I have a bride that wants strawberry flavored cake, fresh strawberries in the cake (I'm using strawberry simple syrup as well) and cream cheese icing. I made a vanilla pink champagne cake (in an effort to not over-kill the strawberry flavor) for the tasting, but she LOVES the flavor of strawberry cake mix and wants that flavor cake. I have done enough cakes to know that strawberry cake from the mix will turn to mush under fondant. Is there something I can add to the cake mix to make it stable enough to use? I would love to be able to authenticate the flavor for her in a from-scratch cake, with natural flavors. I want to give her what she wants, but I'm embarrassed to potentially "have" to use cake mix in one of my cakes, a wedding cake none-the-less! Any suggestions would be appreciated!

I've used the first recipe before and it has come out very nice. I didn't use it for a wedding cake though. It's a strawberry cake - wasc method. It has a better texture (a bit denser) than the regular strawberry cake mix cake. I also found a strawberry-cake-from-scratch cake in the recipe section. I have not tried this one. Maybe another CC'er might have a tried and true recipe???

http://cakecentral.com/recipes/16305/strawberry-cake-wasc-method
http://cakecentral.com/recipes/1789/strawberry-cake-from-scratch

Also Paula Deen's recipe
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/simply-delicious-strawberry-cake-recipe/index.html

I used this one for one of 3d cakes and it says it would be great for Fondant, which I totally agree with. It provides a Dense, rich, MOIST cake. Beware it is heavy so make sure and support it well.

http://cakecentral.com/recipes/1972/durable-cake-for-3d-and-wedding-cakes

I did it with chocolate and I have tried it with Vanilla and both turned out great. You can use either strawberry pudding, white chocolate, vanilla or even cheesecake since you are doing a cream cheese frosting.

I've made straight-from-the-box cake-mix-cakes under fondant with no problem at all. why do you think it will turn to mush?

I'm afraid of my scratch cakes under fondant... box cakes are a dream under fondant. That was how I learned to cover cakes... lots of boxes. I use DH.

I agree. I've never had a problem with fondant on a box mix cake. When I've had difficulties, it's always been because of some issue with the buttercream under the fondant.

The bridal shower cake I just posted was pilsbury strawberry mix. It
worked great!

How would freeze dried strawberries hold up? I've used freeze dried blueberries in a white choc mud cake.. they were soaked in raspberry infused vodka first.. oh my it was goooooood! They softened up like fresh berries but without the excessive moistness that fresh berries would produce. Could be an option?!

I make strawberry cakes using the wasc method all the time (my hubbys fave)...i sub strawberry yogurt for the sour cream and strawberry milk for the liquid and use loran strawberry oil for the extract...soooooo yummy and holds great under fondant (i use mmf and fondarific)

When I make my strawberry cake I use the WASC recipe. Instead of the water I use either strawberry daiquiri mix or I make a puree. This has always provided me with a good stable cake for covering with fondant. I have tried using fresh strawberries in the recipe but it makes for a wet cake. HTH

When I make strawberry cake, I use my white cake recipe (I only bake from scratch) and add strawberry icing fruit and strawberry oil/flavoring. And that's how I make orange cake and lemon cake, also. icing fruits are your best friend.

What are icing fruits?

I would like to know if the cream cheese icing is good to use to cover a strawberry cake made from a pillsbury cake mix for a marshmallow fondant. i really hate buttercream??

I put cream cheese under fondant. It worked well. I even put it on a little thick.

Could someone tell me what are icing fruits ?

I have doctored up vanilla Pillsbury cake into strawberry. I hate the way box strawberry tastes.
I use the box of white cake, box of strawberry pudding, one cup pureed strawberries (frozen or fresh), about 2 tablespoons extra oil,, 1 c water, & 4 eggs. It comes out really moist and good. It is a dense cake.

I use award-winning gourmet jams and they are incredible. Every recipe I use them in, the baked good turns out better. They are perfect in FBC and IMBC, and spread on one of the layes of a four layer cake frosted with the jam/ buttercream mix. It doesn't sink in. I can't make the purees for the price that I buy them. They are from Bittersweet Herb Farm and they wholesale. They retail for $10/10 oz. Wholesale is $5/10 oz.

Thank you everyone for the feedback. Maybe it is the brand of mix I am using? I use Betty Crocker and each time I have used it in fondant cakes, they don't hold up well at all. I've had much better luck from "from scratch" cakes. The strawberry flavor is especially crumbly. For the tasting, I made a from scratch pink champagne cake with fresh berries, strawberry puree, white chocolate mousse and cream cheese buttercream. She wants strawberry flavored cake, fresh strawberries and no mousse, all icing. I think I will try a few of the recipe suggestions and see which will work best.

Thanks again for all the help!!