This recipe for berry chantilly cake is a light and yellow cake with plenty of fresh berries and a unique fluffy whipped cream frosting. The perfect cake for a celebration!
When I’m looking to impress, I turn to dessert recipes such as pink cake, Nutella cake, red velvet brownies, black forest cupcakes and this beautiful and delicious chantilly cake.
Easter is almost upon us and I can’t think of a better way to usher in the holiday than this berry chantilly cake recipe. Each year I host Easter at my house and my girls are already so excited! Of course their favorite part is hunting for Easter eggs but I enjoy spending time with the family and of course creating a fabulous holiday meal.
I always make an Easter ham with a variety of side dishes and a showstopping dessert like mini egg cookies or a layer cake. One of my favorite Easter desserts is this chantilly cake which is a copy cat of a Whole Foods recipe. This cake has four layers of yellow cake, plenty of fresh berries and the fluffiest frosting I’ve ever had that literally melts in your mouth. Once you taste it, you’ll never want to buy a cake at a bakery again!
Table of Contents
Berry Chantilly Cake Ingredients
To make this recipe, you will need butter, granulated sugar, eggs, egg yolks, vanilla extract, kosher salt, baking powder, all purpose flour, buttermilk, raspberry jam, water, heavy whipping cream, mascarpone cheese, cream cheese, powdered sugar, strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries and fresh mint sprigs.
How Do You Make Berry Chantilly Cake?
Start by preheating the oven, and soaking cake baking strips in water. Beat the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and egg yolks, one at a time, then pour in the vanilla extract. Mix together the dry ingredients of flour, salt and baking powder in a separate bowl. Add half the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, then mix. Next, add half the buttermilk to the mixer, and combine. Repeat the process with the rest of the dry ingredients and buttermilk. Divide the vanilla cake batter into two pans, wrap the baking strips around the pans, then bake. Let the cakes cool for a bit, then invert them onto a wire rack to cool completely.
While the cakes are cooling, prepare the berry syrup. Mix together raspberry jam and water, then microwave for a few seconds until the jam melts. Strain the jam mixture through a sieve to remove the seeds. Next, prepare the frosting. Beat the heavy cream and vanilla extract with the whisk attachment until stiff peaks form. Transfer the whipped cream to a separate bowl. Add butter to the mixer bowl, and beat until smooth. Place the mascarpone cheese, cream cheese and powdered sugar in the bowl with the butter, then beat until smooth.
To assemble the cake, trim the cakes so that they are completely flat. Cut each cake in half so you end up with four layers. Spread a little frosting onto a cake stand, and attach the first layer of cake onto the stand. Brush some of the berry syrup over the cake layer. Pipe a layer of frosting onto the cake, then arrange some of the berries on top of the cake layer. Repeat the process with more cake layers, syrup, frosting and berries. Coat the entire cake in a thin layer of frosting as a crumb coat, then chill the cake. Add a final layer of frosting. Decorate the cake with more berries and fresh mint, then cut into slices and serve.
Tips For The Perfect Cake
- Baking at a low temperature and using baking strips will help to prevent the cakes from doming so you will be able to cut two even layers from each cake.
- Overmixing the batter can cause the cake to have a tough texture. To create a light airy cake, only mix until just combined.
- Weigh your cake pans before adding the batter, then weigh again once the batter has been added to ensure each pan contains the same amount of batter.
- I highly recommend using cake baking strips for this recipe. These strips wrap around the sides of the cake pans, and help the layers bake up flat. You can find cake baking strips online or at craft stores.
Quick Tip
Chantilly cake will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Let the cake sit at room temperature for 20 minutes before serving.
Recipe FAQs
Berry chantilly cake contains sugar, butter, flour, buttermilk, fresh berries, raspberry jam, eggs, egg yolks, baking powder and vanilla extract. The frosting contains heavy cream, butter, mascarpone cheese and cream cheese.
Chantilly cake is a delicious option because it’s the perfect blend of flavors and textures. The whipped cream frosting pairs perfectly with the berries, and the cake is light and fluffy, which makes this a dessert that doesn’t weigh on you after a big meal.
This recipe is called berry chantilly cake because the frosting is based off of chantilly cream, which is a type of whipped cream that is sweetened and flavored with vanilla.
FOLLOW ME
So tell me, what’s on your Easter menu this year? I’m still working on finalizing my menu but one thing’s for sure, I’m excited to make this berry chantilly cake again to share with my family and friends.
More Dessert Recipes
Fresh Strawberry Pie
1 hr 35 mins
Lemon Bundt Cake
1 hr 10 mins
Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes
50 mins
Greek Yogurt Cheesecakes
35 mins
Love This Recipe?
Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.
