• Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • X
 Trending:  Thanksgiving
Erren's Kitchen
  • Home
  • Recipes
    • Recipe Finder
    • All Recipes
    • Course
      • Breakfast
      • Appetizer
      • Lunch
      • Dinner
      • Side
      • Dessert
      • Drinks
    • Type
      • Quick and Easy
      • Vegetarian
      • Pasta
      • Soups
      • Salads & Dressings
      • Rice Dishes
      • Comfort Food
      • Slow Cooker
    • Protein
      • Chicken & Poultry
      • Seafood
      • Beef, Pork, & Lamb
    • Cuisine
      • Italian Food
      • Asian Food
      • American
      • Mediterranean
      • Mexican Food
      • Southern
    • Method
      • Slow Cooker
      • One Pot/One Pan
      • Oven-Baked and Roasted Recipes
      • Stovetop
    • Desserts
      • Brownies & Bars
      • Cakes & Cupcakes
      • Cookies
      • Pies & Tarts
      • Muffins, Breads & Donuts
      • Ice Cream Recipes
  • Videos
  • Conversions
    • US Sticks of Butter Conversion Charts
    • Basic ounces to grams weight conversions
    • Oven Temperature Conversions
    • Butter in the US and the Rest of the World
    • British Dessert Spoon Conversions
    • US Cups to ounces & grams for common ingredients
    • Basic Volume Conversions
  • About
    • Erren’s Kitchen
    • Meet the Team
    • Meet Erren
    • Collaborate
    • Life Stories
    • Contact
    • Our Philosophy
  • Contact

Specialties:

Quick & Easy
Italian
Poultry
Better Than Takeout!
Desserts
Meat
Pasta
Home / Cakes & Cupcakes

Yellow Celebration Cake with Chocolate Frosting

A showstopping cake, so versatile you can use it for birthdays or holiday celebrations. Simple and delicious.

Erren Hart

|

last Updated:

11/02/2020
4.88 from 8 votes
Jump to Recipe
Serves: 8 people
Prep: 20 minutes mins
Cook: 25 minutes mins
A yellow cake with chocolate frosting topped with sprinkles and colored eggs being cut and a slice taken away.
A yellow cake with chocolate frosting topped with sprinkles and colored eggs being cut and a slice taken away, a slice on a plate, and a completed Easter cake.

A piece of yellow celebration cake with chocolate frosting being removed from the whole cake

This site runs ads and generates income from affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.

This recipe for Yellow Celebration Cake with Chocolate Frosting makes an extra light and fluffy version of this simple classic – topped with mini eggs, it’s a showstopping Easter cake or with simple sprinkles, it’s a traditional birthday cake.

A piece of yellow celebration cake with chocolate frosting being removed from the whole cake with spring flowers in the background

How is it that I’ve never shared a yellow cake recipe with chocolate frosting before?? I mean it’s such a classic cake! Okay, I’ve shared lots of vanilla cakes but who doesn’t love this classic combination – light fluffy yellow cake with fudgy chocolate icing!

I’ve played around with a lot of different yellow cake recipes, but I’ve always wanted to find a way to make it as light and fluffy as the mixes I grew up on, but with homemade flavors.  I have finally achieved my perfect yellow cake! Vanilla Cream Sponge Cake is the obvious classic, but this is just a little more special

I created a chiffon-like cake to create a fluffy yellow layer cake reminiscent to the cake mixes I grew up on, but with homemade flavors.

Using a lot of whipped egg whites to get big volume and texture and for moisture, I used a combination of melted butter and vegetable oil.  And the tenderness comes from the sugar and buttermilk.

The trick for making the cake as yellow as possible (without using food coloring) is brown eggs.  Brown egg yolks have a much deeper color, resulting in a truly yellow cake.

brown eggs

egg whites

whip the egg whites until they form stiff peaks

egg whites 2

Then gently fold them into the batter.

folding in egg whites

The egg whites make the cake super light, fluffy and moist – reminiscent of the yellow cake mix I grew up on.

Baked caked

While the outside of the cake is golden brown.

