I didn't think I would be a fan of a fruit-flavored cake, but I was wrong! This cake is truly wonderful. I've made it twice now--once for an informal wedding shower and once for family, and everyone raved about it both times. Based on others suggestions, I modified the recipe. I pureed the package of strawberries, and for the cake I made for my family, I put the puree through a mesh strainer to remove the seeds for my picky husband. After tasting the cake with and without seeds, without is really better and worth the effort. I baked the cake in a 13x9 pan for 35 minutes and it came out perfect. I determined that due to the "runny" nature of the icing, a 3-layer cake might be tricky. The icing was a little sweet for my taste, so I put in 8oz. of cream cheese, and 1 tsp. mexican vanilla to tone down the sweet and enhance the flavor. However, to thicken it up a bit, I did end up adding another cup of powdered sugar. Also, I only used 1/3c. of the strawberry puree in the icing, and put the other 2/3c. in the cake batter. Because of the fruit, cream cheese, and butter in this cake, I store it in the refrigerator. It stays nice and moist for as many days as you can keep it around--which isn't long at my house. This recipe is a keeper!

This cake was so great it deserves 6 stars! Judging from what other reviewers said, I drained well and pureed the (unsweetened) strawberries. I added 1/2 cup of the puree to the cake batter and ONLY 2 TBSP of the puree to the icing, which comes out to a PERFECT spreading consistency. I made this in a 9x13 baking dish and the icing was the perfect amount to cover the top nicely. This is an absolutely great recipe, with the above modifications!

Fun to make and to try but this doesn't rate in the "Recipe Hall of Fame." The cake itself is moist and flavorful, but I couldn't quite get past the artificial taste and color. Also, given the reviews about the frosting being a "sloppy mess," I took other reviewers' suggestions and used "Cool Whipped Frosting," substituting strawberry extract for the vanilla and adding 1/3 cup of strawberry puree. I made this in two layers, and put a layer of fresh, sliced strawberries over the filling in between the layers. I decorated it with just a few fresh strawberries with the stems. I could see this "pretty in pink" cake as a real crowd pleaser for a little girl's birthday party, and wish I had come across this when my daughter was younger. All around, not much payoff or reward for the effort. To me, it just screams "fake."

My grandmother and I do a lot of baking...cakes, cookies, pies..etc. We've noticed that most layer cakes can be made in a 9x13 inch pan without compromising the taste. Of course layered cakes are much more elegant looking than others, but with this particular recipe, I prefer it in a rectangular pan. We've prepared this cake several times, and have always used frozen strawberries. And everyone who tries this really enjoyes it. I'm a die-hard chocolate lover but actually prefer this cake!! Thanks Judalee.

I've made this recipe twice and both times used fresh strawberries. The first time I made it, I used the icing recipe listed. It was horrible and required a lot of modifications (should have listened to the other reviewers). This time I used the cream cheese icing from this site and it worked perfectly. I made three 9" layers; pureed the strawberries and strained it to remove the seeds and added it to the batter. I added a bit of the puree to a small portion of the cream cheese icing to test, but decided I preferred the icing without it. I added sliced strawberries with the icing in between the layers and I garnished with chocolate covered whole strawberries. Stunning presentation and amazing taste to boot. This recipe is a keeper!

This is an awesome cake!!! I was nervous about the frosting but after discussing it with my mom she gave me a few hints. I made the frosting like the reviewer Diana suggested "My frosting is 1 stick of butter with 4 cups of powdered sugar with a little vanilla." My mom's hints to help cut the sweetness is to add a tad bit of salt or lemon juice. I ended up using about a tablespoon of concentrated lemon juice to the frosting and it turned out GREAT! Since I used fresh strawberries the cake was perfect and the icing was sweetened to my taste. The frosting made too much since I used a 9x13 pan but would be plenty for a multi-layer cake. Perfection!

I have been making this cake for years. My frosting is 1 stick of butter with 4 cups of powdered sugar with a little vanilla. I let the cake cool only for 5 or 10 minutes, then pour the frosting on. Makes for a very moist cake!!!

This cake is to die for!!! It gets 10 stars! I made this for my boss for her birthday and was so good I have to make another one this weekend. I did make a couple adjustments. I used fresh strawberries and chopped them in a food processor before adding to the batter. I made a 2 layer 9x13 cake instead of round. For filling I used the filling from the Strawberry and Cream Cake on this page (1 1/2 cups heavy cream, 2 T sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla, and 1 1/2 cup sliced strawberries) and used homemade cream cheese frosting to frost the top. It was absolutely amazing. People at work are still raving!

this was the best cake ever!! i brought it to my fathers birthday party. I didnt bother using the frosting recipe, and frosted it with cool whip, using slices of strawberry in the middle of the layers with the cool whip.I decorated the top with fresh whole strawberries. it was absolutely delicious and everone loved it.(tip:so the layers stay level, with a serrated knife trim the tops of the cakes so they build up to be straight, not crooked) :)

I used this cake recipe to make an Elmo cake for my daughter's birthday and it was a total hit! I took the other reviewer's advice and pureed the strawberries before putting them in. I used about 3/4 of the strawberries that were called for and the cake turned out perfectly!