This pretty Kahlua Cake is infused with coffee liqueur & espresso, and adorned with billowy mocha buttercream ruffles.
Anyone else love boozy desserts as much as I do? I’m not huge on drinking alcoholic beverages, but I’m all over having that flavour come through in baked goods.
The cake I’m bringing you today uses one of my favourite liqueurs, Kahlua. It’s a staple around here, just like Baileys, and we all know I have my fair share of Baileys recipes. It was time to let another delicious liqueur shine with this Kahlua Cake!
How to make this Kahlua Cake
For the cake layers, I used my favourite vanilla cake recipe, except I replaced some of the buttermilk with Kahlua. You can use any coffee liqueur you like though, or stick with vanilla in the cake batter since there’s Kahlua in both the coffee syrup (don’t skip this!) and the mocha buttercream.
Kahlua Simple Syrup
The Kahlua simple syrup is a must-do, in my opinion. Really you could skip it, but it’s so easy to make and adds both flavour and moisture to the cake. After preparing the syrup, I poked a bunch of holes (using bamboo skewers) into the warm cakes and brushed the syrup onto each layer.
Next time, I’d probably wait till the cakes are cooled and trim off a very thin layer of the top to remove the “crust”. Then I’d brush the syrup onto each layer. I feel like this would do a better job of penetrating through the cake. No matter which option you choose, don’t be shy with brushing the syrup on!
How to make Mocha Buttercream
This Kahlua Cake is finished off with my very favourite mocha buttercream. Honestly, this stuff is SO good. You’ll be eating it with a spoon for sure, and you’ll be very grateful for the leftovers (if there are any).
The buttercream is a simple Swiss meringue buttercream with espresso powder, melted chocolate, and Kahlua added to it. It’s important to make sure your chocolate is melted, but cooled (no longer warm) or your buttercream will turn soupy. It’s saveable by popping the whole thing into the fridge for 20mins and rewhipping.
By the same token, make sure your buttercream isn’t too cold when you add the chocolate as the chocolate can solidify and create chunks. I’ve never had this happen, personally, but I know others have. I melt my chocolate before I start making my buttercream and once the buttercream is ready, the chocolate is at the right temperature (I stir the chocolate now and then to make sure it cools evenly).
How to Make a Ruffle Cake
I wanted to try something a bit different with the decorating technique this time and (surprise, surprise!) I’m not totally happy with the way it turned out.
The ruffles aren’t exactly difficult to do, but the challenge comes in as you try to get the rows perfectly even while your hand is getting tired and the buttercream is getting super soft in the piping bag you’ve been clutching onto. As such, the ruffles are a bit messy in parts, especially near the bottom (I started at the top).
To do the ruffles, I used a large piping bag fitted with a large petal tip (Wilton #125). I started at the top of the cake, making sure that the first set of ruffles would peek over the top. I placed the thicker end of the tip against the cake at a 45 degree angle and piped the ruffles up and down as I spun my turntable.
I repeated the process with subsequent rows, making sure to always start in the same place so that the “seams” would all be together at the back of the cake. All cakes have a “back” amiright?
Piping the ruffles gets more difficult as you work your way down for the reasons I mentioned:
- Your hand is tired
- Your buttercream is soft
- The angle is more awkward
To try to combat the soft buttercream, you can use a smaller piping bag and just refill it more often. I am lazy and I find refilling a used piping bag to be one of the most annoying things in the world, so I try to pack as much as possible into a large piping bag.
This is not the best thing to do, and I don’t recommend it, but again, I’m lazy. And my laziness has no doubt caused these imperfect ruffles! Oh well. It is what it is, and did I mention it tastes delicious??
I still think it looks pretty even though it’s not perfect, and most importantly it tastes DELICIOUS. You really can’t go wrong with the coffee + chocolate combo in my opinion. If you are a coffee fan, you will love this Kahlua Cake!
