This decadent chocolate strawberry cake is made with layers of chocolate cake, strawberry frosting, and strawberry filling. The finished cake is topped with chocolate ganache and chocolate covered strawberries for a show stopping dessert!

A chocolate strawberry cake topped with ganache and chocolate covered strawberries.

This chocolate strawberry cake looks and tastes like it came straight from a bakery. But I’ll let you in on a little secret – it’s completely homemade!

This recipe starts with my favorite chocolate cake recipe that’s filled with homemade strawberry cake filling, then topped with a creamy strawberry frosting. Once all three cake layers have been stacked, filled, and frosted, melted chocolate ganache is spread all over the top.

The ganache is technically optional, but the richness of the semi-sweet chocolate pairs really well with the tangy strawberry frosting. I also love to add more frosting and ganache covered strawberries on top for good measure!

While there are several steps to this recipe, I promise you that it’s worth the time and effort. It’s the perfect treat for Valentine’s Day, birthdays, or anytime you want to celebrate someone special in your life!

The ingredients needed to make a chocolate cake with strawberry frosting and filling.

Ingredient Notes

There are four components to this cake — the chocolate cake layers, the cake filling, the strawberry frosting, and the ganache. I won’t go over every single ingredient (because there are quite a few!), but let’s quickly go over a few important ones:

  • Cocoa Powder: Since the cake batter uses a combination of baking powder and baking soda, it’s best to use natural cocoa powder instead of Dutch process. I explain more about why in my post on natural vs. Dutch process cocoa powder.
  • Instant Espresso Powder: This just enhances the chocolate flavor of the cake, it doesn’t make your cake taste like coffee! You can replace it with instant coffee or just omit it from the recipe. If you don’t use it, you still need to use the boiling water in the cake batter.
  • Buttermilk: Creates an ultra moist and tender chocolate cake. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can make a buttermilk substitute using milk and lemon juice.
  • Freeze Dried Strawberries: This is my shortcut to infusing the frosting with a strong strawberry flavor without having to cook down fresh strawberries on the stove. Most major grocery stores stock freeze dried strawberries, so they should be easy to find near the dried fruit.
  • Strawberry Cake Filling: I personally love to use my strawberry cake filling for this recipe. If you want to simplify things, you can use strawberry jam (Bonne Maman is my personal fave!) or just skip it completely.
  • Chocolate: For the ganache, I recommend sticking with chocolate bars instead of chocolate chips. My personal favorite brands to use are Bakers or Ghirardelli, but I’ve used the store brands of chocolate bars before and they work great too.
Chocolate cake batter in a glass mixing bowl, with a whisk.
An overhead view of three chocolate cake layers on a wire rack.

How To Make Chocolate Strawberry Cake

  1. Make the chocolate cake batter: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt, then whisk in the granulated sugar and brown sugar. Add the oil, buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla extract and mix until just combined. Mix the instant espresso powder into the boiling water until fully dissolved, then gently whisk it into the cake batter. You will end up with a thin cake batter, this is normal!
  2. Bake, cool, and chill: Pour the batter into three 8-inch round cake pans that have been lined with parchment paper and sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Once the cake layers have cooled completely, place them in the freezer for about 1 hour so that they’re firm and easy to frost.

This is just a quick overview on how to make the cake layers! For more details on how to make the chocolate cake layers, you can refer to my chocolate cake recipe. All of the exact measurements and a full list of instructions are in the recipe card towards the bottom of this post.

An overhead view of beaten butter and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl.
An overhead view of strawberry frosting in a mixing bowl with a spatula.
  1. Make the strawberry frosting: In a separate mixing bowl, beat the butter until smooth. Then, mix in the powdered sugar in two additions.
  2. Blend the freeze dried strawberries in a blender, then mix the strawberry powder into the butter and powdered sugar. Add the milk, vanilla, and salt and continue mixing on low speed until everything is fully mixed together.

If you’re new to baking, I have a post on how to make this strawberry frosting. I promise, it’s easy!

An overhead view of strawberry filling on a chocolate cake layer.
A chocolate cake on a cake stand, with a crumb coat of strawberry frosting.
  1. Assemble the cake: Once they’re chilled, level the chocolate cake layers (either a cake leveler or a knife will work for this step). Place the first cake layer onto a cake stand, spread a thin layer of frosting over it, then pipe a thick border of frosting around the edges. This will create a dam and prevent the cake filling from oozing out of the sides of the cake, so don’t skip this step! Fill with ½ cup of strawberry filling. Repeat this process one more time, then place the third cake layer on top.
  2. Apply the crumb coat: Spread a very thin layer of frosting all over the cake – this is also known as a crumb coat. In other words, it catches all of the crumbs so they don’t end up in your final layer of frosting.
A process shot showing strawberry frosting being smoothed over a layer cake.
Melted chocolate ganache in a glass mixing bowl.
  1. Frost the cake: Use the strawberry frosting to cover the top and sides of the cake. If you plan to pipe some more frosting on top of the cake, make sure to set some aside for that first.
  2. Make the ganache: Heat the heavy whipping cream in the microwave (or in a saucepan on the stovetop), then pour it over the chopped chocolate. Allow to sit for a few minutes, then stir the mixture together until it’s smooth and fully combined.

