Six-Layer Chocolate Cake with Toasted Marshmallow Filling & Malted Chocolate Frosting
This year, I resumed my tradition of baking myself a birthday cake. Each year I like to pick an extra-special recipe that I’ve had my eye on and make it sometime around my birthday. Last year, I didn’t make one since I was in Florida and I spent my birthday eating chocolate, playing tennis and having dinner at an open-air restaurant on the Intercoastal. In the spirt of doing a complete 180, this year I’m home in Pittsburgh, watching the snow fall (holy crazy weather!).
In years past for my birthday, I’ve made an Oreo Cheesecake, a Peanut Butter-Fudge Cheesecake and Tiramisu Cupcakes, to name a few. I had originally thought about making some sort of chocolate-peanut butter/peanut butter cup cake this year, but since I gave up peanut butter for Lent, it will have to wait. Then I remembered this amazing “campfire delight cake” that I had seen on Sweetapolita awhile ago, and it seemed like the perfect over-the-top birthday cake candidate. With SIX(!!) layers of rich chocolate cake, a toasted marshmallow filling and a malted chocolate frosting, the cake was an absolute dream. It lived up to the hype and then some, as it is one of the best cakes to ever come out of my kitchen.
Let me tell you, this chocolate cake is intense. The layers are so moist and the flavor is deep and rich, thanks in part to using a high quality Dutch-process cocoa powder and hot coffee to enhance the chocolate.
The toasted marshmallow filling is flat-out genius. Not only is the frosting made with marshmallow cream, but actual toasted marshmallows are added. You get all of the marshmallow flavor along with little bits of toasted marshmallows with every bite. Paired with that chocolate cake recipe, I was pretty sure that things couldn’t get any better…
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Then, along came the chocolate frosting. This is no ordinary chocolate frosting. I discovered the wonderment of using Ovaltine in chocolate frosting when I made brownies with buttercream frosting last year; it adds a malted flavor that is distinct but not overpowering and a perfect accompaniment to the chocolate.
If you want a cake that has some serious wow factor, you must make this cake! Not only is it sky-high and absolutely stunning, but it tastes even better than it looks!
Since it’s my birthday, I’m off to eat another slice of cake :) Cheers!
One year ago: Cinnamon-Sugar Scones
Two years ago: Salted Peanut Chews and Tiramisu Cupcakes
Three years ago: Easy Vanilla Bean Buttercream and Peanut Butter-Fudge Cheesecake
Four years ago: Blueberry Crumb Cake
Five years ago: Caramel-Topped Flan
Six years ago: Oreo Cheesecake
Six-Layer Chocolate Cake with Toasted Marshmallow Filling & Malted Chocolate Frosting
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 2½ cups (312.5 g) + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 3 cups (600 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (86 g) + 1 tablespoon Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) baking powder
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) salt
- 3 eggs, at room temperature
- 1½ cups (360 ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1½ cups (355.5 ml) strong black coffee, hot
- ¾ cup (163.5 ml) vegetable oil
- 4½ teaspoons (4.5 teaspoons) vanilla extract
For the Toasted Marshmallow Filling:
- 16 large marshmallows
- 1 cup (120 g) powdered sugar
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) vanilla extract
- 7.5 ounce (212.62 g) Marshmallow Fluff
For the Malted Chocolate Frosting:
- 2 cups (454 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 4 cups (480 g) powdered sugar
- ¾ cup (93.75 g) Ovaltine Classic
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 8 ounces (226.8 g) semisweet or dark chocolate chocolate, melted and cooled
- ½ cup (119 ml) heavy cream
Instructions
- Make the Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three 8-inch round cake pans, line the bottoms with rounds of parchment paper, grease the parchment, then flour the insides of the pans, tapping out excess; set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer (or large mixing bowl if you're using a hand mixer), sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, coffee, oil and vanilla.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix for 2 minutes on medium speed. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl and mix for an additional 20 seconds (the batter will be very thin).
