Nutella Cake

This Nutella Cake is six layers of pure decadence! Delicious chocolate cake layers, Nutella buttercream, and Nutella ganache. 

How to make this Nutella Cake

I used my favorite Chocolate Cake Recipe for the cake layers. It’s a tried and true favorite. These cake layers had actually been sitting in my freezer (properly wrapped) since September! I originally made them for a different cake recipe that still hasn’t seen the light of day (and likely won’t).

I was worried that the layers would be either dried out or taste funny, but thankfully they were perfectly fine. I typically don’t recommend freezing cake layers for longer than 3 months though, if you can help it. But properly wrapped (2x in plastic wrap and then a freezer bag), they can last a bit longer.

I cut each of the layers in half horizontally to get 6 total. This is optional, but I like it better for the cake to buttercream ratio in this recipe.

How to make Nutella Swiss Meringue Buttercream

You are going to be eating this buttercream with a spoon! SO good. I’ve made a variation of this Nutella buttercream before in my Nutella Banana Cake, and it’s honestly one of the best things ever.

Adding something like Nutella or peanut butter to frosting can be tricky, because not only does it add sweetness, it can change the consistency of the frosting (make it softer) if you add too much. It’s a delicate balance between getting the flavor through while still having a stable frosting to work with.

How to make Nutella Ganache

In case you haven’t noticed, I’m a big fan of drip cakes. A drippy ganache makes such an impact! And adds flavor too.

I modified this Nutella ganache recipe from In Good Taste. I used the same proportions of cream and Nutella, but none of the other ingredients, and just microwaved them together instead of the traditional ganache method of pouring heated cream over chocolate. Mine needed a few sessions in the microwave with stirring in between. I started with 20 seconds, stirred it to get it to mostly come together, then repeated the process, heating in 10 second increments.

I ended up straining the ganache, since there were still tiny bits of Nutella in there that were too stubborn to dissolve completely. I’ve never strained ganache before, but it worked perfectly and the ganache was silky smooth.

You need to let the ganache cool completely and thicken up. I let mine sit overnight because I like to spread out my baking, but 2-3 hours or so should be enough (maybe less).

I didn’t need to heat it up at all the next day, and it worked fine for the drip (on a well chilled cake). It could have been a touch thicker so the drips didn’t go all the way down, but I think it worked out okay.

If you’re adding some of the ganache between the layers (recommended for added flavor), be careful not to add too much, as it will affect the stability of the cake. You don’t want your layers sliding around! Just drizzle a bit over top of the frosting on each layer as you’re stacking. At this point you could also sprinkle on some chopped hazelnuts. I didn’t, but it would be a nice flavor/texture addition.

Let the ganache set a bit before doing the piping on the top. To do this, I used a variety of French Star tips: 6B, 4B, and 32.