Say hello to the BEST white chocolate raspberry cake recipe! Layers of white chocolate buttercream + raspberry jam + moist cake + fresh berries = a show stopping dessert everyone will love! You can make this cake a day in advance and store at room temperature until needed. A great birthday cake or small wedding cake.
White Chocolate Raspberry Cake
This stunning cake features two of my all-time favorite flavors: almond and raspberry! And it features them in multiple forms! The cakes themselves get their almond flavor from almond extract. They bake up moist and fluffy, but dense enough to be sliced and layered.
It’s important they’re a little dense, because they’re going to be layered with raspberry jam AND white chocolate buttercream! The two will slightly blend together when you slice into the cake, which create almost a white chocolate raspberry buttercream… that’s been spiked with amaretto!!! It’s heavenly! But definitely on the sweeter side – as is almost anything involving white chocolate!
And the final touch, a mountain of fresh raspberries on top! I just threw them by the handful for an organic look, but you can definitely arrange them neater for a more polished appearance! I also pressed thinly sliced almonds all around the outside of the cake. This adds a delightful crunch and makes the entire cake look so beautiful!
This is one of those cakes people will think you bought from a fancy bakery!!!
Make the Cake Batter
- This is essentially my white cake recipe, but with a few tiny changes, and almond extract!
- You’ll need two 9″ cake pans! Be sure to spray the pans well with nonstick baking spray and then line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper. Think of this as your insurance policy for when it comes time to remove the cakes from the pans!
- Don’t skip the cake flour, all-purpose flour will not give you the same results. I strongly suggest weighing your flour with a digital kitchen scale so you know you’re using the right amount. Too much flour is another reason cakes come out bone dry!
- Beat room temperature butter and sugar until light and fluffy! You need a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or an electric hand mixer for this part!
- Be sure to mix just until the flour mixture disappears! Over mixing is going to give you a dry and very dense cake. So mix as slowly and as little as possible to bring the batter together.
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How to Bake White Chocolate Raspberry Cake
- Once your cake batter it assembled, it’s time to bake the cakes. Scrape the batter into the prepared cake pans and smooth the tops.
- The cakes take between 25 and 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a cake comes out clean.
- Bake time may vary depending on your oven and the cake pan you use. Especially if you use a thick glass or ceramic type dish. I highly suggest light metal or aluminized steel baking pans.
- You can bake the cake layers a dat in advance and store them at room temperature. Let them cool completely then wrap them tightly in several layers of plastic wrap.
Make the White Chocolate Buttercream
- You’ll need to melt your white chocolate. You can do this in the microwave or in a double boiler.
- But make sure you use real white chocolate and not white chocolate chips!
- Don’t use hot chocolate. Let your melted white chocolate cool until it’s tepid.
- Beat the butter until smooth and creamy. You’ll need an electric mixer for this step.
- Add in the powdered sugar, a little bit at a time, beating until fully incorporated before adding more. If you add too much at once, it’ll fly out of the bowl and make a huge mess.
- MAKE SURE YOU SIFT YOUR POWDERED SUGAR!! Otherwise your frosting will be clumpy. I use a fine-mesh strainer for this!
- Toss in your heavy cream and amaretto. And finally, fold in the white chocolate and salt! This frosting is quite sweet, so don’t skip the salt! It helps balance out the sweetness.
Assemble & Top with Fresh Berries
Assembly this cake might sound scary, but I promise, you can do it!
- You’ll need a long serrated knife to slice the cakes in half. Try to get them as even as possible, but don’t worry if they’re a little wonky. Layers of white chocolate buttercream frosting and raspberry jam will cover any “flaws”.
- You’ll top the bottom layer with buttercream frosting and jam. I like this brand of raspberry jam, but use whatever you prefer!
- Top with the second layer of cake, and repeat this process with the remaining cake layers.
- For the final cake layer, only add frosting! And then use remaining frosting to cover the sides.
- Finally, top with fresh raspberries and press sliced almonds around the sides of the cake. And viola! You have a stunning cake sure to impress!
Ok, so jump to the recipe below and get baking! I’ll see you next week with more bright and sunny Spring recipes!
More Cake Recipes:
- Almond Amaretto Pound Cake
- Lemon Raspberry Cake (If you like lemon juice and raspberries, this is your cake!)
