A dark chocolate cake made with red wine and frosted with fresh raspberry buttercream frosting.

Red Wine Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Buttercream | completelydelicious.com

This combination right here— dark chocolate, sweet red wine, and fresh raspberries— may be my most favorite thing ever.

And all combined into one beautiful cake? I almost can’t even handle it.

The cake is moist and super chocolaty. The red wine gives it a subtle fruity flavor, so topping it with raspberry buttercream is the perfect finish. It’s rich and decadent, but also light and fresh.

Red Wine Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Buttercream | completelydelicious.com

This cake recipe comes from Lindsay Conchar’s new book, Simply Beautiful Homemade Cakes. Lindsay is the author of the blog Life, Love, and Sugar and she is known for her gorgeous baking creations. Her book is filled with dozens of fabulous cakes, from the super simple to the over-the-top.

Her chocolate red wine cake recipe stuck out to me immediately because, well, red wine! And chocolate! I just had to try it.

Lindsay baked this cake in a 9×13-inch pan and kept it beautifully simple. I made it a tiny bit more complicated and turned it into a 9-inch layer cake, but left instructions in case you’d like to follow Lindsay’s lead. Either way, you can’t go wrong.

This beautiful cake is a winner!

Red Wine Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Buttercream | completelydelicious.com

baking tip:How to bake flat cake layers

Here’s how to bake flat, even cake layers. No more trimming and leveling, and no fancy tools needed!

Step 1) Measure your cake batter and make sure all of your pans have the same amount. You can use a liquid measuring glass or a digital kitchen scale (my preferred method).

Step 2) Bake the cakes at a lower temperature for longer. Baking at a lower temperature slows the spring in the leavening, which prevents a dome from forming on your cake. Reduce oven temp to 325 and increase baking time by approximately one-half.

For more details, see my full photo tutorial on how to bake flat cake layers.

Red Wine Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Buttercream | completelydelicious.com

Red Wine Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Buttercream | completelydelicious.com

Red Wine Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Buttercream

Servings: 12 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
A moist dark chocolate cake made with sweet red wine, frosted with raspberry buttercream.

Ingredients
 

Red wine chocolate cake:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour (240 grams)
  • 2 cups granulated sugar (400 grams)
  • 3/4 cup dark cocoa powder (65 grams)
  • 1 tablespoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup sweet red wine , I used a ruby port (250 ml)
  • 3/4 cup whole milk (180 ml)
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil (180 ml)
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Raspberry buttercream:

  • 1 cup raspberries , fresh or frozen (120 grams)
  • 1 cup unsalted butter , at room temperature (226 grams)
  • 4 cups powdered sugar , sifted (450 grams)
  • Pinch of salt

Instructions
 

To make the cake:

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 2 9-inch round cake pans and line with parchment paper (see my tips for how to prep cake pans).
  • In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl whisk together the red wine, milk oil, eggs and vanilla. Add to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined and there are minimal lumps. Do not overmix.
  • Divide cake batter between prepared pans and bake until the cakes pull away from the side of the pans and the tops spring back when gently pressed, 25-30 minutes. Let cool in pans for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting:

  • Puree the raspberries in a food processor (or mash by hand with a fork) and pass through a mesh strainer to remove seeds. You should have about 1/4 cup puree.
  • With an electric mixer beat the butter, powdered sugar, salt, and raspberry puree on low speed until combined. Increase speed and beat on high speed for 2-3 minutes until smooth and fluffy, scraping the bowl down as needed.

To assemble the cake:

  • Place one cooled cake layer on cake stand or plate. Cover with about 1 cup of the frosting. Place remaining cake layer on top and frost as desired.

Notes

NOTES:
  • If using frozen raspberries, before using, draining an liquid away.
  • This cake can also be baked in a 9x13-inch pan. Bake for 35-40 minutes.
  • I used a closed star tip (Ateco #844) to create the roses on top of this cake.
  • If you'd like to cover the cake completely with frosting, you may want to double the buttercream recipe.
Recipe adapted from Simply Beautiful Homemade Cakes.
Calories: 674kcal, Carbohydrates: 95g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 32g, Saturated Fat: 22g, Cholesterol: 83mg, Sodium: 495mg, Potassium: 185mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 74g, Vitamin A: 557IU, Vitamin C: 3mg, Calcium: 42mg, Iron: 2mg
Cuisine: American
Course: Dessert
Author: Annalise
Have you tried this recipe?I’d love to hear about it! Leave a rating and review below, or take a photo and tag it on Instagram @completelydelicious with #completelydelicious.

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Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of Simply Beautiful Homemade Cakes. I was not compensated for this post. All opinions are 100% my own, as always.