Protein Vanilla Cake with Strawberries

Looking for a sweet treat to satisfy your craving that tastes amazing and has 20 grams of protein per serving? Look no further! This protein vanilla cake will be your next favorite dessert! The moist crumb, rich vanilla flavor, and sweetness from the strawberries makes this one of the most delicious recipes! Let’s be honest, sometimes a protein shake just doesn’t cut it. For this recipe, all you need is a few simple ingredients and trust me, you will not regret it making it! (This cake didn’t even last 2 hours in my house, it is that good!)

With only a few basic ingredients and a large mixing bowl, you will have a delicious vanilla protein cake ready in under an hour!

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Ingredients needed for Vanilla Protein Cake

• Strawberries: Of course you will need strawberries! I used a 16 oz carton but you could always use more or less depending on your preference. I have not tried using frozen strawberries but use fresh fruit for best results.
• Olive Oil: This ingredient is key in making that moist crumb and giving the cake its rich flavor.
• Flour: I used all purpose but to make this more protein-filled, you can do almond flour instead! Or even a 1:1 Gluten free flour substitute if needed.
• Greek Yogurt: This is what makes the cake high protein (and the eggs). It makes the cake extra moist and fluffy with a little bit of tang, which goes great with strawberries. You could also swap for sour cream or do a half and half mixture of both! This recipe has 20 grams of protein per serving* (Note*: This calculation is estimated using Very Well Fit Nutrition calculator if you make this with high protein greek yogurt and almond flour. If you use all purpose flour, protein per serving will be less.)
• Salt: Just a pinch is needed to balance the sweetness.
• Granulated White Sugar: This will give the cake its slight sweetness and keeps this cake soft! You may be able to get away with using coconut sugar but I have personally not tried that method yet!
• Baking Powder: This will help the cake rise accordingly.
• Pure Vanilla Extract: The vanilla will compliment the other flavors and make this taste like a traditional vanilla cake.
• Eggs: To give the cake structure and richness.
• Lemon Juice: This will be used in the optional strawberry puree! Just a small amount is able to balance the sweetness of the strawberries and adds a nice tang!

How to make Vanilla Protein Cake

• First, make sure you leave your eggs and greek yogurt out to get to room temperature. Divide the strawberries into 3 piles on a small plate. One pile of diced for the inside of your cake, one pile of halves for the top of the cake, and a handful of diced for the strawberry puree sauce. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a 9 inch cake pan with parchment paper and set aside.
• In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar on medium speed for 5 minutes or until white and fluffy. Then add in the vanilla, greek yogurt, lemon zest (optional) and olive oil. Continue to mix until smooth.
• In a separate small bowl, combine your dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking powder). Add them to your wet ingredients in increments of 3 and mix on low speed until the batter is just combined. As soon as you see no more flour, stop mixing. You do not want to over mix this batter, it will create a dense cake.
• Add half of the batter to your cake pan then spread the diced strawberries on top. Pour the remaining batter on top and spread to cover the strawberries. Grab your strawberry halves and arrange them in a design on the top of the cake. Or you can just pour batter to the pan all at once and leave out the middle layer of strawberries if you do not have enough or just want less!
• Put in your preheated oven and bake for 45-50 minutes or until the toothpick comes out with a couple crumbs on it. While the cake bakes, you can make the strawberry puree. Blend the handful of diced strawberries with sugar and lemon juice in a blender until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside for later.
• Remove from oven and cool. Top with powdered sugar and slice. Serve with a drizzle of strawberry puree and enjoy!

This was my first time making this type of cake and I will definitely be experimenting in the future with different fruits, low sugar ingredients, and either cocoa powder or dark chocolate for the cake base! I am a big fan of healthy treats but baking with different protein powders (vegan protein powder and whey protein powder) in the past has always made my baked goods chalky. Swapping the powder for greek yogurt was a total game changer and made this cake have the best flavor! I apologize for the low quality photos on this post as I wasn’t expecting to share the recipe but I had a lot of friends ask for it! Wrap any leftovers in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container for up to a week in the fridge. Please try out this delicious vanilla protein cake recipe and let me know what you thought! As always, poftă bună!