White Chocolate Cake Recipe with Raspberry

White Chocolate Raspberry Cake is the show stopping cake everyone will be raving about!

This White Chocolate Raspberry Cake is made of layers of soft, airy, buttery vanilla cake, luscious raspberry filling and white chocolate cream cheese frosting!  The bakery style white cake is the BEST white cake ever — the only white cake recipe you will ever need, and becomes exponentially better (just when you didn’t think it was possible) when combined with the filling.  The combination of airy cake, fresh raspberries, and luscious white chocolate frosting is indulgently rich yet fresh at the same time. You can either use homemade or store-bought raspberry jam (directions included for both) and the best part is you can make the cake a day ahead for a stress free, stunningly delicious White Chocolate Cake.  Tips and tricks, Step-by-Step Photos, How to Make Video, How to Make Ahead, How to Freeze all included!

Spring and summer mean bright and fresh desserts! Some of our favorite cakes include: Lemon Blueberry Cake, Lemon Pound Cake, Chocolate Raspberry Cake,  Strawberry Shortcakes, Strawberry Shortcake Cake, Hummingbird Cake, Carrot Cake with Pineapple Cream Cheese Frosting and Cream Cheese Stuffed Carrot Cake.

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This White Chocolate Cake Recipe with Raspberry Filling is perfection!

White Chocolate Raspberry Cake just in time for Mother’s Day!  This dreamy, stunning cake will have everyone asking what bakery it came from instead of who made it!  You will love this cake because of it’s:

• Soft, airy and cloud-like crumb thanks to the reverse creaming method
• Tender, fluffy and moist but sturdy enough to support the filling and not eggy
• Bright, sweet raspberry flavor – and lots of it
• Generous silky white chocolate frosting between each cake layer
• Completely from scratch OR shortcut raspberry jam filling
• Detailed recipe instructions and video for the perfect fool proof recipe

This White Chocolate Raspberry Cake is pure heaven.  It is the fluffiest cake you will ever sink your teeth into thanks to the reverse-creaming method from Baking/Cooks Illustrated White Cake Recipe (and we all know Baking/Cook’s Illustrated knows their stuff).  I’ll go into detail later, but all you need to know now is their method creates a cloud-like cake that’s tender, velvety with a very fine crumb laced with almond and vanilla extract.

In fact, when Patrick dove into a plain cake (practice run), he said it reminded him of angel food cake – it is that delicate and delicious in texture. If you have been searching for the perfect white cake recipe, this seriously is it.

Now for the filling. The raspberry filling tastes so fresh and bright, I highly encourage you to go the homemade route. It’s a simple simmering of raspberries, sugar, lemon juice and cornstarch to create a sweet and tangy filling to perfectly complement the sweet cake and delicate white chocolate frosting.  

Even if you’re not a white chocolate fan, this frosting will win you over.  It’s wonderfully smooth, creamy and sweet with a hint of tanginess, and subtle white chocolate flavor. The sublime frosting is made with melted white chocolate, cream cheese, butter, sugar and vanilla for a sensational creamy frosting which will have you questioning which is better, the frosting or the cake?

The raspberry filling and white chocolate frosting are sandwiched between the snowy white cake layers and then enveloped by more white chocolate frosting for an impressive cake that everyone will be swooning over – before and after they take a bite.

This White Chocolate Cake recipe has a few steps, but each step is easy.  I’ve detailed the steps below with helpful tips and tricks.  It’s more than you need to know, but everything you would ever want to know for imminent success!  Happy Indulging!

WHAT IS WHITE CHOCOLATE?

White chocolate is the star of this White Chocolate Cake, so what exactly is it?  White chocolate is made from cocoa butter, sugar, milk solids and often vanilla. It differs from milk and dark chocolate because it doesn’t contain any cocoa solids. Instead, the cocoa butter is separated from the cocoa solids (cocoa nibs) during production to give white chocolate its pale, ivory color.  The remaining cocoa butter is combined with sugar and milk solids to create white chocolate. 

