This white chocolate raspberry cake features sweet white chocolate cake layers, a tart raspberry filling, and plenty of white chocolate buttercream. Just try to stop at one slice!
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Hey guys! Are you ready for some delicious, delicious cake? I know I am! It’s been, like, weeks (!!) since my last layer cake post and I’m going into withdrawals. Cake DTs are really unpleasant.
Do you love making layer cakes like I do? I know they can be sort of a pain what with baking the layers, filling the layers, frosting the layers. . .but nothing is quite as satisfying as slicing into a layer cake.
Except, obviously, for taking that first bite of your gorgeously filled and frosted cake.
And never was that more true than when I took a bite of this white chocolate cake with RASPBERRY FILLING! That little pop of tart berry is so perfect when paired with the creamy sweetness of the white chocolate.
It’s totally swoon-worthy.
And hey, guess what? The filling is made with frozen raspberries so this cake is totally do-able year-round. (I love that!) I’m thinking this would be a pretty great holiday cake because of the bright pop of red.
I’m sorry to bring up the h-word but I like to plan menus way ahead of time. Remember Bree on Desperate Housewives, doing a Christmas dry run? She was channeling me. (At least I think that happened on Desperate Housewives and not just in my actual life.)
White chocolate raspberry cake: the process
The white chocolate cake layers are simple to make because we use a box mix doctored up with sour cream and pudding. I used white chocolate pudding but you can substitute vanilla or cheesecake—just as long as it’s white-ish—if you don’t have white chocolate pudding on hand.
Baker’s tip: be sure you use instant pudding mix, NOT cook and serve. I’ve used both Godiva and Jell-o pudding in this cake and preferred Godiva, but use whichever you like.
Start by melting your white chocolate and butter together in the microwave at 50% power in 15-second intervals, stirring after each interval.
Melting white chocolate slowly is important so it doesn’t scorch; I thought I got a picture of this process but apparently not. I’m sorry!
- Next, combine your cake mix (I used Duncan Hines) along with the pudding mix, milk, egg whites, sour cream, a little vanilla, and salt.
- Beat all of that with an electric mixer for 2 minutes. The batter will be very thick. Add the white chocolate-butter mixture and beat again until fully incorporated.
Divide the batter between three 8-inch round cake pans and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Because the batter is thick, it will not spread on its own so spreading it out is necessary.
Bake for about 25 minutes, then cool the cake layers in the pans for 20 minutes and carefully invert them onto a wire rack to cool completely. The cake layers will turn out to be slightly concave in the center, as in the second picture above. This is fine.
If the concavity bothers you, you can use a long serrated knife to trim off the tops and even them out. If you go that route, chill the cake layers in the fridge until they’re cold enough to cut through. The cake is very soft and if you try to trim the layers without chilling them, they’ll crumble.
The filling is just a matter of boiling the frozen raspberries with sugar, lemon juice, and cornstarch until the berries are thick and spreadable.
Be sure when you fill and frost your cake that you don’t spread the jam all the way to the edge (see last picture above); this prevents jam from getting in your frosting.
If you wanted to substitute store-bought raspberry jam, I think that would be just fine.
After you make your filling, frost the cake with a simple white chocolate buttercream and you’re ready to eat! I won’t tell you to have dinner first. . .because, I confess, I had a slice of white chocolate raspberry cake for dinner the day I did these photos.
It was the best dinner I had all week 🙂
How to store your white chocolate raspberry cake
Should you happen to have uneaten cake you can store it, covered, at room temp for a couple of days.
If you can’t eat all the leftovers in two days, this cake freezes well.
Slice the cake, set the slices on a baking sheet, then pop the baking sheet in the freezer for about half an hour to set the buttercream.
Once the frosting has hardened, tightly wrap each slice individually with a few layers of plastic wrap and/or freezer paper. You can store it this way for a couple of months.
