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This Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake has layers of fluffy vanilla cake, fresh berry filling and mascarpone whipped cream frosting! It’s light, fruity and perfect for spring!
Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake
I never really realized how much of an effect caffeine has until I stopped drinking it recently. As part of the IVF process, caffeine isn’t really recommended so I’ve been doing my best to not drink it. Since soda has less caffeine than coffee, I’ll have a little if I’m desperate. I’d rather have coffee though. 🙁 Much more yummy.
Point is though – the lack of a picker-upper is brutal! And the tiredness is making me crave a way to increase energy so now I just want to eat all the carbs and sugar, which I’m also avoiding. Sometimes I feel like I just can’t eat anything. It’s not a good situation. I’ve gotta find a way to muster up some energy!
My go-to move right now is to play some of my favorite music and dance around while working. Gets the blood flowing and pumps me up. 🙂 Yay for 90s music! That’s my era.
And this is my cake.
Boy, do I love this cake! Fresh berries are some of the best things ever and we’ve had them galore for the last month or so. I can’t get enough of them! Especially the blueberries and strawberries. I just want to eat a carton at a time. And I can eat fruit – yay! 🙂
How to Make Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake
This cake starts with a moist and easy vanilla cake. The batter is so easy to put together, you could simply use a whisk to combine everything if you wanted. I always love a good stand mixer – it takes the work out of it for you – but you could do it by hand. Just combine the dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, then add them all together with a little water. Done! Plus, the ingredients are all nice and straight forward. Rock on.
Then there’s the berry filling. You could almost think of it as a homemade jam, but not quite as thick. I used an even mix of strawberries, blueberries and raspberries, but you could use whatever combo you like. The berries are purred in a food processor, then cooked over heat with some sugar and cornstarch. The heat reduces the liquid a bit and the cornstarch helps thicken everything. Once it’s cooled, you’ve got the perfect berry filling!
The mascarpone whipped cream frosting is used both to add to the cake filling and to frost the cake. I love how light this frosting is! You basically make whipped cream and add mascarpone cheese to it. The mascarpone flavor is lighter than a more straight forward mascarpone frosting, but this version runs much less risk of getting a super soft mascarpone frosting. Just be sure to add the full amount of powdered sugar to make sure the frosting stays stable. It makes a great addition to the cake and keeps things light and fresh!
The final cake is perfect for spring, Easter and all through the summer! It was a huge hit!
Watch How To Make It
SHOP THE RECIPE
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Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 26 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 11 minutes
- Yield: 12-14 Slices
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
This Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake has layers of fluffy vanilla cake, fresh berry filling and mascarpone whipped cream frosting! It’s light, fruity and perfect for spring!
Ingredients
VANILLA CAKE
- 2 1/2 cups (325g) all purpose flour
- 2 cups (414g) sugar
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup (240ml) milk
- 1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup (240ml) water
BERRY FILLING
- 1 1/2 cup (240g) mixed berries (I used strawberries, blueberries and raspberries)
- 3 tbsp (45ml) water
- 3/4 cup (155g) sugar
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
WHIPPED MASCARPONE FROSTING
- 2 1/2 cups (600ml) heavy whipping cream, cold
- 1 1/2 cups (173g) powdered sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 16 oz (452g) mascarpone cheese, chilled
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C) and prepare three 8 inch cake pans with non-stick baking spray and parchment paper in the bottom. These cakes can have a tendency to stick to the pans a bit, so I strongly recommend the parchment paper in the bottom.
2. Add the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to a large mixer bowl and combine. Set aside.
3. Add the milk, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and eggs to a medium sized bowl and combine.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and beat until well combined.
5. Slowly add the water to the batter and mix on low speed until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to make sure everything is well combined.
6. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans and bake for 24-28 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.
7. Remove the cakes from oven and allow to cool for 2-3 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to finish cooling. These cakes can have a tendency to stick to the pans a bit so jiggle them a bit to loosen from the sides of the pan before turning the cakes out to cool.
BERRY FILLING
8. To make the berry topping, add the berries and water to a food processor and puree until smooth. You should end up with about 2/3 cup puree.
9. Combine the sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Stir in the berry puree.
10. Cook over medium heat, stirring consistently until mixture thickens and comes to a boil, about 8-10 minutes.
11. Allow to boil for 1 minute, then remove from heat. Refrigerate and allow to cool completely.
FROSTING AND ASSEMBLY
12. Add the heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract to a large mixer bowl and whip on high speed until soft peaks form.
13. Add the mascarpone cheese to the whipped cream and whip until stiff peaks form. It will happen fairly quickly.
14. To assemble the cake, use a large serrated knife to remove the domes from the top of the cakes.
15. Place the first layer of cake on a serving plate or a cardboard cake round. Pipe a dam of frosting around the outside of the cake. I use Ateco tip 808 for the dam so that it’s tall.
