Soft Chocolate Cake Sandwich (Printable)

Soft chocolate cakes with a rich vanilla cream filling, perfect for a sweet indulgence.

# What You'll Need:

→ Chocolate Cakes

01 - 2 cups all-purpose flour
02 - ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
03 - 1½ teaspoons baking soda
04 - ½ teaspoon baking powder
05 - ½ teaspoon salt
06 - 1 cup granulated sugar
07 - ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
08 - ½ cup vegetable oil
09 - 2 large eggs
10 - 1 cup buttermilk
11 - 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

→ Cream Filling

12 - ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
13 - 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
14 - 1 jar (7 oz) marshmallow creme
15 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
16 - Pinch of salt

# How-To:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
02 - Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
03 - In a large bowl, beat sugar, butter, and oil until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in vanilla extract.
04 - Alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the wet ingredients, starting and ending with flour. Mix just until combined.
05 - Drop 2-tablespoon-sized mounds of batter onto prepared sheets, spacing 2 inches apart.
06 - Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until cakes spring back when lightly touched. Let cool 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
07 - Beat butter until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar, then mix in marshmallow creme, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat until filling is fluffy.
08 - Spread or pipe filling onto the flat side of half the cakes, then top with remaining cakes to form sandwiches.
09 - Chill for 30 minutes before serving to enhance texture.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The cake is impossibly tender without being cake-like—it's more like eating a soft, fudgy cloud.
  • That marshmallow filling tastes like the filling in those nostalgic packaged snacks, but infinitely better because you made it yourself.
  • They're one of those treats that genuinely impresses people even though the technique isn't fancy at all.
02 -
  • Don't overbake the cakes—they should look almost underbaked when you pull them out; they'll continue cooking on the pan for those first 5 minutes and that's when they become perfectly tender.
  • The filling needs room-temperature butter or it won't cream properly and will stay gritty no matter how long you beat it.
  • If your marshmallow creme is straight from a cold fridge, let it sit out for 10 minutes so it mixes into the filling smoothly instead of staying in clumps.
03 -
  • Add half a teaspoon of espresso powder to the cake batter if you want deeper, more complex chocolate flavor without tasting coffee.
  • Use a cookie scoop for perfectly uniform cakes that bake evenly—it takes the guesswork out of portion size.
  • The filling pipes better when it's slightly warm and fluffy; if you made it ahead and it's been cold, let it sit out for 10 minutes and give it a quick beat with the mixer.
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