A few more layer cakes (in case you’re hungry)
Strawberry Layer Cake
Tuxedo Cake
Death by Chocolate Cake
Coconut Mango Cake
If you make this white chocolate raspberry cake–or any of my recipes–be sure to let me know what you think by leaving a comment and rating below. And post a pic on Insta too—tag @theitsybitsykitchen so I can see!
- 6 ounces white chocolate finely chopped
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter cut into chunks
- 1 15.25-ounce box white cake mix*
- 1 3-ounce box instant white chocolate pudding mix**
- 1/2 cup whole milk at room temperature
- 1/2 cup full-fat sour cream at room temperature
- 4 large egg whites at room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups frozen raspberries
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 4 ounces white chocolate finely chopped
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter at room temperature
- 5 1/2 to 6 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 4 to 6 tablespoons whole milk or heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- fresh raspberries for garnish
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray 3 8-inch round cake pans with cooking spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper. Spray the paper with cooking spray and set pans aside.
Place the white chocolate and the butter in a microwave-safe bowl and heat on 50% powder in 15-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Combine the remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer set to medium for 2 minutes. Beat in the white chocolate until combined. Divide batter evenly between prepared cake pans and smooth with a spatula.
- Bake 24 to 28 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in pans for 20 minutes, then carefully invert onto a wire rack to cool completely before filling and frosting.
- While cake is in the oven, combine all filling ingredients in a small saucepan set over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly, and simmer until mixture is very thick and clings to a wooden spoon. Scrape into a small bowl and refrigerate until cool enough to spread.
- Place the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and heat at 50% power in 15-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until chocolate is melted and smooth. Set aside to cool for 5 minutes.
- Beat the butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and creamy, about 30 seconds. Turn mixer to low and beat in 5 1/2 cups of the powdered sugar, 4 tablespoons of the milk, and the vanilla and salt until combined. Add the cooled white chocolate and mix on low until incorporated. Turn mixer to medium and mix until smooth. If frosting is too thick, add additional milk; if it’s too thin, add additional powdered sugar.
- Assembly:
If your cake layers are too concave for your liking, chill the cake layers, then even them out with a long serrated knife.
Place one cake layer on a cake stand or cardboard cake circle. Spread half of the raspberry filling over the top of the cake (don’t go all the way to the edge). Gently spread (or pipe) a layer of frosting over the top of the filling, this time going all the way to the edge. Repeat with remaining filling and another layer of frosting. Top with remaining cake layer.
- Frost your cake with remaining frosting and decorate as desired. Serve.
*I used Duncan Hines
**You can substitute cheesecake or vanilla pudding--just be sure that it's instant.
Filling adapted from Genius Kitchen
Kj says
I used 3 -8 inch pans and putWilton Bake Even strips around the cake pan. Cakes came out perfectly smooth top not concave. Mine were done at 20 minutes.
Kelsie says
Those strips are awesome! Thanks for the info!
Christine Miller says
Hello, I am getting ready to make this for my son’s 12th Birthday next month – at his request! Can buttermilk be used in place of the milk & sour cream?
Kelsie says
Hi Christine! I haven’t made this cake with exactly that substitution, but I think it should be fine. I’ve made other cakes subbing milk and sour cream for buttermilk so I’d imagine it’ll work here in reverse. Happy early birthday to your son and let me know how the cake goes!
Claire says
Just went to (buy) all the ingredients! My very big big store didn’t carry that brand of cake mix, and said they no longer made white Chocolate Instant pudding. I trying to figure out all the substitutions- you said yes on vanilla or cheesecake pudding but didn’t give another choice on a cake mix can anyone help with it thanks from North Idaho.
Kelsie says
Hi Claire! You’ll be fine using vanilla instant pudding and any brand of white cake mix should work as long as the mix is roughly the same size as the one I used (15.25 ounces). Pillsbury also makes a white cake mix that is 15.25 ounces, so that would be another option. I hope you love the cake–let me know if you have any more questions!
