It’s time for some fruity fun with this white chocolate raspberry cake! Two layers of soft white chocolate sponge are frosted with a fresh raspberry buttercream.
This recipe is for a deliciously decadent and easy raspberry cake from scratch!
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✏️ Recipe creation
This white chocolate raspberry cake recipe is one of my all-time favourites. It looks simple but elegant on a cake stand. I’ve made it as a birthday cake for friends and family many times, and it’s always a hit! It’s also a cute pale pink colour, making it lovely for Mother’s Day or even Valentine’s Day.
I love baking this easy raspberry cake during raspberry season in spring and summer, but it’s also great year-round as you can use fresh or frozen raspberries. They’re full of goodness like vitamin C and antioxidants, so that makes the cake almost good for you, right?
The first time I made this cake, I actually tried using a moist vanilla cake. But it felt like it was missing something. Instead, I found white chocolate cake layers complements the tartness of the raspberries. It also makes the cake soft and moist too!
🥘 Ingredients
This cake recipe calls for the following ingredients:
White chocolate cake
- Unsalted butter
- White chocolate
- Caster sugar (white finely granulated sugar)
- Eggs
- Milk
- Vegetable oil
- Vanilla extract
- Plain flour (all-purpose flour)
- Baking powder
Raspberry buttercream
- Raspberries
- Fresh lemon juice
- Water
- Unsalted butter
- Icing sugar (powdered confectioners’ sugar)
- Salt (optional)
See the recipe card for quantities.
Ingredient substitutions
For the raspberry frosting, you can use either frozen or fresh raspberries. I prefer using fresh fruit as it’s easier to work with but both tastes great.
I usually use fresh red raspberries for this recipe, but you can also use black raspberries.
You can swap the plain flour in this recipe for self-raising flour of the same quantity. If doing this, exclude the baking powder too.
I like making this raspberry cake from scratch. But if you want to cheat (no judgment here!), you can actually swap the white chocolate flavor cake for a white cake mix instead. Drizzle melted white chocolate on your cake to keep some of that white chocolate yumminess.
Ingredient tips
- Room temperature ingredients mix together better than cold ones. Take your butter out of the fridge to come up to room temperature before you start making your frosting. For me, this takes about 30mins to warm up.
- Using unsalted butter lets you control the amount of salt in your cake and buttercream. I like mine to be low salt so I don’t add much, but you can add an optional ⅛ teaspoon or a pinch of salt to taste in the batter and frosting.
- I recommend sieving your flour, baking powder and powdered sugar (a.k.a icing sugar or confectioners’ sugar) for a smooth cake batter and frosting.
- To measure your ingredients, it’s best to use weights rather than cups for better accuracy.
- I prefer using vanilla extract to vanilla essence. As it’s less processed, it has a purer vanilla flavour.
- Using good quality white chocolate for your cake will really improve the flavour. I recommend using a high-quality brand such as Callebaut.
🔪 Equipment
I use the following equipment for this recipe:
- 8inch / 20cm round cake pans (x2)
- Parchment paper (greaseproof paper)
- Electric hand mixer or stand mixer (or whisk / fork)
- Large mixing bowl
- Blender / food processor
- Medium saucepan
- Sieve
- Rubber spatula or wooden spoon
- Weighing scales
- Measuring spoons
- Wire cooling rack
- Offset spatula (optional)
Equipment alternatives
I usually use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or a hand mixer for this recipe because it’s nice and easy. You can instead use a whisk, spatula or fork to make your batter and frosting. This might take some elbow grease, especially for the frosting!
As this is quite a simple cake, I usually use a spatula, knife or spoon to frost it. If you’re after a smooth professional finish, use a cake turntable, offset spatula and cake scraper to decorate your cake. Cover your cake in a crumb coat first, refrigerate for 15mins, then add another layer of frosting and scrape to smooth.
I usually use two round 8-inch cake pans for this raspberry cake recipe. However, you can instead use two 6inch cake tins and bake for 5-10mins longer. Your cake will have thicker layers but will still be delicious!
