This Chocolate Chip Cake with Chocolate Chip Buttercream Frosting is 2 layers of moist and delicious white cake sprinkled with mini chocolate chips throughout, and a sweet chocolate chip buttercream frosting to boot! This cake recipe makes 2, 8" cake layers and the frosting makes enough to cover the entire cake without going crazy with the sweetness. If you want to get a little fancy, you can watch my short and sweet tutorial below to add this swirled top filled in with—you guessed it—more mini chocolate chocolate chips! Go big or go home, right?
I've been on a cake making kick lately (even revamped my chocolate cake with oreo buttercream frosting recipe), so I thought I'd add a Chocolate Chip Cake with Chocolate Chip Buttercream Frosting to the recipe box. It's a recipe I haven't made in quite a while...I'm talking 20+ years, so it was time!
The chocolate chip buttercream frosting is your basic, creamy vanilla buttercream frosting with one cup of mini chocolate chips added to it! That's it. If you'd rather leave them out though that's totally fine!
Both recipes come together very easily. With the chocolate chip cake recipe, you don't even need to use your hand mixer or your stand mixer! Just grab 2 mixing bowls, a whisk, and 2 cake pans and you're set. With the chocolate chip buttercream frosting recipe, I do recommend using your hand or stand mixer.
a few things to note before getting started
chocolate chip cake tips
- I used Wilton brand 8" x 2" cake pans for this chocolate chips cake recipe.
- I like to use my Wilton bake strips when baking round cakes. They do an excellent job from preventing doming on your cakes. If you don't have any, you can either cool the cakes upside down on the cooling racks or simply cut and level the domes off the top of your cakes. Make sure to use a serrated bread knife.
- Whenever I am baking cakes (bundt cakes included), I always, always, always use Baker's Joy. It's a flour based baking spray that just works super well and I've never had any issues getting a cake stuck in a pan. I'm not even getting paid by them to say this, that's how much I love their product!
- When spraying the cake pans with baking spray, you can also add an 8" circle of parchment paper to the inside bottom of the pans. Just make sure to respray the bottoms of the pans again with the baking spray.
chocolate chip buttercream frosting tips
- Because of the mini chocolate chips in the frosting, it's harder to get a smoother look to the cake. I didn't create thick layers of the frosting either, and used the entire amount.
- To get the decorative swirled top as I did, you'll need an offset spatula and a revolving cake stand. Take the offset spatula and place it in the center of your cake. Without moving it, begin to spin the cake stand and let the spatula work its way to the outside of the cake. Take a little of the mini chocolate chips at a time and sprinkle them into the swirl, gently pressing down so they don't go anywhere. You can also view my short and sweet video below on how to add the swirl!
- You can omit the mini chocolate chips from the vanilla buttercream frosting recipe if that's just too many chocolate chips for you. Alternatively, you can try this chocolate frosting recipe.
general baking
- Prep and cooking times noted in the recipe below are for the chocolate chip cake only. Add another 15-20 minutes to make the frosting, plus the additional time it typically takes you to frost a cake.
- I bought 2, 12 oz. bags of mini semi-sweet chocolate chips to use for this recipe. You'll have extra left, especially if you don't create the swirl on top.
- This cake when assembled and frosted measures approx. 4 1/2" high (with each cake layer being 2" tall).
recommended chocolate chip cake baking tools
how to add a chocolate chip swirl to the top of your cake!
give these other delicious Beyond the Butter cake recipes a try!
- Banana Chocolate Chip Snack Cake with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
- Chocolate Cake with Oreo Buttercream Frosting
- Vanilla Bean Cake with Strawberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- Pennsylvania Dutch Chocolate Funny Cake
- Chocolate Meringue Layer Cake
- Hummingbird Sheet Cake with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
Chocolate Chip Cake with Chocolate Chip Buttercream Frosting
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes (includes 30 minutes of cooling time)
- Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Yield: 12-16 slices of cake 1x
- Category: Cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Dessert
Description
This Chocolate Chip Cake is 2 layers of moist and delicious white cake with mini chocolate chips in it. Double down on the mini chocolate chips and make this sweet chocolate chip buttercream frosting! Definitely a must-make for any small party or gathering!
