How to make the best chocolate and vanilla cake with this absolutely delicious recipe. Very easy to make at home with only 2 preparations, 3 layers of chocolate sponge and a creamy whipped white ganache frosting, for a perfect birthday cake party.

Best chocolate cake with vanilla frosting

Looking for a great chocolate vanilla cake? Here is my best recipe which is unanimously appreciated by chocolate lovers as well as those who are not too crazy about chocolate desserts 😉 !

This fabulous cake is the perfect combination of chocolate and vanilla in a light and delicious homemade dessert, perfect for any occasion and especially for a birthday party.

To change from the usual buttercream or simple whipped cream frosting, I chose instead white chocolate ganache frosting with mascarpone cheese which has the perfect texture and which goes perfectly with my soft and easy cocoa powder chocolate sponge cake.

It is a very simple dessert and these two preparations can be made in advance to save even more time and on the D-day you will only have to take care of the set up and enjoy it 😉 .

>> See all the birthday cake recipes on the blog

Ingredients and substitutions

Chocolate sponge cake

For the chocolate cake, I used the famous chocolate molly cake recipe. If you are a beginner in pastry, then this is the recipe to choose for a layer cake and birthday cake.

This sponge cake is made with whipped cream instead of butter, which gives it a moist, fluffy texture (no need to soak it) and a delicious chocolate taste.

White chocolate frosting

The whipped white chocolate and mascarpone ganache has a much better hold than a simple whipped ganache and the addition of the mascarpone firms up its texture.

Perfect for filling, covering and decorating layer cakes but requires a bit of technique and mastery as it is still fragile in contrast to a buttercream frosting.

If you would rather make a whipped milk chocolate ganache, then you can simply replace the white chocolate with milk chocolate or follow my whipped chocolate ganache frosting recipe directly.

White chocolate: Use premium quality white chocolate with a high percentage of cocoa butter, white chocolate with at least 30% at 35 %.
Cream: Use full fat heavy cream with 30%-35% fat content.
Mascarpone: This is an Italian fresh cheese that is usually used to make tiramisu.
Vanilla: A vanilla bean, seeds or pure vanilla extract. For a frosting with less visible seeds, use an extract or just ½ a bean.

⚠️ You will find the quantities and complete instructions in the recipe card at the end of the page.

>> You may also like:10 best cake decoratings tools for beginner

How to make Chocolate and Vanilla Cake

1 - Chocolate cake batter

Beat together the sugar, eggs and vanilla in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment for at least 10 minutes until the mixture whitens and doubles in volume.
Meanwhile, whip the cold heavy cream in a separate bowl with an electric mixer until you have a thick whipped cream.
Then in a separate bowl, mix and sift together the flour, baking powder, unsweetened cocoa powder and salt.
Reduce the speed of the stand mixer and add the dry ingredients while leaving the mixer running for no more than 1 minute.
Gently fold in the whipped cream with a spatula until the mixture is smooth.
Pour the cake batter into your cake pans lined with parchment paper only in the bottom.
Bake in a preheated oven for 45-55 minutes.
Turn out the cakes and let them cool down to room temperature before placing them upside down onto a cooling rack until they have cool completely.
Cover with cling film and chill for at least 2 hours.

Tip: Make the chocolate cake ahead of time and keep it in your fridge, cold it will crumble less and assembly will be easier.

Layers of chocolate sponge on a cake turntable

2 - White chocolate ganache

Bring the whole cream to a boil with the vanilla bean (previously split in 2 and scraped) in a saucepan over medium heat.
Then let it infuse for 10 minutes.
Chop the white chocolate finely with a large knife and place in a bowl.
Heat a saucepan with a little water and melt the white chocolate in a double boiler while stirring until the chocolate is melted and smooth.
Pour the hot cream over the chocolate in one go and mix with a spatula until a smooth mixture is obtained.
Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.
Place the completely cooled ganache in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and the cold mascarpone.
Whisk at medium speed for about 1 to 2 minutes until thick and smooth.

Tip: Run a hand mixer through the mixture to make sure there are no small pieces of chocolate left.

Tip: Be sure to mix at medium speed to avoid over-beating the ganache, which could cause it to slice and become grainy. Keep an eye on the texture while mixing.

Large bowl with white ganache and mascarpone cheese

3 - Assembling

Cut out the bumps of your 3 layers of cake with a cake leveler to have straight cakes of the same thickness.
Place a first layer of cake on your cake turntable on a cake board.
Spread a layer of whipped ganache over the entire cake and smooth it with an angled spatula.
Place a second layer and repeat this step until the third and final layer.
Cover the entire cake with a very thin layer of whipped ganache to enclose the small crumbs.

