This soft and tender White Chocolate Mud Cake is perfect for your next party or celebration. Two layers of white chocolate mud cake covered in creamy white chocolate buttercream.
I’m on a mud cake bender.
My latest obsession? This White Chocolate Mud Cake 👇🏻 Two layers of buttery mud cake covered in luscious white chocolate buttercream and topped with clouds of chocolate frosting.
Big, buttery and oh-so-irresistible.
First there was my Chocolate Mud Cake. Then my Caramel Mud Cake. And now my favourite White Chocolate Mud Cake.
All I know is when you put chocolate in your cake batter, it transforms into one rich, buttery cake with a truly enviable texture. And when you add White Chocolate Frosting that’s also made with real chocolate, well then you are in chocolate heaven.
While I’m usually partial to one layer cakes, some celebrations call for something special. And that’s when a layer cake like this White Chocolate Mud Cake is just perfect.
Two layers of cake covered in white chocolate buttercream with clouds of chocolate frosting piped on top, with squares of chocolate in between.
This White Chocolate Mud Cake recipe is so easy to make, in fact, you don’t even need an electric mixer. It can be baking away in the oven within 30 minutes.
All you need to do is mix together butter, white chocolate, sugar and milk on the stove until smooth and creamy. Then it’s time to add the remaining ingredients. A quick stir and then it’s time to bake.
What you’ll end up with is a soft and tender cake. One that’s moist and buttery and tastes like deliciously smooth white chocolate. But what sends the cake over the top is the frosting.
Just like my Caramel Mud Cake, I used white chocolate buttercream. I’ve long been a fan of adding real chocolate to my buttercream, but I only recently tried adding white chocolate. And let’s just say, I’ve been putting it on e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g ever since.
It’s also the perfect frosting for decorating a layer cake – smooth and creamy and really easy to work with. You could stop there, but for a little something extra, whip up a small batch of chocolate buttercream.
Then add your favourite chocolates on top. What you’ll end up with is a buttery mud cake made with real white chocolate, a creamy frosting also made with white chocolate and a little real chocolate buttercream sitting alongside pieces of your favourite chocolate.
ALL. THE. CHOCOLATE. THINGS.
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Let’s Bake
White Chocolate Mud Cake
A delicious two layer White Chocolate Cake covered in white chocolate buttercream.
Ingredients
White chocolate mud cake
- 230 grams (1 cup / 2 sticks) unsalted butter, roughly chopped
- 300 grams (2 cups) good quality white chocolate
- 200 grams (1 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 240 ml (1 cup) full fat or whole milk
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 350 grams (2 and 1/2 cups) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
White chocolate buttercream
- 230 grams (1 cup / 2 sticks) butter, room temperature
- 150 grams (1 cup) good quality white chocolate, broken into pieces
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 435 grams (3 and 1/2 cups) icing sugar or powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons whole or full fat milk
Chocolate buttercream
- 115 grams (1/2 cup or 1 stick) butter, room temperature
- 100 grams (2/3 cups) dark chocolate, broken into pieces
- 250 grams (2 cups) icing sugar or powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons full fat or whole milk, room temperature
- Cadbury Topdeck Chocolates, for decorating
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Grease and line two 8-inch round cake pans with baking or parchment paper.
- In a medium saucepan, add butter, white chocolate, sugar and milk. Place on medium heat, stirring until smooth and sugar has dissolved. Set aside for a few minutes to cool slightly.
- Add eggs and vanilla to cooled white chocolate mixture and stir until combined. Add flour, baking powder and salt and stir until combined – don’t worry if the batter is a little lumpy.
- Divide the cake batter between the two cake pans and place in the oven for approximately 30-35 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the white chocolate frosting, place butter in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until pale and creamy. Meanwhile melt the chocolate in a microwave, stirring in between 20 second bursts, until just melted and set aside.
- Add vanilla, half the sugar and one tablespoon of milk to the butter and beat until combined. Add the remaining sugar and beat until smooth.
- Add melted chocolate, ensuring the chocolate is still smooth and melted but is not warm. Beat until the chocolate is completely mixed through. If frosting is too thick, add an extra tablespoon of milk.
- Place one cake layer onto a cake board or stand. Cover the top with white chocolate buttercream. Place second cake layer on top (upside down for a nice flat top). Frost the top and sides of cake. Smooth sides using a cake scraper.
- To make the chocolate frosting, place butter in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until pale and creamy. Meanwhile melt the chocolate in a microwave, stirring in between 20 second bursts, until just melted and set aside.
