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    Home » Recipes » Cakes

    Strawberry Lemonade Cake

    Published: May 23, 2018 · Modified: Feb 25, 2022 by Tiffany Dahle · This post may contain affiliate links.

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    A slice of pink lemonade cake on a plate with a striped fork.

    Pink lemonade cake is a perfect summer potluck party recipe. Serve this moist and tart strawberry lemonade cake cold from the fridge or room temperature at your next backyard barbecue.

    A square slice of strawberry lemonade sheet cake with a fork taking a bite. The frosting is pale pink with little pastel sprinkles.

    Spring is birthday season in our house. The girls have their birthdays a few weeks apart which makes for a busy season.

    This year, Little Pea had her First Communion the day before her birthday. Life was crazy and in the chaos, her birthday cake wasn't as delicious as I had hoped it would be.

    Once we had a slower, more relaxed weekend, I decided to try a MUCH more simple cake "just because."

    My little girl loves strawberry lemonade (or pink lemonade) so I whipped together this easy 9 x 13 sheet cake as a special Friday treat. 

    This is now the cake she asks for on repeat, which is fine by me since it is so easy to make!

    Jump to:
    • Why This is the Best Recipe
    • Ingredients
    • Sheet Cake or Cupcakes?
    • Pink Lemonade Frosting
    • Serving Tips
    • Make Ahead Tips
    • More Summer Desserts
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    Why This is the Best Recipe

    As we head into summertime with all it's special events to celebrate, you absolutely need to save this cake recipe.

    It is the perfect backyard barbecue or potluck party dessert because it is totally portable. 

    Little Pea loved how it tastes just like pink lemonade but what really surprised me was just how much Handyman Tim ended up loving it.

    We all enjoy our cakes cold right out of the fridge and somehow that just really works well with this strawberry lemonade cake.

    The colder temperature for serving really reminds you of the beverage it is imitating.

    Cool and refreshing for a hot summer evening but without the worry of melting like ice cream or popsicles.

    Ingredients

    This from-scratch cake is just as easy as a boxed cake mix. You only need a few ingredients.

    For the Cake:

    • Flour
    • Sugar
    • Butter
    • Milk
    • Eggs
    • Baking Powder
    • Vanilla Extract
    • Dry pink lemonade drink mix (the concentrated dry powder mix, not the beverage you can buy in the fridge section. Do not add water.)

    For the Frosting:

    • Butter
    • Heavy Cream
    • Powdered Sugar
    • More dry pink lemonade drink mix

    Sheet Cake or Cupcakes?

    I made the strawberry lemonade cake into a simple 9 x 13-in sheet cake, but you could easily adjust this recipe to make cupcakes.

    You would get at least 1 dozen cupcakes, possibly up to 2 dozen depending on how much you fill the cupcake wrappers. Just be sure to adjust the bake time to a shorter time to start since cupcakes will bake faster than the sheet cake.

    Strawberry lemonade cake: just as easy as a box mix, but so much easier!

    Pink Lemonade Frosting

    There is strawberry lemonade in BOTH the cake and the frosting!

    The cake has a slightly pink hue to it and the frosting is a lovely light pink.

    It makes "just enough" frosting, not too much, which is great because my kids don't like cakes that are over frosted.

    If you plan to frost your cupcakes with a tall generous swirl, you might want to consider doubling the frosting portion of the recipe.

    Serving Tips

    This strawberry lemonade cake is so pretty all on it's own, but I decorated it with a small sprinkle of some pink and blue confetti balls I had in my baking cabinet. They were the perfect festive final touch.

    You could also garnish with fresh strawberries or even thinly slice lemons to give your friends a preview of what the flavor will be like.

    Make Ahead Tips

    As I've mentioned, since this cake is so delicious when cold, it makes the perfect make-ahead dessert to bring to a party.

    You can make it 2 - 3 days in advance and just keep it covered in the fridge until you are ready to serve.

    You could also bake the cake and freeze it unfrosted. Then just thaw it in the fridge overnight and frost it before serving.

