Bake the Ultimate Homemade Neapolitan Layer Cake from Scratch: A Classic Recipe
There’s an undeniable joy in baking from scratch, especially when it comes to a classic like the Neapolitan Layer Cake. While boxed cake mixes offer convenience, the depth of flavor, superior texture, and immense satisfaction derived from creating this iconic dessert with flour, sugar, and butter is truly unparalleled. After a busy period, I finally carved out some time to tackle this project, and the results were absolutely worth the wait! This homemade Neapolitan cake, with its distinct chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry layers, quickly became a family favorite, proving far more delightful than any store-bought or mix-based version.
Crafting Each Distinct Layer: Chocolate, Vanilla, and Strawberry Perfection
Creating a Neapolitan cake from scratch means giving each layer its unique character while ensuring they all complement each other beautifully. The key to a successful layered cake is achieving a consistent density and crumb structure across all layers, allowing them to stack neatly and bake evenly. For the rich chocolate layer, I opted for the Hershey’s Perfectly Chocolate Cake recipe. This recipe is renowned for its deep cocoa flavor and wonderfully moist, slightly dense texture, which uses all-purpose flour. Its robustness makes it an excellent foundation for the cake.
The challenge then was to find a yellow cake recipe that also used all-purpose flour and offered a similar density to match the chocolate layer. An old Betty Crocker recipe, affectionately known as “Bonnie Butter Cake,” came to the rescue. Its classic butter cake profile provided the perfect base for both the vanilla and strawberry layers. To create two distinct batters from this single yellow cake recipe, I simply divided the prepared batter into two separate bowls, ensuring each received its special touch.
Achieving Authentic Strawberry Flavor and Color (Without Fresh Berries)
For the strawberry layer, the goal was to infuse a vibrant, yet balanced, strawberry flavor and a delightful pink hue without relying on fresh strawberries, which can sometimes introduce too much moisture and alter the cake’s texture. My secret weapon for this was strawberry gelatin powder. By substituting a small amount of sugar with strawberry gelatin powder in one of the “Bonnie Butter Cake” batters, I achieved an authentic, slightly artificial but incredibly tasty strawberry essence. A dash of strawberry extract further enhanced this flavor profile, making it pop without being overpowering. The best part? The Jell-O provided such a perfect shade of pink that food coloring became entirely unnecessary, keeping the ingredient list a bit cleaner and the color naturally vibrant.
You might look at the full recipe and think it appears dauntingly long, but I assure you, it’s much simpler than it seems. The length is primarily due to breaking down the “Bonnie Butter Cake” into two separate sections—one for the pure vanilla layer and one for the strawberry variation—so you can easily prepare them in individual bowls. The chocolate layer is surprisingly quick to assemble, coming together in just a couple of minutes. Many of the ingredients for the yellow and strawberry layers are repeated, which simplifies the shopping list and preparation process significantly. The detailed instructions ensure you have clear guidance for each step, leading to a beautifully layered and incredibly delicious Neapolitan cake.
Recipe
Scratch Neapolitan Layer Cake
Cookie Madness
Pin Recipe
Ingredients
Chocolate Batter:
- ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons 4 oz all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup milk
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup boiling water or very hot coffee
Yellow Cake:
- 1 ¼ cups plus 2 tablespoons 6 oz all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter softened — but still cool (not melted at all)
- ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 large egg
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
Strawberry Cake:
- 1 ¼ cups plus 2 tablespoons 6 oz all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter softened but still cool (not melted or partially melted)
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons dry strawberry Jell-O
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon strawberry extract optional
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Have ready 3 greased and floured 9 inch round cake pans.
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Prepare the chocolate cake first. In a mixing bowl, stir together flour through cocoa powder. Add the oil, milk, egg, vanilla and stir until well mixed. Stir in the boiling water or coffee. Beat with an electric mixer for about 30 to 60 seconds or until smooth, then pour into the pan. Bake for about 30 minutes. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then invert onto a rack and let cool completely.
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While chocolate cake bakes, wash out the mixing bowl and beaters and start preparing the other two batters. Try to time it so they’re ready to go in the oven a little after the chocolate cake is ready. You don’t want to let the batters sit too long.
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For each of the two batters, measure out the flour, baking powder and salt in separate bowls. Set aside
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Working with two mixing bowls, put the butter and sugar for each batter in a mixing bowl. With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar in each bowl. Add one egg to each bowl and beat until light and fluffy, then add the flavorings. To one bowl, beat in the vanilla. To the other, beat in the strawberry Jell-O, and both extracts.