Alternatively, you can also swap the tins for two 9-inch cake pans instead. Scale up your recipe ingredients by an extra ½ and bake for an extra 5-10mins.
Equipment tips
- Before I start baking, I like to prepare my cake tins first. I grease them with butter or cooking oil spray, then line them with greaseproof paper (baking parchment). I usually use greaseproof paper circles already pre-cut for the cake tin size to line the bottoms and a strip of the paper for the sides.
- I like using digital scales for weighing my ingredients as it's easy and accurate. I quite like KitchenAid or Salter scales.
- It’s best to use actual measuring spoons. Cutlery teaspoons and tablespoons aren’t actually the correct volume - I never knew it before! I’d also recommend levelling off any heaped scoops for a more accurate measurement.
- When using a stand mixer, I like to use the paddle attachment with a low speed for the cake batter and a medium speed for the buttercream.
- It’s a good idea to scrape down the sides and bottom of the stand mixer bowl every so often so you get an even mixture.
- Leave your white chocolate cakes to cool in the tin for at least 20mins before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling. If they’re too warm, the sponges might break when you remove them from the tin.
- To get smooth flat cake layers for frosting, you can use cake belts around your tins. If not, you may need to cut off any peaked tops. You can use a knife or a cake leveler for this. Keep any offcuts and use them for decorating or turning them into cake pops or cakesicles!
📖 Method
White chocolate cake
First, preheat the oven to 180°C / 160°C (fan) / Gas Mark 4 / 350°F.
In a medium saucepan, heat the butter, white chocolate, sugar and milk on medium heat. Stir until dissolved then take off the heat and set to one side.
Beat the eggs and vanilla in a large bowl until fluffy, then slowly pour in the cooled chocolate mixture, beating until smooth. Sift in the flour and baking powder, folding in gently until combined.
Divide the cake mix evenly between two lined and greased 8-inch prepared cake pans. Bake for 25-30mins until lightly golden and a skewer comes out clean from the centre.
Allow the cakes to cool for 20mins before removing them from the tins and transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling. While the cakes cool, make the frosting.
Raspberry buttercream
Puree raspberries, lemon juice and water in a blender or food processor then press it through a sieve into a medium saucepan. Discard the pulp and heat the sieved juice on a low-medium heat for 15-20mins, until reduced to a thick liquid.
Allow the reduction to cool while you beat the butter, using a hand mixer in a medium bowl or a stand mixer, for several minutes until pale and fluffy. Next, sieve in half of your powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Repeat with the other half of your powdered sugar.
Beat in the raspberry reduction, 1 tablespoon at a time until the desired flavour and consistency, and salt (if using).
Assembly
Once the cake sponges have cooled, turn one sponge upside-down and spread roughly ⅓ of the frosting on top. You can also add an optional raspberry filling at this point too, such as raspberry jam.
Place the second sponge on top and cover the cake in the rest of the frosting. Decorate with fresh berries and enjoy!
🍱 Storage
Your white chocolate raspberry cake should last up to 4 days at room temperature stored in an airtight container.
If it’s quite warm where you live, you might want to store your cake in the fridge. It should last up to 5 days in the fridge but might start to dry out towards the end.
You can also freeze your cake (frosted or unfrosted) for up to 3 months before defrosting and eating. Cut your cake up into large slices so it fits in your freezer, then wrap each in cling film (plastic wrap) and a layer of foil.
It’s best to label your frozen treats with what they are and when they were frozen so you don’t forget about them!
💭 Top tips
White chocolate cake
- Recipes with raising agents (eg. self-raising flour, baking powder, etc.) don’t like being over-mixed. You’ll end up with a dense sponge if you over-mix your cake batter. Try to mix sparingly once you add these ingredients!
- I always position my cake pans in the centre of the oven on the middle shelf when possible. This usually gives a more even bake and my baking temperatures specified in the recipe are based on using this part of the oven.
- Don’t open the oven mid-bake. You may have heard this before, but it’s such an important factor that it bears repeating. We’ve all been there and nobody likes their cake layers with sinkholes!