    More Summer Desserts

    Looking for more chilled desserts to serve for a hot summer party? We love these cold or frozen treats:

    • A metal pan has an ice cream cake with red and white sprinkles over the top. A slice is missing so you can see the layers of ice cream sandwiches inside.
      Easy Ice Cream Sandwich Cake
    • A square slice of strawberry kiwi cake shows the red Jello poke stripes, fluffy whipped topping, and has two thin slices of fresh kiwi on top for garnish.
      Easy Strawberry Kiwi Cake
    • Red, white, and blue firecracker popsicles are stacked on a plate. They have a green plastic handle.
      Sweet Firecracker Popsicles
    • A muffin tin is filled with all different sundae bar toppings including chopped nuts, brownies, cherries, cookies, and fresh mint.
      20 Ice Cream Sundae Recipes

    📖 Recipe

    A square slice of strawberry lemonade sheet cake with a fork taking a bite. The frosting is pale pink with little pastel sprinkles.

    Strawberry Lemonade Cake

    5 from 1 vote
    This perfectly portable 9x13 pink lemonade cake is an awesome potluck party dessert. Bright and tart, it is delicious straight out of the fridge ice cold but can be served at room temperature, too.
    TOTAL TIME 1 hour
    PREP TIME 10 minutes
    Additional Time 5 minutes
    COOK TIME 45 minutes
    YIELD 12 servings
    PIN RECIPE FOR LATER PRINT RECIPE NOW

    Ingredients
      

    • ¾ cup butter softened
    • 1 ⅔ cup sugar
    • 1 cup milk
    • 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
    • 2 ¾ cup flour
    • ½ cup presweetened pink lemonade drink mix the powder, don't hydrate it.
    • 3 teaspoon baking powder
    • ¼ teaspoon salt
    • 4 egg whites
    • 1 whole egg

    For the frosting:

    • ¼ cup pink lemonade drink mix the powder
    • 3 tablespoon water
    • ½ cup butter softened
    • 16 oz powdered sugar
    • 1 tablespoon heavy cream

    Instructions

    • Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with butter and coat it in flour, set aside.
    • Cream the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl with a hand beater or in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment.
    • Add the milk, vanilla extract, lemon zest to the bowl and mix on low until just combined. Add the flour, lemonade drink powder, baking powder, and salt to the bowl and beat on high for 2 minutes. Add the eggs and egg whites to the bowl and beat on high for an additional 2 minutes. Be sure to scrape the sides of the bowl between steps.
    • Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it evenly with a spoon or spatula. The batter will be slightly thick.
    • Bake for 35 - 45 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely (for at least one hour) before frosting.

    To make the strawberry lemonade frosting:

    • Combine the ¼ cup lemonade powder with 3 tablespoon water and stir until completely dissolved. Set aside.
    • Beat the butter until smooth. Add the powdered sugar 1 or 2 cups at a time and beat until each addition is combined. Add the lemonade mixture and the heavy cream after a few cups of the powdered sugar have been mixed into the frosting. Continue to add the powdered sugar and beat the frosting until it is light and fluffy. If the frosting gets too thick, you can add more heavy cream a teaspoon at a time until desired consistency has been reached. 
    COURSECakes
    CUISINEAmerican
    AUTHORTiffany Dahle

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    Easy peasy & portable for parties: pink lemonade cake

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Crystal

      July 14, 2019 at 9:45 pm

      Made this for my sisters birthday and the cake turned out ridiculously dense! The icing tasted good but the cake was so dense we couldn’t really eat it.

      Reply

    Trackbacks

    1. Red white and blue strawberry cream cheese tart says:
      February 15, 2020 at 3:03 pm

      […] This strawberry lemonade cake is summer in a pan […]

      Reply
    2. Mud Puddles & Rainbows: a fun dessert to make with kids! says:
      June 17, 2019 at 5:21 pm

      […] This strawberry lemonade cake is summer in a pan […]

      Reply
    3. A refreshing kiwi strawberry poke cake for easy entertaining says:
      June 9, 2019 at 3:00 pm

      […] This strawberry lemonade cake is summer in a pan […]

      Reply
    4. This easy strawberry lemonade recipe is party perfect says:
      May 16, 2019 at 1:11 pm

      […] This strawberry lemonade cake is summer in a pan […]

      Reply

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    Hi, I'm Tiffany!
    I believe a great family recipe is one that makes everyone at the table happy, not just the kids. I'm the author of two bestselling cookbooks for kids that are chock full of recipes everyone in your family will love. I'm also the hostess of the best online book club for moms.

    More about me →

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