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This fresh fruit cake is bursting with sweet, juicy seasonal fruit. It’s made with fluffy whipped cream, layers of soft Genoise cake, and any fruit of your choice! This cake is just like the beautiful Asian fruit cakes sold in Korean, Chinese, and Japanese bakeries.
Fresh fruit cake showcases colorful, fresh fruit slices beautifully placed atop fluffy whipped cream enveloping soft layers of sponge cake.
It’s the perfect cake to highlight sweet, seasonal fruit and is great for birthdays, Easter, Christmas, and any other occasion!
This fresh fruit cake is popular in Asian countries and is commonly sold in Korean, Chinese, Taiwanese, and Japanese bakeries all over the world. If you visit any Korean or Taiwanese bakery like Tous Les Jours, Paris Baguette, or 85 degrees, you’ll see beautifully decorated fresh fruit cakes showcasing amazing decorating techniques.
For this easy home cook version, I kept the decorating simple and let the vibrant, colorful fruit be the main feature of the cake.
Ingredients
- Eggs – Use large, room-temperature eggs. Set them out on the counter 30 minutes before using them.
- Cake flour – Cake flour has less gluten and protein which results in a fluffy, lighter sponge cake.
- Sugar – Use granulated, white sugar.
- Butter – Butter gives this cake richness and flavor.
- Vanilla – Use a good quality vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste.
How to Make Fresh Fruit Cake
- Place the eggs, sugar, salt, and vanilla in a heat-proof bowl. Place this inside a larger bowl that’s been filled with hot water.
- Beat on high until the eggs get foamy and start to increase in volume.
- When the eggs become pale yellow and fluffy, check to see if the sugar is completely dissolved and the temperature is warm.
- When the volume has increased by at least 3 times, lift the whisk and let the mixture flow down like ribbons. If the ribbons appear for 3 to 4 seconds, it’s reached the ribbon stage.
- and 6. Sift in the flour in three parts and fold after each time.
- Before adding the melted butter, mix in about 3 heaping tablespoons of batter. This will help incorporate the butter into the batter.
- Gently add the butter mixture and fold in very gently, taking care not to deflate the batter.
- and 10. When you no longer see melted butter, pour the batter into a cake pan lined with parchment paper. Bake the cake at 350 degrees F until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let it rest on a cooling rack, and slice the cake into layers once completely cooled.
Brush the bottom cake layer with cake syrup, then apply a thin layer of whipped cream. Next, top with strawberry slices and apply another thin layer of whipped cream. Top with the next cake layer and repeat these steps.
Decorate the sides and top of the cake with more whipped cream. Then add the fresh fruit topping. Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Dry the fruit very well before filling and topping the cake. This will help it last longer.
- When adding butter, it’s very easy to deflate the batter. Make sure the melted butter and batter are still warm. Cold temperatures will solidify the butter and deflate the batter. Fold very gently at this stage until just combined.Avoid overfilling the layers. It can cause the cake to collapse if too heavy.
- Cake syrup – To keep the cake moist and delicate, brush the cake syrup on each cake layer. This technique is used by many commercial bakeries and pastry chefs, including in my own family.
- Store fresh fruit cake in the fridge for up to two days for the best flavor.
More cake recipes:
Fresh Fruit Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
Vanilla Cake
- 1 cup cake flour
- 4 eggs, room temperature
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 1 ¾ tablespoon butter, melted
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Cake Syrup
- ⅓ cup hot water
- 3 tablespoons sugar
Whipped Cream
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream, cold
- 6 to 8 tablespoons powdered sugar, adjust to taste
Fruit Topping and Filling
- 3 cups fresh fruit, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, kiwi, mandarin oranges
Instructions
For the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line the bottom and sides of the cake pan with parchment paper.
- Whip Eggs: In a large heat-proof bowl, add the eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt. Place this bowl inside a larger bowl that's been filled with hot water (bain-marie). Using a hand mixer, beat the eggs on high speed until soft, fluffy, and pale yellow ribbons form, about 8 to 10 minutes. Replace the hot water halfway through as it cools down. See Note 1.⅔ cup sugar, 4 eggs, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Add Flour: Sift in the flour in three parts, gently folding after each time.1 cup cake flour
- Add Butter: To help incorporate the butter, mix 3 heaping spoonfuls of the batter into the warmed, melted butter. Next, gently fold the butter mixture into the batter. See Note 2.1 ¾ tablespoon butter
- Bake: Pour the batter into your cake pan and bake at 350°F until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. For one 9-inch round pan, about 25 minutes. For two 6-inch round pans, about 18 minutes.
