Brown Butter Cake with Nutella Buttercream Frosting

This brown butter cake with Nutella buttercream is an elevated version of the birthday cake I grew up eating: yellow cake with chocolate frosting. That was always my family's go-to for box mix birthday cakes, and it never failed us. So when my friend Yolanda was having a birthday recently, my first thought was this classic combination! But of course you know there's no butter I won't brown, so I had to put a little twist on it! Even better, Nutella is a favorite of Yolanda's, so it was a natural pairing.

And any excuse to throw on a bunch of sprinkles is always welcome! And if you love sprinkles, check out my Birthday Rice Krispie Treats!

Brown Butter, again?

Um, yes... have you not had it? It's amazing. Once you have it cooking and your whole house smells like nutty goodness you won't ever go back. Of course, some dishes work better with brown butter than others, but the vanilla and chocolate flavors in this cake work perfectly. You can certainly opt out of browning the butter and the cake will still be great. But once you get the hang of it, browning butter is a really easy step that REALLY pays off. AND -- in this cake, we're using a Nutella buttercream frosting! And the French name for brown butter is beurre noisette. Literally, that means hazelnut butter. So it's a perfect combination of flavors.

If you're brand new to using brown butter, I would definitely recommend you check out my How to Brown Butter post for detailed step-by-step and images!

A tip for getting even cake layers on your Brown Butter Nutella Cake

I had to make this cake a couple times before I got even layers, and I couldn't for the life of me figure out why! Then I realized that I had both of the cake pans on the same oven rack, and the pans weren't getting enough space around them while they baked!

I realized it's very important to have several inches of space all around the cake pans, even if you have to cook them on different oven racks (be sure to rotate them ⅔rds of the way through baking to ensure even layers).

Of course, there are plenty of other tips to keep in mind to ensure even and flat cake layers, but that was the most relevant for this cake at the moment! But I will definitely share a full list of tips I've learned from cake trial and error very soon. Let me know in the comments what issues or questions you've encountered with layer cakes!

In the meantime, enjoy this brown butter yellow cake and its Nutella buttercream, and try my Mini Egg Brownies, my Cherry Coffee Cake, my 4 Ingredient Banana Bread, and my Protein Mug Cake!

📖 Recipe

Brown Butter Yellow Cake with Nutella Buttercream Frosting

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The title says it all-- this soft, fluffy yellow cake recipe unites nutty brown butter with rich, whipped Nutella buttercream for another level of deliciousness! Perfect for a birthday or any special occasion -- or no occasion at all!

Prep Time: 3 hours hours

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 3 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Course: Dessert

Cuisine :American

Servings: 12 slices

Recipe Source: Chenée Lewis

Equipment you may need

• hand mixer
• stand mixer
• mixing bowls
• measuring cups and spoons
• rubber spatula
• offset spatula
• cooling rack
• food scale
• parchment paper
• 8-inch round cake pans

Ingredients

1x2x3x

For Yellow Cake Layers

• baking spray
• 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour - (218g), plus more for dusting the pan
• ¼ cup corn starch - (32g)
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• ¾ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup brown butter - chilled until solid, then brought to room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar - (198g)
• ¾ cup light brown sugar, packed - (170g)
• 3 large eggs - room temperature
• 2 large egg yolks - room temperature
• 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup full-fat buttermilk - room temperature

For Nutella Buttercream

• 1 cup salted butter - room temperature
• 1 cup Nutella hazelnut spread - or another hazelnut spread of your choice
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• ½ cup heavy cream
• 1 ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

Prepare your cake batter...

• Grease and flour bottom and sides of two 8-inch cake rounds and line with parchment, and then spray the parchment paper with baking spray.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F and place rack in the middle of the oven.
• In a large bowl of an electric stand mixer or with a handheld electric mixer, cream the softened brown butter on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add the sugars and beat for 4-5 minutes on medium speed.
• Add in the vanilla, and then eggs and egg yolks, one at a time,mixing just until combined in between each addition and scraping the sides of the bowl if necessary.
• Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• Alternate adding flour mixture and buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour (3 additions of flour and 2 of buttermilk), mixing well after each addition.
• Divide the batter evenly between the two pans. Drop each pan from about 3-inches onto the counter to get rid of any air bubbles.
• Bake for 30-35 minutes until lightly golden around the edges and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs. Watch closely after 25 minutes to ensure that the cake does not overbake.
• Let the layers rest in the cake pans for 10 minutes before gently turning them onto a cooling rack to cool completely.

Whip up your frosting...

• Beat butter, nutella, and powdered sugar on medium speed for at least two minutes until light and creamy.
• Add heavy cream and vanilla and beat for an additional two minutes. Spread on cooled cake layers.

Notes

Flour and Corn Starch: You can replace the all-purpose flour and cornstarch in the cake recipe with 2 cups (230g) of cake flour, if you have it.

Brown Butter: For step-by-step details and images on how to brown butter, check out my Brown Butter Appreciation Post!

Oven Space: Be sure each cake layer has room around it while baking.  This may require placing the cake pans on separate oven racks and on opposite sides of the oven; that is, you would put one cake layer on an upper middle rack on the left side of the oven, and the second cake layer on the next rack down on the right side of the oven.  THEN, after about 25 minutes of baking time has passed, switch the two pans to ensure even baking.

Make ahead: You can make the cake layers and store them in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer, wrapped well, for up to 2 months.  The frosted cake will keep covered at room temperature for up to four days.

Nutrition Disclaimer

Did you try this recipe? Rate it below!I can't wait to see (and share) your results! Follow me on Instagram at @chenee_today and tag #cheneetoday!

Check out my other cake recipes, and let me know what other types of cake you want to learn about! Happy baking!

Last Updated on March 23, 2024 by Chenée Lewis