This chantilly cake recipe consists of super soft and fluffy vanilla cake layers, filled with a creamy, vanilla flavored whipped cream, tart homemade berry jam (that is SO EASY to make) and loads of fresh berries! Its refreshing, light and packed with so much flavor – one of my absolute favorite cakes of all time.
What is a Chantilly Cake?
The name ‘chantilly cake’ comes from the type of frosting used in the cake. In other words, its a term used to describe a lighty sweetened whipped cream with vanilla flavor.
Traditional chantilly cakes are made up of vanilla cake layers (sponge cakes are often used too), filled with chantilly cream and fresh berries or berry jam (or both – like my recipe!). Its a light, refreshing cake, perfect as a summer dessert when berries are in season.
What is the difference between whipped cream and chantilly cream?
Chantilly cream is often used interchangeably with whipped cream, though chantilly cream is often referred to as a flavored and sweetened version of whipped cream, which distinguishes it from regular whipped cream.
The chantilly cream used in this recipe is inspired by the very popular Whole Foods berry chantilly cake that also uses mascarpone and cream cheese in the whipped cream to add additional flavor and stability.
How to Make Chantilly Cake
This recipe has a few different elements, but it all comes together relatively quickly!
Vanilla Cake
The cake used in this recipe is my 5 star rated vanilla cake recipe – so so moist and fluffy!
Begin by preheating your oven to 180°C (350°F) conventional and grease and/or line two 8 inch cake pans (I use my homemade cake release).
In a bowl, sift together all purpose flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, add in butter, vegetable oil and sugar. Using an electric mixer (hand or stand mixer are both fine – if using a stand mixer use the paddle attachment), cream together for 2 minutes on a medium speed until light and creamy.
Add in eggs one by one, mixing well in between each addition (about 10-15 seconds between eggs).
Add in vanilla extract/essence, vinegar and half a cup of the buttermilk (112g), and mix until well combined. Now set your mixer aside as the remainder of the batter will be finished by hand.
Finish off by adding in half of your flour mixture to your wet mixture, and gently fold it in with a rubber spatula until just combined. Then add in the remaining 1 cup (225g) of buttermilk, and fold it in until just combined. Lastly, add in the remaining dry ingredients and gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix.
Distribute the cake batter evenly into the two prepared cake pans. Drop the cake tins lightly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Once baked, allow the cake layers to cool in the cake tins for 20 minutes, before turning them out onto a wire rack to completely cool.
Berry Jam Filling
Place berries, cornstarch, lemon juice and white sugar into a saucepan and mix well. Place the saucepan over a low-medium heat and let the mixture slowly heat up, stirring every now and then to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Once the berries start to get soft and the mixture is liquidy, continue to cook for a few minutes to allow it to thicken up. If using firm berries like fresh strawberries, use a potato masher to break up the berries while they’re cooking in the pan.
Once the mixture is slightly thickened and coats the back of a spoon well, remove from the heat and place it in a heatproof bowl or container. Allow it to come to room temperature before using.
Chantilly Whipped Cream
In a large bowl, combine mascarpone cheese, cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla. Using a hand or stand mixer, mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds, and then turn up the speed to a medium high and mix until well combined and smooth. If using a stand mixer use the whisk attachment.
Add in heavy cream and mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds (to allow everything to combine without the cream splattering), and then turn up the speed to a medium-high speed and whip until you reach stiff peaks. Keep a careful eye on the mixture as you don’t want to overwhip the cream.
Assembly (see video for demonstration)
Trim off the tops of the cake layers with a serrated knife so that they’re nice and flat.
Place the first layer onto a serving plate/cake stand and spread out a generous amount of the whipped cream frosting with an offset spatula. Using a large piping tip (I used a 1M), pipe a dam of frosting around the edges of the cake layer. Fill the middle with half of the berry filling and top with fresh berries (you can use fresh blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, etc.).
Place the next cake layer on top and spread out more whipped cream on the top and sides of the cake. I like to use my cake scraper to scrape the edges and make it nice and smooth!
Using a 1M piping tip (or any large piping tip), pipe a border around the top edge of the cake. Fill the centre with the remaining berry jam and top with more fresh fruit. Slice and enjoy!
How to Store Chantilly Cake?
Chantilly cake should be stored in the fridge due to the whipped cream frosting. Place the cake into an airtight container before placing into the fridge to prevent the cake from drying out.
