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This Triple Layer Chocolate Raspberry Cake is a SHOWSTOPPER! This recipe features three layers of moist raspberry chocolate cake, raspberry preserves, and rich chocolate frosting. Top with fresh raspberries for an extra lovely presentation.
Chocolate Raspberry Cake
TGIF! We made it. What are your weekend plans?! Baking anything special? Watching anything fun on Netflix?!
I’ll be spending most of the weekend in my kitchen. No surprise there, right? I need to finish testing and tweaking a few recipes, but I also REALLY need to clean and organize; my cupboards, pantry, and fridge are all way overdue for a makeover! Also having a few girlfriends over Sunday afternoon for coffee and cake. So basically a little work, a little play, and a lot of cake 😉
Which is where this moist and beautiful chocolate raspberry cake comes in! I’ve been dying to try a chocolate raspberry cake and I’m SO happy to report the flavor combination is a total winner. The chocolate cake layers are rich, moist, and bursting with fresh raspberries! And the chocolate frosting is thick and creamy. But it’s the layer of raspberries preserves ties that really ties everything together! I like to this of this as the chocolate version of my lemon raspberry cake.
I suggest topping the cake with extra raspberries and chocolate shavings for a breathtaking presentation. Because is there anything more delicious than chocolate with raspberries?!
Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Filling
Tips and Tricks for Recipe Success:
- This recipe calls for vegetable oil, but you may use an equal amount of melted coconut oil in its place, if preferred. I do not recommend substituting oil with melted butter because it will not yield a very moist cake.
- For best results, make sure your eggs, egg yolks, sour cream, and milk have all come to room temperature before you begin baking.
- When you measure your flour, be sure you’re not packing it into the measuring cup. Because packed flour will yield a dense and dry cake.
- You must toss the raspberries in all-purpose flour before adding them to the batter. This dusting of flour helps keep the berries afloat during the baking process, and ensure you won’t slice into a cake full of sunken berries.
- You may use fresh or frozen raspberries for this cake, but if you use frozen, don’t thaw them first.
- I used store bought raspberry preserves in this recipe, but feel free to use homemade if you’d like!
- The cake layers should all be baked on the middle rack of your oven. If there’s not enough room in your oven to bake them all in an even row at once, you can bake them in two batches.
- For the chocolate raspberry cream cheese frosting, you’ll want to make sure your butter and cream cheese are both VERY soft before creaming it.
- The cakes should be completely cooled before adding the frosting and raspberry preserves.
- The assembly is a two part process: you’ll place one cake level on a large plate, top it with a thin layer of frosting, then add the raspberry preserves, then add another cake level and repeat. Once you’ve added the final cake level you’ll want to leave the top bare and place the cake in the fridge to set for about 30 minutes. Once it’s set, you can finish frosting it and add the edible decorations.
More Chocolate Raspberry Recipes:
- Dark Chocolate Chunk Raspberry Crumb Muffins
- Healthy Raspberry Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
- White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Brownies
- Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake
If you try this recipe for Chocolate Raspberry Cake Recipe, let me know what you think! Leave a comment below, and don’t forget to snap a pic and tag it #bakerbynature on instagram! Seeing your creations makes my day ♥
Chocolate Raspberry Cake
Ingredients
For the Chocolate Raspberry Cake:
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 2 and 3/4 cups PLUS 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided
- 1 and 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
- 3 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 and 1/4 teaspoons salt
- 3 large eggs + 2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 cups full-fat sour cream
- 1/3 cup whole milk
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil (you may also sub in melted coconut oil)
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/2 cups hot water
- 2 and 1/2 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen, if using frozen, do not thaw first
For the Chocolate Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 8 ounces full-fat cream cheese, VERY soft
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks or 8 ounces), VERY soft
- 4 and 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream (more if needed)
- 2 tablespoons seedless raspberry preserves
Garnish:
- 1/2 cup raspberry preserves
- Fresh raspberries, optional
- Shaved chocolate, optional
Instructions
For the Chocolate Raspberry Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°(F). Cut out three 9-inch round segments of parchment paper to line your cake pans with. Spray each pan generously - sides and bottom - with nonstick cooking spray, then place the parchment paper cut out in the bottom of the pans and spray again. It's important to make sure every bit of pan and paper are sprayed so your cakes don't get stuck. Set pans aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer, combine both sugars, 2 and 3/4 cups of the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt; mix on low until dry ingredients are thoroughly combined.
- Use your hands to break up any large clumps, if needed.
