Name: 📋Saskatoon Berry Layer Cake recipe
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 100 min
Ingredients: 1 cup unsalted butter (softened); 2 cups white granulated sugar; 4 large eggs (at room temperature) (*It's important the eggs are at room temperature); 1 tbsp white vinegar; 1 cup milk (* I use 1%); 1 tsp Creme bouquet or Vanilla butter or Princess cake and cookies emulsion (*Or substitute 2 tsp vanilla extract); 2 3/4 cups All-purpose flour + 1 tbsp; 2 1/4 tsp baking powder; 1/2 tsp salt; 1 1/2 cups Saskatoon berries (fresh or frozen); 1/2 recipe Saskatoon berry pie filling (https://foodmeanderings.com/saskatoon-berry-pie-filling-and-sauce/); 1 recipe whipped cream frosting (https://foodmeanderings.com/stabilized-whipped-cream-icing/); sprinkles; additional Saskatoon berries

Jump to Recipe

This Saskatoon Berry Cake is a scrumptious layer cake that celebrates summer with every bite! Bursting with a delicious Saskatoon berry filling, more Saskatoon berries in the batter and a creamy whipped cream frosting, this cake will leave you begging for more!

a piece of Saskatoon berry cake on a white plate, with the remainder of the whole cake in the background

This Saskatoon berry cake is popular during Saskatoon berry season, which is a short season during the summer, and only a few weeks long (in mid-July to early August, depending on where you live). This cake is ideal for birthdays, celebrations, BBQs, and special occasions. This Saskatoon cake was inspired by my love for Saskatoon berries and my Saskatoon berry pie and filling.

If you love Saskatoon berries, be sure to try some of my other Saskatoon berry recipes: Saskatoon berry pancakes, Saskatoon berry cookies, Saskatoon berry loaf, Saskatoon berry cheesecake, Saskatoon berry dessert shooters, Saskatoon berry dessert perogies, Saskatoon berry ice cream (shown), and the best Saskatoon berry muffins (dairy-free)!

hand holding Saskatoon Berry ice cream in a waffle cone

🥘Ingredients

For this Saskatoon berry cake recipe, you'll need:

1 cup unsalted butter softened
2 cups white granulated sugar
4 large eggs (at room temperature)
1 cup milk, mixed with 1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 tsp Creme bouquet or Vanilla butter or Princess cake and cookies emulsion(affiliate link)
2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour + 1 tbsp
2 ¼ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 ½ cups Saskatoon berries fresh or frozen
½ recipe Saskatoon berry filling
1 recipe whipped cream frosting
sprinkles (affiliate link)
Saskatoon berries

If you haven't ventured into emulsions yet, I would highly recommend them! Emulsions give more depth of flavor, compared to using an extract, especially when they are baked in. "Princess Cake and Cookie Emulsion" (which is awesome in sugar cookies and frosting too) is another one of my favorites, as well as Vanilla butter.

These generally aren't available at grocery stores but can be ordered online, or purchased at hobby stores, craft stores, or anywhere that sells cake decorating supplies.

🔪Instructions

Prep:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees ( 176 degrees C) and, put oven rack into center of oven.
Prepare Saskatoon berry filling *you will only need HALF so you can either make the whole thing and freeze half or make half the recipe - this can be done in advance, and refrigerated or frozen.
Prepare Whipped cream frosting - this can be done a day or two in advance.
Add 1 tablespoon vinegar to milk and set aside.

butter and sugar beaten together in glass mixing bowl with beaters over bowl

Cream butter and sugar together until fluffy, about 3 minutes.

eggs added to butter sugar mixture, in glass mixing bowl with beater and black spatula

Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each.

Mix the Creme bouquet or whatever emulsion you use (or Vanilla extract) into the milk.

dry ingredients mixed in separate glass bowl

Mix the dry ingredients ( 2 ¾ cup flour, baking powder, and salt) together in a separate bowl.

milk being poured into bowl, alternating with dry ingredients

Combine flour mixture with the butter/sugar/eggs in two parts, alternating with the milk mixture, beating well after each addition.

Mix with an electric mixer, until combined.

Mix Saskatoon berries with flour.

