Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake

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This Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake is made with a moist chocolate Kahlua cake covered in Kahlua coffee frosting! It’s seriously so good – you won’t want to share!

Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake recipe

Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake

So this past weekend the hubs and I went and looked at some houses. We’ve been considering moving within the area for a while now, but haven’t found the right thing. We’d been looking around on our own and since we haven’t had any luck, we decided to try working with a real estate agent that the hubs knows.

Well we were out looking at some homes Sunday afternoon and it started getting a little late. We knew it could go later, so we brought everything for my evening progesterone shot (for our IVF treatment) with us just in case.

As luck would have it, 6 PM came rolling around and we got the privilege of not only doing our shot while out and about for the first time, but in a new house that was still under construction. We were looking at the house with our real estate agent and the sales person when we excused ourselves to shut ourselves into a room filled with nails, dust, wood and cardboard and try to give me a safe and sanitary shot in the rear/hip. A bit comical actually!

Fortunately the shot went well. 🙂 Our real estate agent knows about our IVF, so it was fine. But still not something you do everyday!

Best Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake
Homemade Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake

Something I would like to do everyday, however, is eat this cake. Oh my goodness, the flavors! I can’t even handle how good it all is together. You take a bite and your eyes basically roll back into your head because you just can’t deal any other way.

The chocolate cake is richly chocolatey and enhanced by coffee in the batter and 1/2 a cup of Kahlua. Plus, it’s pretty easy to put together. You don’t even need to bust out your mixer if you don’t want to. Just one bowl and a whisk will do the job!

The frosting is a variation of my buttercream with some Kahlua and espresso. Again, the flavor is perfection! And it’s also nice and straight forward to make. You’ve got your butter and shortening (you can always use butter to replace the shortening if you prefer – read why I use it in this post – Vanilla Buttercream Frosting) and powdered sugar first. They form the base of the frosting and to that you add the Kahlua and espresso. You’ll want to heat up the Kahlua a bit and then dissolve the espresso in it and use that to flavor the frosting and thin it out to the right frosting consistency.

Once you’ve got your cakes and frosting, whip the cake together and dig in as fast as you can! This cake is full of moisture, so soft and flavorful – it’s truly delicious! If you have any love for coffee, Kahlua and chocolate, it’s a must try!

Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake slice
Decorated Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake

Watch How To Make It

Read Transcript

SHOP THE RECIPE

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slice of Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake
Recipe

Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake

  • Author: Lindsay
  • Prep Time: 25 minutes
  • Cook Time: 32 minutes
  • Total Time: 57 minutes
  • Yield: 12-14 Slices
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Oven
  • Cuisine: American

Description

This Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake is made with a moist chocolate Kahlua cake covered in Kahlua coffee frosting! It’s seriously so good – you won’t want to share!


Ingredients

CHOCOLATE KAHLUA CAKE

  • 2 cups (260g) all purpose flour
  • 2 cups (414g) sugar
  • 3/4 cup (85g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 3 large eggs
  • 3/4 cup (180ml) milk
  • 1 cup (240ml) vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup (120ml) Kahlua
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup (180ml) hot coffee

KAHLUA COFFEE FROSTING

  • 7 tbsp (75ml) Kahlua
  • 3 tbsp instant espresso powder
  • 1 1/2 cups (336g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/4 cups (236g) shortening
  • 10 1/4 cups (1208g) powdered sugar
  • Chocolate jimmie sprinkles

Instructions

1. Prepare three 8 inch cake pans with parchment paper circles in the bottom and grease the sides. Preheat oven to 300°F (148°C).
2. Add all the dry ingredients to a large bowl and combine.
3. Add the eggs, milk, vegetable oil, Kahlua and vanilla extract to the dry ingredients and mix well.
4. Add the coffee to the cake batter and mix well. Batter will be very thin.
5. Divide the batter evenly between cake pans and bake for 32-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs.
6. Remove cakes from oven and allow to cool for about 5 minutes, then remove to cooling racks to cool completely.
7. To make the frosting, heat the Kahlua until it just begins to boil, then add the espresso. Stir until dissolved.
8. In a large mixer bowl, combine the butter and shortening until smooth.
9. Add about half of the powdered sugar and mix until well combined and smooth.
10. Add about half of the Kahlua mixture and mix until smooth.
11. Add the remaining powdered sugar and mix until well combined and smooth.
12. Add additional Kahlua mixture until the frosting is the right consistency. If needed, refer to my tutorial on how to get the right frosting consistency.
13. To build the cake, cut the domes off the top of each cake so they are flat.
14. Put the first cake layer on a serving plate and top with 1 cup of frosting. Spread into an even layer.
15. Add the second layer of cake, another cup of frosting and then top the cake with the final layer of cake.
16. Frost the outside of the cake. Use my tutorial for frosting a smooth cake, if desired. Use an icing smoother/decorating comb tool like this one to add a pattern on the sides of the cake.
17. Press some sprinkles into the bottom of the sides of the cake.
18. Pipe some swirls around the top edge of the cake (I use Ateco icing tip #844) and add a few additional sprinkles, then serve.
19. Store the cake in an air tight container. Cake is best for 2-3 days.