3 layers of chocolate sponge on a cake turntable

4 - Smoothing

Then apply a new thicker whipped ganache over the whole cake.
Use icing smoother to smooth the ganache around the cake until the cake is completely white.

Tip: You can use an acrylic disk slightly larger than your cake to apply an even layer of ganache to the layer cake.

5 - Decoration

Fill a pastry bag fitted with a decorating tip (1B) with the remaining frosting.
Form swirls of ganache on top of the cake.
Decorate with sugar pearls, chocolate shavings etc…
Place the chocolate vanilla cake in the fridge for at least 1 hour to firm up the ganache before serving.

You may also like: How to frost a cake for a perfect smoothing

Vanilla whipped frosting cake on a table

Storage and Freeze

In the fridge: the chocolate cake with vanilla frosting can only be stored in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap or in a storage box for about 3 to 4 days.

In the freezer: Only the chocolate sponge cake can be kept in the freezer, wrapped in plastic wrap, for up to 3 months.

To defrost, take your sponge cakes out and let them come back to room temperature or directly into the refrigerator.

Whipped vanilla frosting and sugar pearl

More chocolate cakes

Chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream
Kinder cake with whipped kinder ganache
Chocolate ganache cake
Chocolate strawberry cake

chocolate cake slice with vanilla frosting on a plate

More birthday cakes

chocolate cake sliced on a plate with a fork

Did you like this recipe? Don't forget to rate it and leave me a review in comments! And to not miss any recipes follow @sweetlycakes on Instagram and tag me to share it if you make this recipe 😊!

Chocolate and vanilla cake

4.4 from 16 reviews

Author: Fadela
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Yield: 15 portions

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Description

Perfect chocolate cake recipe made with cocoa powder chocolate sponge and whipped white chocolate ganache frosting with mascarpone cheese ( 6 inch/ 15 cm diameter 10-12 slices)

Ingredients

Whipped White chocolate ganache

300 g (10 oz) White baking chocolate - 32 - 35 % cocoa butter
340 ml (1 ½ cups) Heavy cream - 30% fat
450 (2 cups) Mascarpone cheese - cold
1 Vanilla bean - or 1 tsp vanilla extract

Chocolate cake :

3 Eggs - room temperature about 187 g
200 g ( ¾ cup) Sugar - granulated
174 g ( 1 ¼ cup) Flour - all-purpose or cake flour
2 tsp Baking powder - about 7 g
75 g ( ¾ cup) Cocoa powder - unsweetened
250 ml (1 cup) Heavy cream - full fat 30% and cold

Instructions

Whipped vanilla ganache

Chop the white chocolate finely and place it in a large container.
Bring the heavy cream and half a vanilla bean to a boil in a saucepan and then pour it all at once over the chocolate.
Mix with a spatula until you have a smooth liquid mixture. (Use a hand blender if necessary to smooth the ganache)
Cover with cling film and place in the fridge for one night.

Chocolate cake

Preheat your oven to 320°F/160°C and line a 6 inch / 15 cm round pan with parchment paper.
In the bowl of your stand mixer, beat the eggs with the sugar for at least 10 minutes (they will double or even triple in volume)
In another bowl, mix and sift together the flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking powder.
Lower the speed of the mixer and add the dry ingredients.
In a separate bowl, place the cold heavy cream and whip it stiff.
Gently fold in the whipped cream with a spatula.
Pour this mixture into your pan and bake for about 45-55 minutes.
Let your cake cool for a few minutes in the pan, then remove it from the pan and let it cool completely on a rack.
Wrap your cake in cling film and place it in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Layering and decorating

Place the cooled ganache in the bowl of a stand mixer and whip for about 4-5 minutes at medium speed, gradually increasing the speed until you obtain a stiff ganache.
Add the cold mascarpone in two batches and continue beating until you have a thick, firm cream.
Place a first layer of sponge cake and fill the inside with a small amount of ganache.
Place a second layer and repeat this step until the last layer.
Cover the entire layer cake with a very thin layer of ganache to enclose the crumbs.
Apply a second, thicker layer and smooth with a frosting smoother.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a piping bag with the remaining ganache and decorate the top of the cake by forming swirls.
Sprinkle with cocoa meal and keep your layer cake in the fridge until ready to serve.