Due to its mild cream/butter/yogurt flavor, white chocolate is often flavored with vanilla which gives it a delicate, subtle, slightly floral flavor that pair well with bolder flavors, especially this vibrant raspberry filling.

Vanilla Cake with Raspberry Filling ingredients

This White Chocolate Cake recipe has three components: the white cake, the raspberry filling, and the white chocolate cream cheese frosting. Here’s what you’ll need to make this recipe:

FOR THE WHITE CAKE

• Cake flour:  Cake flour is almost 30x finer than all-purpose flour!  It has a lower protein content (8-9%) than all-purpose flour (10-13%) so it is finer, lighter, and softer which translates into meltingly tender cake layers that are lighter and softer, with a fine, close crumb.   You should be able to find cake flour in the baking aisle with the other flours, otherwise I’ve included an easy substitution.
• Egg whites ONLY: You will be using only the egg whites, not the yolks, that is how the cake stays white!  The egg yoks would tint the cake yellow and increases the amount of fat and the emulsifier lecithin, which would change the texture of the cake.  Egg whites deliver the softy, airy texture.
• Milk: Any kind of milk will work but use 2% or whole milk for the moistest cake.
• Granulated sugar: Sweetens the cake.
• Baking powder: Helps tenderize the cake and make it rise in the oven.  Make sure it is fresh so it works!
• Salt: Enhances the flavors and cuts through the sweetness.  You want to use good old table salt.
• Butter: Unsalted is typically best for baked goods so you can add the precise amount of salt. If you only have salted butter, you will need to reduce the salt in the recipe.
• Almond extract: Adds a subtly sweet almond flavor. Don’t add more than the recipe calls for because it can easily overpower the cake.
• Vanilla extract: Use pure vanilla extract for best results.

What can I substitute for cake flour?

You may substitute the cake flour with 3 cups all-purpose flour plus ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon cornstarch.

Raspberry Jam Filling

• Raspberries: The riper, the more flavorful!  You can use fresh, very ripe raspberries or thawed frozen raspberries.  I also pick up extra fresh raspberries to garnish the top of the cake, but that is optional, strictly for aesthetics.
• Sugar:  Granulated sugar please to sweeten the raspberries into jam.  
• Lemon juice:  Fresh is best but you may use bottled. Lemon juice enhances the fresh berry flavor and balances the sugar.
• Cornstarch:  Thickens the jam; without it, you need twice the sugar and reducing time! 

WHITE CHOCOLATE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

• White chocolate:   You will need three 4-ounce white chocolate baking bars located in the baking aisle for a total of 12 ounces.  Quality chocolate chips can also work but ONLY use Guittard or Ghirardelli.  Other chocolate brands don’t have enough cocoa butter and too many additives so they will not melt well.  Note:  8 oz. chocolate chips is roughly 1 ⅓ cups NOT one cup.
• Heavy cream:  Is melted with the chocolate so it doesn’t scorch and to create creamier chocolate.  Use heavy cream and not normal milk or the chocolate won’t have the right consistency and may seize. 
• Cream cheese: Its tanginess perfectly complements the sweet white chocolate, far better than using all butter. Use full-fat brick-style cream cheese for best results.
• Butter:  Use unsalted butter or reduce the salt in the frosting
• Vanilla:  Use quality vanilla extract for the best flavor.
• Powdered sugar: You may need to sift your powdered sugar if it’s been sitting in your pantry for a while.  Add more or less to achieve the perfect consistency.

Why Use room temperature ingredients?

