Servings
Font
Back
Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake
5 from 107 votes

Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake

This Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake features rich chocolate cake layers made with cocoa, brown sugar, and buttermilk, paired with creamy peanut butter frosting. The moist cake is baked in round pans, yielding tender layers with deep chocolate flavor. The frosting blends butter and creamy peanut butter with powdered sugar and milk for a spreadable, sweet topping. An optional chocolate ganache can be added for extra richness.

Prep Time
1 hr 30 mins
Cook Time
22 mins
Total Time
1 hr 52 mins
Servings: 12 servings
Calories: 1260 kcal
Course: Dessert, Cake
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

For the cake layers
  • 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup light brown sugar firmly packed
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • ¾ cup dark cocoa powder
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
  • ¾ teaspoon table salt
  • ½ cup butter melted, unsalted
  • ⅔ cup avocado oil you may substitute any neutral cooking oil, or vegetable or canola oil
  • 2 egg room temperature preferred, large
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • ½ cup water very hot or boiling
For the peanut butter frosting
  • 2 cups butter softened, unsalted
  • 2 cups peanut butter I do not recommend using a “natural” peanut butter/the kind where the oil separates, creamy
  • 6 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon table salt
  • 2-4 Tablespoons milk I use whole milk, but you may substitute any milk you have on hand or even half and half or heavy cream
For the ganache (optional)
  • 4 oz semisweet chocolate chocolate chips or a chopped baking bar will work
  • ½ cup heavy cream

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line the bottoms of three 9” (23cm) round cake pans with parchment paper and grease and flour the sides or spray with baking spray. Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugars, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt and stir well (break up any clumps from the brown sugar).
  3. Add butter, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract and stir until completely combined (batter may be thick).
  4. Slowly stir in buttermilk until completely combined.
  5. Finally, slowly (and carefully!) add hot water until batter is uniform and thoroughly combined.
  6. Evenly divide batter into prepared cake pans and transfer to 350F (175C) oven. Bake 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs (note: if your oven bakes unevenly you may need to rotate the cakes during baking. It is also fine to bake two cakes at one time and leave the third on the counter until the first two have finished baking, if your oven is too small to hold all 3 at once).
  7. Allow cakes to cool for 15 minutes then run a knife around the edge and carefully invert onto cooling racks to cool completely before frosting.
Peanut Butter Frosting
  1. Combine butter and peanut butter and use an electric mixer or stand mixer to beat until smooth and creamy.
  2. Gradually add powdered sugar, using a spatula to scrape the bottom of the bowl as needed to ensure sugar is completely combined.
  3. Add vanilla extract and salt and stir well. Taste-test and add additional salt if needed.
  4. Gradually add milk, starting with 2 Tablespoons and only adding additional until the frosting is smooth and creamy.
Assembling Cake
  1. If your cakes are uneven, you may wish to level them once they are cooled so the final cake is flat/even.
  2. Place first layer of cooled cake on a serving platter and cover the top with a thick layer of peanut butter frosting. Place the second cake layer evenly on top, then top this with a thick layer of frosting, and repeat with the third layer. Cover entire cake with a thin layer of frosting to make a “crumb coating” that will catch all of the crumbs.
  3. Transfer to freezer for 10-15 minutes, then remove and apply a clean, thick coating of frosting around the entire cake. If using ganache, go on to the next step, if not, use remaining frosting to pipe a decorative border around the top of the cake as desired (I used an Ateco 848 tip for the cake in the photos) and serve.
Ganache
  1. If using ganache, place cake in refrigerator and place chocolate in a heatproof bowl.
  2. Place cream in a small saucepan and heat until simmering. Pour evenly over the chocolate and cover. Allow to sit for 5 minutes.
  3. After 5 minutes, gently whisk together cream and chocolate until smooth. Allow to cool about 15 minutes or until it is still liquid enough to pour but firm enough that it is no longer runny (see video for a visual if needed for any of these steps).
  4. Remove cake from refrigerator and transfer ganache to either a squeeze bottle or a piping bag with a small round tip or a small corner snipped off. Hold bottle or bag vertically and drip ganache around the edge of the cake (if ganache is dripping all the way to the bottom of the cake, return the cake to the fridge and let the ganache cool longer).
  5. Once you have done your drip as desired all the way around the cake, cover the top of the cake with a thin layer of chocolate (you may not use all of the ganache).
  6. Return cake to refrigerator for ganache to set, then once set use remaining peanut butter frosting to pipe a border around the top of the ganache as desired (I used my favorite Ateco 848 tip here).
  7. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

  • Baking times vary by pan size: three 8-inch pans require longer baking than three 9-inch pans; cupcakes require about 17 minutes baking.
  • The cake layers can be baked a day ahead and stored wrapped at room temperature or frozen for longer storage.
  • Peanut butter frosting can be made up to two days ahead; bring to room temperature and stir before use.
  • Do not prepare the ganache in advance; make it fresh for best texture.
  • Store finished cake at room temperature up to two days or refrigerated up to five days for moistness.
  • Leftovers freeze well when wrapped tightly for several months.

Nutrition Information

Serving 1serving Calories 1260kcal (63%) Carbohydrates 127g (42%) Protein 17g (34%) Fat 82g (126%) Saturated Fat 44g (220%) Polyunsaturated Fat 8g (47%) Monounsaturated Fat 25g (125%) Trans Fat 2g (100%) Cholesterol 146mg (49%) Sodium 482mg (20%) Potassium 521mg (11%) Fiber 6g (24%) Sugar 102g (204%) Vitamin A 1409IU (28%) Vitamin C 1mg (1%) Calcium 98mg (10%) Iron 3mg (17%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 12 servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 1260

% Daily Value*

Serving 1serving
Calories 1260kcal 63%
Carbohydrates 127g 42%
Protein 17g 34%
Fat 82g 126%
Saturated Fat 44g 220%
Polyunsaturated Fat 8g 47%
Monounsaturated Fat 25g 125%
Trans Fat 2g 100%
Cholesterol 146mg 49%
Sodium 482mg 20%
Potassium 521mg 11%
Fiber 6g 24%
Sugar 102g 204%
Vitamin A 1409IU 28%
Vitamin C 1mg 1%
Calcium 98mg 10%
Iron 3mg 17%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.