Moist Chantilly Cake
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
Vanilla Cake
- 2⅓ cups (300 g) flour - regular all purpose (see note 1 if you want to use cake flour)
- ¼ cup (25 g) cornstarch
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt - omit if using salted butter
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter - room temperature
- ½ cup (105 g) unflavoured vegetable oil - I use canola
- 1⅔ cups (332 g) white granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs - room temperature
- 1¼ tbsp vanilla essence/extract
- 1 tsp white vinegar
- 1½ cups (337 g) buttermilk - room temperature, see note 5 if using a homemade buttermilk substitute
Berry Jam Filling
- 1 cup (140 g) mixed berries - fresh or frozen will both work. I used blueberries, strawberries and raspberries.
- ¾ tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tbsp lemon juice - freshly squeezed
- 3 tbsp (38 g) white granulated sugar
Chantilly Whipped Cream
- ½ cup (113 g) mascarpone - cold
- ½ cup (113 g) cream cheese - cold, use a firm cream cheese (not the spreadable type).
- 1 cup (125 g) powdered sugar - also known as icing/confectioners sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract/essence
- 2 cups (460 g) heavy whipping cream - cold
Extra
- 2 cups (280 g) mixed fresh berries of your choice - I used raspberries, strawberries and blackberries. Berries must be fresh (not frozen).
Instructions
- IMPORTANT: For the vanilla cake recipe I would highly recommend using gram measurements, especially for the flour for accurate results. It has a high fat/liquid ratio so slight adjustments to the quantities can throw off the balance of the cake 🙂
Vanilla Cake
- Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) conventional (see note 4 if using a convection oven with a fan) and grease and/or line two 8 inch cake tins (I use my homemade cake release).
- In a bowl, sift together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, add in butter, vegetable oil and sugar. Using an electric mixer (hand or stand mixer are both fine - see note 2), cream together for 2 minutes until light and creamy.
- Add in eggs one by one, mixing well in between each addition (about 10-15 seconds between eggs).
- Add in vanilla, vinegar and half a cup of the buttermilk (112g), and mix until well combined. Now set your mixer aside as the remainder of the batter will be finished by hand.
- Finish off by adding in half of your premixed dry ingredients to your wet mixture, and gently fold it in with a spatula until just combined. Then add in the remaining 1 cup (225g) of buttermilk, and fold it in until just combined. Lastly, add in the remaining dry ingredients and gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix (see note 3).
- Distribute the batter evenly into the two 8 inch cake tins. Drop the cake tins lightly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Once baked, allow the cake layers to cool in the cake tins for 20 minutes, before turning them out onto a wire rack to completely cool.
Berry Jam Filling
- Place all the ingredients into a saucepan and mix well. Place the saucepan over a low-medium heat and let the mixture slowly heat up, stirring every now and then to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Once the berries start to get soft and the mixture is liquidy, continue to cook for a few minutes to allow it to thicken up. If using firm berries like strawberries, use a potato masher to break up the berries while they're cooking in the pan.
- Once the mixture is slightly thickened and coats the back of a spoon well, remove from the heat and place it in a heatproof bowl or container. Allow it to come to room temperature before using (see note 6).
Chantilly Whipped Cream
- Before beginning, ensure the mascarpone, cream cheese and whipped cream are cold.
- In a large bowl, combine the mascarpone, cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla. Using a hand or stand mixer, mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds, and then turn up the speed to a medium high and mix until well combined and smooth. If using a stand mixer use the whisk attachment.
- Add in the whipping cream and mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds (to allow everything to combine without the cream splattering), and then turn up the speed to a medium high and whip until you reach stiff peaks. Keep a careful eye on the mixture as you don't want to overwhip the cream.
Assembly (see video for demonstration)
- Trim off the tops of the cake layers with a serrated knife so that they're nice and flat.
- Place the first cake layer onto a serving plate/cake stand and spread out a generous amount of whipped cream. Using a large piping tip (I used a 1M), pipe a dam of frosting around the edges of the cake layer. Fill the middle with half of the berry jam and top with fresh berries.
- Place the next cake layer on top and spread out more whipped cream on the top and sides of the cake.
- Using a 1M piping tip (or any large piping tip), pipe a border around the top edge of the cake. Fill the centre with the remaining berry jam and top with more fresh fruit. 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.
