Fresh Berry Cake
This berry cake is made with fluffy layers of genoise sponge cake, whipped cream, and fresh, ripe berries! It's the best summer cake that highlights sweet strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries!
Prep Time15 minutes mins
Cook Time30 minutes mins
Total Time45 minutes mins
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8
Calories: 437kcal
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
- 1⅔ cups heavy whipping cream cold
- 6 tablespoons powdered sugar adjust to taste
Berry Topping and Filling
- 2½ cups berries strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries
For the Vanilla 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.
1⅔ cups heavy whipping cream, 6 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 layer of whipped cream. Top with mixed berries, being careful not to overfill. Repeat these steps for the next cake layer. See Notes 3 and 4. 2½ cups berries
Decorate: Decorate the top layer with more berries. Serve and enjoy!
Makes one 9-inch or two 6-inch cakes (the photo shown is of a 6-inch cake).
I highly recommend using a kitchen scale and the metric measurements provided for the best results. Click on "Metric" under the ingredients list to access gram measurements.
- 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 many berries or whipped cream can cause it to collapse. Be conservative when placing the berries and be sure they are level. Otherwise, I recommend using cake dowels which are great for supporting tall, layered cakes.
- Storage: Store decorated and filled cake in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Calories: 437kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 156mg | Sodium: 141mg | Potassium: 125mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 32g | Vitamin A: 1088IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 58mg | Iron: 1mg