Julie Clark
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White Chocolate Cake
An easy, from-scratch tall white chocolate cake with white chocolate whipped into the cake and then topped with white chocolate frosting. You may also like this white chocolate candy cane cake!
White Chocolate Cake Recipe
There are certain types of cakes that I just absolutely love, and white cake is one of them. This cake is a little different than your normal vanilla white cake because it has white chocolate melted into the batter and into the frosting. So for those of you who can’t have chocolate but want a “chocolate” cake…this one is for you!
Is white chocolate really chocolate?
This is kind of a silly argument. White chocolate is derived from cacao beans just as regular chocolate is. White chocolate is made from cocoa butter, which gives it the unique flavor and smooth texture. White chocolate is not made with cocoa powder or cocoa solids as dark chocolate is. So yes, different, but it is still delicious no matter what.
Homemade White Chocolate Cake
This is a fairly easy white cake recipe. It uses the “frothed egg white” trick to make it as light as possible. Beat the egg whites first until they are frothy and hold peaks. Then set them aside and as the very last step before baking, fold those egg whites into the batter as gently as possible. Those whipped eggs make for a light crumb that you’ll love.
This recipe also calls for buttermilk. If you don’t keep buttermilk on hand and need a substitute, here it is: simply add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar to the 1 cup measuring cup, then fill the rest of the measuring cup with milk. After a few minutes, the milk will start to curdle slightly. This will work a substitute for buttermilk.
White Chocolate Frosting
This easy frosting recipe might just be the smoothest, silkiest homemade frosting that I’ve made yet. Maddie doesn’t like white chocolate much, but this frosting was mouth-watering and totally won her over.
Here are a few tips:
- Melt your white chocolate first and allow it to come to room temperature before blending it into the butter. You don’t want the butter to melt from warm white chocolate or the texture of the frosting may become funky.
- This only takes 1 cup of powdered sugar, which means that most of the flavor comes from the white chocolate and butter.
- Beat the frosting for 2 minutes or so until it is smooth.
This frosting just glides on this cake. It’s perfect for more of a “naked” cake. We like just a thin layer of frosting on this white chocolate cake!
Other From Scratch Cakes
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!
- 9” Round Cake Pan: These are my favorite pans!
- Cake Spatula: To get that frosting nice and smooth.
- Wire Cooling Racks:This will help your cakes cool more quickly.
- Cake Plate: I have this cake plate and everyone loves it! It comes with the cute server too.
White Chocolate Cake
An easy, from-scratch tall white chocolate cake with white chocolate whipped into the cake and then topped with white chocolate frosting.
Servings 15
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 12 ounces white chocolate (we used Ghirardelli bars)
- 1/2 cup hot water
- 4 large eggs (separated)
- 1 cup butter (softened)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup buttermilk
For the Frosting:
- 12 ounces white chocolate (melted and cooled to room temperature)
- 1 cup butter (softened)
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Prepare the Cake:
- Place the white chocolate (broken into pieces) and hot water in a microwave-safe bowl.
- Melt the white chocolate in 20 second intervals, stirring between each time, until the chocolate is melted. Set aside.
- Separate the eggs, placing the egg yolks in a small bowl to set aside for later and place the egg whites in a mixing bowl. Beat the egg whites until they are frothy and hold stiff peaks. Set the frothed egg whites in the refrigerator for later.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add in the egg yolks and vanilla. Mix well.
- Add in the melted white chocolate and mix well.
- In a small bowl, combine the flour, salt and baking soda.
- Add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar alternately with the buttermilk, beating and scraping the sides of the bowl as needed between each addition.
- Carefully fold in the egg whites and mix just until the egg whites are fully mixed in.
- Grease with shortening and flour two 9" cake pans.
- Divide the cake batter evenly between the two prepared pans.
- Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for about 25-28 minutes or until the center of the cake bounces back when you touch it.
- Allow the cakes to cool for 10 minutes, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Prepare the Frosting:
- **Melt the white chocolate in advance and allow it to come to room temperature. If it is hot when you add it to the whipped butter, it will melt the butter and the texture of the frosting will be off.
- Using a stand mixer, beat the butter for 2 minutes until it is almost white in appearance. Drizzle in the white chocolate, mixing and scraping the bowl as needed as you pour it in.
- Add the powdered sugar and vanilla.
- Beat the frosting for 2-3 minutes until the frosting is smooth and creamy.
Assemble the Cake:
- Place one cooled cake layer on a cake plate.
- Frost the top of the cake layer with frosting.
- Place the second cake on top.
- Frost the outside of the cake, both the top and the sides, with the rest of the frosting, smoothing it was you go.
- Decorate the top with additional shaved white chocolate or fresh fruit if desired.
- This cake can be stored at room temperature for 24 hours, then refrigerate any leftovers.
Video
Notes
The calories shown are based on using all of the frosting and the cake being cut into 15 pieces, with 1 serving being 1 slice of frosted cake. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate.
Nutrition
Calories: 658kcal | Carbohydrates: 66g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 41g | Saturated Fat: 25g | Cholesterol: 125mg | Sodium: 405mg | Potassium: 201mg | Sugar: 48g | Vitamin A: 870IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 127mg | Iron: 1.4mg
Cake adapted from Allrecipes.com
Frosting from Food & Wine
Do you know how many cupcakes this would make?
Hi! What amount of hot water do you use to melt the white chocolate in for the icing? And is the water mixed in with the white chocolate for the icing and the cake? Thanks.
Can I use white chocolate chips, melted,instead of a baking bar?