16. Spread half of the berry filling evenly on top of the cake layer, inside the dam. It should fill the dam about half way full.
17. Add some additional mascarpone frosting to the top of the berry filling and spread into an even layer to fill in the remaining dam space.
18. Add the second layer of cake and repeat the filling layer with the remaining berry filling and additional mascarpone frosting.
19. Add the final layer of cake on top, then smooth out the frosting around the sides of the cake.
20. Frost the outside of the cake, then use an icing decorator (I use this Ateco Icing Smoother ) to add a striped pattern to the sides.
21. Finish off the cake with some swirls of frosting and fresh berries.
22. Refrigerate cake until ready to serve. Cake is best for 2-3 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Slice
- Calories: 678
- Sugar: 53 g
- Sodium: 216.6 mg
- Fat: 40 g
- Carbohydrates: 74 g
- Protein: 8.7 g
- Cholesterol: 118.4 mg
Enjoy!
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It’s the perfect Easter cake! Recipe was easy for me to follow, I am not a great baker, but maybe I am now!!! The only trouble I had was trimming the cake dome off cakes, lacking skills, filled in with heavenly marscapone icing!!! It is the best frosting I have ever made! Proud to be serving this for family gathering! Beautiful!
Awesome! So glad you’re happy with it!
Hi there! I only have two 9 inch pans. Would you recommend splitting the dough evenly between the two pans or still splitting it 3 ways and baking 2 first and then a third once the first are done? Thanks!
I think either way would be fine.
I ended up doing 2 9 inch layers. Everyone loved the cake!! It was professional quality! Thanks for a fantastic recipe. Happy Easter!
How long would you adjust the baking time based on 3 x 9 in cakes, considering the sponges will be thinner?
Lindsay,
I also googled how to make the mascarpone cheese. My icing also seems soft. I used all the powdered sugar the recipe called for, could I add more powdered sugar to make it more stable? Is there a certain amount of time that the icing should be refrigerated? Thank you so much.. This cake reminds me of one my grandmother used to get from the bakery on SPECIAL occasions.
I have no experience with homemade mascarpone, but just looked it up to see. I don’t know what the final result is like, but it could be a factor. You can try adding more powdered sugar, it shouldn’t hurt it. In the future, another option would be to swap it out with cream cheese if the homemade mascarpone doesn’t result in the best frosting.
I hope you enjoy it!
I used store bought mascarpone and my frosting never really got firm. I even added extra powdered sugar based on the recommendations here in the comments. Might be that my German products don’t have enough fat in them. I dirty iced and put everything in the freezer. Waiting till the last minute to do the final frosting and decorating.
My cake did not come out fluffy. It was kind of dense. I made it twice to be sure of the result.
Is there something I can do to make it fluffy? You use two eggs. Most recipes call for three
Any reason?
The amount of eggs used is entirely dependent on the other ingredients in a recipe. I’m not sure why it’d be dense. It could be some difference in our ovens? I’m really not sure.
Kavita,
I made this cake today and I too was surprised at the density of all three layers. I can best describe it as a dense, toothesome, shortbread cake. I was not expecting the density at all. No fluffiness or spring to any of the layers. It is not necessarily a detraction, just a surprise. Here is what concerned me: I knew that my baking powder was expired, so I chucked it in anyway. That, mixed with elevation in Germany…is probably why I ended up with a three-layer pound cake.
The berry compote and icing are GREAT!
I’m sorry the cake didn’t turn out quite right. It definitely shouldn’t be dense or shortbread-like.
Is this a cake you can make and freeze. Then thaw out the cake layers and assemble with frosting and the berry filling at a later date?
That should be fine.
I made the cake two weekends ago too and it came out dense. Followed the recipe to a T. Had to to set the oven timer for five more minutes three more times. Still came out like a lump.
Just curious if you are measuring your flour correctly? A tablespoon extra of flour will make your cake dense.
When you measure flour, you always spoon the flour into the measuring cup and then level off with a knife. Never scoop the measuring cup into the flour and level off. A VERY useful tip I learned through my other blogging friends
My cake also turned out dense and wondering why it happened. Perhaps there is too much liquid in the recipe?
I truly don’t know why some are having trouble. I’ve had so many people have success and share photos of the final cake with me that I know the recipe itself is fine. Perhaps there’s a difference in elevation or climate that is making a difference for you? You could certainly try leaving out some liquid. Perhaps it’ll make a difference.
I grew up in the UK and my mom could not use American cake recipes with success, and we figured out it was a difference in the flour there than in US. Everything came out very dense. So if anyone is making this in a country outside the US, the ingredients may not correspond exactly. Thought this might help!
