Layer Cakes

Coconut’s sweetness pairs well with other flavors—it’s a vital ingredient in a classic German chocolate cake, and we like to sprinkle it onto a walnut carrot cake with a cream cheese frosting. Our pecan cream cake takes chopped nuts and adds them directly to the cake.

Lane cake, on the other hand, spreads the add ons between the layers—it’s filled with an icing containing raisins, coconut, and pecans before being capped with a billowy meringue. The cake itself has a glorious, velvety crumb and is swathed in a rich chocolate icing.

Get the method for Vanilla Cake Walnut Spice Cake Alternating layers of white and brown spiced cake are delicious sandwiched with a rich, chocolate fudge icing. Lemon Layer Cake Lemon infuses this layered masterpiece in three ways: zested into the batter, in a tart syrup that get drizzled over the cakes, and in a thick lemon curd frosting.

Walnut Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting Surprisingly airy and light, this cake could have been a soufflé in a previous life. Get the method for Walnut Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting » Boston Cream Pie There’s an unwavering appeal to two layers of golden sponge cake sandwiching thick custard, all topped with a glossy layer of chocolate.

Thomas Keller’s Coconut Cake Thick Italian meringue is sandwiched between moist layers of cake, which is topped off with sweetened shredded coconut in this recipe from chef Thomas Keller. Pecan Cream Cake Pecan Cream Cake Lemon Curd Layer Cake with White Chocolate Buttercream Silken white chocolate buttercream frosts a tender yellow cake layered with rich lemon curd in this recipe from the restaurant Rye KC in Leawood, Kansas.

Caramel Cake Buttery layer cake draped in caramel fudge, with its over-the-top grandeur and unapologetic sweetness, is a Southern classic. Get the method for Lane Cake » Spiced Pumpkin Cake A welcome addition to the holiday table, this simple frosted layer cake can be made with either canned or homemade puréed pumpkin. Our method for this towering dessert, featuring eight layers of buttery yellow cake with chocolate-fudge icing, was inspired by a decadent version served at Becca’s Smith Island Cakes in Tasley, Virgina.

Strawberry Cake Strawberry cake topped with strawberry cream cheese frosting is a favorite soul food dessert; this delicious version comes from Bertha’s Kitchen in North Charleston. Get the method for Strawberry Cake » Very Moist Chocolate Layer Cake Three velvety layers sandwiched with thick dark chocolate icing make a decadent, crowd-pleasing dessert. Get the method for Very Moist Chocolate Layer Cake » Lady Baltimore Cake A traditional Southern confection, this regal dessert gained popularity through writer Owen Wister’s 1906 romance novel, Lady Baltimore.

Rose’s Famous Caramel Cake This buttery cake slathered with rich caramel icing has earned local fame on Chicago’s South Side—it’s one of our favorites to make for special occasions. German Chocolate Cake This decadent triple-layer dessert takes its name from German’s Sweet Chocolate, a product that’s not German at all: the versatile baking chocolate was created by an American baker named Samuel German in 1852.

Get the method for German Chocolate Cake » Yellow Cake with Fudge Icing The key to making this cake’s rich icing is to stir it vigorously once it has cooled to the proper temperature. Get the method for Spiced Carrot Layer Cake » Princess Cake (Princesstårta) Swedish princesses Martha, Margaretha, and Astridin loved baking this smooth, vanilla cream and raspberry jam filled cake in their domestic science classes so much that their professor, Jenny Âkerstrom, named the confection after them.