This post may contain affiliate sales links. Please see my full disclosure policy for details
This homemade Oreo chocolate cake has three layers of decadent chocolate cake frosted inside and out with creamy Oreo buttercream frosting bursting with crushed cookies.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Easy Chocolate Cake With Oreo Frosting
- Why You’ll Love This Oreo Chocolate Cake Recipe
- Ingredient Notes
- How to Make an Oreo Chocolate Cake
- Recipe Tips
- Can I Prepare This Chocolate Layer Cake In Advance?
- Can I Make Oreo Cupcakes Instead?
- More Ways to Decorate
- How to Store
- More Oreo Cake Recipes to Try
- Get the Recipe
Easy Chocolate Cake With Oreo Frosting
If you loved my Oreo cookies and cream cake, wait until your forks meet this incredibly rich and fluffy Oreo chocolate cake. This cake is three decadent layers of my favorite moist chocolate cake, filled with the creamiest homemade Oreo frosting bursting with chocolate cookie crumbs. Every bite is loaded with cookies and cream flavor. It’s the ultimate birthday cake for the Oreo lovers in your life!
Why You’ll Love This Oreo Chocolate Cake Recipe
- Fluffy, chocolatey layers. The chocolate cake layers are extra-moist, soft, yet stable. Perfect for stacking!
- Full of Oreos. The frosting for this cake is a cookies and cream dream, made with silky vanilla buttercream loaded with crushed Oreos. It tastes just like the creme filling inside everyone’s favorite chocolate sandwich cookie!
- Oil-based cake. Making cakes with oil instead of butter yields a much more tender crumb. There’s also no need to wait while a brick of butter comes to room temperature before you start.
Ingredient Notes
Below are some notes on the important ingredients you’ll need to make this Oreo chocolate cake. Don’t forget to scroll to the recipe card for the full recipe amounts and details.
- Oil and Sour Cream – Two ingredients for an ultra-moist, tender cake. I recommend vegetable oil and either light or full-fat sour cream.
- Cocoa Powder – You can use natural unsweetened cocoa powder or Dutch-processed cocoa powder for this cake recipe. See my resource on natural vs. Dutch-processed cocoa powder to learn the differences.
- Espresso Powder – You won’t taste the coffee, but espresso powder helps to intensify the chocolate flavor of chocolate cakes. Optional, but recommended!
- Brewed Coffee – Added for the same reason as the espresso powder, to enhance the fudgy flavors of the cake layers.
- Frosting – I include the recipe for my easy homemade Oreo frosting made from vanilla buttercream and crushed Oreo cookies.
How to Make an Oreo Chocolate Cake
You’ll start by preparing three 8” chocolate cake layers:
- Make the cake batter. Begin by creaming together the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla, followed by the sour cream. Sift together the dry ingredients separately, and gradually add them to the wet batter, alternating with the brewed coffee.
- Fill the pans. When your cake batter is well mixed, divide it evenly between three greased and lined 8” round pans.
- Bake. Bake the cakes at 350ºF for 20-24 minutes. I recommend rotating the pans about halfway through, to ensure the cakes bake evenly. Afterward, let the cakes cool completely before you frost them.
Assembling the Cake
Next, you’ll make a quick batch of Oreo frosting before stacking the cake. I go into further detail in my tutorial on how to make a layer cake, but here’s a short step-by-step on how to assemble an Oreo chocolate cake:
- Make the frosting. First, whip butter in a bowl until it’s fluffy and easily spreadable. Slowly beat in powdered sugar, alternating with heavy cream and vanilla, until everything is incorporated. Give the frosting a good whip before adding the crushed Oreo cookies.
- Assemble. Beginning with the first cake layer, pipe a layer of Oreo frosting over top, and spread it evenly. Place the second cake layer over the first, and repeat, finishing with the third and final layer.
- Create a crumb coat. Use an offset spatula to create a crumb coat. This will catch any stray cake crumbs and keep them from coming loose while you frost the cake.
Decorating an Oreo Cake
Finally, it’s time to decorate!
- Frost the cake. Use a cake icer tip to pipe or a filled piping bag with the tip cut off, frosting over the outside edge of the cake, then smooth out the frosting using your offset spatula or icing smoother.
- Decorate. Next, use an open star tip and additional Oreo frosting to pipe rosettes over the top of the cake. Finally, garnish with leftover Oreos before slicing and serving.
Recipe Tips
Whether you’re making this Oreo layer cake for a birthday or any other occasion, there are a few key things to keep in mind for best results:
-
- Portion the batter evenly. Use a large measuring cup to portion approximately 1⅔ cups of cake batter per baking pan. This will yield evenly-baked cake layers.
-
- Use bake-even strips. These help the edges of the cake from baking too quickly, preventing high domes. You can find bake-even strips online or in the baking section at the craft store.
-
- Chill the cake. If you have time, refrigerate the cake for 20 minutes after you’ve created the crumb coat, before frosting the final coat.
-
- Crush the Oreos up finely. Use a food processor (if you have one) to grind the Oreos for the frosting into a fine crumb. The finer the crumbs, the smoother the frosting. You can also do this by hand, just be sure that the cookies are crushed up well.
Can I Prepare This Chocolate Layer Cake In Advance?
Certainly. Your chocolate cake layers can be baked, cooled, and stored airtight 1-2 days in advance. You can also prepare the Oreo buttercream a couple of days ahead and keep it stored airtight in the fridge until you’re ready to assemble and frost the cake. Take the buttercream frosting out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature beforehand, then stack, fill, and frost the cake as directed.
Can I Make Oreo Cupcakes Instead?