- Add half the sugar and one tablespoon of milk to the butter and beat until combined. Add remaining sugar and beat until smooth. Add melted chocolate and beat to combine. Add an extra tablespoon of milk if needed.
- Add chocolate frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip and pipe frosting around the edge of the cake. Decorate with chocolate pieces.
Chandra Lal says
Made this cake today. Turned out delicious. Although, I didn’t do the cream, it tasted very nice without that. This recipe is a keeper. Thank you very much for sharing the recipe. It is super easy to make.
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it Chandra!
Emma says
Hiya I was just wondering how long u leave it to cool, even tho u state slightly does that mean that the mixture can be a little bit warm when I put the eggs in or do I wait longer for it to be cooler
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Emma, yes it’s ok if it’s a little warm you just don’t want it very hot or you’ll scramble your eggs.
Lu says
Hi should the eggs be beaten or whisked?
Jessica Holmes says
No, you can just add them and stir to break up the yolks.
D says
will I be able to use one bigger pan? To make one cake and not 2. What size would you recommend?
Jessica Holmes says
Yes you can! I’m unsure of the exact size, you’d have to look up cake pan conversions.
Vanessa says
Hi,
I baked this cake in a 10” round tin at 140C fan assisted oven for 55 min and it came out really well. With larger cakes I tend to wrap ice cold fabric strips around the sides of the tin to prevent the sides going to crunchy whilst the inside is still cooking. Good luck!
Rike Foreman says
Just made this cake for my hubby’s bday. It’s delicious, he loves it . Definitely do it again but with less sugar on the icing ( it’s way too sweet)
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed the cake!
Saneah says
Hi Jessica!
How many normal sized cupcakes would this recipe make?
Thanks!!
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Saneah, I haven’t tried myself, but I’d guess pretty close to 24!
Rachael Mackie says
Hi. I’m trying this cake for the first time right now. The cake has been in the over for 35 mins, it is golden on top but still liquid inside. I have the oven ser to gas mark 4. I’ve covered the top with foil now to try to stop it from growing while the rest cooks. Is there anything else I can do to ensure it turns out well?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Rachael, sounds like you are doing everything right! Every oven is different, so your cake might need a bit longer. Did you split it into two cake pans? Let me know how it turned out.
Gloria Osborne says
I just made this cake..and its amazing…however is it very brown on the sides is this ok..
Jessica Holmes says
Yes that’s ok Gloria! That’s normal! So glad you like it!
Vicky says
Hi I made the white chocolate cake for my birthday it did not turn out like it was meant to and as it’s shown on the site it went really flat . I wasn’t happy I used all those ingredients for nothing!
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Vicky, sorry to hear that! This recipe makes two fairly level cakes, but did yours not rise at all? Perhaps your baking powder was expired?
Jess says
It tastes ok but definitely can’t classify what came out of my oven as a mud cake unfortunately. It was more like a white chocolate butter cake if anything! I tried it twice and measured by volume once and by weight the next and it turned out the exact same both times 😭
Flavour is there but consistency is not
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Jess, thanks for your feedback. I’m glad the cake worked well for you, sorry you didn’t like the consistency.
Steph says
Hi! I use this recipe endlessly and adore it.
But… I often run out of milk, and have to race out to complete it. I’m wondering if you know what sort of effect using hot water Instead would have?
Would it be an okay alternative?
Thanks!!!
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Steph, so glad you love this cake! I haven’t tested it with water instead of milk so I’m not sure – sorry! If you do try it, let me know how you go.
Stephanie says
Okay I tried it with hot water! (Told you I make it often 😂)
I actually found that the flavours were slightly stronger and the cake itself was a little lighter! (Which could be a pro or con depending on how you prefer mud cakes)
It definitely works!
Jessica Holmes says
Love that! How good is baking?! So many surprises! Haha
Stephanie says
I just wanted to pop on and say that I’ve been still trying the hot water, and still works amazing!
I have also tried swapping the butter for vegetable oil, with great results too!
I find this combination makes the most delicious cupcakes!
Thanks for the great recipe. I use it all the time
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you’ve been enjoying it Stephanie!
Laura De Nuntiis says
Stephanie thanks for the tips, I attempt to make this in the next couple of days. Do replae the milk completely with water as well as the vegetable oil?
