How to Make a Triple Chocolate Cake

If you want a decadent chocolate cake with three different flavors of both cake and frosting, this is the cake for you. With white chocolate, milk chocolate, and dark chocolate cake as well as frosting, this three-layer cake will satisfy any chocolate lover who has a passion for cake.

EditIngredients

EditFor the White Chocolate Cake^[1]

• all-purpose flour
• white sugar
• butter, softened
• 1-2 eggs
• buttermilk
• white chocolate
• baking powder
• baking soda
• salt
• hot water

EditFor the Milk Chocolate Cake^[2]

• + all-purpose flour
• sugar
• cocoa powder
• 1 egg
• milk
• vegetable oil
• baking powder
• baking soda
• salt
• vanilla extract
• boiling water

EditFor the Dark Chocolate Cake^[3]

• + all-purpose flour
• sugar
• milk
• 1 egg
• teaspoons baking powder
• baking soda
• dark cocoa powder
• salt
• vegetable oil
• vanilla extract
• – boiling water

EditFor the Frosting

White Chocolate Frosting^[4]

• white chocolate
• all-purpose flour
• milk
• butter
• sugar
• vanilla extract

Milk Chocolate Frosting^[5]

• butter
• cocoa powder
• powdered sugar
• milk
• vanilla extract

Dark Chocolate Frosting^[6]

• butter
• dark cocoa powder
• powdered sugar
• and milk
• vanilla extract

EditSteps

EditMaking the White Chocolate Layer

1. Preheat the oven to . Grease and flour a round 9-inch cake pan.
   
   • If you have one, try using a cake pan with a removable bottom. This can make it easier to remove the cake from the pan later.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
   
3. Melt the white chocolate. Using a small saucepan, melt the white chocolate and combine it with the hot water. Mix the combination until it becomes smooth.
   
4. Allow the white chocolate mixture to cool.
   
5. Combine the butter and sugar. Add the butter and sugar to a large bowl and cream them together using a hand mixer.
   
6. Crack the eggs into the butter and sugar mixture, one at a time. Mix well after adding each egg.
   
7. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and buttermilk. Combine well.
   
8. Add the white chocolate into the cake mixture and mix well.
   
9. Pour the cake batter into the cake pan. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the leftover cake batter out of the bowl and into the pan.
   
10. Bake the cake for 25 to 30 minutes.
    
11. Allow the cake to cool for about ten minutes.
    

EditMaking the Milk Chocolate Layer

1. Preheat the oven to . Grease and flour a round 9-inch cake pan.
   
   • If you have one, try using a cake pan with a removable bottom. This can make it easier to remove the cake from the pan later.
2. Sift the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder with a whisk.
   
3. Add the wet ingredients. Crack in the eggs and pour in the milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Use a hand mixer to blend the ingredients together for about two minutes, or until fully mixed.
   
4. Stir in the boiling water with a spoon. The batter will be thin at this point, which is normal.
   
5. Pour the cake batter into the cake pan. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the leftover cake batter out of the bowl and into the pan.
   
6. Bake the cake for 25 to 30 minutes. The time may vary. However, you can tell when the cake is done if you poke a toothpick into the center, and it comes out clean.
   
7. Allow the cake to cool for about ten minutes.
   

EditMaking the Dark Chocolate Layer

1. Preheat the oven to . Grease and flour a round 9-inch cake pan.
   
   • If you have one, try using a cake pan with a removable bottom. This can make it easier to remove the cake from the pan later.
2. Sift the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and dark cocoa powder with a whisk.
   
3. Add the wet ingredients. Crack in the eggs and pour in the milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Use a hand mixer to blend the ingredients together for about two minutes, or until fully mixed.
   
4. Stir in the boiling water with a spoon. The batter will be thin at this point; that's normal.
   
5. Pour the cake batter into the cake pan. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the leftover cake batter out of the bowl and into the pan.
   
6. Bake the cake for 25 to 30 minutes. The time may vary. However, you can tell when the cake is done if you poke a toothpick into the center, and it comes out clean.
   
