Tessa's Recipe Rundown
Taste: Chocolate + strawberry is perfection.
Texture: The cake is super rich and moist, the frosting is luscious and flavorful, and the chocolate-covered strawberries on top make this cake a total showstopper.
Ease: Assembling and decorating a layer cake might seem intimidating, but it’s totally doable, especially with my step-by-step video.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe: Pretty and delicious cake that’s simple to make and perfect for Valentine’s Day or birthdays.
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I am so excited to be sharing this Valentine’s Day Cake recipe with you!
This cake turned out so beautiful! It would be the perfect way to show your love and appreciation for someone this Valentine’s Day, or any other special occasion.
The best part is that if I can do it, you totally can because I have little patience for cake decorating (Cake Boss gives me nightmares).
The chocolate cake is so unbelievably moist, rich, and flavorful, even people who don’t like cake will like this. Not to mention the strawberry buttercream adds that perfect luscious, creamy, and thick bite of flavor that complements the chocolate wonderfully.
And just in case that wasn’t enough, we’re adding chocolate-covered strawberries on top – just in case your Valentine needed one more reason to love this cake.
By the way – if you want some extra tips on buttercream, check out my post on How to Make the Best Buttercream!
Sprinkle of Science
How to Make Valentine’s Day Cake
How to Make Moist Chocolate Cake:
- Measure your ingredients correctly. I highly recommend using a digital scale to measure, but if you don’t have one, learn how to measure accurately here.
- Don’t substitute the buttermilk. Real buttermilk creates a beautifully moist, rich cake with a fantastic texture. I do not recommend using a buttermilk substitute. Learn more about baking with buttermilk here.
- Don’t reduce the sugar. Sugar does so much more than simply sweetening your baked goods – learn more about sugar’s role in baking cakes here.
- Oil. We tested this cake with vegetable oil, but any neutral oil that’s liquid at room temperature should work (such as avocado oil or canola oil but not coconut oil). Because oil is a liquid at room temperature, it gives the sensation of moisture by coating the tongue. Learn more about Butter vs. Oil in baking here.
- Cocoa powder. This recipe uses a natural (aka unsweetened) cocoa powder. Higher fat cocoa powders will yield a richer, more moist cake – learn more about cocoa powder here.
Yes, This Cake Batter is Supposed to be Thin!
Just a warning, in case you panic while making this cake; it’s supposed to be thin and runny. I promise the cake will bake up ultra moist, rich, and tender.
Help, My Cake Layers Sunk in the Middle!
This chocolate cake is ultra moist, so sometimes it sinks a little in the middle. Don’t panic if this happens! You can always flip the cakes upside down when assembling, or use a cake leveler or serrated knife to level it off. If sinking is a common issue for you, check out my article on How to Prevent Cakes & Cupcakes From Sinking
The Best Cake Pan
This cake recipe uses two 8-inch round cake pans. I love these Fat Daddios pans because they bake evenly and come out cleanly. I have not tried this cake in larger or smaller pans.
Can I Make This Recipe into Cupcakes?
Yes, this Valentine’s Day Cake recipe can be made into cupcakes! You’ll get about 24 cupcakes. Bake for 17 to 20 minutes. Learn more about How to Convert Cake into Cupcakes (and Cupcakes into Cake!) here!
Why is There Coffee in This Chocolate Cake Recipe?
- The coffee helps to enhance the chocolate flavor of the cocoa powder. You won’t taste the coffee, promise.
- If you prefer to skip the coffee, simply use 1 cup hot water (not boiling – you don’t want to scramble the eggs!) instead.
- You can also use 1 cup hot water + 1 teaspoon espresso powder to get that similar chocolate-enhancing effect. This is perfect if you don’t want to brew coffee just for a cake.
What is a Crumb Coat?
A crumb coating is a very thin layer of frosting applied to the cake before the final pretty layer is applied. The crumb coat acts as “spackle” to encase the cake and protect the final frosting application from getting any unsightly crumbs in the mix. Basically, it helps that final frosting go on smoothly and cleanly.
Why Do You Refrigerate or Freeze Cake Layers Before Frosting?
This helps the frosting go on more smoothly and evenly and stops the layers of cake from moving as you apply and smooth out the frosting.
Cute Valentine’s Day Sprinkles
The sprinkles used on the pictures of this Valentine’s Day Cake were purchased at Kroger. These Valentine’s Day sprinkles on Amazon are the closest I can find.
How to Make Chocolate-Covered Strawberries
Chocolate-covered strawberries are the perfect way to garnish your Valentine’s Day Cake, and they’re SO easy to make! Learn how to make chocolate-covered strawberries here.
Can I Freeze Valentine’s Day Cake Layers?
Absolutely! Wrap unfrosted, un-cut, cooled cake layers in a few layers of plastic wrap. Place inside a freezer bag or airtight container and freeze for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge (do not defrost at room temperature or you will end up with mushy cake) before frosting and serving.
More Valentine’s Day Desserts:
Looking for even more inspiration? Check out ALL our Valentine’s Day Recipes here.
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Ingredients
For the cake:
- Butter, for greasing
- 1 3/4 cups (225 grams) all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
- 2 cups (400 grams) granulated sugar
- 3/4 cups (64 grams) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup fresh vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs, at cool room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee
For the strawberry buttercream:
- 6 cups (750 grams) powdered sugar, sifted
- 4 sticks (452 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2/3 cup seedless strawberry preserves
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- Red gel food coloring, if desired
Chocolate-Covered Strawberries , for garnish
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour 2 (8-inch) round cake pans.
- Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add in the salt and whisk to combine.
