This mint chocolate cake recipe features moist chocolate cake layers paired with a cool mint chocolate chip frosting. It’s easy, has a tender crumb and is the perfect balance of rich chocolate and fresh mint flavor!
Why You’ll Love This Mint Chocolate Cake
If you love that classic chocolate-and-mint combo, this mint chocolate cake is going to be right up your alley. It’s rich but refreshing, indulgent but easy — basically everything you want in a homemade layer cake without the stress!
Packed with Rich Chocolate & Fresh Mint Flavour
The chocolate cake layers (based on my popular chocolate sheet cake recipe) are deeply rich thanks to Dutch-processed cocoa and hot coffee, which enhances the chocolate flavour without making it taste like coffee. Paired with a cool, creamy mint chocolate chip buttercream recipe, you get that perfect balance of decadent and refreshing in every bite.
Incredibly Moist & Tender
This mint chocolate cake has such a soft, tender crumb thanks to the combination of butter and oil. The oil keeps it super moist, while the butter adds flavour — so you’re getting the best of both worlds.
Easy, Straightforward Method
No complicated techniques here! The batter comes together with just a whisk, and the buttercream whips up beautifully in one bowl. Even the assembly is simple, making this a great option whether you’re baking for a birthday, celebration, or just because you’re craving mint chocolate.
Perfect for Mint Chocolate Lovers
If you’re a fan of mint chocolate chip ice cream or those classic chocolate-mint treats, this cake brings those same flavours into a soft, sliceable dessert form. It’s nostalgic, refreshing, and always a crowd-pleaser.
How to Make Mint Chocolate Cake
You can find the full list of ingredients for this mint chocolate cake recipe in the recipe card at the end of the blog post (for easy navigation, hit the ‘jump to recipe’ button at the top of the blog post). Here is a quick visual breakdown of the recipe (video tutorial is also provided in the recipe card below).
Chocolate Cake
Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) conventional and grease two 8-inch pans (I use my homemade cake release). Line the bottoms with parchment paper as well.
Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a whisk, mix until well combined. Set aside for now.
In a large bowl add in brown sugar, white sugar, milk, melted butter, unflavored vegetable oil, eggs and vanilla. Using a whisk, mix until well combined.
Add in presifted dry ingredients from earlier to the wet ingredients and mix with a whisk until just combined. Do not overmix.
Add in hot coffee and mix with a whisk until well combined. The mixture should be smooth, but avoid overmixing.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pans from earlier. Drop the cake pans lightly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles and bake for 35-38 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
Allow the cakes to cool in the cake pans for 20 minutes, before carefully turning them out onto a wire rack to completely cool. Once cooled, prepare the frosting.
Mint Buttercream Frosting
In a large bowl, add in butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, cream and peppermint extract/essence. Using a hand or stand mixer, first mix on the lowest speed until the ingredients are combined, and then turn up the speed to medium-high and whip for a full 10 minutes. Scrape the bowl down halfway through.
Next add in green food coloring and mix until well combined.
Finish by adding in finely chopped chocolate and mix on low until well combined. You could get away with using very small chocolate chips as well.
Assembly (see video for visual demonstration)
Begin by trimming the tops of the cake layers with a serrated knife so that they’re nice and flat.
Place your first cake layer onto your cake stand, and spread out a generous amount of the frosting on top.
Place the second layer on top and cover the top and sides with more frosting. If you have a cake scraper, you can use it to smooth out the sides.
For the top, pipe a decorative border around the top edges (I like to use a 1M piping tip (see video for demonstration)). A small piping tip may not work well, as the chocolate bits in the frosting can get caught in the piping tip, causing a blockage. Slice and enjoy!
How to Store Mint Cake
This mint chocolate cake can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 24 hours. If your kitchen is warm, it’s best to refrigerate it instead.
For longer storage, keep it covered in the refrigerator for up to 4–5 days. Let the cake sit at room temperature for about 30–60 minutes before serving so the buttercream can soften and the texture is nice and creamy again.