- Cool: Remove all parchment paper and allow it to cool completely on a cooling rack.
For the Whipped Cream:
- Using a whisk attachment, beat the heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar together until light and fluffy.2 cups heavy whipping cream, 6 to 8 tablespoons powdered sugar
Assemble:
- Cake syrup: Make cake syrup by dissolving the sugar in hot water. Set aside.3 tablespoons sugar, ⅓ cup hot water
- Fill: Slice the cake into even layers using a leveler. Working with the bottom cake layer, brush on a layer of cake syrup, then add a thin layer of whipped cream. Top with sliced fruit, being careful not to overfill. Then top with another thin layer of whipped cream. Repeat these steps for the next cake layer. See Notes 3 and 4.3 cups fresh fruit
- Decorate: Decorate the top layer with more fruit and whipped cream. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Whipping eggs: It is essential the egg mixture is warm to the touch and the sugar is completely dissolved for this step, thus requiring a bain-marie. See step-by-step photos in the post for the proper ribbon stage. If you’re looking for a sponge cake that doesn’t require a bain-marie, try my Easy Sponge Cake recipe.
- When adding butter, it’s very easy to deflate the batter. Make sure the melted butter and batter are still warm. Cold temperatures will solidify the butter and deflate the batter. Fold very gently at this stage until just combined.
- Cake layers: I recommend using no more than 3 layers per cake as it can easily collapse if too tall. If using a 9-inch cake, use 3 layers. If using two 6-inch cakes, create two 2-layer cakes or one 3-layer cake.
- Overfilling the cake with too much fruit or whipped cream can cause it to collapse. Be conservative when placing the fruit and be sure they are sliced the same thickness to have a level layer. I recommend using cake dowels for extra support.
- Storage: Store decorated and filled cake in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
Can I turn the cake batter into cupcakes?
Hi,
Can I bake the cake and freeze the cake layers?
Hey!
I was wondering if we make one 9 inch cake, do we have to cut one 9 inch cake into 3 layers. Or make 3 separate 9 inch cakes
This is the only fruit cake I want to be enjoying! It tastes like it’s from a bakery. Great recipe!
Hi is there a video of this recipe?
Can this be stored overnight?
I love the fresh fruits especially the strawberries which are my favorite! Fantastic!
Hi Jamie!
I came across your fruit cake recipe, and couldn’t way to try it – it was the perfect way to send off Summer and the delicious fruits.
So good, I am making it again tomorrow!
I have bought a lot of fresh fruit cakes from bakeries over the years, and cannot tell you how excited I was to taste your delicious recipe.
The cake is so delicious and tender, and the combination of whipped cream and fruit is one of the best.
I love how simple and easy this was to make. Can’t wait to make it again for an upcoming baby shower I am hosting.
Hi! are you supposed to let the cake cool before putting in the filling & whipped cream? If so how long? Thanks!
This cake was as beautiful as it was delicious! Also, so appreciative of the detailed step by step instructions – super helpful!
Hi! What is the depth of the 9 inch pan that you used to be able to cut it into 3 layers?
My go-to birthday cake to make for my friends. I added some lemon curd to the layers and decorated it with blueberries. So delicious!
This is an absolutely gorgeous fruit cake! It’s just like the cakes at the Asian bakery!
This cake turned out beautifully! I was nervous about deflating the batter and the higher difficulty of the recipe but I had no issues. I used margarine as I had no butter but I don’t think it made much of a difference. Made for a delicious birthday cake for my mom!
Hi! I’m running into a problem where I’m folding the flour in so gently that there are big air pockets of flour. I don’t really know how to get rid of them all without overmixing. I think I had the same problem with butter- I was so afraid of overmixing that I stopped mixing before I was certain everything was well combined. Do you have a video or more photos of what the cake looks like after each step? I don’t think I mixed enough but I’m also not sure what it’s supposed to look like after baking! Thanks!
Hi Mizzle, you definitely want to mix in the flour and butter completely before baking. As long as you mix the batter using a gentle folding action, it should be okay to continue mixing. I can make a video of this recipe in the future. I’ll add that to my to do list. 🙂
This fruit cake looks so gorgeous and delicious. Pinned to try your recipe soon. Thanks for sharing.
Such a beautiful cake and not hard to make! Great recipe and thanks for sharing!
Fluffy, light and delicious. Having the step-by-step photos was very helpful as I am not an amazing baker and always like to see what the texture should look like. Thanks!
This cake is absolutely stunning!