Easy Neapolitan Cake Recipe

This easy Neapolitan cake recipe will not disappoint!

It’s a show stopper every time and the “oohs” and “ahhhs” from family and friends will have you feeling very proud for making it!

I don’t know about you, but I have sweet memories of eating neapolitan ice cream as a child. There was something particularly fun and exciting about opening the lid of the ice cream container to find three pretty coloured stripes, all in perfect unison. Surely if ice cream could look pretty and taste amazing with this flavour combination, then cake could too right? Right! Just wait ’till your tastes buds try this cake, all three layers in one mouthful (whoa).

If you’re curious about where Neapolitan flavoured ice cream came from (like I was), check out The Spruce Eats post about it. She's done her research plus has a recipe for Neapolitan ice cream!)

I made this cake for my daughter’s 1st birthday and it was such a hit, I just had to share the recipe with you here. I also added some white chocolate drizzle just for fun.

WHAT IS A NEAPOLITAN CAKE MADE OF?

This easy Neapolitan cake is made up of layer upon layer of deliciousness.

It starts with chocolate cake and chocolate ganache buttercream

… then raspberry cake and raspberry buttercream that’s bursting with flavour

…this is then topped off with a layer of super soft and fluffy vanilla cake and vanilla bean buttercream.

 Wholly-cake, somebody stop me. Please don’t.

There’s no possible way that this cake could be bad. Ever.

This cake is definitely a cake to pull out for a special occasion. I’ve been asked to make it for a wedding anniversary which I think will be perfect. But birthdays, afternoon tea parties, baby showers would all be very fitting too. It worked perfectly for my little girl’s 1st birthday!

READ THIS BEFORE BAKING THIS EASY NEAPOLITAN CAKE RECIPE

Firstly, don’t be put off by the loooong recipe below. This Neapolitan cake is much easier and less time consuming than it looks!

Here’s how it works:

1. Make the vanilla layers
Make one vanilla cake batter and divide it in half. Bake one half as normal, then stir 2 tablespoons of raspberry purée (or jam) into the remaining batter and bake in a second tin.

2. Make the chocolate layer
While the vanilla cakes are baking, whip up the chocolate cake batter. Pour into a tin and bake (or bake it after the others using the same tin).

3. Make the buttercream
Make one big batch of vanilla buttercream, then divide into three bowls:

• Add chocolate ganache to one bowl
• Add raspberry purée (or jam) + a little red food colouring to another
• Add scraped vanilla beans to the last for extra vanilla flavour

If you need a refresher on buttercream, head over here.

4. Assemble the cake
Start with the chocolate layer, then add chocolate buttercream. Next comes the raspberry layer with raspberry buttercream, and finish with the vanilla layer and vanilla bean buttercream.

You can switch up the order if you like — there’s no strict rule here. My husband firmly believes that vanilla should go in the middle so every bite gets a mix of flavours, but honestly, each to their own!

How To Make Neapolitan Cake: A step-by-step breakdown

First, start by baking the chocolate cake.

Chocolate Cake:

1. Preheat oven to 175°C (345°F). Line an 8-inch cake tin.
2. Sift and whisk flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and coffee. Set aside.
3. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then add oil.
4. Add eggs and vanilla, mix, then alternately fold in flour mixture and buttermilk.
5. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 40 minutes. Cool in tin for 10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Next, the vanilla and raspberry cakes are made whilst the chocolate cake is baking. The raspberry cake is made from the vanilla cake.

Vanilla and Raspberry Cake:

6. Line two 8-inch cake tins.
7. Sift and whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and vanilla bean paste. Set aside.
8. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then add oil.
9. Add eggs and vanilla, mix, then fold in flour and buttermilk.
10. Divide the batter, stir raspberries and food coloring into one half, then bake both cakes for 40 minutes. Cool in tins for 10 minutes.

Buttercream Frosting:

11. Beat butter and icing sugar until light and fluffy, then divide into three bowls.
12. Melt chocolate and cream, mix until smooth. Set aside.
13. Add raspberry puree to one bowl, and chocolate mixture to another. Set aside.

Assembling the Cake:

14. Place chocolate cake on a plate, spread chocolate buttercream on top.
15. Add raspberry cake, top with raspberry frosting, then add vanilla cake and vanilla frosting.

White Chocolate Drizzle:

16. Chill cake.
17. Melt white chocolate and cream, drizzle over the cake. For tips on making chocolate drizzles, check out this post.

How To Make Ahead:

To make this cake ahead, bake all three cake layers (chocolate, vanilla and raspberry), cool and then wrap each layer in gladwrap. Place in a plastic bread bag and freeze until the day you want to use them. You can decorate the cake frozen - in fact this actually helps the decorating process as the cakes are more firm and easier to work with.

Buttercream can be made and then refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before using and whip up again with a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer.

Storage

Room Temperature: If you plan to eat it within 2-3 days, store the cake in an airtight container at room temperature. Keep it in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight to maintain its freshness.

Refrigeration: If you'd like to keep the cake for longer, refrigerate it. Ensure the cake is tightly wrapped in plastic wrap or placed in an airtight container to prevent it from drying out. It can be stored in the fridge for up to a week.