Tips for this Kahlua Cake:
- You can make this cake without coffee liqueur if you prefer. Use 1 cup buttermilk and substitute 1 tsp vanilla for Kahlua.
- I recommend trimming/levelling the tops of the cake layers before brushing the syrup on to get rid of the crust and help the syrup soak into the cake.
- Be sure to use instant espresso powder (not granules) in the buttercream. Otherwise, dissolve the granules in 1 Tbsp hot water and let cool before adding to the frosting.
- I used a large petal tip (Wilton #125) to make the ruffles.
- If you’re a fan of boozy or coffee flavoured desserts, be sure to check out my Coffee & Baileys Cake, Mocha Chocolate Cake, and Baileys Cheesecake Cookie Cups!
- Be sure to check my Swiss Meringue Buttercream post for tips and troubleshooting.
- To help ensure your cake layers bake up nice and flat, see my Flat Top Cakes post.
Kahlua Cake with Mocha Buttercream
Ingredients
Kahlua Syrup:
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp espresso powder
- 1/4 cup Kahlua coffee liqueur
Cake:
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1/4 cup Kahlua coffee liqueur
- 3/4 cup buttermilk room temperature
Mocha Buttercream:
- 5 large egg whites
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 3 Tbsp Kahlua coffee liqueur
- 1 1/2 Tbsp espresso powder not granules
- 5 oz good quality dark chocolate chopped, melted, cooled
Instructions
Kahlua Syrup:
- Bring sugar, water, and espresso powder to a boil in a small pot over med-high heat. Simmer for 1min. Remove from heat and stir in Kahlua. Set aside to cool.
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour three 6" cake rounds and line with parchment.
- In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt until well combined. Set aside. Combine Kahlua and buttermilk. Set aside.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on med-high until pale and fluffy (approx 3mins). Reduce speed and add eggs one at a time fully incorporating after each addition.
- Alternate adding flour mixture and buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with flour (3 additions of flour and 2 of milk). Fully incorporating after each addition.
- Bake for 30-35mins or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean.
- Place cakes on wire rack to cool for 10mins then turn out onto wire rack. Poke holes into the cakes using a bamboo skewer and brush generously with Kahlua syrup.
- Allow cakes to cool completely.
Mocha Buttercream:
- Place egg whites and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk until combined.*
- Place bowl over a pot with 1-2" of simmering water and stir constantly with a whisk until the mixture is hot and no longer grainy to the touch or reads 160F on a candy thermometer (approx. 3mins).
- Place bowl on your stand mixer and whip on med-high until the meringue is stiff and cooled (the bowl is no longer warm to the touch (approx. 5-10mins)).
- Switch to paddle attachment. Slowly add cubed butter and mix until smooth.**
- Add cooled melted chocolate and espresso powder. Mix until combined. Slowly stream in Kahlua and whip until smooth.
Assembly:
- Place one layer of cake on a cake stand or serving plate. Top with approximately 2/3 cup of buttercream. Repeat with remaining layers and crumb coat the cake. Chill for 20mins.
- Frost the top of the cake with approximately 2/3 cup of buttercream. Do a decorative swirl using a large offset spatula. Smooth any frosting that overhangs the sides.
- Using a large petal tip, pipe ruffles around the cake in horizontal rows starting at the top.
- Decorate with coffee beans if desired.
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Notes
** The buttercream may look like it's curdled at some point. Keep mixing until it is completely smooth.
Originally posted on May 7, 2017
Shelly says
I don’t have a stand mixer or a paddle so would it be safe to use a regular mixer ?
Olivia says
Hi Shelly! Do you mean a hand mixer? I think that will be fine for the cake, but it will be a challenge for the buttercream. Doable, but will take a good 20-30mins of whipping by hand. See this post for tips: https://livforcake.com/swiss-meringue-buttercream-recipe/
Sreekala says
Hi Olivia, Made this cake over the weekend for a party. Everyone loved it! It was amazing! While making the cake after creaming the butter, I folded in the dry and wet ingredients by hand rather than using the stand mixer to avoid over mixing. The cake turned out awesome – light and airy! Thank you for the post!