You’ve heard it here many times, and no doubt in other recipes, so why use room temperature ingredients when baking a cake?  Is it that important?  The answer is YES!  It is essential that you use room temperature eggs, milk and butter for this recipe or your cake will not rise properly or be as tender. Here’s why:

• Room temperature ingredients bind together more easily than if you had some cold and some warmer ingredients – you can literally feel the difference when mixing by hand. In other words, the batter is easier to NOT overmix and overwork the gluten, which creates more lift and rises more evenly. 
• Cold ingredients require longer to bind together so they are easy to overmix which over-develops the gluten making a denser cake.
• Cold eggs and milk can break the emulsion of the sugar and butter, so the batter loses air cells, resulting in a baked cake that is grainy or flat in texture, dry or dense.
• Cold ingredients also produce a thicker, colder batter which takes longer to bake which changes the entire structure and texture of the cake.

So, for the lightest, most tender cake just like the kind you find at a bakery, use room temperature ingredients!

Raspberry White Chocolate Cake variations

You can’t tweak this Chocolate White Cake recipe very much (baking is a science, after all!). But there are a few ways to subtly change it up:

• Alternate berry filling:  You can swap out the raspberries for strawberries blackberries or a combination of berries to create a different filling. 
• Raspberry almond filling:  Add 1⁄2 cup blanched slivered almond, toasted and chopped coarse, to half of the raspberry filing and use it to spread on the first layer of cake.
• Lemon curd:  Add a layer of lemon curd or use it instead of the raspberry filling.  You can follow the instructions in this recipe.
• Chocolate filling:  Try layering the cake with dark chocolate frosting but keeping the outside frosting white chocolate-a match made in heaven.

How to make a White Cake with Raspberry Filling

Step 1: Make Cakes Using Reverse Creaming Method

What sets this White Chocolate Raspberry Cake apart is the reverse creaming method.  After dozens of experiments, Baking Illustrated found that instead of creaming the butter and sugar as usual, if you work the butter into the flour and then whisk in milk with gently whisked egg whites, you don’t get an over-glutenized cake that can be dry and riddled with small holes. Instead, the reverse creaming method delivers a wonderfully velvety, soft, moist, ultra-light cake with buttery vanilla flavor.  And it works! You will be blow away at how melt-in-your mouth tender the cake are. Thank you, Baking Illustrated.

Step 2: Bake the Cakes

You will need three 9-inch pans to bake the white cakes in.  If you only have two cake pans, you can bake two cakes, transfer to a baking rack then bake the third cake.  This works because the batter is leavened by baking powder which is double acting, meaning it begins working immediately, but is further heat-activated by baking. It would not work if the cakes were leavened by baking soda because it is single acting, meaning it creates the gas needed for leavening as soon as it is mixed with liquid ingredients. 

This knowledge isn’t an excuse to refrigerate the batter, it should still be used as soon as possible.

Step 3: How to make Raspberry Cake Filling

Making your own homemade Raspberry Filling is optional but highly recommended. You are welcome to use your favorite seedless Raspberry Jam instead.  You will need approximately 1 ⅓ cups.

If making homemade raspberry jam, use super ripe fresh raspberries or frozen raspberries for best results. Frozen raspberries are picked at peak ripeness which means they often have more flavor than store bought raspberries which can be a gamble. When purchasing your frozen raspberries, take care your frozen raspberries do NOT have any sugar added.

To make the filling, puree the raspberries in your food process then transfer to a a fine mesh sieve over a medium saucepan. Whisk in the cornstarch, sugar and lemon juice and simmer until thickened.

Step 4: Make White CHOCOLATE cream cheese frosting

This frosting should be on the thicker side and not a thin icing so it’s thick enough to stand up against the weight of the cake layers.  To achieve a thick frosting without having to add too much powdered sugar, make sure to use room temperature butter and cream cheese – not overly soft/melting from the microwave.

You’ll make the frosting like a standard cream cheese frosting by beating the butter and cream cheese together, then beating in the melted white chocolate followed by the powdered sugar.

Step 5: Assemble the cake

While this gorgeous cake looks impressive, it is easy to assemble!  You can assemble the cakes when ready to serve or up to a day in advance, then refrigerate until ready to serve.  Make sure to frost the cake on the plate or cake stand you’re going to be serving it on.  You’ don’t want to risk the cake sliding apart when you’re trying to move it. 