Saskatoon berries mixed with batter in a glass bowl

Fold gently into the batter until just combined (don't stir too much or you'll get purple batter)

Grease pans (9X13, 3=8″, 2=9″, or 1=10″)

I use Cake Release (affiliate link)

Divide cake batter into prepared pans to ⅔ full.

Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees F for 25 - 40 minutes (depending on the pans you use), or until a cake tester inserted into the center of cake comes out clean and the cakes will be golden brown on the edges and bottom.

* It took 40 minutes in 2- 9-inch pans

Let cool in pans for 10 minutes.

Then remove from pans and cool completely on wire rack.

Slice off the hump on each cake

Place the sliced side down on a serving plate

Add about 1 ¼ cups whipped cream frosting

saskatoon berry filling added to whipped cream on cake

Add the Saskatoon berry mixture to the top of the whipped cream frosting-covered cake.

*Do not go all the way to the edge or the filling will seep out- leave about ½ an inch, as shown.

2nd cake placed on top of filling, cut side down

Put the 2nd cake on top (cut side down)

cake being covered with whipped cream frosting

Frost cake with whipped cream frosting. *To avoid getting crumbs in the frosting put a thick patch on, then spread it, then repeat.

cake completely frosted with whipped cream frosting

Continue frosting until the cake is covered.

cake decorated with sprinkles and Saskatoon berries

Decorate cake: Add sprinkles and piping and place Saskatoon berries on top of piped frosting decorations. Add a piped border around the bottom of the cake.

How to pipe a border on a cake

How to pipe decorations on a cake

📖Variations & Substitutions

Saskatoon berries- you can use fresh or frozen Saskatoon berries or substitute regular or wild blueberries
Saskatoon berry pie filling- you could use canned pie filling (this is available at Co-op in Western Canada) instead of homemade Saskatoon berry pie filling
Creme Bouquet emulsion - you can substitute Princess Cake and Cookies emulsion or Vanilla Butter emulsion, but if you can't get emulsion, use 2 teaspoon Vanilla extract.
Frosting- you could use another type of frosting, such as my 2 ingredient White Chocolate frosting or my Whipped Cream Buttercream frosting, your own favorite or store-bought frosting
Sugar - you can substitute half brown sugar for the white sugar

🥗 Main Dishes to serve with this meal

Saskatoon berry cake goes well with so many summer meals! I like to serve it with:

beer can chicken, sliced, on a black pate, with a knife, and a can of beer in the background

🍽Equipment

You will need a mixing bowl, an electric mixer for this recipe (either a stand mixer or a hand mixer) as well as cake pans (you can use a round or square cake pan.) A cake tester is also required (affiliate links).

a whole Saskatoon berry cake, with white sprinkles on top, on a white plate on a black platter

🌡️Storage

Store this cake in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. It does not freeze well as a decorated cake (the whipped cream frosting will run when it defrosts).

However, if you want to make some of the cake in advance, the cake itself (undecorated), as well as the Saskatoon berry filling can be frozen for up to 3 months.

Alternatively, if you use the Whipped Cream Buttercream frosting, it can be decorated and frozen, as, despite its name, it's made with shortening, not whipped cream.

👪 Serving Size

This Juneberry cake recipe makes 12 servings. However, you can double or triple the recipe by clicking on the blue serving number and selecting the number of servings you'd like. The ingredient quantities will automatically adjust. You will need additional pans if you increase the recipe.

💭Top tips

For a crumb-free frosted cake, use a generous amount of Cake Release (affiliate link) and gently brush any loose crumbs off your cake with a pastry brush (affiliate link) before frosting it.

To avoid getting crumbs mixed in the frosting while you are frosting, put a thick patch of frosting on a section of the cake then spread it without touching the surface of the cake, then repeat. Here's how to frost a cake without getting crumbs in the frosting! You can also do a thin crumb coat to start.

🦺Food safety

Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw eggs
Wash hands after touching raw eggs
Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
Never leave cooking food unattended
See more guidelines at USDA.gov

a piece of Saskatoon berry cake on a white plate with a fork

So if you are lucky enough to have been Saskatoon berry picking and have fresh Saskatoon berries to use (or have frozen Saskatoons on hand) and want to make something different than the typical pie, give this Saskatoon berry cake a try!