Rene says
Made this afternoon. Fabulous, only thing I changed was I used whole milk yogurt instead of sour cream. My layers didn’t come out concave like mentioned and mine cooked faster than the time mentioned. I did have a hard time spreading mixture in pans. The parchment paper kept sliding around. Will definitely make again. Delicious!!
Kelsie says
Hi Rene! I’m so glad you liked it! And it’s great to know yogurt works well here. Have a great weekend!
hanifa says
OMG! love this cake!
I made this twice and it was event better the second time round!
Thank you!!
Kelsie says
Hi Hanifa! Thank you so much! You’ve made my day!
Will says
Kelsie,
What a great recipe! I made this for a friends 75th birthday party and literally had a line of people at the party telling me it was the best cake ever. I have two orders for additional cakes — I’m no pro, but I’ll go with it for fun.
I have two things I used that made it easier for me; Ghiradelli’s white chocolate chips worked well as the chocolate and a jar of seedless raspberry jam with 1/4 cup lemon, melted, blended and cooled was the filling. The filling was so popular that I reheated the leftover and served it like a warm “coulis” atop fresh whipped cream on each subsequent slice. So easy, tasty and no seeds to contend with.
Thank you for this winner recipe!!
Carrie says
Ok I’m making this now. I used 3 9 in pans and doubled the recipe. Now it’s super think 🤦🏼♀️. I don’t know what I was thinking. It’s having to bake a lot longer in there now. Do you think this will dry it out or be ok? It wasn’t that crazy think when I put it in the pan but of course it rises. I just get a lot of recipes that say it will make this size cake and it doesn’t so I doubled it to be sure and used 3 9 in . 😬 hope I didn’t mess it up. Help! Lol
Kelsie says
Hi Carrie! I think you’ll be fine. It’s possible that the tops of the cake layers will get a little dark from being in the oven longer but I wouldn’t worry that they’ll dry out, as long as you take them out as soon as a toothpick comes out clean. If they get too dark and you’re worried about scorching, tent some foil over the layers once you think they have about 15 minutes left baking. Hope that helps and let me know how it goes!
Helen Szafran says
This cake was amazing. I used this cake recipe with a mascarpone and whipped cream frosting too and also used strawberries, raspberries and blueberries. It’s been a hit every time. Thanks for the recipe.
Lindsay says
I’m having huge problems with this cake! I’m making a 3 tiered cake with this recipe. I’ve made 5 (2 10 in, 2 8in and 1 6in) layers so far and they’ve all sunk once coming out of the oven except for the 6in. Like big crator sunk. I’ve never had this problem with my oven or pans. I know this cake will be delicious but it won’t be stackable. Any suggestions?
Kelsie says
I’m so sorry you’re having problems! The cake layers (in an 8-inch pan) do sink a little, but not into big craters so I really don’t know what’s going on. If they’re completely sunken in on themselves, I would fill in the divots with extra frosting. If the the cake wobbles during assembly because of the extra frosting, refrigerate the layers to set the buttercream every so often. If the layers are only slightly sunken then I would just use a long knife and trim off the top so they’re even. I hope that helps!
Tracy says
Every time I’ve used a box mix and tried to do the pudding thing they fall in the center. Most cake mixes already have the pudding or say super moist. Can I ask, What is the exact cake mix that you used. I know you said Duncan Hines brand.
Kelsie says
Hi Tracy! My guess is that I used Classic White but I can’t be sure because I made the cake a year (or two?) ago. You’re right though–you’d want to use a mix that doesn’t already have pudding in it. Sorry I can’t give you the exact mix! I’ll try to be better about that in the future!
Ella Sanders says
We made this for my grandmother’s birthday and it was delicious. The best white chocolate cake I’ve made!
