Strawberry Jam Shortcake Sheet Cake. An nearly easy strawberry shortcake that’s turn out to be a summer season favourite. Swirled with strawberry jam and baked till golden, it has all of the buttery taste of a basic strawberry shortcake with the gentle, fluffy texture of a moist vanilla cake. Completed with whipped candy cream, recent strawberries, and additional strawberry jam, it’s the very best of each worlds.

I’ve been so excited to share this cake as a result of it’s not like any strawberry cake I’ve made earlier than. At first look, it would look like a basic strawberry sheet cake, but it surely’s the feel that makes this one so particular.

What I actually needed was a cake that captured the whole lot I really like a few buttery, flaky shortcake whereas protecting the gentle, moist crumb of my favourite vanilla cake. I needed the very best components of each desserts in a single easy cake.

By some means, after a bit experimenting (and possibly a bit summer season magic), that’s precisely what occurred.

As a lot as I really like strawberries and cream, I’ve at all times had combined emotions about conventional shortcake. I really like the flavour, but when somebody places a slice of vanilla cake and a basic shortcake in entrance of me, I’m reaching for the vanilla cake each single time.

My mother is simply the alternative. She loves a real, flaky shortcake, and someplace alongside the way in which, I grew to become decided to create a dessert we’d each be excited to eat. This cake is the proper center floor, and truthfully, I believe we each prefer it much more than the originals.

With strawberries in season proper now, that is the cake to bake. Add a handful of blueberries for a festive purple, white, and blue dessert. As we rejoice America’s 250th anniversary this Fourth of July, I can’t consider a sweeter cake to share with household and associates.

It’s simple, nostalgic, and a kind of recipes that looks like summer season from the very first chew.

These are the small print

Elements

• all-purpose flour
• granulated sugar
• baking powder
• chilly salted butter
• melted coconut oil
• eggs
• heavy cream
• vanilla extract
• strawberry jam
• recent strawberries
• lemon juice

Whipped Cream

• mascarpone or cream cheese
• chilly heavy cream
• vanilla extract

From the Kitchen 

You’ll want a big mixing bowl and a rubber spatula for the batter. I really like utilizing a field grater to grate the chilly butter as a result of it mixes into the flour so simply, however you can even reduce it into small cubes or use a pastry cutter. A very powerful factor is that the butter is chilly. And sure…I at all times use salted butter.

Bake the cake in a buttered 9×13-inch baking pan. A stand mixer or hand mixer makes fast work of the whipped cream, and I normally use the again of a spoon to unfold it over the cooled cake. In the event you’re feeling fancy, seize an offset spatula for completely swoopy swirls.

You’ll additionally want a sharp knife for slicing the strawberries. I like to go away the stems on a number of of them for adorning as a result of I believe it makes the completed cake really feel a bit prettier and extra summery.

Imperfectly excellent!

The Steps

Step 1: Make the Batter

Preheat the oven and butter a 9×13-inch baking pan.

In a big bowl, whisk collectively the dry components. Add the chilly butter and work it into the flour along with your fingertips till small buttery items stay all through. Stir within the oil, eggs, heavy cream, and vanilla till simply mixed. Gently swirl within the strawberry jam, being cautious to not overmix.

Tieghan’s Tip: These little ribbons of strawberry jam are what make this cake so particular. Resist the urge to totally combine them in.

Step 2: Bake the Cake

Unfold the batter evenly into the ready pan and bake till the highest is calmly golden and the middle is simply set.

Let the cake cool utterly earlier than including the whipped cream.

Step 3: Whip the Cream

Beat collectively the mascarpone and vanilla till utterly easy. Slowly stream within the chilly heavy cream whereas mixing on low, then improve the velocity and whip till gentle, fluffy peaks type.

I really like mascarpone right here as a result of it offers the whipped cream a richer taste and helps it maintain its form superbly. Cream cheese works simply as effectively if that’s what you’ve got.

Tieghan’s Tip: In the event you’re utilizing mascarpone, I extremely suggest Vermont Creamery or BelGioioso. Each different model I’ve tried has turned grainy when whipped. These two at all times keep easy, creamy, and completely fluffy.

Extra of Tieghan’s Suggestions for Success:

• Let the mascarpone sit at room temperature for about an hour earlier than mixing. If it’s too chilly, it will probably keep lumpy.
• Beat the mascarpone and vanilla till utterly easy earlier than including the cream.
• Slowly stream within the chilly heavy cream whereas mixing on low, then improve to medium-high till gentle peaks type.
• Cease mixing as quickly as gentle peaks type. Overwhipping may cause mascarpone to turn out to be grainy.

Step 4: Toss the Strawberries

Toss the sliced strawberries with the remaining strawberry jam and a squeeze of recent lemon juice.

In case your berries are particularly candy, they’re excellent as is. In the event that they’re a bit tart, allow them to sit for 10 to fifteen minutes so that they turn out to be additional juicy.

Step 5: Assemble

Unfold the whipped cream over the cooled cake, then spoon the strawberries and all of their jammy juices excessive.

This cake was impressed by the truth that my mother and I by no means fairly agreed on strawberry shortcake. She has at all times liked the buttery, flaky biscuits, whereas I’d select gentle vanilla cake each time. I needed a dessert that felt like the very best of each worlds, and in some way that’s precisely what occurred. It’s buttery like a shortcake, gentle like vanilla cake, and tastes like summer season in each chew.

Step 6: Serve

Slice into squares and serve.

In the event you’re making this for the Fourth of July, scatter a handful of recent blueberries excessive for a simple purple, white, and blue dessert.

It’s easy, stunning, and at all times disappears quick. Even higher, you may make the cake forward of time and assemble it simply earlier than serving.

Completely happy Fourth of July!

This publish was initially printed on July 3, 2026