How to make this chocolate strawberry cake recipe at home perfect for a birthday party like this chocolate Oreo cake or any other occasion to celebrate with your family.
It's a very easy and rich chocolate cake recipe loaded with a perfect moist buttermilk chocolate cake, a whipped chocolate ganache, and some fresh strawberries.
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Why you'll love this recipe
If you love chocolate cake and strawberries then you will enjoy this fruity and chocolatey combination in this perfect strawberry and chocolate cake.
The marriage of full-bodied chocolate and the sweet, fruity flavor of strawberries is as delicious as in my chocolate raspberry ganache cake recipe.
This strawberry chocolate layer cake is made with a moist and rich chocolate flavor cake, filled with a delicious chocolate frosting that goes perfectly with fresh strawberries that you can easily replace with other red fruits like fresh berries.
- This decadent chocolate cake is made of only 2 preparations, which makes this a great recipe and very easy even if you are not very familiar with this kind of cake.
- This a simple, easy recipe for beginners or more experienced bakers, with my step-by-step advice and video.
- A delicious combination of strawberry and chocolate will satisfy chocolate lovers as well as those who enjoy strawberry desserts.
- This strawberry chocolate cake is really perfect for special occasions, like a birthday cake, a wedding cake, or any other special occasion to share with the family.
If You Love Chocolate Cake
Composition of this recipe
Chocolate Buttermilk cake
This chocolate strawberry cake is made with my chocolate buttermilk cake recipe, which is a delicious chocolate sponge cake recipe with a very moist and chocolatey texture.
As its name indicates, it is made of buttermilk whose acidity helps balance the other ingredients and brings a more tender texture. You will not need to soak it because it is so moist in the mouth.
Tip: Buttermilk can be easily replaced by plain yogurt or sour cream, or you can make your own buttermilk by simply adding 1-2 tablespoons of white vinegar to your dairy milk.
Chocolate frosting
I chose the dark chocolate whipped ganache recipe to go with strawberries. This chocolate ganache is only made of 2 ingredients, baking chocolate, and full heavy cream.
Compared to the simple chocolate ganache recipe, it contains a higher ratio of cream and it is whipped until it has an airy, creamy and firm texture.
It has a delicious chocolate taste and a fluffy texture like buttercream but is much lighter and tastier. Perfect for filling a layer cake, smoothing the outside, or decorating with a pastry bag.
You will find the quantities and complete instructions in the recipe card below.
Material needed for this recipe
- 6-inch/ 15 cm round cake pan (8-10 slices)
- Stand mixer or a hand mixer
- Offset angled spatula
- Cake smoother
- Cake decorating turntable
- Piping bag and a 1B tip or Star tip
You may also like Top 10 tools you need to make better cakes!
How to make Strawberry Chocolate Cake
Chocolate cake batter
- Preheat the oven to 329°F / 165°C and line 3 round cake pans with parchment paper.
- In a bowl mix together the dry ingredients, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In another large bowl, use an electric mixer to mix eggs, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, and oil until pale.
- Stir in buttermilk and black coffee.
- Then add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients while mixing with a hand whisk until you have a smooth mixture without lumps.
- Divide batter evenly among the prepared pans.
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 35 minutes.
- Allow the chocolate cake layers to cool slightly before removing them from the pan and let them cool completely upside down on a wire rack.
- Then cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
Tip: Preferably use 3 cake pans for baking the cake layers or bake in one pan at a time. Do not open the oven door during baking time.
Chocolate ganache
- Place chopped chocolate in a medium bowl and melt in a double boiler or in a microwave-safe bowl until the chocolate is completely melted.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, heat the heavy cream.
- Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and mix immediately with a spatula.
- Add the other room temperature heavy cream and mix again.
- Cover on contact with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.
- On the day of the assembly, whisk the chocolate ganache with a mixer at medium speed for 3 to 4 minutes until fluffy and firm.
Tips: The ganache should be made at least 1 day in advance. Preferably use your stand mixer with a whisk attachment or an electric mixer to whip the ganache.