- In a separate bowl combine the eggs, egg yolks, sour cream, milk, oil and vanilla extract; mix until completely combined.
- Pour mixture into the dry ingredients and beat on low until just incorporated. Pour in hot water and continue mixing until completely combined; about 1 minute. The batter will quite thin.
- In a medium bowl, gently toss the raspberries with remaining 2 tablespoons of flour. Add the raspberries, and any remaining flour, into the batter and fold in by hand, using a rubber spatula, until just combined. Again, be sure not to over mix! Over mixing is very easy to do, and will result in a dry, dense cake.
- Divide batter evenly among prepared pans.
- Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center of a cake comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs attached.
- Cool cakes for 10 minutes in the pan before removing from pans and transferring to a cooling rack; cool cakes completely before frosting.
For the Chocolate Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting:
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter on medium-speed until completely smooth; about 3 minutes.
- Turn the mixer off and sift the powdered sugar and cocoa powder into the mixing bowl.
- With the mixer on the lowest speed, mix until the sugar and cocoa have been absorbed by the butter; about 2 minutes.
- Increase mixer speed to medium; add in vanilla extract, salt, heavy cream and raspberry preserves; beat for 3 minutes. If your frosting appears too thin, add a little more confectioners' sugar; If your frosting appears too thick, add additional heavy cream, 1 tablespoon at a time.
Assembly:
- Using a serrated knife, carefully trim the raised top of each cake, making each one an even, level surface.
- Transfer 1 layer to a large plate or cake stand.
- Spread a layer of frosting on top, then spread a 1/4 cup of raspberry preserves on top. Don't worry if they blend together a little!
- Top with another cake layer, and repeat, spreading it with a layer of frosting, then adding remaining 1/4 cup of raspberry preserves.
- Top with final cake layer and place cake in the fridge to set for 30 minutes.
- Once set, finishing frosting the top and sides of the cake. Garnish with fresh raspberries and chocolate shavings.
- Slice and serve, or keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.
Made this cake for a co-worker’s birthday, and reduced the recipe to 2/3rds to make it a 2-layer cake instead of 3. It came out incredible! Moist, rich chocolate, the best – and I don’t usually go for chocolate cake. Love the raspberries baked into the cake. I saved a piece to share with a friend and ended up freezing it since I couldn’t get it to her. About 6 months later, I took it out and it was even better than before, if that’s possible! (of course the slice was frosted, and it held up perfectly.) I’m preparing to make it again since I have some raspberries on hand, can’t wait to enjoy it again! Thank you so much.
Just wondering . . . can this be one layer – like in a 9×13 cake pan?
Made this yesterday (for no reason besides that it looked really good…) and it was a HIT! Really straight forward directions, basic ingredients and easy to put together. Didn’t quite think about how massive this cake would end up being but my family and parents’ friends were MORE than happy to volunteer to help eat it all. Everyone kept saying how moist the cake was and they loved how light and fluffy the chocolate frosting was. Thanks for another great recipe!
Hi what can i substitute fir sour cream … and i hv dried berties not frozen or fresh can dey b used .. andd can v substitute wid strawberry or blueberries thnks
Hi! Thank you so much for your amazing receipts! You have a very big fan here in Romania! 😀
I have 2 questions about this one, if you could help me:
1. Can I decorate this cake with sugar paste? I don’t really like it but someone specifically asked for it.
2. I only have 1 pan of 9 inch. Is it ok for the batter to “wait” for me to bake it separately? Or should I just prepare the batter in 3 batches to put it in the oven immediately after was done?
Thank you in advance!
Hello Ashley, I have tried many of your recipes and have loved them all. My husband wants me to try this cake on the weekend for our anniversary. What I am not sure is about the frosting. I wanted a navy blue decoration. Should I do the chocolate frosting for the layers and then your vainilla buttercream and add blue coloring for outside the cake? Or should I try adding the coloring on the chocolate frosting? Any suggestion?
I just made this-it’s not as professional looking as I’d have liked (my fault not your) but the flavour of the cake (the trimmings to level it) and the frosting are sensational. Good easy instructions for a great result.
Hi Ashley
Can I substitute Sour cream with Buttermilk ? If Yes then what would be the quantity for Buttermilk ?
Can I substitute the veggie oil and coconut oil for avocado oil? I have done that before for a cake and worked well, but thought I would ask:)
Hello! Would you tell me, can i substitute cream cheese with cottage cheese? i know, it is weird, but in my country it is easier and cheaper thing to buy, also once i tasted filling made with cottage cheese and i liked it, so light and delish<3
P.s Love your content!