Olivia says
Hi Sreekala! Thanks so much for your tips, I’m thrilled that everyone loved it 🙂
Elizabeth says
Your recipe looks amazing.I want to use this recipe to make a 2 layer 9*13 inch cake for a birthday.Do I need to double the recipe?
Olivia says
Hi Elizabeth! Converting pan sizes is always tricky. Here’s a site I use as a guideline: http://www.joyofbaking.com/PanSizes.html
lynne johnson says
My grandmother, about 30 years go made a Kahlua Cake for me for Christmas. She got the recipe from a Kahlua cookbook. I found the recipe book, after Christmas and decided to make it for Easter. Lo and behold, I have misplaced the book. Your recipe looks kind of close to it, since I have been to the Kahlua website and they have nothing but drinks there. It looks like I am going to try yours. I want to know if one can use two or three 9 inch layer cake pans since I do not have 6″ inch cake pans? I would appreciate any help that you could give me. Thank you for a fantastic recipe.
Olivia says
Hi Lynne! If you double the recipe you can use three 9″ cake pans. I hope you love this recipe as much as you loved your grandmother’s! Please let me know how it turns out.
Katie Jenkins says
This icing is DELICIOUS. It is whipped heaven that could make angels cry! In all seriousness, this cake was well worth the effort. Thanks for the recipe!
Olivia says
Hi Katie! I love this icing too! Totally my fave. So glad you liked it 🙂
Joanna says
I don’t have a double boiler, is it possible to make this buttercream without one??
Olivia says
Hi Joanna! I just use a pot with simmering water and place my mixer bowl over it. Just make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water.
james harris says
Olivia. Is there a way for you to post your decorating techniques as it pertains to your swirled cake tops? I would love to see a video for that. I am really feeling your style, and skills!
Olivia says
Thanks James! I don’t have a video for this unfortunately, but you can see how it’s done about 1:30 into this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHdd72cIUpA
Bettina Duke says
When I open this link I see a video for making stripes. Which tip did you use and I can experiment 😊
Olivia says
Hi Bettina! I mention and link to the tip in the recipe card and the Tips section above it.
TC says
Hi! Is the recipe for the mocha buttercream here, a swiss meringue buttercream?
Olivia says
Hi TC! Yes, it is a Swiss meringue buttercream.
Emily says
I absolutely loved this recipe! All my family and friends ate it up quick. Only thing is I couldn’t enjoy it because I am dairy free. Is it possible to substitute a vegan margarine for the butter in this recipe?
Olivia says
Hi Emily! I’m so glad everyone liked this one! I don’t think the vegan margarine would work well for the buttercream, but it should be ok in the cake.
Anusha Venugopal says
Hi Olivia!
Love all your recipes 🙂
Im looking to bake this cake for my friend’s birthday but most probably using 9″ cake pan and making it 2 layers . How can I adjust the above recipe for that ?
Thanks
Anusha
Olivia says
Hi Anusha! Converting pan sizes is always tricky. Here’s a site I use as a guideline: http://www.joyofbaking.com/PanSizes.html The recipe as is will work for two 8″ pans, so I’d suggest 1.5x the recipe for two 9″
Donna says
Hi Olivia,
I’ve tasted this cake and think it’s the best I’ve ever had! I do love cake….
Can I attempt to make this without a paddle attachment for my mixer?
Olivia says
Hi Donna! So glad you liked this one. Do you only have a whisk then? I think that will probably be fine, but you’ll need to scrape it quite a bit when whipping the butter and sugar and be careful not to overmix the cake batter!
Gianna says
This recipe looks awesome but the 6” rounds are making me think this cake won’t be big enough, how should I adjust the recipe if I were to use 8” round instead?
Olivia says
Hi Gianna! You can leave the recipe as it for two 8″ rounds or 1.5x the recipe for three 8″ rounds.