For the frosting, I used a combination of, melted chocolate, butter, powdered sugar, cocoa powder and to cut down on sweetness, sour cream.  This created a rich, creamy frosting that has just the right amount of sweetness.

A close up of four pieces of paper taken from notebooksTo decorate the cake and make the lines and ridges in the frosting, I used a cake comb.from Amazon (#paidlink). It’s a pretty simple tool that gives lovely results (I’m sure with a bit of practice, I’ll get better and better at it.  You just run it around the cake to form the ridges.  I used a turntable (#paidlink).which made it really easy.  Then to add the Easter look I used Cadbury Mini Eggs (#paidlink)., which are just chocolate eggs with a candy coating.

Yellow celebration cake with chocolate frosting on a serving dish topped with chocolate eggs

close up of yellow celebration cake with chocolate frosting on a serving dish topped with chocolate eggs and sprinkles

A piece of yellow celebration cake with chocolate frosting being removed from the whole cake, with spring flowers in the background

A piece of yellow celebration cake with chocolate frosting being removed from the whole cake with spring flowers in the background

A piece of cake on a plate, with the rest of the cake in the background

More Frosting Options

  • Easy Buttercream Frosting
  • Chocolate Ganache Frosting
  • Chocolate Whipped Cream Frosting
  • Stabilized Whipped Cream
  • Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

A piece of yellow celebration cake with chocolate frosting being removed from the whole cake

Recipe

Yellow Celebration Cake with Chocolate Frosting

A showstopping cake, so versatile you can use it for birthdays or holiday celebrations. Simple and delicious.
4.88 from 8 votes
Print
Prep Time: 20 minutes mins
Cook Time: 25 minutes mins
Total Time: 45 minutes mins
Serves 8 people

Ingredients

For the cake:
  • 2½ cups flour
  • 1¼ teaspoons baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1¾ cups sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ½ cup butter (melted and cooled to room temperature)
  • 1 cup buttermilk (room temperature)
  • ⅓ cup vegetable oil
  • 3 large eggs (separated room temperature)
  • 3 large egg yolks room temperature
For the frosting:
  • ½ cup butter at room temperature
  • 6 ounces semi sweet chocolate chips
  • ⅓ cup cocoa powder sifted
  • 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2-3 cups powdered sugar sifted
  • ⅔ cup sour cream

Instructions

For the cake:
  • Preheat the oven to 350F and grease two 9 inch round pans.
  • In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
  • In another bowl mix together the sugar, vanilla, melted butter, buttermilk, oil, and all six egg yolks. Set aside.
  • Using a food processor or mixer, whip the egg whites (from the 3 separated eggs) until stiff peaks are formed, set aside.
  • Beat the flour mixture and buttermilk mixture together until combined and smooth.
  • Gently fold in the egg whites until combined.
  • Separate evenly into the prepared cake pans and bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean.
  • Let the cakes rest in the pans for 5-10 minutes before gently turning them onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
For the frosting:
  • Melt the butter and chocolate chips in a small pan on over a low heat stirring gently until melted.
  • Once completely melted, remove from the heat and let cool.
  • Add the cocoa, vanilla extract and 1 cup of the powdered sugar.
  • Beat in the sour cream and another cup of the sugar until smooth.
  • Add more sugar a little at a time if needed until you reach the desired consistency.
  • Spread over the cooled cakes before serving.
Show Nutrition Hide Nutrition

Nutrition

Calories: 698 | Carbohydrates: 87g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 35g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Cholesterol: 106mg | Sodium: 500mg | Potassium: 315mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 53g | Vitamin A: 625IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 114mg | Iron: 3.5mg
Created by Erren Hart
Save to favoritesYour saved recipes will be right here waiting for you every time you visit, so you can easily find and make the meals you love.
4.88 from 8 votes

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Rate this recipe:




16 responses

  1. Lee Avatar
    Lee
    01/17/2022

    So delicious, I made it for a birthday cake, everyone loved it

    Reply
    1. Erren's Kitchen Avatar
      Erren’s Kitchen
      01/17/2022

      Thank you Lee, it does make a great birthday cake doesn’t it?