Rebecca Staples says
Hi, I’ve made this cake once before in 1 large round cake tin and it was super yummy, though I did have to leave in for a little longer than the recipe to allow for the larger tin. But now I’m hoping to use this same recipe for cooking a hemisphere cake in an 8″ hemisphere tin. Any tips on temperature reduction for ensuring the cake cooks through evenly? Unfortunately my kitchen is just too small and doesn’t have the capacity to do multiple separate cakes to layer and then trim back.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Rebecca, so glad you enjoyed the cake! I’ve actually never tried baking using a hemisphere cake tin before but I imagine the middle especially will be quite deep and take a long time to cook through. My guess is that the top and sides will cook much quicker and may start to go brown, so you might want to have some aluminium foil handy so if that happens, you can cover the cake in the last 15 mins or so of baking. Ideally, I think baking two layers would work best but let me know how you go!
Vanessa says
Hi Rebecca,
I was thinking of doing the same, could you let me know what size cake tin you used and for how long you baked it?
Did you lower the oven temperature as well?
Thanks Vanessa
Rebecca Staples says
Hi, Overall I’d call it a success!
I used an 8″ hemisphere tin, so it was quite deep. I sat it in a ramekin just to keep it stable, made double the cake mix which filled the tin to the brim with a little bit of batter leftover (enough to make 20 mini cupcakes).
I put a sheet of foil on the top, being careful not to wrap it too far down around the tin, and cooked at 140 Celcius (fan forced). It took about 2 hours overall, so a long time compared to the recipe, but bascailly I just checked it every 20-30 minutes until it was done. The outside didn’t get overdone thankfully, as that was one of my main concerns.
Just make sure you grease the tin really well! I put 2 long strips of baking paper across going in each direction to help pull the cake out when it was done, but did still have to operate on a couple of chunks which got stuck to the tin, which i just surgically reattached with some icing.
I cut through the middle to still give an extra layer of icing through the centre, and the 1 batch of the icing from this recipe was more than enough to fill the centre layer, do a crumb coat, and generously ice the cake with some leftover.
Jessica Holmes says
Wow Rebecca, what a feat! Well done. Your cake sounds amazing! ☺️
Rebecca Staples says
Thanks! I was very pleased with how it turned out. The final product was a Golden Snitch for a very impressed 9 year old!
Vanessa says
Thanks so much for your clear and detailed description Rebecca. Your cake sounds very impressive! I’m going to have a go at baking the cake in a 10 inch round cake tin this weekend at 140 C Fan assisted and will then take it up to the next level. Fingers crossed my results are as good as yours!
Bev says
Hi Jess.
I am making an open book for my sisters birthday cake .
What size rectangle tin could I use with this mixture to keep it nice and moist?
Bev
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Bev, that’s a great question. It’s hard for me to imagine but I think you’d want to keep at a roughly the same height, so maybe a 11×7 inch pan or similar?
amity says
hi jess does the cake recapie enough for 2 cakes or is it a single cake recipe and if i need to double the recapie beacuse its a sing cake recipe would i also need to dobule the butter cream?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Amity, this recipe makes two 8-inch cakes – just like the picture. Hope that helps!
Tom says
Could I make this in one 20cm square tin and just decrease the oven temp to 160 Celsius ? Also is that fan forced ?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Tom, it would be quite a lot of batter for one tin. The problem you might run into is it would be very deep and therefore take a longer time to cook. You may find the outside over cooks while the inside doesn’t fully cook through. I recommend using two 8 inch cake tins if you can. And yes, you can turn the oven down to 160 for fan forced. Hope that helps!
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Tom, it would be quite a lot of batter for one tin. The problem you might run into is it would be very deep and therefore take a longer time to cook. You may find the outside over cooks while the inside doesn’t fully cook through. I recommend using two 8 inch cake tins if you can. And yes, go with 160 for fan forced. Hope that helps!
Maria says
Hi Jessica, is it possible to make this recipe in 6 inch tins and if so what temp and how long would I cook them for?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Maria, absolutely! That would be lovely. If you are using three 6 inch cake tins, the baking time would be roughly the same as the depth of batter would be similar. I would maybe check them around the 25 minute mark. Then just keep checking every 5 minutes or until skewer comes out clean. Hope that helps!
Sue says
Is this recipe too heavy for a triple layer cake with a ganache dam for the filling? I’ll be using 8” cake tins.. Thanks!
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Sue, I think it would be fine! I’ve had a few people use it to make multiple layered cakes. I’m curious to know what a ganache dam is though? That sounds magical!
Martina says
I want to make this cake but without the dark chocolate. Are they the swirly dark things on the top of the cake? I literally want to make the two bases the middle and the top frosting. It’s for my daughters 7th birthday. So might decorate top with standard pre made chocolate buttons.
Cheers
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Martina, no worries. You can just make the white chocolate mud cake and the white chocolate buttercream. You can leave out the chocolate buttercream as that is only for decoration. Hope you enjoy it!