Is this the berry chantilly from Whole Foods?
I haven’t ever had that cake. It sounds like it must be similar, but the recipe isn’t the same. I don’t know what their recipe is.
No its the Chantilly from Publix.
It sounds like there are two very similar cakes out there – one from Publix and one from Whole Foods. This recipe must be similar to both. 🙂
Hi ,i made this recipe although i wasnt sure on cake as it seemed dense and not light and spongy.i checked with a toothpick before taking out oven not sure what went wrong.It was still edible the berry filling and mascarpone frosting tasted lovely.Maybe one day i will attempt the cake again.
I baked the cake according to the directions, but when I tried to cut off the domes, it was so moist it just kind of crumpled up on itself. The cakes all came out pretty even so I didn’t try it on any of the others. I’m wondering if I just didn’t bake it long enough. One other thing, I’m using a gluten-free flour. I’ve been using it (cup for cup) for years without any issues. Could it be related to that? Or just add extra baking time? I appreciate any help you can give me.
Did the cake seem undercooked? If not, I wouldn’t think you’d need to bake it longer. I haven’t used gluten free flour before, but I do know that gluten is a binder and if things were kind of falling apart, it is possible that the flour had something to do with it. I can’t say for sure though, having not ever worked with that kind of flour.
I see some have made a 9 x 13….So, then do I slice the 9 x 13 in half and fill?
You certainly could do it that way. Here’s instructions for this cake as a 9×13.
Lindsay the link is broken. Can you link to the 9×13 cake again?
I updated that link and here it is again. Thanks!
Can I use frozen fruit. And I cannot get that cheese here in Puerto Rico. How else can I use a frosting. Recipe?
Frozen fruit should be ok, just be sure to defrost it and pat it dry. You can replace the mascarpone with cream cheese.
This cake was delicious! I made it true to the recipe, which is rare for me, and it came out moist and delicious. The frosting was delightful. The layers all paired well with one another.
I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed it! Thanks Ren!
This cake is so, so gorgeous! I’m a little confused by the yield. What size cake does this recipe make? And do you know how many cupcakes that would translate to? Thank you!
It’s an 8 inch cake, about 3-4 inches tall. It would be about 24 cupcakes.
Thank you so much! I used this as the base for my niece’s birthday cake, and it was a hit. So versatile and delicious!
No, it isn’t 3-4 inches tall. Each of the three layers is over an inch then there is the filling and the top icing. It’s about five inches tall.
This looks gorgeous AND delicious! I’m thinking of making a 12″ round version for a reception for 30+ guests. Can you tell me if the frosting makes just enough for the version above, so I would definitely want to double it for the double sized cake, or if makes excess already and I could pare that back a bit? It doesn’t sound like an excessively large batch, but sometimes I’m in shock at how much extra frosting a recipe will make. Thanks!!
(if you have any other thoughts on attempting this – like if the layers are extremely fragile and might not hold up well to being made that large, by all means, let me know that as well.)
Gosh, I feel like what what is “enough” frosting varies by person. I am more heavy handed at frosting and I did use all of the frosting for the cake. You may want to just test it out and see what your preference is.
This is definitely a moist cake. I have made it as a 9×13 and it was fine. I’m not sure about larger than that.
Would frozen berries be okay?
They should be. Just defrost them and pat them dry first.
Looks good ❤️
I made this cake over the weekend. Twice (cuz it was so good the first time I had to share at work).. but my local store was out of the cheese so I googled how to make it. The frosting came out “soft” even after keeping it in the fridge all day before putting it on the cake. Is this typical? I tried to make the cute swirls to put a strawberry on top and they just squished down… Is this because I make the Mascarpone cheese or do I need to put more sugar maybe? Is there a trick Im missing?
When you say you googled how to make it, do you mean you made mascarpone cheese at home? If so, perhaps the consistency of the cheese had something to do with the frosting result? If you can’t find mascarpone in the future, you can use cream cheese instead. Also, be sure to use the full amount of powdered sugar in the frosting – it is a stabilizer.
Would the cake be okay if made a day ahead of time? I see the recipe says “best for 2-3 days” but I’m wondering how well the frosting and berry filling holds up? Thanks!
Yes, definitely. The filling is very stable and as long as you add the full amount of powdered sugar (it stabilizes the frosting), it should be fine. If you’re concerned, you could even add a touch more powdered sugar to make it a bit thicker. I had mine in the fridge for a couple days and it was great.
I made this cake for dinner guests this past weekend. It was a hit! They said it was beautiful AND tasted wonderful. Everything comes together easily. The frosting was a pleasure to work with, tasty, and balanced out the sweetness of the cake. The filing was yummy, too (much spoon licking there!). Thank you!!!
Wonderful! So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks Tammy!