- In a large measuring cup or small bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With the mixer still on low, add the hot coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Don’t overmix, the batter should be very thin and runny.
- Divide the batter among the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. The cakes may sink slightly in the middle because they're so moist. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then carefully turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely. Freeze or refrigerate until firm to the touch.
For the buttercream:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the sugar and butter. Mix on low speed until well blended and then increase the speed to medium and beat for another 3 minutes until ultra light and smooth. Add in the strawberry preserves, salt, and vanilla and beat on medium for 1 minute. Add about 1/4 teaspoon gel food coloring, if using, and beat until the buttercream is evenly colored. Add more coloring if desired.
Assemble the cake:
- Place the first cold cake layer, flat side up, on a flat surface or cake pedestal. Using an offset spatula, spread about 1/3 of the frosting all over the top of the cake, pushing it all the way past the edges.
- Place the second cake layer on top, flat side up, and spread a very thin coating of frosting all over the top and sides of the cake, to make a crumb coating. When scraping away excess frosting, be careful not to add the crumb frosting back in with the clean frosting. Freeze or refrigerate the cake until the frosting is firm.
- Once the frosting is firm, spread the remaining frosting evenly over the cake, scraping away excess frosting and smoothing imperfections with the offset spatula. Garnish with sprinkles and chocolate-covered strawberries before serving, if desired.
- The frosted cake can be stored at room temperature for 1 day or in the fridge for up to 3 days.
This recipe was originally published in 2015 and has been updated with gram measurements, recipe improvements, baking tips, and new photos. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
Thanks for sharing! How far ahead of time can I make it?
Hi Vanessa! As Tessa mentions in the recipe, the frosted cake can be stored at room temperature for 1 day or in the fridge for up to 3 days. Let us know what you think once you’ve given this cake a try 🙂
This looks so good! What a great treat to make for the family to celebrate!
I am planning to make this cake for my friends birthday except I do not have buttermilk on hand! I have thought of a few alternatives, just wondering which you think would be best!! I have almond milk or dry milk powder (mixed with water). I also have sour cream, which I read you can mix with water as a buttermilk substitute. Thanks and so excited to make this!!!
Hi Jenna! While we do recommend sticking with real buttercream for this recipe, Tessa recently performed some side-by-side experiments to see what buttermilk alternative performed the best. Check out the article here! 🙂
Make your own buttermilk by mixing 1 tablespoon of apple cider or 1 tablespoon of lemon juice with milk, nut milks included. Allow the milk to sit and curdle.
1 cup of milk to 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice.
Proud Dad moment! My 12 year old daughter made this recipe entirely by herself (including figuring out how to put the sprinkles on the side of the cake!) a couple days ago and it turned out so perfectly! The cake is super moist and delicious and I love the strawberry buttercream frosting. Our entire family loved it and it disappeared far too quickly! Can’t wait for her to try her hand at something else!
That’s SO amazing, Wayne! You should definitely be very proud of your daughter! Way to go 🙂
Tessa, you’re the best. But you’ve finally crossed the Line. A cake Leveler? I had to look this one up, found it, never had any idea that such a thig a existed. You beat me again. I’m trusting you, gonna make the cake, I’ll let you know how it turns out, level or not..thx.
We can’t wait to hear how it turns out, Jim! 🙂
This was SO good! Made it for Valentine’s Day and had many compliments!
Recipe more than great
a cup of butter equals how many grams
Thanks for the simple, classy explanation. ❤️❤️
This cake was super tasty, and surprisingly easy to make! It seems intimidating, but ultimately it’s a matter of mixing all wet and dry ingredients separately and then combining them together. I baked mine in two 9-inch round pans and increased the recipe by 25% – I *think* I had it in the oven around 30-32 minutes. Turned out beautifully.
I’d also recommend adding ‘strawberry’ to the key terms on this recipe! I was pretty sure that I saw you post it on Instagram but couldn’t find it by searching on your website because I didn’t use the keyword ‘valentines day.’
Thanks so much for your feedback, Lauren! I’ve emailed our tech team to see what the issue is – ‘strawberry’ actually is listed as a key term, so they’re digging into why the search isn’t connecting properly. I appreciate you bringing this to our attention!
Interesting – if I use the recipe filters for ‘strawberry,’ it shows up. But if I search the keyword ‘strawberry,’ it doesn’t. Hope this helps! Loved the cake 🙂
I tried it myself after your comment earlier and realized that as well, so weird! I sent screenshots of using the search bar vs the recipe filter to our tech team, so I’m sure they’ll be able to figure out the issue. Thanks again for letting us know!
This cake was delicious! So moist and the strawberry buttercream had just the right amount of strawberry flavor. Will be making this again!
Wonderful! So happy you loved this cake!
What is the best way to decorate the cake with sprinkles? I would like my cake to look like yours.
Hi Melanie! If you follow us on Instagram, check out Tessa’s highlight on making her Birthday Cake recipe. She shows how to decorate the cake with sprinkles in the last few slides, and though it’s not the same recipe, hopefully visually seeing how she added the sprinkles to that cake will help you be able to decorate this cake. Here is a direct link to the BIRTHDAY CAKE HIGHLIGHT. Please let me know how it goes!
Made it for this Valentine day, but made more layers since I had left some chocolate butter cream from last month Challenge. So I added a layer with Choco buttercream plus some strawberry jelly… It was so flavored and delicious. Though the cake sink a bit and was not really fluffy. Could it be because I used the oven with the fan on? and actually the cake was ready a bit earlier as the cooking time indicated.
Thanks for this delicious recipe!
If I don’t have coffee, should I just use hot water?
Yes! I explain this in more detail in the pink box above the recipe.