Assemble the cake
- Cut out the bumps of the 3 cooled cake layers so they are level and for easier set up using a cake leveler or a serrated knife.
- Place the first layer of chocolate cake on a cake board and on your decorating turntable.
- Using a piping bag filled with whipped ganache, pipe a layer of the filling onto the chocolate cake, then add an extra puff to the outer edges.
- Fill the center with chopped strawberries, cover with the whipped ganache and smooth with an offset spatula.
- Place the second layer of cake and repeat the last step until you reach the last layer of cake.
Tip: for an even fruitier taste you can replace the strawberries with strawberry puree or add strawberry jam.
Frost the cake
- Immediately spread frosting on the whole cake and smooth with an angled spatula to enclose the crumbs.
- Then place the cake in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes.
- Then add a final layer of whipped ganache over the entire cake and smooth with an icing smoother.
Tip: Use a cake board that is about 5 cm larger than the cake to help smooth out the ganache and define the thickness.
You may also like: How to perfectly frost a layer cake.
Cake decoration
- Using a pastry bag fitted with a piping tip, fill with the remaining frosting (I use a 1B nozzle here). Decorate the top of the cake by making swirls on the top.
- Place the remaining strawberries slices on each swirl to decorate.
- Then place the chocolate and strawberry cake in the fridge for at least 1 hour before putting it on a cake stand and serving it with a homemade strawberry sauce or a chunky Strawberry compote.
Serving and Recipe variations
It can be enjoyed on its own, but if you add one of these little extras you can make it an amazing dessert:
- Hot dark chocolate sauce.
- Strawberry sauce or raspberry coulis
- A scoop of vanilla ice cream or chocolate ice cream
Chocolate-covered strawberry cake option: Dip strawberries in melted chocolate in the microwave and let them cool completely. Then place the chocolate-covered strawberries on the top of your cake to decorate it.
Ganache drizzle: You can also add a chocolate drizzle on top by melting the same amount of chocolate chips and heavy cream in the microwave until you have runny chocolate.
Add a strawberry frosting or filling by adding strawberry compote, strawberry whipped cream frosting or strawberry buttercream like this recipe for strawberry buttercream cake.
Replace strawberry with raspberry to make a chocolate raspberry cake recipe.
If you love strawberry cakes
Storage and freezing
In the fridge: You can store the cake in the refrigerator under plastic wrap or in an airtight container for about 2 - 4 days.
How to freeze? Place cake slices in a storage box with a tight-fitting lid or wrap in cling film and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Let them slowly defrost in the refrigerator or you can use the defrost function of your microwave for a faster way.
Make it ahead of time: The chocolate cake can be made up to 2-3 days in advance and should be stored in the fridge wrapped in plastic wrap.
The ganache frosting can also be prepared 2 days in advance, but should only be whipped at the last moment.
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Chocolate Strawberry Cake
- Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Yield: 8 slices
Description
Strawberry chocolate cake recipe, rich and moist chocolate sponge cake with a chocolate whipped ganache frosting and strawberries (for a 6 inch/ 15 cm cake 8-10 slices)
Ingredients
Chocolate sponge cake :
- 225 g (1 ½ cups) Flour - Cake flour
- 345 g ( 1 ½ cups) Sugar - granulated
- 80 g (¾ cup) Cocoa powder - unsweetened
- 1 teaspoon baking soda - approx. 6 g
- 1 teaspoon baking powder - approx. 6 g
- ½ teaspoon salt - about 3 g
- 3 eggs - at room temperature
- 160 ml (½ cup) vegetable oil - sunflower or grape seed oil
- 190 ml (⅔ cup) Buttermilk - or plain yogurt or sour cream
- 170 ml (⅔ cup) Coffee or water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Whipped chocolate ganache
- 400 g (14 oz) Baking chocolate - semi-sweet
- 400 ml (13 ½ oz - 1 ⅓ cup) Heavy cream - full fat
- 400 ml (13 ½ oz - 1 ⅓ cup) Heavy cream - full fat at room temperature
- 200 g (1 cup) Fresh strawberries
Instructions
Chocolate cake
- Preheat the oven to 329°F / 165°C and line three 6-inch/ 15 cm diameter round cake pans with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, mix and sift together the dry ingredients, cake flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside.