Notes

If you’d like a non-alcoholic version of this cake, I’d suggest referring to this chocolate cake. It’s the one that was altered to make this cake and there are several changes that had to be made for the Kahlua cake. You can use regular cocoa and coffee instead of water, like is used in this cake. For the frosting, replace the Kahlua with water and add an additional tablespoon or two of espresso powder, depending on how strong of a coffee flavor you want.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 Slice
  • Calories: 1089
  • Sugar: 121 g
  • Sodium: 528.9 mg
  • Fat: 56.3 g
  • Carbohydrates: 141.1 g
  • Protein: 5.8 g
  • Cholesterol: 94.1 mg

Categories

Enjoy!

Kahlua Chocolate Layer Cake
Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake - moist, soft chocolate cake with Kahlua coffee frosting! So good!

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213 Comments
  1. Lois

    How do I print the recipe please, also not a coffee lover can I increase Kahlua and cocoa powder to compensate. Thank you

    1. Lindsay

      There is print button in the recipe card. Kahlua is a coffee flavored liqueur so I would think the espresso would be fine. You’re going to have coffee flavor from the Kahlua. However, the coffee in the cake can be replaced with water and the espresso in the frosting can simply be left out.

  2. Sarah Barkley

    Hi! I made this beautiful cake yesterday and ran into some issues that I hope you could help me figure out. I thoroughly buttered and floured the pans, but the cake stuck horribly to the pans. What do you use to help the cakes release properly? Also, after cooling and trying to figure out how to remove them from the pans, they ended up becoming a crumbly mess and broke into pieces. I tried to be creative and used a biscuit cutter to make them into mini cakes which worked well given the situation. When trying to frost them this morning after crumb coating and chilling, the frosting did not want to stick to the cakes and because of their moistness(although delicious) pretty much fell to pieces. Do you freeze your cakes prior to assembling? Do you chill after crumb coating??  I followed your recipes to a T, but am wondering how it could’ve ended up such a failure! Both turned out delicious and my husband was happy to eat it in pieces, but the decorator in me is going crazy! Help would be appreciated! Thank you for the delicious recipe! 

    1. Lindsay

      I don’t personally find butter and flour to work that well. I put parchment circles in the bottom of my pans and grease the sides with baking spray. I typically use Baker’s Joy spray. The way your question is written, it sounds like you let the cakes cool in the pan. If that’s the case, you want to remove them from the pans a few minutes after they come out of the oven. If you leave them in the hot pans, the cakes will continue to cook and will be more likely to stick to the pans.

      As for the frosting, if sounds like it was maybe too thick. Check out this post on getting the right frosting consistency. I don’t freeze or chill my cakes. I really do think was probably a consistency issue. I hope all that helps!

    2. Suszie70

      You can use the Wilton Icer Tip it’s about 2-3 inches wide it helps with crumbs sticking to your icing cooking the cake before icing works best and after you crumb coated it you chill it again I put mine in freezer for about 30 minutes and add another layer of icing you should get a good smooth layer I’m a cake decorator so it takes some practice 🙂 

  3. Marilyn

    thank you so much for sharing and inspiration….this coming september 2017, son in law first birthday what do you suggest , I plan to bake cupcakes and cake ……what flavor and frosting better.

  4. Leanne

    I agree this cake looks amazing!! Almost could taste it through the screen. However, since I want to serve this at a family event where children / teenagers will be eating it, what can I substitute for Kahlua? Unfortunately, research has shown that not all the alcohol cooks away or evaporates and I don’t want to risk causing any problems. Thanks for your help. Maybe I’ll have to make it just for myself and not share….LOL

  5. Anna_g

    Oh my! I can’t wait to try this out! Although I have to wait 10 days for my new oven to arrive, it died on me today ????
    Thanks sooo much for sharing!
    One question though, can I omit the shortening for the frosting and use butter altogether?
    Looking forward to your reply!
    Thanks again ????

  6. Cynthia Caballes Papangelis

    Hi Lindsay

    As a loyal coffee drinker and a little love for alcohol, I will definitely bake this cake.

    It looks yummy and amazing- I will let you know what the outcome of the baking and verdict from my friends.

    Cheers
    Cynthia

      1. Huma

        Thank you so much Lindsay! I cannot wait to try to make this cake!
        On a separate note, I made the Berry Mascarpone cake this weekend and it was a huge success with my family!!! Thank you so much for the recipe and video tutorial!!

Lindsay
About Lindsay

I’m the baker, recipe developer and photographer behind Life, Love and Sugar. I love sharing trusted recipes with helpful tips to give you great results.

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