If you need a little more guidance, I have a detailed tutorial on how to make chocolate ganache. For this recipe, I used the 1:1 ratio (equal parts chocolate and heavy cream).

A strawberry frosted layer cake topped with chocolate ganache.
A process shot showing strawberry frosting being piped on top.
  1. Create the ganache drip: Let the ganache cool slightly, then set aside ¼ of it for the strawberries. Pipe or spoon the rest of the ganache over the top of the cake, spreading it gently over the edges and so it can drip down the sides.
  2. Finish decorating the top: Use some of the chocolate ganache you set aside to dip the strawberries. Place them on top of the cake, then pipe any leftover frosting between the berries.
A chocolate strawberry cake that's been sliced to show all the layers.

Recipe Substitutions & Adjustments

I realize that this is a time and labor intensive cake, but there are a few ways that you can make things easier:

  • Use a store-bought cake mix. If making homemade chocolate cake is intimidating to you, feel free to use a box mix instead!
  • Use your favorite jam instead of the cake filling. If I’m short on time, Bonne Maman is my personal favorite jam to use in place of the strawberry cake filling.
  • Skip the ganache. I love to add the ganache to make this cake prettier, but it’s totally fine to leave it off of the cake.
  • Make a 9×13-inch cake instead. Instead of decorating a layered cake, you can pour the cake batter into a 9×13-inch pan and bake it for 35 to 45 minutes. If you do this, I recommend also cutting the frosting in half so you don’t end up with too much.
  • Try making cupcakes! The full recipe will make about 30 to 32 cupcakes. Only fill each liner about half of the way full and bake them for 16 to 20 minutes. If you prefer a smaller batch of cupcakes, you can try these chocolate covered strawberry cupcakes instead.
A slice of chocolate cake layered with strawberry filling and frosting.

Make-Ahead Instructions

To be completely honest, I do not have the patience to make everything and assemble this cake in one day. I personally prefer to make the cake filling and bake the cake layers the day before, then make the frosting and assemble the cake the next day.

If you’re like me, or just short on time, here’s how you can prep a few things ahead of time:

  • Strawberry cake filling: Make the filling, let it cool to room temperature, then refrigerate in an airtight container for up to five days. Just a quick note: The cake filling contains cornstarch, so I don’t recommend freezing it! Refrigerating the filling is fine, but freezing it and thawing it out will change the consistency.
  • Chocolate cake: Bake the cake layers, let them cool completely, then cover tightly with plastic wrap and store them in the fridge for up to two days. You can even make them further in advance and freeze them instead.
  • Strawberry frosting: Prepare the frosting as written and refrigerate in an airtight container for up to three days. When you’re ready to assemble the cake, let the frosting sit at room temperature for an hour or two. If needed, you can mix a little more milk or heavy cream into the frosting.
A slice of chocolate and strawberry cake on a white plate, with a bite missing.

Baking Tips

  • If you want to use homemade strawberry filling, be sure to make that first since it needs to cool completely and chill for two hours before being used.
  • The chocolate cake layers are very moist, so I highly recommend freezing them for about one hour before you assemble the cake. This will make them firmer and the frosting will be much easier to spread.
  • Make sure to let your ganache cool slightly before spreading it on top of the cake. If the ganache is too warm, the frosting will start to melt and it won’t be very pretty.
  • If you don’t want to dip the strawberries in ganache, feel free to make your own chocolate covered strawberries to add on top of the cake instead.
An angled overhead view of a chocolate strawberry cake topped with ganache and dipped strawberries.

Chocolate Strawberry Cake

Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Cooling Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 3 hours 40 minutes
This decadent chocolate strawberry cake is made with layers of chocolate cake, strawberry frosting, and strawberry filling. The finished cake is topped with chocolate ganache and chocolate covered strawberries for a show stopping dessert!
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Ingredients

Servings: 12 servings

Chocolate Cake

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour spooned & leveled (250 grams)
  • ¾ cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder (65 grams)
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup granulated sugar (200 grams)
  • 1 cup packed light brown sugar (200 grams)
  • ½ cup canola or vegetable oil (120 ml)
  • 1 cup buttermilk (240 ml)
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup boiling water (240 ml)
  • 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder or instant coffee optional, but recommended