74 Comments
Hi MK, made the cake and berries turned out great. Except the chantilly cream was still “fluid”. Just wondering if there is a particular type of whipping cream to use? I had used heavy whipping cream. And Philadelphia cream cheese and mascarpone both cold. Thanks for any tips you can share ! The cream taste amazing and not too sweet 🙂
Hi Vanessa! 🙂 So glad it turned out great, but sorry to hear the cream was still a bit fluid! Cold heavy whipping cream should do the trick (any cream with a fat percentage of around 34% or higher should be fine). Was the cream cheese a soft cream cheese? If so, I wonder if this perhaps played a part? If you can’t find a firmer cream cheese, you can reduce the cream cheese quantity and substitute with mascarpone 🙂
It could also be that the chantilly cream just needed a bit more whipping to stiffen up. Did you feel like if you whipped more the cream would curdle/overwhip? If not, I would recommend to try and keep mixing and hopefully this will help stiffen eveything up a bit more 🙂
Hope that helps for next time Vanessa!
Will this be good to use for a 3-tier wedding cake or is the frosting too soft? What would be the cooking time for 12 in, 10 in and 6 in pans?
Hi Tara! 🙂 Unfortunately the frosting will be a bit too soft for a tiered wedding cake – it is in between a whipped cream and a buttercream. You could use it as a filling, with a more stable frosting on the outside 🙂
If the batter is distributed into the tins so that is as high as the cake layers in the original recipe (e.g. 1x the recipe will make four 6 inch cakes, or one 10 inch cake), then the cook time should roughly be about the same. If the cake layers are thinner, then check the cakes a little earlier, if they’re thicker, then they will take longer to bake (I wouldn’t recommend making them too thick though otherwise the cake may not rise well). Hope that helps Tara 🙂
Thank you so much!
Hi! Can I add food coloring to the cream to change the exterior of the cake to black?
Hi Maria! 🙂 I haven’t tried using any coloring in the chantilly frosting myself, but I think gel colors should work fine! I would add the coloring in to the initial mascarpone mixture before adding in the whipped cream just to make sure the frosting isn’t overwhipped 🙂
Hey! Is the vanilla cake recipe good to use for decorating a cake with fondant? I have been looking for a good basic cake recipe that will stand up to fondant but not be so dense that it’s not enjoyable to eat! 🙂
Hi Megan 🙂 Hmm good question! So usually what I recommend for tiered cakes is no more than 4 layers per tier for this vanilla cake recipe, and I think with a layer of fondant over the top it would be fine, but I suppose it would also just depend on how many fondant decorations there are (and how heavy they are). I have found that this recipe holds up well to weight (it doesn’t sink in when something is placed on it like a sponge cake does, and it holds heavier buttercreams well as well), but it is on the slightly softer side which is why I don’t recommend more than 4 layers per tier. Sorry I couldn’t be of more help but hope that provided some insight 🙂
Beautifully delicious!
Thank you so much Valerie! So glad you enjoyed the recipe 😀
I want to know how can I order cake from you? Do you make cakes to order. I need a chocolate chip banana cake, the biscoff butter cookie cake and a Chantilly cake
Hi Tanya! 🙂 I am honored that you would want to buy a cake from me, but unfortunately I do not sell cakes. So sorry about that, but thank you for enquiring anyway 🙂
Can you convert the chantilly cream into a chocolate version? It was amazing, but I would also like to have a chocolate version too. I love all your cakes, and you are the only one whose recipe I follow.
Hi Barbara! 🙂 So happy to hear you loved the chantilly cream recipe 😀 I’ve never tried turning it into a chocolate version myself, but will be sure to note this down for future recipes 🙂
So glad you’re enjoying the recipes Barbara and really appreciate the feedback 😀
Hi there,
Love all your recipes I’ve tried so far and wanted to make this one as well. I get confused on how to store cakes with chantelle cream . Does the cake not turn a bit hard in the fridge because of butter if we keep it there for the cream ? Or will that be ok ?
Hi Mehwish 🙂 So happy to hear you’re enjoying the recipes!
So for storing the cake, simply place it into an airtight container and then store in the fridge 🙂 by being placed in an airtight container it will prevet the cake from drying out. Allow the cake to come to room temp so it can soften up again before serving 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!
This cake was amazing like every one of your recipes! Do you have a chocolate version of your frosting?
Aww thank you so much Barbara! 😀 I unfortunately do not have a chocolate whipped cream frosting recipe to share just yet but will pop it on my to-do list for future recipes 😀
Loved this cake! My daughter and I made it together and it turned out beautifully and was absolutely delicious!
Yay! So so happy to hear you loved the recipe Priscilla 😀 hope you and your daughter had heaps of fun making it 🙂