You can also freeze the unfrosted cake layers tightly wrapped for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge, then frost as usual.
Mint Chocolate Cake (Moist & Easy!)
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 1¾ cups (210 g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup (75 g) cocoa powder - Dutch processed preferred (see note 1)
- 2 tsps baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt - only use ½ tsp if using salted butter in this recipe
- 1 cup (200 g) soft light brown sugar
- 1 cup (200 g) white granulated sugar
- ¾ cup (180 g) whole milk - room temperature
- ¼ cup (56 g) unsalted butter - melted
- ½ cup (105 g) unflavored vegetable oil - I use canola oil
- 2 large eggs - room temperature
- 2½ tsps vanilla extract/essence
- ¾ cup (180 g) strong hot coffee - I use 1 tbsp instant coffee powder in 180g (¾ cup) hot water, but you can use espresso as well.
Buttercream Frosting
- 1½ cups (340 g) unsalted butter - room temperature
- 3 cups (375 g) powdered sugar - also known as icing/confectioners' sugar
- 2 tsps vanilla extract/essence
- ½ cup (120 g) heavy cream - room temperature. Any cream used to make whipped cream will work.
- 2 tsps peppermint extract/essence
- ½ cup (85 g) semi-sweet chocolate - finely chopped. I use 50% dark chocolate
- 2 drops green food colouring - optional
Instructions
Chocolate Cake
- Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) conventional (see note 2 if using a convection oven with a fan) and grease two 8-inch cake pans (I use my homemade cake release). Line the bottoms with parchment paper as well.
- Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a whisk, mix until well combined. Set aside for now.
- In a large bowl add in brown sugar, white sugar, milk, melted butter, unflavored vegetable oil, eggs and vanilla. Using a whisk, mix until well combined.
- Add in presifted dry ingredients from earlier to the wet ingredients and mix with a whisk until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Add in hot coffee and mix with a whisk until well combined. The mixture should be smooth, but avoid overmixing.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans from earlier. Drop the cake pans lightly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles and bake for 35-38 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
- Allow the cakes to cool in the cake pans for 20 minutes, before carefully turning them out onto a wire rack to completely cool. Once cooled, prepare the frosting.
Mint Buttercream Frosting
- In a large bowl, add in butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, cream and peppermint extract/essence. Using a hand or stand mixer (see note 3), first mix on the lowest speed until the ingredients are combined, and then turn up the speed to medium-high and whip for a full 10 minutes. Scrape the bowl down halfway through.
- Next add in gel color and mix until well combined.
- Finish by adding in finely chopped chocolate and mix on low until well combined.
Assembly (see video for visual demonstration)
- Begin by trimming the tops of the cake layers with a serrated knife so that they're nice and flat.
- Place your first cake layer onto your cake stand, and spread out a generous amount of the frosting on top.
- Place the next cake layer on top and cover the top and sides with more frosting. If you have a cake scraper, you can use it to smooth out the sides.
- For the top, pipe a decorative border around the top edges (I like to use a 1M piping tip (see video for demonstration)). A small piping tip may not work well, as the chocolate bits in the frosting can get caught in the piping tip, causing a blockage. Slice and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
8 Comments
Maryam: I want to make this mint chocolate cake tomorrow, however your instructions for the cake mixture says to add peppermint extract to the mixture, but you do not have it listed in the ingredients for the cake mix. Does the peppermint extract go in the cake mix as well as the frosting? If so, how much peppermint extract for the cake mixture?
Hi Linda! So sorry for the mistake here – there is no peppermint in the cake layers 🙂
I’ve just fixed this now. Hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
Good afternoon
can I make cupcakes with this recipe
Hi Alexandra! Yes that should work fine, just reduce the cook time to around the 18 min mark 🙂
Enjoy!
Fantastic recipe – since I discovered Cakes by MK I have gained so much confidence – never had a flop and this coming from a person that could hardly boil water.
Thank you
Aww thank you so much for the wonderful feedback Reinette 🙂
So glad you’re loving the recipes 😀
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Thanks Adriana! Enjoy 🙂