Strawberry Frosting

  • 2 ounces freeze-dried strawberries (56 grams; 2 ¾ cups)
  • 2 cups unsalted butter softened (452 grams; 4 sticks)
  • 6 cups powdered sugar (720 grams)
  • 6 to 7 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
  • 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt

Filling

Chocolate Ganache Drip

  • 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chopped (113 grams)
  • ½ cup heavy whipping cream (120 ml)

Instructions
 

  • Before getting started! If you plan to use a homemade strawberry cake filling, make sure to prepare this first so that it has enough time to cool and be refrigerated.
  • To make the chocolate cake: Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray three 8-inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray, line the bottom of each pan with a parchment paper circle, and set aside.
  • In a large mixing bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together. Whisk in the granulated sugar and brown sugar until well combined.
  • Add the oil, buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla extract and mix until just combined. The batter will be thick like brownie batter, this is normal!
  • Add the instant espresso powder to the cup of boiling water and mix until fully dissolved. Add to the mixing bowl and mix until just combined, the batter will be very thin at this point.
  • Pour the batter evenly between the three prepared cake pans.
  • Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean and the tops spring back when lightly touched.
  • Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool in the pans for 30 minutes. Run a knife around the outside of each cake layer in the pan then carefully remove the cakes from the pans and transfer back to the wire rack to cool completely.
  • Once cooled, transfer the cake layers to the freezer and allow to freeze for 45 minutes to 1 hour. This is optional, but it will make the cake much easier to frost! If you are making the cake layers ahead of time, wait until an hour before you plan to assemble the cake to freeze the cake layers.
  • To make the strawberry frosting: Add the freeze-dried strawberries to a blender or food processor and blend into a fine powder. Set aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large mixing bowl using a handheld mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth.
  • Mix in half of the powdered sugar until fully combined, then mix in the remaining powdered sugar.
  • Add the freeze-dried strawberry powder and mix until well combined.
  • Add the milk, vanilla extract, and salt and mix on low-medium speed until fully combined, making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
  • To assemble the cake: Level the tops of each cake layer with a knife or cake leveler.
  • Add a tablespoon of buttercream to the center of a cardboard cake round or a cake stand to help the cake stick to the surface.
  • Remove the cake layers from the freezer. Place the first layer of cake onto your surface. Spread a thin layer of frosting onto the first layer of cake and spread it around. This is optional, but it will prevent the cake filling from making the cake layers soggy.
  • Using a large round piping tip (I like to use the Wilton 1A), pipe a thick border of frosting in a ring around the outside edge of the cake to create a dam. This will prevent the cake filling from coming out of the sides of the cake. Scoop ½ cup of strawberry cake filling (or jam) into the center and smooth it out.
  • Place the second cake layer upside down on top. Repeat the same process, adding another thin layer of frosting on the cake layer, piping a thick border of frosting around the cake, and spreading ½ cup of cake filling in the center.
  • Place the third cake layer upside down on top. Spread a thin layer of frosting all over the cake. This is known as the crumb coat and will catch any crumbs so that they don’t end up in your final layer of frosting.
  • Place the cake in the freezer for 10 minutes or in the fridge for 30 minutes to allow the crumb coat time to firm up.
  • Use the remaining frosting to frost the top and sides of the cake. If piping some decorations on top, reserve 1 to 1 ½ cups of frosting for later.
  • To make the ganache (optional): Add the chopped chocolate to a large heatproof bowl and set aside.
  • Add the heavy whipping cream to a microwave safe bowl (or a glass measuring cup) and heat in the microwave for 45 seconds to 1 minute. Make sure to keep an eye on it so it doesn’t bubble over in the microwave.
  • Pour the warm heavy whipping cream over the chocolate and let it sit for 4 to 5 minutes. Start stirring slowly in the middle of the bowl, and continue stirring in one direction until the mixture is smooth and well combined.
  • Set aside until the ganache has cooled and thickened slightly. If desired, reserve about ¼ of the ganache for dipping strawberries later on.
  • To decorate the top: Add the ganache to a piping bag or a squeeze bottle (or use a spoon) and add drips all around the top edge of the cake. Add the remaining ganache on top and spread it around into one even layer.
  • If you reserved some of the ganache for dipping strawberries, go ahead and dip them and place them onto the cake. I prefer to leave some space between each strawberry to have room to pipe some extra frosting between them.
  • Allow the ganache to firm up slightly (you can place it in the fridge to speed up the process), then pipe the reserved frosting on top of the cake.

Notes

Storage Instructions: Cake may be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Cuisine: American
Course: Dessert
Author: Danielle Rye
Did you make this recipe?Mention @livewellbakeoften on Instagram or tag #livewellbakeoften.

More Strawberry Desserts to Try!

Strawberry Pound Cake

Strawberry Cupcakes

Strawberry Cake

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes