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This Nutella Chocolate Fudge Cake is seriously on another level. This makes a fabulous birthday or celebration cake, and is easier than you may think! As we are huge Nutella lovers in my house, this was made as a 8″ 3 layer cake. You can adjust to make a loaf cake or smaller cake if desired.
The Nutella Ganache and Buttercream are exactly what you expect: rich, creamy and very chocolatey. Pair this with a super moist cake and you have the perfect bite! The ganache is a mixture of cream and Nutella, whilst the buttercream is just a regular buttercream with lots of Nutella incorporated. No fancy skills or ingredients required!
Allow yourself enough time for the cakes to cool before frosting. Otherwise, there is no need for too much time spent waiting. Hands on time is entirely up to you depending on how special you want the decoration to be! The buttercream makes enough to go in each layer and cover the entire cake. Adjust if you want to pipe extra on top, or if you only want to use a little.
I make this Nutella Chocolate Fudge Cake using 3 x 8″ circular cake tins (just like these) and recommend a high speed mixer for when combining the dry and wet ingredients (with a mixer like this). If you’re looking for other loaf cake ideas, check out this Glazed Jamaican Ginger Loaf Cake or this Strawberry and Lime Drizzle Cake.
Nutella Chocolate Fudge Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 260 g Plain Flour
- 1.5 tsp Baking Powder
- 1.5 tsp Baking Soda
- 3 tbsp Cocoa Powder
- 240 g Granulated Sugar
- Pinch of Salt
- 3 Medium Eggs
- 3 tbsp Golden Syrup
- 225 ml Vegetable Oil or similar flavourless oil (not EVOO)
- 150 ml Boiling Water
- 90 ml Milk
- 3 tsp Hot Chocolate Powder
For the Nutella Ganache
- 300 g Nutella
- 110 ml Double Cream
- 50 g Icing Sugar
For the Nutella Buttercream
- 220 g Butter, Softened
- 250 g Nutella
- 600 g Icing Sugar
- 25 g Cocoa Powder
- 3 tbsp Double Cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6. Line a 3 x 8" circular cake tins.
- In a large bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder, sugar and salt.
- Get the kettle on – essentially we are going to make a hot chocolate. Combine the boiling water, hot chocolate powder and milk in a mug. Set aside.
- Make a well in the dry mix, and add the eggs, syrup and oil. Once thoroughly combined, slowly pour in the hot chocolate mixture until it has all been incorporated. The batter will be fairly thin.
- Split the batter between the three tins and bake for 30-35 minutes, until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Let cool on a wire rack – the cakes should be completely cool before the next steps.
- Meanwhile, start to make the ganache: Put the Nutella in a large (heatproof) bowl. Heat the cream in a microwave-safe bowl, in 20 second intervals, until steaming but not boiling.
- Pour the hot cream over the Nutella and let sit for 2-3 minutes. Add the icing sugar and whisk the mixture with an electric/stand mixer on high until combined. Put in the fridge for 20 minutes to let set.
- Make the buttercream: Add the softened butter to a large bowl/bowl of a stand mixer. Mix on high for a few minutes, to whip the butter. Add the Nutella and mix again until thoroughly combined.
- Add in half of the icing sugar and all of the cocoa powder. Once combined, add in the cream and remaining icing sugar. This should come together to form a rich, chocolatey buttercream.
- Layer up the cake: start by using one of the cake layers, then scoop a few tbsp of the Nutella ganache into the centre. Create a border at the edge with the buttercream to prevent the ganache from overflowing (it will be a little runny at room temp).
- Repeat with the next layer and top with the final cake layer. Spread the buttercream over the rest of the cake before letting chill in the fridge. If desired, add another buttercream layer.
- At this stage, decoration is optional. I pipe buttercream swirls on the top and use a spoon to spread some of the ganache around the bottom of the cake, to stick the sprinkles to. You could top with other chocolate/candy/decoration of your choice. Keep in the fridge until ready to serve!