Berry Chantilly Cake
Ingredients
For the cake layers
- cooking spray
- 1⅓ cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 2⅓ cups granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 4¼ teaspoons baking powder
- 4 cups all purpose flour
- 1⅓ cups buttermilk
For the berry syrup
- ½ cup raspberry jam
- 3 tablespoons water
For the frosting
- 1⅔ cups heavy cream
- 1 ¾ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1⅔ cups mascarpone cheese room temperature
- 1⅔ cups cream cheese room temperature
- ⅓ cup butter room temperature
- 4⅛ cups powdered sugar sifted
For the filling and decoration
- ¾ cup strawberries
- ¾ cup blueberries
- ¾ cup blackberries
- ¾ cup raspberries
- fresh mint sprigs
Instructions
For the cake layers
- Preheat the oven to 325º F. Coat two 9-inch cake pans with cooking spray and line the bottom of the pans with parchment paper cut into rounds and line the sides with parchment paper cut into strips.
- Soak two cake baking strips in water.
- Place the butter and granulated sugar in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat for about 2-3 minutes until combined.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides and beating after each addition.
- Add the egg yolks, one at a time. Stir in the vanilla.
- Stir together the salt, baking powder, and flour in a large bowl. Pour half of the flour mixture into the butter mixture and mix until just combined. Add half of buttermilk, then add the remainder of the flour mixture followed by the remainder of the buttermilk. Do not over mix.
- Divide the cake batter evenly between the pans.
- Squeeze out the excess water from the baking strips and secure around the pans. Bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and place the pans on a wire rack. Remove the baking strips and allow the cakes to cool for 10 minutes. Then, turn the cakes out on the cooling rack to cool completely.
- Once cooled, wrap the cakes and store at room temperature if assembling the following day. If you are assembling the cake on the same day, freeze them for 30 minutes.
For the berry syrup
- Combine the raspberry jam and water; heat in the microwave for 20 second increments or until melted.
- Press through a sieve to remove seeds.
For the frosting
- With a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the heavy cream and vanilla extract until stiff peaks just start to form. Transfer the whipped cream to a bowl. Keep a close eye on the cream once it starts to thicken to prevent over whipping it. If the cream is over whipped it will become grainy. If this happens, stir in some unwhipped cream until smooth.
- Put the butter into the mixing bowl and beat until smooth. Add the mascarpone cheese, cream cheese, and powdered sugar and beat until very smooth.
- Gently fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture until completely incorporated. Use immediately or chill until you are ready to use it.
For the filling, decoration and assembly
- Set aside a few strawberries for decoration. Hull the remainder and cut them in half or into quarters if they are quite large.
- To create four even cake layers, first trim the tops off the cakes with a cake leveler or large serrated knife so that they are 1½ inch thick. Next, cut each cake in half so that you have four ¾ inch layers.
- Spread a little frosting onto your serving plate or cake stand and attach the first cake layer onto it.
- Brush the berry syrup over the cake layer.
- Fit a piping bag with a large round tip, and half fill with frosting. Pipe a layer of frosting onto the cake (approximately 1 1/3 cups). If you don’t have a piping bag, spread a ¼ inch layer of frosting onto the layer with an offset spatula.
- Arrange a mixture of the berries (approximately 2/3 cup) over the frosting layer.
- Place the second cake layer on top. Brush the second layer with syrup and repeat the process from the first layer of adding the frosting and berries.
- Add the third layer of cake, brush with syrup, spread with frosting and arrange more berries on top.
- Place the final layer on top and crumb coat the whole cake by covering it in a very thin layer of frosting. Chill for 15 minutes.
- Spread the remaining frosting over the cake with an offset spatula. To create a swirl finish, place the cake on a turntable and hold the offset spatula against the side of the cake. Turn the cake continuously as you slowly run the knife up the side of the cake. Repeat on the top starting in the middle and work out towards the edges.
- Arrange the remaining berries and mint sprigs on top of the cake. The cake can be refrigerated for one day. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Notes
- Baking at a low temperature and using baking strips will help to prevent the cakes from doming so you will be able to cut two even layers from each cake.
- Overmixing the batter can cause the cake to have a tough texture. To create a light airy cake, only mix until just combined.
- Weigh your cake pans before adding the batter, then weigh again once the batter has been added to ensure each pan contains the same amount of batter.
This cake looks so good. Perfect for people like me who are currently dreaming of summer and getting weather and foods that come with it.
This chantilly cake sounds amazing. I would love to try this recipe. I saw this at Whole Foods once. I never realized how easy it would be to make my own version.
Cakes are good for nay occasion. We started making out own cakes for birthdays to cut down on sugar and fat.
This looks so good. I think I’m going to challenge myself to make a cake sometime soon. Looks amazing.
This cake is gorgeous. It looks like something you’d see in a bakery and those fresh berries. OMG! Wish I could rate this recipe higher, this looks absolutely delicious.
I don’t even have Easter on my radar, it will be here before I know it so I probably should. We usually have a big family dinner and we all chip in and make something. Maybe I need to wow them with the Berry Chantilly Cake.