I like to place four strips of parchment paper around the edges of my cake plate or cake stand to create a square with an open space in the middle which keeps the cake stand clean while frosting. 

Here’s how to assemble the cake with step by step photos:

• Pipe a ring of frosting just inside the top edge of the first layer of cake to create a dam for the Raspberry Filling.  The Raspberry Filling should be roughly the same height as the piping ring so try and select an icing tip accordingly.
• Next, spread half of the chilled Raspberry Filling to the edge of the piped frosting. Add 1 cup White Chocolate Frosting and spread to the edges of the cake.
• Top with second leveled cake, top side down/bake side up. Repeat procedure with piping/filling/frosting.  Top with third cake, top side down/bake side up. It’s fine if some of the White Chocolate Frosting spills out the sides of the cake-it will be used in the crumb layer. 

Step 6:  Frost the Cake

I made sure there is plenty of frosting – so don’t be shy! The frosted cake should have about ½ cup leftover which you can use to decorate the cake if you wish.

To frost the cake, start by transfer about ¾ cup frosting to a separate container to create the crumb coat. This way you won’t contaminate all of the frosting with crumbs.  The crumb coat keeps crumbs from getting in the frosting and allows you to create a smooth second layer that stays in place.

After creating the crumb layer, refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes or until crumb layer has set.  Meanwhile, refrigerate remaining frosting and lightly beat again before using again.  This firmer frosting will make frosting your cake much easier

.

Frost the outside of cake as you desire with the remaining frosting and garnish with lots of raspberries!  The fresh raspberries make this White Chocolate Raspberry Cake exponentially better even when you didn’t think it was possible. 

White Chocolate Raspberry Cake tips for success

• Use the correct size pan: You will need three 9-inch cake pans for this recipe. I have not tried this recipe with 8-inch cake pans, but the batter should fit, the white cakes will just take longer to bake, closer to 27-30 minutes, and be thicker.
• Prep Ahead:  As with all recipes, carefully read through the entire recipe, and prepare any special ingredients, such as room temperature butter, eggs and milk.
• Use room temperature ingredients.  To quickly bring eggs to room temperature, fill a bowl with warm water (not hot) and add eggs (in their shells) and let sit 10-20 minutes. You can microwave the milk at 15 second intervals to warm, but only warm to room temperature- not hot or it will scramble the egg whites!
• Don’t pack flour: Whenever you measure flour, don’t scoop it into the flour bag/container or else the flour will compress and packed flour yields denser, drier cakes.  Rather, scoop flour into measuring cup and then level.
• Add wet ingredients gradually.  Resist the urge to pour all of the milk mixture into the flour mixture all at once – be patient!  Add half of the milk mixture then the other half in order to keep the batter stable.  If you add all of the wet ingredients at once, it can break the emulsion and cause the batter to separate.
• Do not overmix the batter.  After you add the milk mixture to the flour mixture, resist the urge to over-mix, even if the batter looks a little lumpy.  Instead, stop the mixer and give it a few stirs by hand. Overmixing cake batter causes the gluten in the flour to form elastic gluten strands which result in a dense, chewy texture. Overbeaten eggs can also create a fragile crust that crumbles and separates from the cake as it cools.
• Don’t open the oven doors while baking.  I know it is going to be hard not to peek at your beautiful cakes, but please don’t open the door!  Opening the doors can cause your cake to cook unevenly and to fall.  Only check on your cakes at 22 minutes.
• Don’t overbake the cakes.  One of the main reasons people complain of dry cakes is because they over bake their cake.   You want to remove your white cakes when there are just a few crumbs clinging to a toothpick. 
• Transfer cakes layers to the refrigerator.  Time permitting, wrap the cooled cakes tightly in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator or freezer (don’t freeze longer than 30 minutes if serving shortly) to firm up a bit before frosting.  This makes the cakes more stable for frosting and less crumbly.
• The raspberry filling should be thick and barely spreadable.  The raspberry filling should be thin enough to barely glide over the cake and thick enough that it stays in place and doesn’t run over the edges, otherwise, you’ll have cake layers sliding all over the place!  Keep in mind the raspberry jam will thicken more once refrigerated.  If the jam thickens too much, you can microwave for 10 seconds or so.
• You may use store-bought raspberry jam if you’re in a bind. You’ll need about 1 ⅓ cups seedless raspberry jam.  Use 2/3 cup per layer. If your store-bought jam is too hard to spread, microwave it for 10 seconds.
• Don’t microwave cream cheese or butter!   For the frosting, use cream cheese and butter softened at room temperature.  If you soften them in the microwave, they don’t soften evenly and your frosting will either be too runny or lumpy.
• Use quality white chocolate for the best flavor and meltability.  Use Ghirardelli or Bakers baking bars or Ghirardelli or Guittard white chocolate chips -do NOT use any other brand of chocolate chips or they won’t melt well. 
• Let the white chocolate cool.  Melt your white chocolate before your start making the frosting, so it has time to cool for 5-10 minutes before you add it into your frosting. If it’s too hot, it will liquify the butter and make the frosting runny.
• Thicken up frosting.  If the frosting is too thin, add additional powdered sugar or refrigerate for 30 minutes or so.  If it’s too thin, beat in heavy cream, 1 teaspoon at a time to reach desired consistency. If the frosting is too sweet, add a splash of lemon juice and/or salt.

