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The holidays are fast approaching, and there’s no better way to celebrate Christmas than with this chocolate peppermint swirl cake. This cake is a perfect Christmas dessert that everyone will love!

Chocolate and peppermint will always be popular because of the sweet chocolate complementing the bright mint flavor.

This chocolate peppermint swirl cake is made with light and fluffy dark chocolate cake layers filled with velvety smooth peppermint buttercream, rich chocolate ganache, and crushed peppermint candies.

The dark chocolate cake recipe is a total crowd pleaser and is something I have been perfecting for ten years. It has a light sponge texture and always stays moist. This cake recipe also freezes well so you can easily make this cake ahead of time and decorate at a later time.

Then I’ll show you how to make this creamy peppermint buttercream. This buttercream is an American style buttercream made with butter, powdered sugar, heavy cream, salt, and peppermint extract. The peppermint extract is potent, so a little can go a long way.

Next, you’ll color half the buttercream with super red gel food coloring, so it’ll be a bright red color that is perfect for Christmas. And goes perfectly with the crushed peppermint candies!

Finally, this cake has rich chocolate ganache dripping down the sides of the cake with peppermint swirl buttercream on top!

I promise you won’t be able to taste this cake without having the Christmas spirit!

Tips for Success:

Read through all the ingredients and instructions so you can get a better idea of how much time and what you need to make this cake.
In this cake recipe, you need 1/2 cup buttermilk; if you don’t have any buttermilk on hand, you can easily use 1/2 cup whole milk mixed with 1 ½ teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar to make your own.
You can bake the cake layers ahead of time. Wrap the cake layers in plastic wrap and freeze up to one month.
You can make the buttercream a day ahead and refrigerate it overnight. Then take them out to come back to room temperature. Make sure the buttercream is at room temperature before re-whipping.
A single batch of this cake recipe makes three, 6-inch round cake layers or two 8-inch round cake layers. Double the cake recipe to make enough cake batter for three, 8-inch cake layers.
Food coloring gets darker over time, so it’s best to gradually add the food coloring, which is best for lighter colors.
Place the cake on top of a baking sheet to easily put sprinkles on the cake without making a mess.
Serve cake at room temperature.

What Tools You’ll Need to Make This Cake:

5-quart, Stand Mixer with mixing bowl & paddle attachment
3, 6-inch cake pans or 2, 8-inch cake pans
Offset spatula
8-inch or 10-inch white cake board
Serrated knife or cake leveler
Turntable
Cake scraper or bench scraper
Piping bag (I use reusable silicone bags)
#844 Ateco star piping tip
Whisk or sifter
Rubber Spatula
Non-Stick Cooking Spray and Parchment Paper
Ice Cream Scooper with Trigger Release (for dividing cake batter evenly)
Half sheet baking pan
Squeeze bottle
Super red gel food coloring
Crushed peppermint candies
Cake Stand, optional

Here’s how to make this chocolate peppermint swirl cake that’ll have you singing Christmas carols!

Let’s Get Baking!

How to Make Dark Chocolate Cake

Preheat oven to 350 °F. Spray three 6-inch round cake pans or two 8-inch round cake pans with non-stick spray, line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper and spray again. Set aside.
In the stand mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, stir together the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
Add the eggs and the vegetable oil on low until well incorporated.
Pour in the buttermilk and add brewed coffee. Mix on medium for 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Evenly distribute the cake batter among the three cake pans and bake for about 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.
Remove cakes from oven and let cool in pans for 10 minutes before inverting onto cooling racks to cool completely — wrap cakes in plastic wrap and place in the freezer to chill for 30 minutes.

Chocolate Ganache from Scratch

Add semi-sweet chocolate chips to a small microwavable bowl. In another small microwavable bowl, heat the heavy cream to a light simmer for about 1 minute.
Pour hot, heavy cream over chocolate chips. Allow chocolate to melt for 1 minute. Use a whisk or rubber spatula to mix the chocolate and cream. Mix until its velvety smooth. If chocolate is still not melted, heat in the microwave in 15-second increments.

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How to Make Peppermint Buttercream

In the stand mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on high until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
Turn the mixer to low, gradually add powdered sugar, followed by the heavy cream. Then add peppermint extract, vanilla extract, and salt. Mix until incorporated completely. Scrape down sides of the bowl.
Turn the mixer to medium-high and beat the buttercream for about 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Scrape down sides of the bowl. Turn the mixer on low and mix for 2 minutes to push out any air bubbles.
Split the buttercream in half, leave one-half white and color the other half with super red gel food coloring.
Fill a piping bag fitted with #844 piping tip and 1/2 cup of white and 1/2 cup of red buttercream and set aside.

How to Put It All Together

Remove the cake layers from the freezer and unwrap the cake layers. Next, use a serrated knife to cut off the dome of the cakes to make the layers flat and even.
Add a small amount of buttercream onto the center of the cake board.
Layer the chilled dark chocolate cake, cut side up onto the cake board.
Then pipe a ring of red buttercream in the center followed by a ring of white buttercream. Continue to add a ring of red and white buttercream then use an offset spatula to smooth it.
Place another cake layer cut side down over the top. Repeat the process for another layer — Crumb coat the whole cake with white buttercream and freeze for 30 minutes.
Starting from the bottom, while spinning the cake, squeeze consistent pressure on the piping bag with white buttercream, pipe two rows.
Next pipe two rows of red buttercream followed by two more rows of white buttercream. Repeat until the sides are fully covered. Then pipe a single row of each buttercream on top of the cake.
Use a cake scraper to make the cake smooth on the top and sides. Use the offset spatula to add more buttercream to fill in any gaps. Repeat the process until the sides are smooth.
Add the chocolate ganache to a squeeze bottle and drip the ganache over the sides and on top.
Then add crushed peppermint candies to the bottom of the cake.
Finally, pipe swirls on top of the cake with the piping bag filled with white and red buttercream. Sprinkle crushed peppermint candies on top of the cake. Serve the cake at room temperature.

