This cake features a Vanilla Raspberry layer, in between two chocolate layers, with marshmallow frosting, and raspberry jam in the middle. Covered in a rich chocolate frosting.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword cake, chocolate, marshmallow, raspberry
Prep Time 1 hourhour30 minutesminutes
Cook Time 30 minutesminutes
Total Time 2 hourshours
Servings 12people
Calories 560kcal
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
3/4cupall-purpose flour3.3 oz, 93.5 grams
1/4cupunsweetened cocoa powder1 oz, 31 grams
3/4teaspoonbaking powder
1/2teaspoonbaking soda
1/4teaspoonfine sea salt
1/4teaspoonespresso powderoptional
1egg
2/3cupgranulated sugar4.66 oz, 132 grams
1/4cupunsalted butter2 oz, 56 grams
1/3cupmilk
1teaspoonvanilla extract
1/3cuphot brewed coffeeor hot water
Vanilla Raspberry Layer
4tablespoonsunsalted butterroom temperature (2 oz, 56 grams)
1/3cupsugar2.33 oz, 66 grams
1eggroom temperature
1teaspoonsvanilla extract
2/3cupall-purpose flour3 oz, 85 grams
1/4teaspoonbaking powder
1/4teaspoonbaking soda
1/8teaspoonfine sea salt
1/3cupbuttermilk
10raspberries
Chocolate Frosting
2/3 cup chopped dark chocolate 113 grams, 4 oz
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 78 grams, 2.7 oz
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar319 grams, 11.25 oz
1 cup cream cheese softened 226 grams, 8 oz
1/2cup unsalted butter softened113 grams, 4 oz
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 tablespoons heavy cream
Raspberry Jam
10 oz raspberries frozen or fresh
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/3 cup water
Marshmallow Frosting
2 egg whites
100 grams granulated sugar 1/2 cup, 3.5 oz.
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Chocolate Cake
This recipe makes for 2-6” round cakes.
Pre-heat oven to 350F.
Butter 2-6″ cake pans and place a parchment paper circle in the bottom of pans. Butter parchment. Set aside.
Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and espresso powder, if using. Set aside.
Cream butter at medium-high speed for 1 minute.
Add sugar slowly, cream for another 2 minutes.
Add egg to the mixture.
Add vanilla extract and mix.
Slowly add milk, mix to combine.
Pour dry ingredients over wet mixture.
Fold with a spatula slowly, until ingredients are just combined.
If you see big clumps of cocoa powder, you can use the whisk to try to gently smooth the batter out.
Once batter is incorporated, pour hot coffee (or hot water) in the bowl. Whisk until combined.
Pour batter evenly onto baking pans.
Bake in pre-heated oven for 10-20 min. After the 10 minute mark, keep checking regularly, because you don’t want to burn your cakes or overbake them. Remove them from the oven once a toothpick comes our clean once inserted in the cake.
Once you remove it from the oven, wait 10 minutes, flip cakes onto a cookie cooling rack and let cakes cool.
Once cool, wrap each layer individually in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use. I like to leave my layers in the fridge for quite a bit so they can firm up and make it easier to assemble and decorate the cake. Specially an oil based cake such as this one, which is a super moist and fluffy cake.
Vanilla Raspberry Cake
Grease and flour 1 6” cake pan
Pre-heat oven to 350F.
Cream butter in the bowl of a stand mixer for 2 minutes, on medium speed. Gradually add sugar and cream for 3 minutes until mixture is fluffy and lighter in color.
Add egg to the mixture, one at a time, mixing on medium speed. Scrape bowl and add vanilla. Mix on medium-low speed until incorporated.
Sift flour, baking powder and salt.
Add half of the buttermilk to butter/egg/sugar mixture. Mix on low for 30 seconds. Add half of sifted flour mixture. Mix on low for 30-45 seconds until almost entirely incorporated.
Add remaining buttermilk and mix on low for 30 seconds. Add remaining flour and mix on low until incorporated.
Pour half of the batter onto the bottom of prepared pan.
Coat raspberries with 1 teaspoon of flour.
Place raspberries on top of cake batter.
Top with the remaining batter.
Bake on pre-heated oven for about 20-25 minutes. Smaller cake pans will take less time to bake.
Remove cake from the oven when a toothpick comes out clean once inserted in the cake.
Let cake cool in the pan for 5 minutes and flip it over in a wire rack to let it cool completely before proceeding with frosting and filling. It will be easier to work with the cake layer to assemble the cake if you place it in the fridge first.
Chocolate Frosting
Start by melting the chopped chocolate in the microwave, or over a double boiler. I usually just microwave the chocolate for 15-30 seconds at a time, always stirring in between to help the chocolate melt evenly and faster, without having to overheat it. You never want to overheat chocolate. Set chocolate aside to cool down.
Now, sift the cocoa powder and powdered sugar together. Set aside.
In the bowl of a mixer, combine cream cheese and butter. Cream for 2 minutes, until creamy and fluffy.
Pour melted and cooled chocolate in the bowl of the mixer. Mix on slow until combined. Scrape the bowl to ensure everything is getting incorporated.
With the mixer off, add sifted powdered sugar and cocoa powder.
Mix on low until combined. Raise speed to high and cream for one minute.
Add vanilla.
If frosting seems too thick, add 1-2 tablespoons of heavy cream, or as necessary. If frosting is too runny, it might need some more powdered sugar, so sift some and throw in there.
Raspberry Jam
Mix maple syrup and raspberries in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Turn heat down once it starts boiling. Stir often while mixture boils, for about 2 minutes.
Mix water and cornstarch in a small bowl. Once cornstarch has been dissolved in the water, add mixture to raspberries. With the heat still on low, or medium-low, keep stirring mixture until it thickens, about 5 more minutes.
Strain through a sieve, pressing down and stirring jam.
Place jam in the fridge to cool down.
Marshmallow Frosting
Mix all ingredients, except for the vanilla extract together in the bowl of a stand mixer.
Set the bowl over a pot of simmering water over medium heat.
Whisk mixture while it sits in the double boiler.
Keep whisking over simmering water until it reaches 140F.
That way the egg whites will be in a safe temperature to be consumed.
Move bowl to the mixer.
Whip with the whisk attachment for about 5 minutes on high speed.
Add vanilla and mix to combine.
To assemble
Place one layer of chocolate cake on a cake plate.
Pipe a ring of chocolate frosting on the edges of the cake.
Fill the middle with marshmallow frosting.
Place the Vanilla Raspberry cake on top.
Pipe another ring of chocolate frosting on the edges of the cake.
Fill the middle with raspberry jam.
Top with a chocolate cake layer.
Cover the cake with a thin layer of chocolate frosting. This thin layer is called crumb coat, and it helps seal the crumbs of cake in the frosting, so the final frosting layer won’t have any crumbs in it.
Place cake in the refrigerator for 30 minutes for the crumb coat to set.
Frost cake with a thick layer of chocolate frosting.
Pipe marshmallow frosting on top of the cake, and also put raspberries on top.
Use a torch to toast the marshmallow frosting if you want to.
Storage
Cake will keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days.