Preheat your oven to 320°F and grease your baking pan thoroughly with coconut oil or cooking spray. While the oven heats, prepare all your ingredients by bringing the eggs to room temperature (this helps them incorporate more evenly into the batter and creates a lighter crumb), measuring out the almond flour, sweetener, and other dry ingredients. Finely dice the strawberries into 1/4-inch pieces and set them aside on a paper towel to absorb any excess moisture—this prevents them from making the batter soggy.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, baking powder, and salt until evenly combined and there are no lumps of baking powder. This ensures the leavening agent is distributed evenly throughout the batter, which helps the cake rise uniformly and prevents dense spots.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the room-temperature eggs, melted coconut oil, vanilla extract, and sweetener until the mixture is pale and slightly thickened, about 1-2 minutes of whisking. I like to use room-temperature eggs because they blend more smoothly into the fat and create a lighter, more tender crumb than cold eggs. The sweetener will start to dissolve into the mixture, helping create a uniform sweetness throughout the cake.

Gently fold the dry ingredient mixture from Step 2 into the wet ingredient mixture from Step 3 using a spatula, stirring just until the dry ingredients are incorporated and no flour streaks remain. Be careful not to overmix—this keeps the cake tender. Once combined, gently fold in the diced strawberries, distributing them evenly throughout the batter so each bite has strawberry pieces.

Pour the batter into your prepared baking pan, spreading it evenly with a spatula. Bake at 320°F for 25-27 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs—don't overbake, as almond flour cakes can dry out quickly. The cake should be golden brown on top and spring back slightly when lightly touched.

Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely. This resting time in the pan allows the cake to set without breaking apart. Once completely cool, spread or pipe the cream cheese frosting over the top, and I prefer Philadelphia brand because it has the best stability and won't weep or break down as quickly as store brands.