Kelsie says
I’m glad you loved it and thank you so much for letting me know! You’ve totally made my day 🙂
Mary Moore says
Hi I’m going to try and make this cake for my five year old granddaughter s birthday. Does the buttercream have to be refrigerated because I want to make the cake the day before and I don’t have refrigerator space. I have been following you for awhile and love the recipes you have shared. Thank you.
Kelsie says
Hi Mary! First, thank you so much for following along! Buttercream is fine to leave at room temperature for a day or so as long as your kitchen isn’t overly hot (it does tend to melt). I hope you guys love the cake!
hanifa says
OMG!! I made this for my Daughter 17th Birthday.
All i can say is AMAZING!!
Thank you so much for having this recipe!
My family loved it!
I didn’t use all the buttercream, so i made it into a naked cake.. just the right amount of sweetness and tartness from the raspberry and buttercream!
Thank you. will be making it again and again!!
Kelsie says
Thank you Hanifa! I’m so glad you guys liked it! Happy birthday to your daughter!
Rachel says
And…just a few things I noticed about the recipe in case anyone wants to make cupcakes with it too. I used white chocolate chips (Baker’s brand), which worked perfectly. I used a cookie scoop to scoop the batter into the mini cupcake liners – it rises a lot, so don’t fill it too full. And I didn’t smooth out the batter at all, it filled in the liner and rose nicely.
Kelsie says
This is great info! Thank you!
Michelle says
Thank you mine are in the oven now!
Rachel H says
This is an amazing recipe! I needed to make cupcakes for a bridal shower I am hosting and just did a trial run using this recipe – they are to die for! My husband can’t get enough of them. I used the batter to make mini cupcakes (reduced the baking time, of course), hollowed out a hole for a spoonful of the filling, and topped it off with the icing and a single raspberry. They look gorgeous and taste even better. Thank you so much, this is a recipe I am saving to make again and again! Can’t wait to serve them at the shower <3
Rachel says
Forgot to add my rating!
Kelsie says
I’m so glad you liked it, Rachel! And thank you so much for the feed back!
Steven Carvalho says
Absolutely fantastic!!!! Made this for my wife’s birthday and it got rave reviews. Only issue was difficulty in spreading the batter on the parvhment paper. As I have non-stick comnercial cake pans I will skip the parchment next time. Any thoughts on that? Otherwise it ROCKS.
Kelsie says
Hi Steven! I’m so glad you guys liked it! You should be fine skipping the parchment, especially if you’ve had good luck with cakes not sticking to those pans in the past. Have a great weekend, and thanks for the feedback!
Ging says
Best cake I made ever,thanks….
Kelsie says
Thank YOU, Ging! I’m glad you loved it!
Kacie Etter says
This sounds and looks amazing! I want to try this! All I have are white chocolate chips in hand. Will those work?
Kelsie says
I’m not actually sure if white chocolate chips would work; they tend not to melt very well. But if you’re up for an experiment I’d say to give it a shot. I’m sure it will still taste good!
Michelle says
I’m doing white chocolate chips now can let you know how it goes! So far I could sit down and eat a big bowl of just batter!!
Michelle says
Delicious cake! Will be making it again for the holidays.
Kelsie says
I’m so glad you liked it, Michelle! Thanks for letting me know!
Jeanne says
I made this last weekend for a birthday and I’m making it again today for a BBQ tomorrow. It’s delicious!
Kelsie says
Thank you, Jeanne! I’m so glad you liked it!
Eileen says
made the cake and it completely fell. any secrets to share on how to prevent this?
Kelsie says
I’m so sorry the cake didn’t work for you! There could be a few different things that happened. It’s possible your oven temperature is a little off. If you think that could be the cause I recommend buying an oven thermometer; you can find them at Walmart or Target. Another possibility is that the batter was under-beaten or over-beaten. It could also be that the cake wasn’t fully baked through, but that’s the easiest one to check. If you tested for doneness with a toothpick then I’m sure that wasn’t the culprit. Again, I’m so sorry!