- You’ll know your cake sponges are cooked once they’re risen, golden and springy to touch. An inserted toothpick or skewer should also come out clean from the centre of the cake.
- Once your cake layers have baked, it's best to leave them in the cake tin to cool for 15mins before removing them from the cake pan onto a wire rack. This speeds up the cooling process and stops your cake from baking further trapped in the hot tin.
Raspberry buttercream
- For the most raspberry flavour, push as much raspberry puree through your sieve as you can.
- For creamy frosting, beat your butter until it’s pale, light and fluffy before adding your other ingredients. This could take several minutes with an electric mixer and longer by hand.
- If you’re using an electric mixer, you can sometimes get a cloud of powdered sugar kicked up into the air. To stop this, stir your sieved powdered sugar into the butter with a wooden spoon or spatula briefly before using the electric mixer again. Though if you want to breathe tasty sugar air, I won’t judge!
- If your raspberry frosting is too thick to pipe, then you can add more raspberry reduction to thin the consistency of the frosting.
- If your frosting is too thin, you can try chilling it in the fridge for 15-20mins before use. Alternatively, you can beat in a few more tablespoons of butter to thicken it.
- If you want a strong pink colour, you can add pink or red food colouring to your raspberry frosting. I recommend using a gel colouring to prevent adding too much liquid. The photos shown here are the natural colour from the fresh raspberries.
❔ FAQs
Your white chocolate raspberry cake should last for up to 4 days stored in an airtight container at room temperature or up to 5 days in the fridge.
Yes! You can freeze your raspberry cake wrapped in a layer of cling film and a layer of foil for up to 3 months.
Yes, you can make your white chocolate cake sponges ahead of time and freeze them.
Alternatively, you can make the cake layers and/or raspberry buttercream a few days in advance. Your cake layers should be stored wrapped in cling film at room temperature. Your raspberry buttercream should be in an airtight container in the fridge.
This could be caused by a few things. You might have scooped in too much baking powder, e.g. instead of using a levelled scoop from a measuring teaspoon.
Another reason could be that you opened the oven partway through baking which caused your oven temp to drop rapidly and sinkhole your cake.
To get rid of air bubbles in your frosting, beat it on a low speed using a paddle attachment before using it. The whisk attachment can sometimes add too much air.
Alternatively, you can stir it with a spatula or wooden spoon by hand for a few minutes.
No, cake flour is actually different to both plain flour and self-raising flour. It has a different composition and your cake will have a different consistency if you use cake flour.
Troubleshooting
If you’ve got any specific questions on making your white chocolate raspberry cake, please feel free to leave a comment below and I’ll try my best to help out!
Alternatively, you can get in touch via my Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest – I’d love to hear from you!
♻️ Variations
Filling options
I love this easy cake with just a white chocolate sponge and a full frosting of raspberry buttercream. However, for extra raspberry flavour, you can add a filling between your cake layers. Pipe a frosting barrier around the top edge of your bottom cake layer to hold your filling inside.
One idea is to add raspberry jam, preserves or curd between the layers. Alternatively, you can make your own homemade raspberry cake filling.
Instead of a raspberry cake filling, you can also use a white chocolate ganache. If you love lemon and raspberry, why not try this lemon white chocolate ganache to fill your cake. Then it’s a white chocolate lemon raspberry cake – so many tasty flavours in one!
Frosting options
You can swap the American style buttercream in this recipe for another type. For example, Swiss meringue buttercream (i.e. with egg whites) or a cream cheese frosting could be a tasty option.
Make the basic frosting and add your raspberry reduction 1 tablespoon at a time until you get the right consistency and flavour.
Decorations and toppings
I like to decorate this cake with a big pile of fresh raspberries on top. You can also drizzle on melted white chocolate or any leftover strained raspberry reduction like a zingy sauce.
Another great idea is using a fluffy whipped topping like whipped cream or whipped coconut cream. You can dollop some on top of each slice, or pipe pretty swirls onto your frosted raspberry cake. For even more raspberry flavor, you can blob on raspberry preserves on the berries.
