A light and moist cookie butter layer cake featuring a delicious combination of cookie butter and spices. Topped with a silky cookie butter Swiss meringue buttercream, this cake is a cookie butter lover’s dream!
It’s officially the day after Thanksgiving, which means I can now wish you a Merry Christmas! Gah, that feels good. Christmas music is playing in my home, we’re going to get the tree after the babies wake up from their naps, and I’m breaking out the Spode Christmas China later this afternoon. Full of cheer over here, y’all.
And to kick off the Christmas baking season, I’m bringing you a cake that will make all your yuletide dreams come true. Cookie butter layer cake with a cookie butter Swiss meringue buttercream. Oh. My. Stars.
Everyone knows what cookie butter is, right? Cookie butter is a sweet, creamy spread made from pulverized spiced cookies. It’s flavor is reminiscent of gingerbread, which makes it great for holiday baking. If you’ve never tried cookie butter, I implore (yes, implore) you, to get to your grocery store and buy some. Put it on graham crackers, apples, waffles, an empty spoon, your finger, or better yet, put it in cake batter. Then bake that cake and cover that cake with cookie butter-infused buttercream.
And then die a little because you’ve tasted heaven.
Am I being dramatic? Maybe. But this cookie butter layer cake is just so good. And it has all the warm flavors of Christmas to make you feel all cozy inside.
This cake perfectly balances a light crumb but maintains a really moist texture. It’s velvety soft thanks to the use of butter, cookie butter, and vegetable oil. The cookie butter in the cake batter flavors the cake beautifully, but I added some extra cinnamon and nutmeg to really amp up the warm and cozy factor. I put cookie butter in the Swiss meringue buttercream, too, just to drive home that cookie butter flavor. I’m telling you guys, there’s no such thing as too much cookie butter. The Swiss meringue buttercream is smooth, silky, and the perfect pairing with this cake!
One more thing. Be sure to see my notes for some tips on getting even cake layers and cake decorating ideas!
Alright, let’s get to baking! Grab someone you love and make this cookie butter layer cake together. Merry Christmas, friends!
What you’ll need to bake this cookie butter layer cake:
Butter: For flavor, moisture, and richness.
Cookie butter: For that wonderful cookie butter flavor! Be sure to use creamy, not crunchy, cookie butter.
Vegetable oil: Using vegetable oil in this cake keeps it extra moist. Vegetable oil stays liquid at room temperature, which is why this cake stays moist long after it comes out of the oven!
Sugar: Gives the cake flavor and a tender crumb.
Brown sugar: Adds sweetness and moisture to the cake. The molasses in the brown sugar complements the flavor of the cookie butter and spices.
Eggs: For structure and moisture.
Sour cream: Sour cream adds moisture and richness due to its high fat content, making for a super moist cake. Also, the acidity of the sour cream helps create a tender crumb. Be sure to use full-fat sour cream!
Vanilla: For added flavor.
Flour: For structure.
Baking soda & baking powder: For leavening.
Kosher salt: To balance out all the sweetness.
Ground cinnamon & nutmeg: The added spices in this cake enhance the flavor of the cookie butter.
Whole buttermilk: Like the sour cream, buttermilk brings moisture to the cake, and the acidity of the buttermilk creates a tender crumb.
Egg whites, sugar, kosher salt, butter, vanilla, and creamy cookie butter for the Swiss meringue buttercream.
FAQs:
Why is this recipe primarily listed in grams? I develop my recipes in grams because weighing your ingredients is the best, most accurate way to bake. Baking is a science and precision is key to success! Measuring cups are not standardized, and what’s more, the way each baker uses them varies drastically, which ultimately gives you inconsistent (and sometimes negative) results. For instance, did you know that scooping flour out of a cannister can give you 50% more flour than what’s called for in the recipe? By weighing your ingredients rather than using measuring cups, you can confidently know that you are using the correct amount of each ingredient, giving you greater success & delicious results. I highly recommend using a kitchen scale, like this one when you bake. Plus, it makes clean up a lot easier!
Can I use crunchy cookie butter? I recommend using creamy cookie butter in this recipe to keep the cake nice and soft.
What if I don’t have buttermilk on hand? No problem. You can easily make buttermilk at home! For every 1 cup of whole milk, add 1 tablespoon of either white distilled vinegar or lemon juice, and allow to sit for 5-10 minutes. The milk will curdle, but that’s a good thing.
A few tips when it comes to baking and decorating layer cakes:
Make sure your cake ingredients are at room temperature. When the ingredients are at room temperature, this allows the batter to come together into a smooth, homogenous, velvety mixture. This ultimately results in a lighter, more tender crumb. Cold ingredients will make your batter lumpy and irregular, resulting in a dense, potentially tough cake.
To get even layers, I like to divide the cake batter into the pans by weight. To do this, weigh the empty mixing bowl before mixing up your batter and write it down. Once you’ve made the batter, weigh the mixing bowl again. Now do a little math: (Weight of the bowl with the batter) – (weight of the empty bowl)= (weight of the batter). Now you can take the weight of your batter and divide it by your number of cake pans, which gives you the exact weight of batter to pour into each cake pan. Voila! Even layers.