- Divide the batter evenly among prepared pans. Bake for 20 minutes and rotate the pans in the oven. Continue to bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the cakes comes out almost clean (with a few moist crumbs), about 12 more minutes. Cool the cakes (in the pans) on wire racks for 20 minutes, then carefully turn them out onto cooling racks to cool completely.
- Make the Toasted Marshmallow Filling: Place the marshmallows on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Place on the lowest rack of oven, and broil marshmallows until nice and brown on top, keeping an eye on them the entire time so they don't burn. Remove pan from oven and gently turn the marshmallows over, and broil until the other side is golden brown.
- Beat the butter and powdered sugar on low speed until blended together, about 1 minute. Add the vanilla extract and increase the speed to medium-high; beat for 3 minutes. Stop the mixer, add the Marshmallow Fluff and toasted marshmallows, and mix on the lowest speed for about 1 minute, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Make the Malted Chocolate Frosting: Beat the butter and powdered sugar on low speed until blended together, about 1 minute. Add the Ovaltine, vanilla and salt, and continue to beat on low until well combined, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the melted chocolate and beat on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the heavy cream and beat on medium-high speed for another minute.
- Assemble the Cake: Slice each cake layer in half horizontally so you have six cake layers. Place your first layer face-up on a cake plate and cover with one-third of the Toasted Marshmallow Frosting. Place another cake layer face-up and cover with about ¾ to 1 cup of Malted Chocolate Frosting. Repeat, alternating marshmallow and chocolate filling layers, until you come to your cake final layer, which you will place face-down. Frost the entire outside of cake with the remaining Malted Chocolate Frosting.
Notes
- Cake is best served the same day it is made, but leftovers can be stored at room temperature or in the refrigerator, well-wrapped, for up to 3 days.
- You can substitute marshmallow creme for the Marshmallow Fluff.
- For the cleanest cake slices, refrigerate the cake for about 30 minutes before cutting. Use a sharp knife dipped in hot water (and wiped dry) between each cut.
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
The black coffee, is that 1.5 cups instant coffee dissolved in 1.5 cups hot water?
That is 1.5 cups of brewed coffee, however you go about making it.
I used instant Folgers and the cake turned out delicious. I keep the instant Folgers for cooking because I am not a coffee drinker so I don’t have ground coffee around (since it would go stale).
Hi Michelle,
I love to make this cake for my birthday but I need more cake to feed everyone. How do I calculate how much more batter I need to make three 9″ round cakes instead of 3?
Many Thanks.
I’m not sure what you mean – you want to make 3 9″ round cakes instead of 3… what? You don’t need to adjust the quantities to make 9″ cakes – they will just be slightly thinner and need a little less time in the oven.
My apologies, I made a typo. I meant to say I want to make three 9″ round cakes instead of 8″. Meaning I want more cake. I need to know how much more batter, frosting and filling I need. You see and 8″ is small for my party so the cake has to be larger I just don’t know the ratios. I don’t want to double the amount because I know that would be too much and I’ll have plenty left overs.
Hi Maral, If you are making 3 cakes total, then simply triple the recipe. If all you are doing is using 9″ pans instead of 8″ pans, do not alter the ingredients at all (there is not that much of a difference between an 8″ and 9″ pan), just know that they will take a little less time to cook.
This cake was amazing! I made it for myself for my birthday and it was seriously the best thing I’ve ever eaten. Thank you so much for inventing toasted marshmallow frosting. I never even knew that existed, and now I can’t live without it. Best. Cake. Ever.
p.s. How do you make the decorations in the frosting? Back of a spoon?
Hi Megan, I used a large offset spatula and just held it against the cake as I spun the cake on a decorating pedestal, gradually moving the spatula up as it went around.
