Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

The BEST dessert combination: Chocolate and Peanut Butter! Ultra moist homemade chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting. This 9×13 cake recipe is a classic. 

We often get requests for this chocolate peanut butter cake. And we’re happy to oblige because…1.) It’s easy…. and 2.) It’s one of our favorites too!

Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

If you’re looking for a delicious dessert recipe to take to a potluck or party, this chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting is it! Everything is made 100% from scratch and the flavor proves it. You’ll be the star of the show by sharing this dessert with your friends.

The BEST Chocolate Cake Recipe

This cake starts with a chocolate cake base. This is the cake that  we’ve used for our black forest cake, german chocolate cake, dark chocolate cake and raspberry cake. It turns out perfectly every single time and is the BEST from scratch cake I’ve ever made. Yes I realize that’s a lot of absolutes. But yes, it’s that good.

How do you make a homemade chocolate cake?

Here are some hints:

• Mix the dry ingredients first, then set aside.
• Mix the wet ingredients (all but the coffee) together. We like to use a stand or hand mixer to make sure everything gets combined well.
• Use buttermilk. We recommend buying buttermilk from the store, but if you can’t get to the store, make your own buttermilk by adding 1 teaspoon of white vinegar to a cup of milk. Allow it to sit for 5 minutes, then use the homemade buttermilk in the recipe.
• Mix the dry into the wet.
• Add the coffee.

**Pro Tip: “Do I have to add coffee?” If you are 100% against coffee, you can use hot water instead. But coffee makes chocolate cake have a more intense flavor so we highly recommend using coffee.**

How do you make peanut butter frosting?

Homemade frosting is easier than you think! The key is to start with room temperature butter. If it is too melty, the frosting will have a weird texture. If it is too cold, the butter won’t mix in well.

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter and peanut butter for 2 minutes.
• Add 1 cup of powdered sugar and mix until blended.
• Add 2 tablespoons of heavy cream and beat until completely blended.
• Add in the remaining cup of powdered sugar. Beat for 1 minute.
• Test the frosting and if you need another tablespoon or two of heavy cream to make the frosting spreadable, add it in.
• Beat for 2-3 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy.

Does peanut butter icing need refrigerated?

Frostings with butter in them should be sealed well and refrigerated.

How do you store cake?

Because this frosting has butter in it, it is best to refrigerate the cake if you will have it for more than 24 hours.. Make sure it is covered well so the cake doesn’t dry out.

Other Peanut Butter Cake Recipes

• Chocolate Peanut Butter Reese’s Cake
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cake
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Bundt Cake
• Nutter Butter Cake

TOOLS TO MAKE THIS CAKE

• Stand Mixer: A hand mixer will work, but I always find it easier to make frostings with a stand mixer.
• Beater Blade with Scraper: The best invention ever!
• Straight Icing Spatula: The long straight spatula makes it easy to smooth frosting.
• Wire Cooling Racks: This will help your cakes cool more quickly.

Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

4.66 from 52 votes

The BEST dessert combination: Chocolate and Peanut Butter! Ultra moist homemade chocolate cake with a creamy peanut butter frosting. This 9x13 cake recipe is a classic. 

Servings 15

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 55 minutes minutes

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Ingredients

 

For the cake:

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 2 large eggs (room temperature)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup freshly brewed strong hot coffee

For the frosting:

• 1/2 cup salted butter (softened)
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2-3 tablespoons heavy cream
• 2 cups powdered sugar

Instructions

 

Make the Cake:

• Spray a 9x13 baking pan with cooking spray. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
• For the cake, put flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl and mix well.
• In a stand mixer, mix the buttermilk, oil, eggs, vanilla together. Slowly add in the mix of dry ingredients while the mixer is on low. Add the coffee and make sure everything is combined. The batter will be very thin.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 30-35 minutes or until the center of the cake springs back when you touch it.
• Allow the cake to cool on a cooling rack. While the cake is cooling, make the frosting

Make the Frosting:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter and peanut butter for 2 minutes.
• Add 1 cup of powdered sugar and mix until blended.
• Add 2 tablespoons of heavy cream and beat until completely blended.
• Add in the remaining cup of powdered sugar. Beat for 1 minute.
• Test the frosting and if you need another tablespoon or two of heavy cream to make the frosting spreadable, add it in.
• Beat for 2-3 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy.
• *Add in ½ teaspoon of vanilla if desired.

Assemble the cake:

• Use a spatula to spread the peanut butter frosting on the cooled chocolate cake.
• Sprinkle with chopped candies if desired.

Notes

The calories shown are based on the cake being cut into 15 pieces, with 1 serving being 1 slice of cake. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information.**

Nutrition

Calories: 465kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 48mg | Sodium: 464mg | Potassium: 251mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 41g | Vitamin A: 285IU | Calcium: 52mg | Iron: 1.7mg

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Calories 465

Keyword 9x13 cake, chocolate cake, easy cake, from scratch cake, homemade cake

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