This looks like the perfect cake for Easter dinner. I love the colors of all the fresh berries in each layer.
Your cake recipe sounds delicious and the pictures are making me hungry. I wish I didn’t have an intolerance to dairy!!
This cake is gorgeous! What a perfect cake for spring, and so many celebrations.
This cake looks delicious, and it’s beautiful too! I’ll have to make this in the summer when we go berry picking and we have an abundance of fresh berries.
This made me crave for a slice right now. I think it’s a lovely dessert especially for Spring, it’s light and full of berries! What more can you ask for… well, maybe a good cup of tea to have this with!
This looks like a tasty cake. I don’t think I’ve ever had a chantilly cake before. Yum! I like that there are berries in it.
That is such a pretty cake! I love berries on almost any good day but put them in cake and they’re even better. I wish I could try a slice of it right now.
Just made this cake for my Birthday and it is absolutely delicious! A helpful hint to save some time: I found seedless raspberry jam (smuckers) at my local supermarket so I did not have to run it through a sieve after heating it. It is even better days after as the flavors have incorporated even more . Happy baking 🙂
This is a signature and very popular cake sold at Whole Foods Market organic stores. I worked there for 3 years and the only difference in this amazing frosting was that we used Almond Emulsion instead of vanilla extract. You guys should try it and I guarantee you all that it’s gonna make it 100 times more delicious and most certainly addictive.
I have eaten the original Chantilly Cake from Whole Foods over 20 times, I have also dissected the cake with a fine tooth comb, I’ve never tasted a fruit jam on any layers of the cake. I’ve noticed on occasion that the berries on the Top of the cake have a jam or jelly as a preservative of the fruit. The mention of a crumb in the cake on the cake eludes me as well. Also there is no mention of how much Almond flavor plays a major component in the cake. Slivered almonds are encrusted on the sides on the lower end of the cake, there is no recording of this important ingredient, there is a comment of using Almond is a substitute for Vanilla. In the Whole Foods cake Almond is a dominant flavor and should be addressed when making this copycat cake. To be truly honest, I’m upset with Whole Foods right now because they’ve cutback on this cake and it’s features, changing the characteristics of the cake and ultimately changing the complexity of the flavors in the cake. Whole Foods has changed the size of cake, making it smaller from 3 layers into two layers as well as making the cake an 8″ inch cake & leaving the Almond encrusting completely off of the cake consequently changing the artistry & the balance of taste as well as the craving for me of the cake.
This cake did not originate at whole foods. The invention of Chantilly whipped cream is often attributed to the great French chef Vatel who worked in the kitchens of the Château de Chantilly. In April 1671 he was commissioned to organize a party for the Duc de Condé, owner of Chantilly, and his cousin Louis XIV at the Chateau. Also the almond thing is probably just a whole foods thing. No one else does that. You also come off really rude calling this a copy cat cake.
I made this cake today, it was beautiful and everyone loved it.
Can this cake be made and assembled a day ahead? If not, can the components be made a day a head and assemble it the day of the event. I’m concerned with berry and syrup bleed through. The cake sounds wonderful.I can’t wait to make it.
I apologize for the late response! I would say you can bake the cake layers in advance, and also make the frosting, just bring it to room temp before spreading. I would assemble the cake on the day you plan to serve it. Hope that helps!
I made this today and it was received with great enthusiasm by family members from 18 months to 82 years old. My shoppers (son, daughter, husband) were unable to find mascarpone cheese, unfortunately, so I substituted with extra cream cheese. This is definitely an impressive and delicious cake, and is a keeper that has been printed and added to my recipe binder to make again and again. Thanks so much!
I too had a hard time finding the mascarpone cheese but luckily found it at my local HEB. I don’t know what state you are located if you don’t have HEB. Whole Foods also sells it. Make sure to check the specialty cheese department and not the regular dairy isles.
To those who have actually made this cake: Was it difficult to spread the frosting over the jam? I just envision it smearing and turning pink. I wonder if you could spread the frosting on first then put the jam on top? Any feedback on this would be appreciated; I’m looking forward to making this but want to make sure it turns out right the first time. Thank you.
I think you could do it either way and it would be fine, it won’t hurt to put the jam on top!
Hi, I made this cake exactly as the recipe says to and my family and friends all thought is was better than the Whole Foods version. I have to agree with them, which is almost unbelievable because for many years it was my favorite cake ever and did not believe that it could ever taste any better. Thank you for this wonderful, amazing, delicious, beautiful, perfect cake recipe. So yummy! I found a recipe to make the mascarpone cheese @www.biggerbolderbaking.com How to Make the Creamiest Mascarpone Cheese. Follow the recipe with the jam. After you put the jam on the cake layer you will be putting a layer of fruit on top of the jam then you put a layer of icing on the layer of fruit so the icing never touches the jam and no pink smeared icing at all.
So glad to hear everyone enjoyed it, next time I’ll try making the cheese!