7. Allow the cake to cool for about ten minutes.
   

EditAssembling the Cake

1. Remove the cakes from their pans. Run a knife around the edges of the cake pan to make the cakes easier to remove, then place wire racks over the top of the cake pans and flip the cake pans over. Pull the pan off the cake carefully and allow the cake to fully cool.
   
   • If you used cake pans with removable bottoms, pop the bottoms of the cake pans out and move the cakes to the wire racks to allow them to cool fully.
   • Use the time that the cakes are cooling to make the frostings, as you can't frost the cake when it's still warm - the frosting will melt if you try.
2. Make the white chocolate frosting. The white chocolate frosting will add a delicious, light flavor to the layer cake.
   
   • Start to melt the white chocolate in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir it continuously to ensure that it doesn't burn.
   • Add the flour and milk to the melting white chocolate. Mix it until the mixture has thickened considerably.
   • Set the mixture aside to fully cool.
   • Cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla in a separate bowl until the mixture is fluffy.
   • Gradually mix in the white chocolate mixture, and continue to beat the mixture with a hand blender until the consistency resembles whipped cream.
3. Make the milk chocolate frosting. Be aware that you'll need to make more of the milk chocolate frosting than the other frostings, in order to cover the entire cake.
   
   • Melt the butter in a small saucepan.
   • Add in the cocoa powder and mix.
   • Alternate between adding the powdered sugar and milk, stirring thoroughly while adding.
   • Pour in the vanilla extract and mix.
4. Make the dark chocolate frosting. This frosting will give the cake an extra touch of the deep flavor of dark chocolate.
   
   • Melt the butter in a small saucepan.
   • Add in the dark cocoa powder and mix.
   • Alternate between adding the powdered sugar and the milk. Mix the combination thoroughly while adding.
   • Add in the vanilla extract and mix.
5. Place the milk chocolate layer on a plate.
   
6. Frost the top of the milk chocolate cake. Use either the white chocolate frosting, or the dark chocolate frosting.
   
7. Stack the white chocolate layer on top of the frosting.
   
8. Frost the top of the white chocolate layer. Use the flavor of frosting that you didn't use for the milk chocolate layer - for example, if you frosted the milk chocolate layer with dark chocolate frosting, frost the white chocolate layer with white chocolate frosting.
   
9. Place the dark chocolate layer on top of the frosting.
   
10. Frost the whole cake with milk chocolate frosting. You can use a clean palette knife to smooth out the frosting, or in a pinch, a rubber spatula.
    
    • If you have enough frosting, try decorating the cake with the frosting, such as by piping it.
11. Garnish the cake, if desired. You can try many things to garnish the cake - you can top it with fresh berries, chocolate curls or shavings, chocolate sauce, or whatever you want that would go well with your triple-chocolate cake.
    
12. Serve. Cut the cake into slices and place them on plates. Serve the cake alongside ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream. Enjoy!
    

EditTips

• If you want to frost the cake with white chocolate frosting or dark chocolate frosting instead of milk chocolate, you can cut the recipe for milk chocolate frosting in half and then double the recipe for the desired frosting.
• Try stacking the cake layers in different ways (for example, with the dark chocolate layer on the bottom) if you want to change up the look of the cake.
• The boiling water added to the cakes will moisten them, so you may want to avoid omitting it.
• Consider garnishing the cake with 1 cup of your favorite nuts such as walnuts or pecans.

EditWarnings

• Be careful not to over-mix the cake batter, or the cakes may turn out to be rubbery and tough.

EditThings You'll Need

• 3 9-inch round cake pans
• 3 wire racks
• Mixing bowls
• Hand mixer
• Spoons
• Measuring tools
• Rubber spatula
• Knife
• Plate
• Palette knife (optional)

EditRelated wikiHows

• Make a Chocolate Cake
• Make Chocolate Vanilla Cake
• Make a Dark Chocolate Cake
• Make a Simple Chocolate Cake
• Make Chocolate Frosting
• Make Steamed Chocolate Cake
• Make Eggless Chocolate Cake
• Make Frosting
• Make a Chocolate and Vanilla Sheet Cake
• Thicken Frosting

EditSources and Citations

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