Here’s another quick tip for transporting tall cakes like this: You can use a plastic straw or bamboo skewer cut to the height of the cake–put it right through the middle of the cake like a stake to keep the layers from sliding on each other. Just frost over the top of it. Since it’s in the center of the cake, you’ll see it when you slice pieces. Better than having your cake on the floor of the back seat. ;)
I made this for my birthday cake this year, too–thanks to you! It was absolutely fantastic! Perfection. Followed everything to a T! Definitely don’t leave the coffee out, people! I love coffee, but you can’t taste it at all in this cake. Plus, I’m sure it adds to the deep, dark chocolate color. I used a high-quality espresso powder made according to directions on jar as a short-cut to brewing a fresh cup. My favorite part is the bits of toasty marshmallow in the marshmallow flavor! :) If I made it for a crowd, I might consider not torting the layers, and keeping it to 3 thick layers (for a little less chocolate filling since it’s pretty sweet). Great cake and fantastic photos! :)
Made this yesterday and it is HUGE! And yummy. Transporting it shortly after assembly was tricky – I feel like maybe I should have tucked it in the fridge to firm up first.
Each individual component is quite tasty on its own, but my favorite by far was the toasted marshmallow filling. I’m not actually a huge marshmallow fan, and this was so luscious I could have just gotten out a spoon and been perfectly happy!
When I was almost finished with the frosting, I really hesitated to add the cream, because the frosting was already quite soft, and I was afraid it was going to turn into soup. I crossed my fingers and added it anyway, and was surprised that it was fine.
Thanks for the recipe – the birthday girl was quite delighted!
Wow! I made this cake this weekend and it was phenomenal. Thank you for sharing it…pure genius. I actually did a little dance when it was all done because it was sooo good!
This cake turned into an event for my daughter’s 16th birthday! It took me all day to shop for the ingredients and tools (didn’t have the pans, and heavy cream was nowhere to be found on Easter weekend!). Was going to make it for her actual birthday on the 3rd but had a migraine that lasted for 4 days. We finally made the cake part this weekend on Sunday. I made the marshmallow filling and frosting and put it together last night and tonight we took our first pieces out. I can now say that I have made a 6 layer cake! I know how to toast marshmallows without a campfire! I made the most beautiful frosting I have ever seen in my life! My daughter said that the cake tasted “beautiful!” It was truly delicious!!! Thanks for sharing such an amazing recipe. It just may become a yearly tradition, only I hope it won’t always take us a week and a half to get it done! (I was so proud when I cut the cake and it looked like the picture! And that it tasted wonderful! Usually I am a terrible cook, so this was a HUGE undertaking! Thank you so much!!! The directions were so easy to follow and the toasted marshmallow filling with the crunchy little bits is to die for!)
Just made this last week for my son’s birthday. All I can say is WOW! I am terrified to calculate the calories but it was outstanding and worth every calorie.
Happy belated birthday from one brown eyed baker to another. My birthday was the 23rd. This cake looks awesome. I will be making this week for my sis-in-law.
Holy cow! This cake stopped me dead in my tracks. OMG that is over the top pretty, and no doubt delicious.
btw, Happy Birthday!
Velva
I made this cake for my fiance’s birthday along with your Perfect Party Cake.
This cake was everyone’s FAVORITE! :) I did modify the recipe a teensy bit (I always separate my egg yolks and whites and beat the whites into stiff peaks to fold into the batter right before baking…It’s just a trick I “swear by” haha). That’s the only “change” I made :)
Delicious!! And the malted chocolate frosting was SO GOOD! I love chocolate malts. The cake was BEAUTIFUL! 6 gorgeous layers of deliciousness!
Oh, and in case anyone was wondering… this cake is 13 Weight Watchers PointsPlus for 1/32nd of the cake LOL. (But oh so worth it!)
The best thing I ate this week was without question your Six Layer Chocolate Cake With Toasted Marshmallow Filling! Thank you so much for a truly exceptional recipe!
Oh my goodness gracious this cake looks amazing!!
Such a shame i’m back at university without kitchen facilities for my birthday, otherwise I would make this in a flash!!
xx
ohhhh.. I am drooling just by looking at the cake…what a nice creamy you have there…
This was a HUGE hit at Easter dinner – thank you!
I made this cake today, its a very moist cake, haven’t finished assembling it yet.
But don’t you think that its a bit too much 1tbsp of baking soda? My cake spilt over during baking.
