Peppermint Bark Cake

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This peppermint bark cake has soft chocolate peppermint cake layers, a candy cane striped peppermint filling, and toasted marshmallow frosting! This is the perfect holiday cake for your next Christmas party!

Prep Time40

Cook Time35

Total Time1 15

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings: slices

Calories: 671kcal

Author: Ella Gilbert

Equipment

2 8-inch round cake pans
Mixing Bowls
Whisk
Stand Mixer
Kitchen Scale
Piping Bags

Ingredients

Peppermint Mocha Cake

¾ cup cocoa powder dutch processed
1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ teaspoon peppermint extract
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
2 large eggs room temperature
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup buttermilk room temperature
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup hot water

Filling

2 sticks unsalted butter room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon peppermint extract
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
4 cups confectioners' sugar
¼ cup heavy cream
red food gel

Meringue Frosting

4 large egg whites room temperature
¾ cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
pinch kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Peppermint Mocha Cake

Preheat your oven to 350°F/175°C. Butter or grease two 8-inch cake pans and line it with parchment paper.
Combine the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl with a whisk.
¾ cup cocoa powder, 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar, ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, 2 cups all purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon baking powder
In a large jug, whisk together the buttermilk, oil, eggs, peppermint and vanilla extract.
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract, ¾ teaspoon peppermint extract, 2 large eggs, 1 cup buttermilk, ½ cup vegetable oil
Slowly pour in the ingredients from the large jug and mix until just combined.
Slowly add the hot coffee and mix. Your batter will be very thin and it makes a lot of cake batter!
1 cup hot water
Pour the batter into the prepared pans. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted
Allow the cakes to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pans. Let them cool completely on a cooling rack.

Candy Cane Filling

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand-held mixer, beat the butter with the confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy.
2 sticks unsalted butter, 4 cups confectioners' sugar
Add the peppermint extract, vanilla extract, and salt. Mix once more. I make sure to stop the mixer once in awhile and scrape the sides of the bowl, that way everything is getting well combined!
1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon peppermint extract, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Pour in the heavy cream and mix once more. At this point your frosting should be smooth and silky. If it's too thick, feel free to add more heavy cream a tablespoon at a time.
¼ cup heavy cream
Remove half of the frosting and place in a large piping bag with a round tip, or a snipped off tip.
Add your red food gel to the remaining frosting and mix to combine. Depending on the brand of food gel, you may need more. I'm using Americolor Super Red.
red food gel
Place the red frosting in a separate piping bag, also with the edge snipped off or a round tip.

Marshmallow Frosting

Place the egg whites, sugar, salt, and cream of tartar in a heatproof bowl - I prefer using a metal bowl for this.
4 large egg whites, ¾ cup granulated sugar, ½ teaspoon cream of tartar, pinch kosher salt
Fill a saucepan with an inch or two of water on the stove and place over medium-low heat, so the water begins to simmer. Place the bowl on top of the saucepan, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water.
Whisk constantly until the sugar dissolves. It'll go from thick to frothy. To test, I like to (carefully!) lift the whisk up and rub the mixture between my fingers. You shouldn't feel any of the sugar.
Take the bowl off the double boiler and place in your stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment (or use a handheld mixer). Add the vanilla.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Beat on high speed for 5 minutes, or until you get stiff and glossy peaks.

Assemble the Cake

Place one cooled cake layer down on your plate or cake stand. Using the two piping bags, pipe frosting in concentric circles like a bullseye. I like to try to get 2-3 red rings at least, that way you have a really striking pattern when you cut into the cake!
Add the second cake layer on top. Frost the sides and top of the cake with the marshmallow frosting.
Carefully toast the meringue with a kitchen blowtorch.

Video

Notes

My recipes have been developed and tested in metric grams. I highly recommend using a weighing scale and measuring out your ingredients the metric way. I have provided a conversion to US cups but please note that I haven't tested the recipe with this method.

Ingredients: I make sure that all of my ingredients are at room temperature before I start the recipe, so pull out all of the ingredients before you start baking.

Salt: If you don't have kosher salt, halve the amount of salt called for in the recipe. 1 teaspoon kosher salt = ½ teaspoon fine salt. Please note, I'm using Diamond Crystal kosher salt and not Morton salt which is too salty!

Cocoa Powder: I'm using dutch processed cocoa powder (not sure what you have? Check the ingredients. If it says 'acidity regulator' or mentions 'alkali', then it's dutch processed).

Peppermint Extract: make sure you're using peppermint extract and not mint extract, which is just going to taste like toothpaste.

Food Gel: my favorite brand of food dye is Americolor! I usually use the shade 'super red'

Storage: You can store the cake in the fridge for 3-4 days. I recommend letting it come to room temperature before enjoying! I do find that because of the meringue frosting, the cake is best enjoyed on the day of frosting.

Nutrition