- In another large bowl, mix the eggs with the granulated sugar, vanilla extract, and oil with an electric mixer for about 2 minutes until the mixture is pale and smooth.
- Add the buttermilk and black coffee and mix again with a mixer.
- Add the dry ingredients in batches and gently fold in with a hand whisk until the mixture is smooth and lump-free.
- Divide the mixture into 3 and pour into the prepared pans.
- Bake the 3 pans together for 35 minutes or if you only have one pan then bake in 3 batches for about 20 minutes.
- Check with a toothpick by plunging it into the center of the cake, it should come out clean or with crumbs.
- Let the cake cool a little in the pan before removing it from the pan and cooling completely upside down on a cooling rack.
- Cover with cling film and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
Whipped chocolate ganache
- Cut or finely chop the chocolate and place it in a bowl.
- Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave until it is completely melted.
- Place 400 ml of heavy cream in a saucepan and heat it to a simmer over medium heat.
- Pour the hot cream over the melted chocolate in batches and stir between each addition with a spatula to make the emulsion and until it is smooth.
- Pour in the 400 ml of room temperature heavy cream and mix again to incorporate it.
- Blend with an immersion blender if necessary to smooth the ganache and remove any lumps.
- Cover with cling film and place in the fridge overnight (at least 6 hours).
Assembly and decoration
- Cut the bump of each cake layers to have even levels with a cake leveler or a large knife.
- Beat the cold ganache with an electric mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment at medium speed for about 3 minutes until you have a smooth, firm texture.
- Fill a pastry bag with the whipped ganache.
- Place the first layer of chocolate cake on a cake board and on your turntable.
- Cover with the ganache frosting and place pieces of strawberries in the center and cover again with the chocolate frosting.
- Place the second layer of cake and repeat the last step until you reach the 3rd layer of cake.
- Cover the entire cake with a thin layer of ganache and smooth it with an offset spatula. Place in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.
- Cover the entire cake with the ganache and smooth with icing smoother.
- Decorate the top of the cake with the remaining ganache and decorate with strawberry pieces.
- Place the finished chocolate and strawberry cake in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving.
Notes
Conservation: 2 to 4 days in the refrigerator under a cling film or in a conservation box.
You can replace the buttermilk with dairy milk + 2 tablespoons of white vinegar or lemon juice, or with plain yogurt or fresh cream.
Add a chocolate drip: Melt 50 g of chocolate with 50 ml. of heavy cream in a double boiler until you get a liquid ganache, let it cool down a bit and then pour it on the cold cake.
- Prep Time: 50 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: cake, dessert, layer cake
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 764
- Sugar: 38.2 g
- Sodium: 346.4 mg
- Fat: 49.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 71.7 g
- Protein: 13.3 g
- Cholesterol: 104.6 mg
Keywords: strawberry chocolate cake, chocolate strawberry cake
If I wanted to use the sponge recipe for cupcakes, how long would you recommend baking for?
Hi, you'll have to watch the baking time, I'd say about 20 minutes for the cupcake shape.
This cake looks delicious! Can this cake be left out for a few hours or will the ganache get soft and droop as it sits out? Thanks
Thank you for your message, no this cake is too fragile to stay out of the fridge, you need to keep it in a cool place and take it out just before serving.
How many days ahead can the whipped ganache be made
Hi, the ganache can be prepared up to 2-3 days in advance and left to rest in the fridge, then whipped the day of use.
I made this for my grandson’s 5th birthday, today. Everything about this cake is delicious, however, my semisweet chocolate seized up which I thought it might do. I would use a darker chocolate than semisweet if I were making it again. I tried to recover my seized ganache but when I did I ran out of time because I needed to get the cake in the refrigerator so the ganache was too loose so my cake looks very amateurish and not what I was hoping for… oh, well, it will taste great and he will love it.