Chocolate Birthday Cake
A big three-layer chocolate buttermilk cake covered in a thick chocolate cream cheese buttercream.
- Total
- 45 min
- Makes
- 1 three-layer cake
Ingredients
For the cake
- butter, for greasing the tins
- 375 g all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting the tins
- 600 g granulated sugar
- 150 g unsweetened cocoa powder
- 15 g baking soda
- 5 g baking powder
- 5 g salt
- 4 large eggs
- 1½ cups buttermilk
- 360 g warm water
- 110 g vegetable oil
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
For the chocolate cream cheese buttercream
- 340 g butter, softened
- 226 g cream cheese, softened
- 150 g unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3 tsp vanilla extract
- 840–960 g powdered sugar
- milk, as needed
Method
Make the cake
- Heat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Butter three 23 cm (9 inch) round cake tins, dust them with flour and tap out the excess.
- Mix the flour, sugar, cocoa, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder and salt in a stand mixer on low speed until combined.
- Add the eggs, buttermilk, warm water, oil and vanilla and beat on medium speed for a couple of minutes, until smooth.
- Divide the batter between the tins (just over 3 cups each) and bake for 30–35 minutes, until a toothpick pushed into the centre comes out clean.
- Cool in the tins on wire racks for 15 minutes, then turn the cakes out onto the racks and leave to cool completely.
Make the frosting and finish
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and cream cheese with a hand or stand mixer until fluffy. Beat in the cocoa and vanilla.
- Beat in the icing sugar about 120 g (1 cup) at a time, adding milk as needed to make it spreadable. It should be very thick, and it thickens further in the fridge.
- Layer and cover the cooled cakes with the frosting.