- White Chocolate Cranberry Bundt Cake
- 5-Ingredient Raspberry Cheesecake Thumbprint Cookies
- Chocolate Raspberry Cake
White Chocolate Raspberry Cake with White Chocolate Buttercream
Ingredients
For the Almond Cake:
- 2 and 1/2 cups (300g) cake flour sifted
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (227g) unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 cups (299g) granulated sugar
- 6 large egg whites at room temperature, lightly beaten until foamy
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
- 3/4 cup (170ml) whole milk room temperature
- 2/3 cup (152g) sour cream, at room temperature room temperature
For the White Chocolate Amaretto Buttercream Frosting:
- 1 and 1/2 cups (340g) unsalted butter room temperature
- 3 and 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar sifted
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 Tablespoons (28ml) heavy cream room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 Tablespoons (21ml) amaretto liqueur
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 9 ounces (255g) quality white chocolate melted and cooled for 10 minutes
Assembly and Garnish:
- 1 cup raspberry preserves
- 1 cup fresh raspberries
- 1 cup thinly sliced almonds
Instructions
For the Almond Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Generously grease the bottom and sides of two 9-inch round cake pans; line with parchment paper rounds and set aside until needed.
- In a large mixing bowl, sift together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer, beat the butter on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.
- Gradually add in the sugar. Once all of the sugar has been added, beat on high speed for 2 minutes.
- Reduce the speed to low and add in the egg whites, a little bit at a time, beating well after each addition, and scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- In a spouted measuring cup, combine the vanilla extract, almond extract, milk, and sour cream. Mix until evenly combined.
- On low speed, add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating it with the liquid milk/sour creamy mixture, beginning and ending with the flour, and mixing until just combined.
- Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans and smooth the tops.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until lightly brown around the edges and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean. Cool the cakes in the pans places on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Then invert the cake layers onto cooling racks and cool completely.
For the White Chocolate Amaretto Buttercream Frosting:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer, beat the butter on medium-speed until completely smooth. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add in the confectioners’ sugar, beating until all of the sugar is completely combined.
- Add in the salt, cream, and amaretto, and almond extract and beat smooth.
- Add in the white chocolate and beat smooth. Once all of the ingredients have been incorporated, increase the speed to medium-high and beat for a minute.
Assembly and Garnish:
- Using a long, serrated knife, slice each cake in half horizontally, so that you have 4 even layers.
- Place one cake layer on a large plate or cake stand. Spread 1/2 cup of the frosting on top of the cake, covering it completely, then spread a 1/4 cup of raspberry preserves on top of the frosting.
- Top with another cake layer, and repeat the layering process, ending with the last cake layer on top. Spread all remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake.
- Using your hands, gently press the sliced almonds all around the sides of the cake. Then top with fresh raspberries!
- Allow the cake to set for 20 minutes before slicing. Then serve, or store, in the refrigerator, for up to 2 days. Bring to room temperature before serving!
Linda Hinkemeyer says
I have made this at least a dozen times for my customers! A top notch cake for flavor & presentation!!
Maithri says
Hi! This looks delicious. I have black cherries, can I replace the raspberries with them? In addition can I replace amaretto liqueur with cherry bitter essence used in cocktails?
Claire W says
Made this today with rave reviews. The almond flavor was strong without being overpowering. Definitely suggest making your own raspberry filling (see below) instead of using preserves or jam, which would have been too sweet. The frosting amount in recipe is just enough for a thin layer of frosting on each layer plus a reasonable amount on top, but would not be enough to also frost the sides. This was fine for me because I wanted a more naked-cake look, but it also meant I didn’t have enough frosting to put the sliced almonds up the sides. Suggest doing 1.5x or 2x the recipe for frosting if you want that effect.
Modifications:
To the cake layers – I cut sugar to 250g and it turned out fine
To the raspberry filling – in lieu of raspberry jam I cooked down about a pound of frozen raspberries on the stove with a splash of lemon juice to roughly 1.5c of filling. Strained out the seeds and was left with the perfect amount to fill the cake.
To the frosting – I left out the white chocolate and amaretto, cut down on the powdered sugar, subbed a couple tablespoons of coconut oil for butter instead.
Erika says
Can you freeze or refrigerate this frosting a couple days ahead of time and have it turn out still?