Yes! This cake recipe makes enough batter for 24-26 Oreo chocolate cupcakes. Remember to pick up an extra package of Oreos if you’d like to have enough cookies to decorate each cupcake. Also, see my recipe for cookies and cream Oreo cupcakes for a variation made with vanilla cake.
More Ways to Decorate
I’ve used a variety of open star tips to top this Oreo cake with decorative rosettes, with crushed cookies for garnish. But decorating is your chance to make this cake your own! If you’d prefer to use another kind of frosting, try a classic chocolate buttercream filled with Oreos instead. You’ll also find loads of helpful cake decorating tips in my tutorials on how to use piping tips and how to use a piping bag.
You can top your finished cake with a drizzle of chocolate ganache, a sprinkle of chocolate shavings or chopped chocolate, or swirls of homemade whipped cream or chocolate whipped cream. It’s totally up to you!
How to Store
- To Store. Store in an airtight at room temperature for up to 1-2 days, or up to 3-4 days in the fridge. I recommend using a cake carrier to keep your cake fresh. This cake is best served at room temperature, so remember to take it out of the fridge about 30 minutes ahead of serving.
- Freeze. You can freeze the frosted cake airtight, either whole or in individual slices. Wrap the cake in a double-layer of plastic wrap and keep it frozen for up to 2 months. Defrost in the fridge or at room temperature before serving.
More Oreo Cake Recipes to Try
- Oreo Poke Cake
- No-Bake Oreo Cheesecake
- Oreo Dirt Poke Cake
- No-Bake Oreo Mousse Cake
- Oreo Ice Cream Cake
- No-Bake Chocolate Oreo Cheesecake
Oreo Chocolate Cake
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 min
- Total Time: 1 hour 7 minutes
- Yield: 10-12 slices
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
This decadent Oreo chocolate cake is layers of moist, homemade chocolate cake filled with creamy Oreo frosting bursting with crushed cookies.
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 ½ cups (285g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (118 ml) vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120g) sour cream, at room temperature
- 2 cups (280g) all-purpose flour, sifted
- ½ cup (40 g) cocoa powder, sifted
- 1 tablespoon (5g) espresso powder (optional)
- 2 ½ teaspoons (9 g) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (2 g) baking soda
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) salt
- 1 ¼ cup (296 ml) hot brewed coffee
For the Frosting
- 2 cups (453g) unsalted butter, cold
- 7–8 cups (910-1041g) powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons (30-44ml) heavy whipping cream
- 1 bag (14.3 oz) Oreos
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare 3 8-inch round baking pans, line the bottom with parchment paper and grease the sides. Prepare your bake even stripes if desired.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, vegetable oil, eggs and vanilla extract. Beat on medium speed until the eggs and oil are well incorporated and the batter is lighter in color. Next mix in the sour cream and beat until well combined.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the dry ingredients. Add half the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, followed by half of the coffee, and mix until the flour is incorporated at a low speed. Then add the remaining dry ingredients and coffee. Beat until all of the ingredients are well combined. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl and stir the batter from the bottom to the top to ensure it’s well mixed.
- Divide the batter evenly between the three pans, about 1 2/3 cups of batter per pan. Bake at 350°F for 20-24 minutes. Test the cake for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of the cake. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cake is done. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
For the Frosting
- Cut the butter into pieces. Using the paddle attachment, whip the butter at a high speed for 3-4 minutes, scraping down the bowl occasionally. Beat the butter until it’s light, fluffy and spreadable.
- Slowly add the powdered sugar, 2 cups at a time, adding the heavy whipping cream intermittently, mixing on low speed until it’s incorporated into the butter. Then increase the speed to high and beat for 30-60 seconds. Repeat until all your powdered sugar has been added.
- Save 6 Oreos for garnish. In a food processor, grind the remaining Oreos into a fine crumb. Add the crushed Oreos to the frosting along with the vanilla extract. Slowly beat the crumbs into the frosting then beat at a high speed for 60 seconds.
To Assemble
- Level the cake layers if needed. Place a dollop of frosting on your cake board and place the bottom layer of cake on top of that. Place half of the frosting in a large piping bag, then cut off the end of the piping bag. Pipe the first layer of frosting, pipe in circles working outside edge to the middle. Spread evenly with an offset spatula.
- Add the second layer of cake and add the remaining frosting. Place the third layer of cake on top, and invert the top layer.
- Use the piping bag to fill in any gaps between the layers and to create a crumb coat. Using an offset spatula or icing smoother, wipe away the excess frosting, leaving just enough to coat the outside of the cake.
- With the remaining frosting, proceed to frost the top and sides of the cake using an offset spatula. To pipe the rosettes on top, use an open star tip such as Ateco 844. Use leftover Oreos for garnish. You can either cut them in half and place them on top or crush the crumbs and sprinkle them around the outside edge of the cake.
Notes
Ingredient Substitutions
- Cocoa powder: I prefer to use Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa Powder for the cake
- Sour cream substitute: If you don’t have sour cream, substitute plain or Greek yogurt.
- Brewed coffee substitute: If you don’t want to use coffee, you can use milk, but I do recommend heating it up.
Storing and Freezing
- To Store. Store in an airtight at room temperature for up to 1-2 days, or up to 3-4 days in the fridge. I recommend using a cake carrier to keep your cake fresh. This cake is best served at room temperature, so remember to take it out of the fridge about 30 minutes ahead of serving.
- Freeze. You can freeze the frosted cake airtight, either whole or in individual slices. Wrap the cake in a double-layer of plastic wrap and keep it frozen for up to 2 months. Defrost in the fridge or at room temperature before serving.
- Category: Cake
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
