 45 minutes mins

Total: 55 minutes mins

Servings: 8 slices

Author: Becky Hardin

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This Strawberry Buttermilk Cake is moist, soft, and so yummy with a light and simple flavor.

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Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1½ cups all-purpose flour 180g
• ▢ 1 tsp baking powder 4g
• ▢ ½ tsp kosher salt
• ▢ 6 tbsp unsalted butter 85g, room temperature (¾ stick)
• ▢ 1 cup granulated sugar 200g, divided
• ▢ 3 large eggs 150g, room temperature
• ▢ 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice 14g, from ½ lemon
• ▢ 1 tbsp lemon zest 6g, from 1 lemon
• ▢ 2 tbsp orange zest 12g, from 1 orange
• ▢ ¼ cup sour cream 57g room temperature, plain yogurt also works
• ▢ ¼ cup buttermilk 57g room temperature
• ▢ 12 oz fresh strawberries 340g, hulled and sliced (1 pint), raspberries or blueberries also work

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 350°F and lightly spray a 9-inch spring form pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.
• In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
  1½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp baking powder, ½ tsp kosher salt
• In a large mixing bowl, using a hand mixer, cream the butter and ¾ cup sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
  6 tbsp unsalted butter, 1 cup granulated sugar
• Beat the eggs in, one at a time, then beat in the lemon juice, lemon zest, and orange zest.
  3 large eggs, 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1 tbsp lemon zest, 2 tbsp orange zest
• Stir together the sour cream and buttermilk.
  ¼ cup sour cream, ¼ cup buttermilk
• Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, alternately, along with the sour cream/buttermilk mixture; begin and end with the flour mixture.
• Mix just until the flour is incorporated.
• Fold in the strawberries and pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. Smooth the top and sprinkle with the remaining ¼ cup granulated sugar.
  12 oz fresh strawberries
• Bake at 350°F for 35-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The top should be golden, slightly crackled, and should not jiggle. Note, this cake does not rise a lot, so don't expect a tall cake.
• Transfer the cake to a cooling rack and allow to cool 10 minutes. Run a thin knife along the edge to loosen any sticking edges. Remove the outer ring of the springform pan and cool the cake completely before slicing.

Equipment

• Kitchen Scale (optional)
• 9-inch Springform Pan
• Hand Mixer

Serving: 1sliceCalories: 289kcalCarbohydrates: 40gProtein: 5gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 88mgSodium: 39mgPotassium: 183mgFiber: 1gSugar: 21gVitamin A: 410IUVitamin C: 25.7mgCalcium: 60mgIron: 1.6mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Did you make this? Leave a comment!

How to Store

Store strawberry buttermilk cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw on the counter until softened.

Serving Suggestions

For a snack on a warm summer’s day, I love serving this light and refreshing cake with a nicely spiced iced chai tea latte, or a tall, cold glass of strawberry lemonade. A fresh and fruity watermelon salad goes nicely on the side. I’ve also been known to serve this cake for dessert, and it has appeared on my weekend brunch table a few times.

More Strawberry Desserts To Try

• This Strawberry Cheesecake is creamy and tangy, featuring rich cheesecake mixed with fresh, juicy strawberries. 
• For this Frozen Strawberry Lemonade Pie I use Cool Whip, frozen lemonade concentrate, sweetened condensed milk, and real strawberries.
• I make this Strawberry Jello Pie with just 5 ingredients and 10 minutes of prep.

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