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slice of chocolate mint cake on a plate with a hand reaching int with a fork to take a bite

Chocolate Mint Cake

Soft chocolate cake layers, rich ganache filling, and peppermint frosting--this chocolate mint cake has it all!

Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 30 minutes
Cooling Time 3 hours
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings 10
Author Kelsie

Ingredients

Chocolate mint cake layers

  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 cup unsalted butter melted and cooled
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups warm coffee you can substitute flat cola

Chocolate ganache filling

  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 8 ounces dark or semisweet chocolate finely chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

Peppermint frosting

  • 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 3 to 6 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
  • 2 teaspoons peppermint extract
  • 1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract can substitute regular
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 4 1/2 to 5 cups powdered sugar
  • green gel food coloring
  • mini chocolate chips or chocolate jimmies for decorating optional

Instructions

Chocolate mint cake layers

  1. Preheat the oven to 350. Spray 3 (8-inch) round cake pans with cooking spray. Line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper, spray the paper with cooking spray and lightly dust with flour. Set pans aside.
  2. Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a medium mixing bowl and set aside. (These are your dry ingredients.)
  3. Combine the sugar, butter, and oil in a large mixing bowl and stir until combined. Mix in the eggs, peppermint, and vanilla.
  4. Use a rubber spatula to mix half of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined. Stir in half of the coffee.
  5. Mix in the remaining dry ingredients, then the remaining coffee, stirring just until smooth.
  6. Divide batter evenly between the prepared pans and bake for 26 to 32 minutes, until the cakes spring back when touched gently with your finger.
  7. Let cake layers cool in pans for 20 minutes, then carefully remove from the pans to cool completely on a wire rack before filling and frosting your cake.

Make the ganache while the cake bakes

  1. Place the heavy cream in a small saucepan set over medium heat. Warm the cream until it begins to steam; it shouldn’t boil.
  2. Put the chopped chocolate in a small heatproof bowl and pour the hot cream over it. Let the mixture sit for 3 minutes.
  3. Stir with a rubber spatula until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Add the peppermint extract and stir to combine.
  4. Refrigerate the ganache until thick but still spreadable, 2 to 3 hours. (The cake layers should be cool by the time the ganache is ready to use.)

Peppermint frosting

  1. Once your cake layers are cool and your ganache is ready to use, make the frosting.
  2. Place the butter in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Add 3 tablespoons of the milk or cream, the peppermint, vanilla, and salt. Beat to combine.
  3. Gradually beat in 4 1/2 cups of powdered sugar. Turn mixer to medium and mix until frosting is smooth, then mix in food coloring to achieve desired color.
  4. Add additional powdered sugar if frosting is too thin and additional milk or cream if it is too thick.

Assembly

  1. Use a long serrated knife to trim your cake layers if they’ve domed.
  2. Transfer about 1 cup of frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Pipe a circle of frosting around 1 of the cake layers. Spread half of the ganache inside the circle.
  3. Top with a second cake layer and repeat the piping and filling process. Top with the third cake layer.
  4. Frost your cake with the remaining frosting, then decorate as desired. Slice and serve.

Recipe Notes

  • Uneaten cake can be stored, covered at room temperature, for 2 or 3 days. You can also store it in the fridge (covered) for 3 or 4 days.
  • Cake slices can also be frozen, tightly wrapped, for 2 months.
  • I prefer this cake made with coffee rather than cola; the coffee deepens the chocolate flavor while the cola makes the cake taste sweeter. But flat cola is a fine substitute if you really don’t like coffee.
  • Be sure to check all your cake layers for doneness before taking them out of the oven. Some ovens bake unevenly and one layer might be done while another needs another minute or two.
  • If you chill your ganache too long and it’s not spreadable, warm it in the microwave in 5-second intervals, stirring after each, until it’s soft enough to spread.
  • See the body of this post for step-by-step photos.