Joanna says
Hi Olivia, thanks for sharing your recipes! Excited to make this for a friend’s birthday. Should I adjust the baking time if I’m using two 8 inch pans? Thanks in advance 🙂
Olivia says
Hi Joanna! The baking time should be roughly the same, though the layers might be slightly thinner. Start checkin it at about 25mins 🙂
Carol says
If I am making the cake the day before I plan to frost the cake, when should I add the coffee soak?
Olivia says
Hi Carol! Add the soak during assembling the cake.
Romina says
I always wanted to try Kahlua cake recipe, it was my birthday yesterday so I tried it’s so good and enriched with coffee flavour. My all-time favourite is still mocha chocolate. Thanks much for this delicious recipes. I changed the cake Deco because I’m not so good with icing tools but it was ok and delicious. I saved leftovers in the freezer.
Thanks again
Olivia says
Happy belated birthday Romina! I’m so happy to hear that you liked this one. The Mocha Cake is still my fave too 🙂
sanaya says
hi olivia- I’m probably your biggest fan ( am sure you hear that a lot)
i was just wondering for the cake- how much vanilla do you put because the ingredients say 1 tbsp of Khalua but the instructions say add vanilla
Olivia says
Hi Sanaya! You are so sweet, thank you! It was actually my mistake — I had intended to use vanilla but used Kahlua instead. I’ve updated the instructions 🙂
Denise Sauter says
I can’t wait to give this a shot (haha, literally)!!!!
I appreciate & love your wit and sincerity in presenting this recipe! Makes it more approachable, less intimidating. I am a seasoned Baker, but still sometimes look over a recipe and think ‘Oh lord….’
But this I will DEFINITELY do!
THANKS!
Olivia says
Hi Denise! Thanks so much, I’m so glad I was able to make it more approachable! I totally know what you mean about recipes sometimes being overwhelming — I always like to give a behind-the-scenes run down of things that didn’t go as planned! Haha. I hope you like this one 🙂
cindy rodriguez says
Whoa, what a gorgeous cake! And love the idea of using Kahlua in this recipe. I’ve been experimenting with using various spirits and even beer in my recipes – details to come. And who can say no to mocha buttercream. Yes, please!
Olivia says
Thanks so much Cindy! The mocha buttercream is my fave 🙂 I am super intrigued to see your beer infused recipes!
Christina Kaariainen says
Can I use this buttercream on a chocolate cake?
Olivia says
Hi Christina! Yes, I used the same frosting for this cake here:
https://livforcake.com/mocha-chocolate-cake/
Meg | Meg is Well says
I feel like you made this cake especially for me! It’s so perfect. Although, my wrist does hurt just thinking about frosting the cake that way. But it looks like that means you get more frosting, so seems like it’s worth it!
Olivia says
Thanks so much Meg! I do think this would be the perfect birthday cake for you 😉
jacquee | i sugar coat it! says
This looks and sounds so absolutely AH-MAZING! I am such a fan of Kahlua/coffee/chocolate combo! Spring here has been wetter and cooler than normal, but the temps can only go up from here (at least that is what’s I tell myself…). Get out those t-shirts and shorts and enjoy for both of us!!
Olivia says
Spring here has been almost non-existant! I am SO ready for the warmer temps and maybe an iced Kahlua/coffee/chocolate something 😉
Nila @ The Tough Cookie says
Um YES, that looks REALLY good! I love coffee soaks, I have a dust bottle of Kahlua in my pantry (not much of a drinker) and I was really impressed with your Milk & Cookies cake, so I’m definitely going to try this!
Olivia says
Thanks so much Nila!! I hope you like it 😀
CC McCart says
This just sounds sinfully DELISH! I’m thinking this would do well as cupcakes. Can’t wait to give this recipe a whirl. Thank you. CHEERS, CC
Olivia says
Cupcakes would be so yummy for sure!! I hope you like it 🙂