How to decorate this cake? To get a smooth finish on the buttercream like I did, I recommend using a large offset spatula and/or icing scraper. I sprinkled the top and bottom edge of the cake with crushed up Biscoff cookies and then finished by piping large swirls around the edge of the cake using a piping bag fitted with a large open star tip (I used an Ateco #828). But feel free to decorate (or not decorate) as you please!
Print
Cookie Butter Layer Cake
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes (plus additional time for assembly)
- Total Time: 1 hour, 5 minutes (plus additional time for assembly)
- Yield: 1, 8″ three-layer cake 1x
- Category: Cake
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Dessert
Description
A light and moist cookie butter layer cake featuring a delicious combination of cookie butter and spices. Topped with a silky cookie butter Swiss meringue buttercream, this cake is a cookie butter lover’s dream!
Ingredients
For the cookie butter cake:
- 75 gm (1/3 cup) unsalted butter, softened
- 80 gm (1/3 cup) creamy cookie butter
- 168 gm (3/4 cup) vegetable oil
- 300 gm (1 1/2 cups) granulated sugar
- 120 gm (1/2 cup, firmly packed) light brown sugar
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 180 gm (3/4 cup) sour cream, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)
- 375 gm (3 cups, spoon & leveled) all-purpose flour, sifted
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
- 240 gm (1 cup) whole buttermilk, at room temperature
For the Biscoff Swiss meringue buttercream:
- 8 large egg whites
- 400 gm (1 cup) granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 452 gm (2 cups) unsalted butter, slightly softened but still cool*
- 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)
- 300 gm (1 1/4 cups) creamy cookie butter
- Crushed up Biscoff cookies for decoration (optional)
Instructions
To make the cookie butter cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray three 8″ cake pans with baking spray and line the bottom of each with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter and cookie butter and beat on medium speed until combined and creamy. Add the vegetable oil and beat on low speed until homogenous with the butter.
- Next, add the sugar and brown sugar to the mixing bowl, and beat on medium speed until combined and light in color, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. One at a time, add the eggs, mixing on medium speed for 20 seconds after each addition. Mix in the vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, combine the sifted flour, baking soda, baking powder, kosher salt, ground cinnamon and nutmeg. In another separate bowl or large liquid measuring cup, whisk the sour cream and buttermilk together until smooth and combined.
- Beginning and ending with the flour mixture, alternate adding the flour mixture and the buttermilk mixture to the batter, mixing on low speed until just incorporated after each addition. Be careful not to overmix. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans (NOTE: I like to do this by weight. See my notes above.).
- Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, until the edges of the cake are pulling away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in their pans for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the Biscoff Swiss meringue buttercream:
- Combine the egg whites, sugar and kosher salt in a heatproof bowl set over a pot filled with 2″ of simmering water, being sure that the water does not touch the bowl with your ingredients. Whisk constantly until the sugar has dissolved and an instant read thermometer registers 160°F, about 7 to 9 minutes.
- Carefully transfer the egg white mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk on high speed for 7 minutes; the mixture should look light and fluffy.
- Reduce the mixer to medium-low speed. Add the butter, 2 tablespoons at a time, making sure each portion of butter is incorporated before adding the next. Once all the butter has been incorporated, increase the mixer to high speed and whip for 8 minutes, until the meringue is glossy and fluffy. Add the vanilla and cookie butter and mix on high until fully combined. Use immediately on the cooled cakes.
Assembly:
- Place a small dollop of buttercream on the center of a cake turntable or cake stand. Place the bottom cake layer over the dollop of buttercream and gently press to secure to the surface.
- Next, spoon about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of buttercream onto the bottom layer and smooth into an even layer using an offset spatula. Carefully place the next cake layer on top and very gently press to adhere the two layers together. Repeat this process with the third layer.
- Apply a crumb coat. To do this, apply a thin layer of buttercream to the entire cake, smoothing with an offset spatula or icing smoother. Place the cake in the fridge for 20 minutes. Allowing the initial layer of buttercream to set in the fridge makes applying the final layer of buttercream easier. (NOTE: check your bowl of buttercream towards the end of the chill time. If the buttercream seems soupy, pop it in the fridge to chill for 2 to 3 minutes to firm up.)
- Remove the cake from the fridge. Apply a layer of buttercream over the surface of the cake and finish as desired. To recreate the finish I chose for this cake, use a combination of an icing smoother and offset spatula to create a smoother look. Sprinkle the top outer edge of the cake with crushed Biscoff cookie crumbs, then finish by piping swirls around the perimeter of the cake using a large open star tip (I used an Ateco #828).
Notes
*Butter for the Swiss meringue buttercream should be slightly softened, but still cool to touch. Setting the butter out for 30 to 40 minutes before making the buttercream will typically give you the right temperature and consistency for your butter.
Storage: Leftovers can be stored covered at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the in the fridge for up to 1 week. For best results, allow chilled cake to come to room temperature before serving.
