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Hostess Strawberry Cupcake Cake

Heather Baird
This supersized version of the nostalgic Hostess Strawberry Cupcake features three layers of soft, strawberry-flavored cake filled with fluffy marshmallow crème. It’s frosted with a luscious strawberry white chocolate buttercream and topped with the signature squiggly icing loops. Perfect for birthdays, celebrations, or just a fun trip down memory lane!
To achieve the classic snack cake flavor, this recipe relies on convenient prepackaged ingredients like strawberry Jell-O, instant vanilla pudding mix, and strawberry drink syrup—so be sure to add them to your grocery list!
5 from 1 vote
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
2 hours hands off 2 hours
Total Time 3 hours
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 12

Equipment

Ingredients
 
 

Strawberry cake layers

  • 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3.4 oz. instant vanilla pudding mix 1 package, the dry mix
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine grain salt
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 3 oz. strawberry Jell-O mix 1 package, the dry mix
  • 4 large eggs at room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon strawberry drink syrup such as Nesquick by Nestle
  • 1 1/2 cups full fat buttermilk at room temperature
  • neon pink gel food color optional

Filling

Strawberry white chocolate buttercream

  • 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • Heavy cream to thin frosting
  • 4 oz. white chocolate melted
  • 1 tablespoon strawberry extract such as McCormick (see notes)
  • neon pink gel food color

Confectioners’ glaze for décor

  • 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar plus more if needed
  • 1-2 teaspoons of milk or cream plus more if needed

Instructions
 

Strawberry cake layers

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease three 8-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper rounds.
  • In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, dry pudding mix, baking powder, and salt. Whisk well to combine. Set aside.
  • In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. With the mixer running, gradually sprinkle in the powdered strawberry Jell-O. Then, add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add in the strawberry drink syrup. Mix well to combine.
  • Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the buttermilk. Begin and end with flour. When mixed, add a little pink food color, if using. Mix again.
  • Divide the batter between the three prepared pans. Spread evenly.
  • Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick tester inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool cakes in the pans for 5 minutes, then turn out to cool completely on wire racks.
  • When cakes are cool, cut out and remove a 3.5 inch circle from the centers of two of the cakes. (Save cake scraps for snacks, cake pops, or for a quick hot fudge sundae.)

Strawberry white chocolate buttercream

  • Combine the butter and confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment. Beat until well combined; add a small amount of heavy cream to thin the mixture, just enough to bring it to spreading consistency (start with 3 tablespoons and add more as needed).
  • Add in the melted white chocolate and beat until combined. Add the strawberry extract and whip to incorporate. Tint the buttercream with neon pink food color, beginning with 1/4 teaspoon and adding/increasing as needed to get a brilliant pink hue. Beat on high speed until light and fluffy.
  • Place a cake layer with a hole in the center on a cake board or server. Cover the top edge of the cake with the strawberry buttercream. Top with the second cake layer with a hole in the center. Frost the top with more strawberry buttercream.
  • Fill the hole in the cake with half of the marshmallow crème. Wait 5 minutes for the crème to relax down into the cavity and the fill to the top with the remaining marshmallow crème. Top with the final cake layer without a hole. Frost the entire cake with a crumb coat of the buttercream. Refrigerate 15 minutes, or until firm.
  • Apply a second thick coat of the strawberry buttercream. Use a cake smoother or bench scraper to make the top and the sides of the cake flat and even.

Confectioners’ glaze

  • Mix the confectioners’ sugar and 1 teaspoon of milk in a small bowl. Whisk together until a very thick paste is formed. It should hold in the balloon of the whisk and very slowly fall out. Use more or less of each of the sugar and milk to reach this correct consistency. Remove to a piping bag or zip-top bag with a small hole snipped in the corner. Pipe a series of consecutive loops on top of the cake in Hostess Cupcake fashion.
  • Serve slices of cake on their sides instead of standing upright. The filling will fall out of the cake slices otherwise. Serve with ice cold glasses of milk for an extra dose of childhood nostalgia.
  • Cover cake leftovers with plastic wrap. Store the cake in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Notes

  • Use Instant Pudding Mix – Make sure to use instant vanilla pudding mix, not cook-and-serve, as it helps keep the cake soft and moist.
  • Strawberry Jell-O for Flavor & Color – The dry strawberry Jell-O mix enhances the strawberry flavor and gives the cake a pink hue. If you'd like an even brighter color, add a few drops of neon pink gel food coloring.
  • Strawberry Drink Syrup Substitute – If you can’t find Nestlé strawberry drink syrup, you can use the same McCormick strawberry extract called for in the buttercream. Replace the 1 tablespoon of syrup with 2 teaspoons of the extract.
Keyword hostess strawberry snack cake, instant vanilla pudding mix, strawberry drink syrup, strawberry extract, strawberry Jell-O
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