      Reply
  2. Amy Wolf Avatar
    Amy Wolf
    04/16/2017

    Very good yellow cake recipe. Made it for our Easter meal this year. But I’m sorry to tell you that you left out from the directions of when to add the sugar and the vanilla. I’m sure most know who bake regularly to add the sugar with the dry ingredients, and the vanilla with the liquid ingredients, but just in case they don’t they should be added.

    Reply
    1. Erren Avatar
      Erren
      04/16/2017

      Oh no! Thanks so much for letting me know about the error! I’m so glad you liked it!

      Reply
  3. Cathy@LemonTreeDwelling Avatar
    Cathy@LemonTreeDwelling
    03/16/2017

    Definitely a perfect cake! I love any excuse for extra frosting! 😉

    Reply
  4. Catalina @ Peas & Peonies Avatar
    Catalina @ Peas & Peonies
    03/15/2017

    Looks adorable! And it is a very cute idea for Easter!

    Reply
←Older Comments
1 2
A woman with long dark hair and a dark blue shirt is smiling while leaning on a kitchen counter. In front of her are a plate of pasta and a cutting board with chopped herbs. A potted plant, a cooking pot, and a marble backsplash are in the background.

Welcome

Thank you for visiting Erren’s Kitchen! Here you will find a collection of easy & delicious recipes made with fresh, simple ingredients.

MORE ABOUT ERREN

FOLLOW ON SOCIAL!

Don’t forget to tag me on social @ErrensKitchen to be featured!

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • X

Win a $100!

Join the Made with Erren Challenge for a chance to win an Amazon gift card!

Find Out More

Trending


  • Best EVER Potato Wedges

    Best EVER Potato Wedges

  • Seriously, The Best Broccoli of Your Life

    Seriously, The Best Broccoli of Your Life

  • The Best Fettuccine Alfredo of Your Life

    The Best Fettuccine Alfredo of Your Life

  • Easy Homemade Tomato Sauce

    Easy Homemade Tomato Sauce

  • Award Winning Banana Bread

    Award Winning Banana Bread

  • Crispy Roasted Potatoes

    Crispy Roasted Potatoes

Reader Favorites


  • Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies

  • The Best Brussels Sprouts of Your Life

    The Best Brussels Sprouts of Your Life

  • Ultimate Orange Cake

    Ultimate Orange Cake

  • Fudgy Chocolate Chip Brownies

    Fudgy Chocolate Chip Brownies

Quick
Desserts
Dinner
Comforts
Poultry
Pasta
Meat
Seafood
Sides

Favorite Recipes from 2024

These posts were seen over 4.5 million times!

  • The Best Brussels Sprouts of Your Life

    The Best Brussels Sprouts of Your Life

  • Seriously, The Best Broccoli of Your Life

    Seriously, The Best Broccoli of Your Life

  • Quick & Easy Chinese Noodle Soup

    Quick & Easy Chinese Noodle Soup

  • Quick & Easy Spaghetti Bolognese

    Quick & Easy Spaghetti Bolognese

  • Donut Glaze Recipe

    Donut Glaze Recipe

  • Crispy Roasted Potatoes

    Crispy Roasted Potatoes

Still hungry?

Subscribe to my Newsletter for all my latest recipes!

All Recipes
Dinner Ideas
Conversion Guide
Quick & Easy
Erren hart of Erren's Kitchen leaning on a kitchen island.

About your Chef

I’m Erren, I have a passion for cooking and baking from scratch to create simple, nourishing, delicious recipes made with fresh ingredients, free from artificial additives and preservatives you find in prepackaged foods.

Meet Erren
Life Updates
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • X
Contact
Terms of Service
Work with Me
Privacy Policy
Disclaimer

© All Rights Reserved. Brand by MRD. Site by OC.

8.6K shares
  • 12

Rate This Recipe

Your vote:




Let us know what you thought of this recipe:

This worked exactly as written, thanks!
My family loved this!
Thank you for sharing this recipe

Or write in your own words:

A rating is required
A name is required
An email is required

Recipe Ratings without Comment

Something went wrong. Please try again.