I had no trouble with the amount of baking soda; my cakes actually baked up perfectly even and didn’t even dome. I would just level off the tops of the cakes when you assemble!
Happy belated birthday!!
This cake looks like 6 layers of heaven!! I am a terrible baker so i doubt i can pull something like this off! But i wonder where i can try even a bite of this AMAZINGGGGG CAKEEE!! It just looks too good to be true!
The save icon that allows you to save the recipe to your recipe box is not working. I am usually able to click on it and it saves your recipe to my recipe box. I tried it with the coconut cake recipe too and all that comes up is a blank square. Is there a new way to do it?
Thanks,
Gina
Hi Gina, I am so sorry for the inconvenience. I will work to get the issue resolved.
Where do you purchase your cocoa powder from (I could only find the brand you mentioned online)? Is there any brand you could recommend that could be purchased from Whole Foods or Amazon.com?
Hi Tay, I purchase my Dutch-process cocoa powder from Penzeys (they have an actual brick and mortar store here in Pittsburgh). I have not purchased any cocoa powder from Whole Foods, but I have heard good things about the Callebaut cocoa powder, which you can get from Amazon.
This looks beautiful! Question – I only have 9″ cake pans – If I placed the batter in two 9″ cake pans, how would this affect the baking time?
Hi Debbie, You would need to reduce the baking time a little bit (I can’t say for sure by how much because I haven’t made this in 9″ pans).
Thank you!
I’m hoping someone can answer me quick because I’m in the process of making this cake and realized that I have no idea what Ovaltine is! I’ve never heard of it before. Is it a powder or liquid? Can I use something else instead??!! Help please!! I just finished making the marshmallow icing….YIKES! It’s delicious!
To Julia, Ovaltine is a cocoa powder that is used to make hot chocolate. I haven’t had it since I was a kid but I think t has kind of a malted milk ball chocolate flavor. You should find it in the grocery section that has hot cocoa mix. Good luck!!
Hi Julia, Ditto Linda – Ovaltine is a powder used to make hot chocolate drinks, and it has a malted flavor.
The Ovaltine I found is in granules and not powdered, is that was you used for the icing? Will the granules dissolve during mixing? Thanks!
Hi Ela, I have never seen Ovaltine in granules; I have no idea if it will dissolve or not, but if you can find the powder, that’s your best bet.
How can this possibly taste better than it looks? It’s beautiful!! Happy birthday!!
Happy Belated Birthday! I’m a March baby too! This cake looks amazing and VERY moist!
Happy Birthday! thanks for all the awesome baked goods (and a lot more). I think I will copy you (again) by making my own bday cake each year from now on. I make cakes for everyone but the postman and yet I don’t get a bday cake which always frustrates me. So instead of sulking let’s go baking me the best cake ever!!!
This cake looks stunning! Happy belated birthday. I am wondering, what are you favorite cakes ever? can you make a new list
Hi Gretta, Great suggestion! I will work on getting those Top 10 lists updated!
Happy Birthday! And I have to agree this is the absolute best cake I have ever made as well. However when I roast my marshmallows & add them to the frosting, each time I get sticky lumps that don’t smooth out as I whip the frosting? Any ideas what I could be doing wrong? I left a comment on for Rosie too, but didn’t hear back from her. Any input would be greatly appreciated!
And for the record, this recipe makes fabulous cupcakes too!
Enjoy your day & I love your blog!
Donna
Hi Donna, Mine was definitely lumpy at first, but as I mixed it smoothed out. I was actually surprised that I didn’t have more big pieces of marshmallow. Make sure you’re toasting them enough, too. They dissolve more easily if they’re toasted through and really soft, versus still being solid marshmallow. Hope that helps!
Thank you so much the reply, I will roast them longer next time! hope you had a great birthday and congrats on the house!
How awesome! I could easily polish that off on my own.
Wow, this is the most amazing looking cake! Hope you had a great birthday!
This cake looks absolutely delicious! I love to find a recipe for a cake that is different! I am unfamiliar with Ovaltine. Do I mix in the powder or the liquid that has been mixed?
Hi Diana, You just mix in the powder.