What to serve with this White Chocolate Cake Recipe

This White Chocolate Cake is stand-alone fabulous but it’s also wonderful with more fresh raspberries or even a combination of raspberries, strawberries, blueberries and/or blackberries.  You can also garnish it with white chocolate and/or dark chocolate shavings.

Can I make White Chocolate Cake ahead of time?

You can make the cake entirely ahead of time, or in stages, here’s how:  

• Raspberry Jam: Make the raspberry jam and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 48 hours.  You may need to microwave for 10 seconds to loosen it a little, just so it’s thick but spreadable – you do NOT want it runny!
• Frosting: Is best freshly made, but you can whip it together up to 24 hours before assembling the cake, tightly cover and refrigerate.  Let it come close to room temperature before re-whipping.
• Cakes: The white cake layers can be prepared one day in advance. Let the layers cool completely then wrap each layer tightly in plastic wrap and store at room temperature.
• Crumb Coated Cake: Tightly wrap the cake in plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze after you apply the crumb coating. 
• Frosted Cake:  Assemble the entire cake, cover with a cake cover or tent with foil, refrigerate, then let sit at room temperature for 1-2 hours before serving. 

How to store White Cake with Raspberry Filling

The assembled and frosted cake should be covered with a cake cover or foil and refrigerated. It will stay fresh for up to 2 days, but may be stored for up to 4 days. Bring the cake to room temperature before serving.

How to freeze Vanilla Cake with Raspberry Filling

• To freeze individual cake layers:  Tightly wrap the individual cake layers in plastic wrap and freeze for up to three months.
• To freeze crumb coated cake:  Tightly wrap in a couple layers of plastic wrap followed by a couple layers of foil, freeze for up to two months.   
• To freeze frosted cake:  Tightly wrap in a couple layers of plastic wrap followed by a couple layers of foil, freeze for up to two months.   Allow the cake to thaw overnight in the refrigerator then unwrap and come to room temperature on the counter for 1-2 hours before serving.  

White Chocolate Raspberry Cake FAQs

LOOKING FOR MORE Spring CAKE RECIPES?

You can see all my spring recipe cakes HERE. Here are a few to wet your palate:

• Coconut Cake (Triple Coconut!) 
• Carrot Cake with Pineapple Cream Cheese Frosting
• Cream Cheese Stuffed Carrot Cake
• Lemon Poke Cake
• Chocolate Raspberry Cake
• Lemon Blueberry Cake
• Strawberry Shortcakes