Freezing: For longer storage, you can freeze the cake. Wrap each slice in plastic wrap and then place them in a freezer-safe bag or container. Alternatively you could freeze the cake as a whole. The cake will stay fresh in the freezer for up to 2-3 months. When ready to enjoy, let it thaw in the fridge overnight or at room temperature for a few hours.

Related

Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:

Neapolitan Cake

Sarah Sears

This easy Neapolitan cake recipe will not disappoint! It’s a show stopper every time and the “oohs” and “ahhhs” from family and friends will have you feeling very proud for making it!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 1 hour hr 16 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Servings 20 people

Ingredients

  

Chocolate Cake Layer

• 125 g 1 cup plain flour
• 30 g ¼ cup natural cocoa powder
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon instant coffee
• 56 g ¼ cup butter, softened
• 150 g ¾ cup castor sugar
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil e.g. canola, sunflower
• 2 eggs lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 125 mls ½ cup buttermilk

Vanilla and Raspberry Cake Layers

• 312 g 2 ½ cups plain flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla bean paste optional
• 113 g ½ cup butter, softened
• 300 g 1 + ½ cups castor sugar
• 60 ml ¼ cup vegetable oil (e.g. canola, sunflower)
• 3 eggs lightly beaten
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 250 mls 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons pureed raspberries or raspberry jam + 1- 2 drops of red food colouring

Buttercream

• 300 g butter softened
• 500-600 g icing sugar sifted
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon scraped vanilla beans optional
• 30 mls cream
• 30 g chocolate chopped
• 2 tablespoons pureed raspberries or raspberry jam – note that this will make the buttercream very sweet

White Chocolate Drizzle

• 160 g white chocolate melts or white chocolate, roughly chopped
• 50 mls cream

Instructions

 

To prepare chocolate cake

• Preheat the oven to 175C (345F) and line an 8 inch cake tin with baking paper.
• In a small bowl, sift flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt and coffee. Whisk to combine and set aside.
• In a medium sized bowl, beat butter (with a hand held mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment) until creamy. Gradually add sugar and continue beating until it is light in colour and fluffy in texture. With the mixer still on, slowly add the oil and continue beating until combined.
• Add eggs and vanilla to the butter mixture and mix until just combined. Add half the flour mixture and fold about 5 times. Now add ¼ cup of the buttermilk and fold again. Add the rest of the flour along with the remaining half of the buttermilk and gently fold until just combined.
• Spoon mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean (or with a coupe of dry crumbs).
• **Whilst chocolate cake is baking, start on the vanilla and raspberry cake layers**
• Cool in cake in tin for 10 minutes and then invert onto a cooling rack. Set aside and continue with the vanilla and raspberry cake layers.
• Tip: You could bake the cake layers in stages if short on time and freeze the chocolate cake until ready to assemble with the raspberry and vanilla cake layers.

To prepare vanilla and raspberry cake layers

• Whilst the chocolate cake is baking, prepare vanilla and raspberry cake. Line two 8 inch cake tins with baking paper.
• In a medium sized bowl, sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and vanilla bean paste. Whisk to combine and set aside.
• In a larger bowl, beat butter (with a hand held mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment) until creamy. Gradually add sugar and continue beating until it is light in colour and fluffy in texture. With the mixer still on, slowly add the oil and continue beating until combined.
• Add eggs and vanilla extract to the butter mixture and mix until just combined. Add half the flour mixture and fold about 5 times. Now add ½ of the buttermilk and fold again. Add the rest of the flour along with the remaining half of the buttermilk and gently fold until just combined.
• Spoon 630g of mixture into one of the prepared pans and stir raspberries and food colouring into the remaining mixture. Spoon this mixture into the other cake tin and bake both cakes for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean (or with a coupe of dry crumbs). Cool in cake tins for 10 minutes and then invert onto a cooling rack.
• Whilst the cakes are baking/cooling, make the buttercream frostings.

To make the buttercreams:

• In a large bowl, beat butter until creamy. Add icing sugar, 1 cup at a time and beat using a stand mixer or hand held mixer. Add vanilla and beat until light and fluffy. Divide the mixture into three bowls. Set aside.
• Heat cream (in the microwave or in a small saucepan over the stove) and add chocolate and whisk until the chocolate has melted completely. Leave to cool.
• To one bowl of buttercream, add raspberry puree and mix to combine completely. To another bowl, add cooled chocolate and cream mixture and mix to combine. Set aside.

To assemble the cake:

• Place the chocolate cake on a cake plate and spread the chocolate buttercream on top, filling right to the edge of the cake (I like to use a piping bag for this step to get a nice high and even height).
• Place the raspberry cake layer on top and spread or pipe the raspberry frosting on top. Make sure it is level before adding the vanilla cake layer.
• Add vanilla cake layer and spread the vanilla frosting on top.

To make the white chocolate drizzle:

• Chill the cake in the fridge (this will help the drizzle to set onto the cake).
• Add the white chocolate and the cream to a small microwave safe bowl. Melt in 20 second increments until melted. Stir well and then spoon or pipe onto the cake. See here for more tips on how to apply drizzles.

Notes

* This cake will keep in an airtight container for 2-3 days

Keyword cake, neapolitan cake