*Makes 2, 8" cake layers
Ingredients
chocolate chip cake
- 2 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 2 cups Granulated Sugar
- 2 tsp. Baking Powder
- 1/2 tsp. Salt
- 1 cup Milk
- 1/2 cup Water
- 3/4 cup Vegetable Oil (or Canola)
- 1 tbsp. Vanilla Extract
- 2 Large Eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips (I bought 2, 12 oz. bags to cover both the chocolate chips in the cake recipe and the frosting recipe, plus I used extra from the 2nd bag for the top swirl)
chocolate chip buttercream frosting
- 1 cup (2 sticks) Unsalted Butter, room temperature
- 4 - 4 1/2 cups Powdered Sugar
- 1 tsp. Clear Vanilla Extract (or regular Vanilla Extract if you prefer)
- 1/4 cup Heavy Cream
- 1 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips
Instructions
chocolate chip cake
- Adjust oven rack to the 2nd level position and pre-heat the oven to 350ºF.
- Spray 2, 8" cake pans with a flour-based baking spray (I like to use Baker's Joy - it's never let me down!) and set aside. See notes section below for additional items you can add to the cake pans during this step.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In large size mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, water, oil, vanilla extract, and eggs.
- Slowly whisk in the dry ingredients with the wet and mix until just combine, then add in the mini chocolate chips. Do not over mix the cake batter.
- Evenly pour into the 2, 8" sprayed pans and bake for 35-40 minutes at 350ºF or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean (my oven took 40 minutes).
- When done, allow the cakes to cool for 10 minutes before removing them from the pans. To remove the cakes from the pans either carefully flip them over onto the cooling rack - or - take the top of the cooling rack, place it over the top of the cake pan, and carefully turn it upside down so the cake is now resting on top of the cooling rack. Remove the cake pan. Make sure the cakes have cooled completely before frosting.
- Cakes can be double wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and kept in the fridge for 2-3 days. If planning to freeze, double wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and place them in a freezer bag. Cakes can remain in the freezer for up to a month. When ready, take the cakes out of the freezer and let them sit at room temperature fro about 30-45 minutes before frosting.
chocolate chip buttercream frosting
- Using your hand-held mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until completely smooth (about 2-3 minutes).
- Switching the speed to low, add in the confectioners sugar one cup at a time until blended. If you'd like for the frosting to be thicker, add in 1 tbsp of confectioners sugar at a time until the desired consistency is to your liking. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Add the vanilla extract and heavy cream, then add in the mini chocolate chips and mix until blended.
Notes
- Prep and cooking times noted above are for the chocolate chip cake only. Add another 15-20 minutes to make the frosting, plus the additional time it takes to frost the cakes.
- This cake when assembled and frosted measures approx. 4 1/2" high (with each cake layer being 2" tall).
- Because of the mini chocolate chips in the frosting, it's harder to get a smoother look to the cake. I didn't create thick layers of the frosting either, and used the entire amount.
- For a flour-based baking spray, I swear by Bakers Joy! Don't be shy when you spray the cake pans with this stuff. It makes for an easy removal of your cakes!
- Using bake strips with your cake pans is totally optional, but they do produce a flatter cake top verses the dome shape that you can sometimes end up with. If you don't have the strips and you need to cut the dome part off of your cakes, use a serrated bread knife.
- When spraying the cake pans with baking spray, you can also add an 8" circle of parchment paper to the inside bottom of the pans. Just make sure to respray the bottoms of the pans again with the baking spray.
Keywords: chocolate chip cake, chocolate chip buttercream frosting, chocolate chips, vanilla cake, vanilla buttercream frosting, 8" cake recipes, cake recipes
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Jennifer Preston says
Jenn!! I just LOVE how you decorate this cake. That chocolate chip swirl is just gorgeous!
Jennifer says
Oh my gosh Jennifer, thank you so much! I had fun making it!
Sky says
What's the flavor resemble? A vanilla cake with chocolate chips? Or more of a cookie dough? Been looking to find a recipe for cupcakes that taste like cookie dough and this might be it?
Jennifer says
This cake resembles a vanilla cake with chocolate chips, sorry! You should check out The Scran Line. I bet he will more than likely have what you're looking for with a cookie dough taste!
Amanda says
I am making this tomorrow and I can. not. wait!
Jennifer says
Yay! I hope you love it as much I do!❤️ If you take an pics, send some my way via Insta @beyond.the.butter / #beyondthebutter) so I can share them!
Giustina says
This looks yummy! Can I make these into cupcakes instead of cake?
Jennifer says
I haven’t tried it, but yes! Keep the oven temp the same, but bake them for about 18-20 minutes. I’d love to see how they come out!
Jessica says
This cake was SO yummy and my son loved it for his birthday! All the chocolate chips fell to the bottom of the cakes. Did I do something wrong? I thought they would be more mixed into the cake.
Jennifer says
Oh I’m so glad he loved it! You didn’t do anything wrong, sometimes that can happen. If you coat the chocolate chips with some flour in a ziplock bag that can help keep them from sinking.