Happy Baking!

Hey, if you liked this tutorial, you really should check out, Cake Decorating Creator Program, my online cake course. I coach you on everything I teach on these cake tutorials so that you can uplevel your baking and decorating skills. We 10x it so you get the results you want most. Like any new skill, it’s important to learn from the ground up to build a foundation, so take on any cake challenge. It is an investment your future self will thank you for. Check it out at XOKatieRosario.com/online-cake-course. I will see you there.

Watch The How-to Video Below:

For tips on how to gain confidence in the kitchen so you can make any cake creation, learn baking techniques and cake decorating skills, I suggest reading more about my Foolproof Cakes for Beginner Bakers eBook. https://thymeharvest.com/foolproof-cakes-for-beginner-bakers

Print Recipe

Chocolate Peppermint Swirl Cake

This cake is made with soft layers of dark chocolate cake filled with creamy peppermint buttercream, rich chocolate ganache, and crushed peppermint candies.

Prep Time1 30

Cook Time40

Cooling/Decorating Time2

Total Time4 10

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Baking, Buttercream, Cake Decorating, Cake Recipe

Servings: 1 (3 Layer) 6-inch or (2 Layer) 8-inch round cake

Author: Katie

Ingredients

Dark Chocolate Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder
1 Tablespoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 whole large eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup brewed coffee (or 1 cup hot water & 1 TBSP espresso powder)

Chocolate Ganache

8 ounces (or 1 cup) chocolate chips, semi-sweet
4 ounces (or 1/2 cup) heavy cream

Peppermint Buttercream

2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
7 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons peppermint extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 Tablespoons heavy cream

Garnish

1 cup crushed peppermint candies

Instructions

Dark Chocolate Cake

Preheat oven to 350 °F. Spray three 6-inch round cake pans or two 8-inch round cake pans with non-stick spray, line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper and spray again. Set aside.
In the stand mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, stir together the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
Add the eggs and the vegetable oil on low until well incorporated.
Pour in the buttermilk and add brewed coffee. Mix on medium for 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Evenly distribute the cake batter among the three cake pans and bake for about 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.
Remove cakes from oven and let cool in pans for 10 minutes before inverting onto cooling racks to cool completely — wrap cakes in plastic wrap and place in the freezer to chill for 30 minutes.

Chocolate Ganache

Add semi-sweet chocolate chips to a small microwavable bowl. In another small microwavable bowl, heat the heavy cream to a light simmer for about 1 minute.
Pour hot, heavy cream over chocolate chips. Allow chocolate to melt for 1 minute. Use a whisk or rubber spatula to mix the chocolate and cream. Mix until its velvety smooth. If chocolate is still not melted, heat in the microwave in 15-second increments.

Peppermint Buttercream

In the stand mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on high until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
Turn the mixer to low, gradually add powdered sugar, followed by the heavy cream. Then add peppermint extract, vanilla extract, and salt. Mix until incorporated completely. Scrape down sides of the bowl.
Turn the mixer to medium-high and beat the buttercream for about 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Scrape down sides of the bowl. Turn the mixer on low and mix for 2 minutes to push out any air bubbles.
Split the buttercream in half, leave one-half white and color the other half with super red gel food coloring.
Fill a piping bag fitted with #844 piping tip and 1/2 cup of white and 1/2 cup of red buttercream and set aside.

Assemble

Remove the cake layers from the freezer and unwrap the cake layers. Next, use a serrated knife to cut off the dome of the cakes to make the layers flat and even.
Add a small amount of buttercream onto the center of the cake board. Layer the chilled dark chocolate cake, cut side up onto the cake board.
Then pipe a ring of red buttercream in the center followed by a ring of white buttercream. Continue to add a ring of red and white buttercream then use an offset spatula to smooth it.
Place another cake layer cut side down over the top. Repeat the process for another layer — Crumb coat the whole cake with white buttercream and freeze for 30 minutes.
Starting from the bottom, while spinning the cake, squeeze consistent pressure on the piping bag with white buttercream, pipe two rows.
Next pipe two rows of red buttercream followed by two more rows of white buttercream. Repeat until the sides are fully covered. Then pipe a single row of each buttercream on top of the cake.
Use a cake scraper to make the cake smooth on the top and sides. Use the offset spatula to add more buttercream to fill in any gaps. Repeat the process until the sides are smooth.
Add the chocolate ganache to a squeeze bottle and drip the ganache over the sides and on top. Then add crushed peppermint candies to the bottom of the cake.
Finally, pipe swirls on top of the cake with the piping bag filled with white and red buttercream. Sprinkle crushed peppermint candies on top of the cake. Serve the cake at room temperature.

Notes

Read through all the ingredients and instructions so you can get a better idea of how much time and what you need to make this cake.
In this cake recipe, you need 1/2 cup buttermilk; if you don't have any buttermilk on hand, you can easily use 1/2 cup whole milk mixed with 1 ½ teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar to make your own.
You can bake the cake layers ahead of time. Wrap the cake layers in plastic wrap and freeze up to one month.
You can make the buttercream a day ahead and refrigerate it overnight. Then take them out to come back to room temperature. Make sure the buttercream is at room temperature before re-whipping.
A single batch of this cake recipe makes three, 6-inch round cake layers or two 8-inch round cake layers. Double the cake recipe to make enough cake batter for three, 8-inch cake layers.
Food coloring gets darker over time, so it's best to gradually add the food coloring, which is best for lighter colors.
Place the cake on top of a baking sheet to easily put sprinkles on the cake without making a mess.
Serve cake at room temperature.