Preheat your oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking pan or similar sized cake pan. While the oven heats, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg in a large bowl. This ensures the leavening agents are evenly distributed throughout the dry mixture, which is crucial for even rise and a tender crumb without eggs to add structure.

Hull and slice the strawberries into 1/4-inch pieces, then set aside on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb excess moisture—this prevents the cake from becoming soggy. In a separate bowl, whisk together the room-temperature buttermilk, sugar, yogurt, oil, and vanilla extract for 2-3 minutes until well combined and slightly emulsified. I find that Greek yogurt creates a noticeably moister crumb compared to regular yogurt, so it's worth the swap.

Pour the wet mixture from Step 2 into the dry ingredient bowl from Step 1 and gently fold together with a spatula until just combined. Don't overmix—lumpy batter is better than overdeveloped gluten, which would make the cake tough. Stop folding as soon as you no longer see streaks of dry flour.

Reserve about 8-10 of the nicest strawberry slices for topping. Fold the remaining strawberries into the batter, being gentle to avoid crushing them into the batter and creating wet pockets. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and arrange the reserved strawberry slices on top, pressing them gently into the surface. This gives you both strawberry flavor distributed throughout the cake and attractive berries on top. Bake at 350°F for 45-55 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs—the strawberries will keep some residual moisture, so don't overbake.

Let the cake cool in the pan for 15-20 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack or serving plate. Once completely cooled, dust generously with sifted powdered sugar just before serving. I always sift the powdered sugar first to remove any lumps that can create an uneven appearance on the final cake.