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With a big spoon or a heavy duty scraper, add the flour and milk alternately, beginning and ending with the flour, to the yellow batter and mix by hand until smooth. Batter will be thick. Repeat procedure with the strawberry batter.
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Put the batter into two cake pans and bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out with moist crumbs. Let cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then invert and let cool completely.
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To assemble, frost and stack the cakes so that the chocolate is on the bottom, vanilla is in the center and strawberry is on top. Or stack it the way you want. It’s not like I’m the queen of everything and you have to follow orders.
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Frosting: Beat 3 sticks (12 oz) softened unsalted butter until smooth and creamy. Gradually add 4 ½ cups of powdered sugar. After adding about half of the sugar, add 3 tablespoons of heavy cream and continue beating in remaining sugar. Continue beating and scraping sides of bowl, adding whole milk as needed, until you reach a smooth consistency. For a sweeter frosting, add a little more powdered sugar and milk. Beat in a pinch of salt (or omit if you used salted butter for some reason).
Tips for Baking Flawless Layer Cakes
Baking a multi-layered cake might seem intimidating, but with a few key practices, you can achieve beautiful results every time. First, always ensure your ingredients, especially butter and eggs, are at room temperature unless specified otherwise. This allows them to emulsify properly, creating a smoother, more uniform batter. When preparing your cake pans, take the time to grease and flour them thoroughly, or line them with parchment paper, to prevent sticking and ensure easy release of your delicate cake layers.
Secondly, avoid overmixing the batter. Overmixing can develop the gluten in the flour too much, leading to a tough and dry cake. Mix until just combined, especially after adding the dry ingredients. For the chocolate layer, the addition of boiling water or hot coffee is crucial; it not only enhances the chocolate flavor but also contributes to the cake’s moistness and tender crumb. When alternating flour and milk in the yellow and strawberry batters, begin and end with flour to ensure a balanced mixture and optimal texture. Remember that these batters will be quite thick, which is perfectly normal.
Finally, keep a close eye on your baking times. Ovens can vary, so the specified baking time is a guideline. Rely on the toothpick test: insert a toothpick into the center of the cake, and if it comes out with moist crumbs (not wet batter), your cake is ready. Proper cooling is also vital. Allow the cakes to cool in their pans for about 10 minutes before inverting them onto a wire rack to cool completely. Attempting to frost warm cakes is a recipe for disaster!
Assembling and Frosting Your Neapolitan Masterpiece
Once your cake layers are completely cooled, it’s time for the fun part: assembly and frosting! This recipe calls for an easy American-style buttercream frosting, which is incredibly versatile and delicious. Start by beating softened unsalted butter until it’s light and creamy. Gradually incorporate powdered sugar, heavy cream, and milk until you achieve a smooth, spreadable consistency. Don’t be afraid to adjust the amount of powdered sugar and milk to reach your desired sweetness and texture. A pinch of salt helps to balance the sweetness, or you can omit it if you’re using salted butter.
When stacking your Neapolitan layers, the traditional order is chocolate on the bottom, vanilla in the middle, and strawberry on top. However, feel free to arrange them in any order that pleases your eye and your palate! There’s no one “right” way to create your perfect cake. For a professional-looking finish, apply a thin “crumb coat” of frosting first. This seals in any loose crumbs, creating a clean surface for your final, thicker layer of frosting. Once the crumb coat has set slightly (you can chill it in the fridge for 15-20 minutes), apply the remaining frosting evenly, using an offset spatula or bench scraper for smooth sides and a beautiful presentation.
Why This Scratch Neapolitan Cake Shines
The beauty of this homemade Neapolitan Layer Cake lies in its layered complexity and the distinct, yet harmonious, flavors. Each bite offers a delightful journey from rich chocolate to classic vanilla and finally to a bright, sweet strawberry. Beyond the incredible taste, baking this cake from scratch provides immense satisfaction. You control the quality of ingredients, the intensity of flavors, and the overall experience, resulting in a dessert that truly stands out. It’s a perfect cake for celebrations, family gatherings, or simply to indulge your love for baking and delicious desserts.
Update on the Scratch Neapolitan Layer Cake
It’s wonderful to see this Neapolitan Layer Cake recipe continue to receive rave reviews from bakers! I’ve even heard from enthusiastic bakers who have successfully adapted it for dietary needs, confirming that it works beautifully with self-rising gluten-free flour. This adaptability speaks volumes about the robustness of the core recipe. For those who might have been unsure about when to add the sugar in the chocolate cake layer, a quick clarification: the granulated sugar for the chocolate batter is indeed added along with the other dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cocoa powder) at the initial mixing stage. This ensures all dry components are well-distributed before the wet ingredients are incorporated, contributing to the perfect texture and flavor of your chocolate cake layer.