Gluten-free option
To make a gluten-free raspberry white chocolate cake, swap the plain flour for gluten-free flour. I recommend using a gluten-free plain flour blend, such as King Arthur's measure for measure flour or Freee from Doves Farm.
You should also add ½ teaspoon of xantham gum to the white chocolate cake batter if your flour blend doesn’t already include this in the ingredients.
For gluten-free cake success, add an extra 1 teaspoon oil and 1 tablespoon milk to the batter. Beat your batter really well and let it stand for 30mins before pouring it into your cake tins and baking. You might also need to bake your cake for an extra 5-10mins.
🧁 Other goodies
Looking for some other goodies to make?
Love fresh raspberry goodness? Why not check out my recipe for raspberry dessert bars – the raspberry curd layer is just divine!
Can’t get enough of white chocolate heaven? Have a look at my white chocolate lemon cake or this white chocolate orange no-bake cheesecake.
If you’re after some more easy layer cake ideas, you might like my tasty chocolate orange cake, which uses fresh orange juice and zest. Or try this simple matcha cake full of green tea flavour.
Looking forward to some new recipes? Check out my Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest pages for a few sneak peeks and some sweet inspiration!
Or if you’d like to hear about our latest recipes, why not subscribe to our newsletter?
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📋 Recipe
Raspberry White Chocolate Cake
Rate this recipe here:
Ingredients
White chocolate cake:
- 235 g (1 cups) unsalted butter
- 300 g (2 ¼ cups) white chocolate
- 200 g (1 cups) caster sugar granulated
- 240 ml (1 cups) milk semi-skimmed or whole
- 2 eggs large
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 350 g (2 ¾ cups) all-purpose plain flour**
- 3 teaspoon baking powder
Raspberry buttercream:
- 175 g (1 ½ cups) raspberries fresh or frozen
- 1 ½ tablespoon fresh lemon juice roughly ½ a lemon
- 2 tablespoon water
- 225 g (1 cups) unsalted butter softened
- 480 g (4 cups) powdered icing sugar
Instructions
White chocolate cake:
- Pre-heat oven: 180°C / 160°C (fan) / Gas Mark 4 / 350°F
- Add the butter, white chocolate, sugar and milk to a medium saucepan, and heat on a medium heat. Stir until the mixture is completely melted and smooth, then turn off the heat and set this to one side.
- Beat the eggs and vanilla in a large mixing bowl until fluffy, then slowly pour in the cooled chocolate mixture, beating until combined.
- Sieve in the flour and baking powder, folding in gently until only just combined.
- Split the cake mix evenly between two greased and lined 8inch cake tins and bake for 25-30mins until lightly golden and skewer comes out clean from the centre.
- Allow the cake to cool for 20mins before removing from the tins and transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling. While the cakes cool, make the frosting.
Raspberry buttercream:
- Blend the raspberries, lemon juice and water until you get a smooth puree.
- Sieve the pureed mix into a saucepan, discarding the pulp, and heat over a low-medium heat. Simmer for roughly 15-20mins until it has reduced to a thick liquid. Allow to cool to room temperature.
- While the raspberry reduction cools, beat the butter until pale and fluffy.
- Add half of the icing sugar to the butter and beat until combined, before adding the remaining icing sugar and beating again until smooth.
- Add the raspberry reduction to the frosting 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until smooth, until you have the desired colour and flavour (I usually use 2-3 tbsp).
Assembly:
- Once the cake sponges have cooled, turn one sponge upside-down and spread roughly ⅓ of the frosting on top.
- Place the second sponge on top and cover the cake in the rest of the frosting. Decorate with fresh raspberries and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate based on an online nutritional calculator, actual values may vary.
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Areil
This looks delicious! I can't wait to try the recipe.
Sweet Mouth Joy
Thanks Areil, happy baking!
Stacy
This cake sounds amazing! Can't wait to make it.
Sweet Mouth Joy
Thanks Stacy, happy baking!