Chocolate Layer Cake with Raspberry Jam & Vanilla Mock Cream

This chocolate layer cake features an oil-based, chiffon-style sponge for a light crumb that stays moist for days. It's layered with raspberry jam, sliced strawberries and a silky vanilla mock cream, then finished with billowy cream swirls and more strawberries on top. A sturdy, make-ahead cake suited to birthdays and celebrations, easy to build a day in advance without the cream weeping or the layers drying out.

A chocolate layer cake filled with raspberry jam and cream, topped with cream swirls and strawberries.

Birthdays and celebrations at our table call for a cake that behaves as well as it looks, and this one has become the reliable answer. The sponge takes its cue from a chiffon: oil instead of butter for lasting moisture, and whipped egg whites folded through for a light, tender crumb that holds up over several days rather than drying out overnight. Between each layer sits raspberry jam, sliced strawberries and a silky vanilla mock cream, the filling generations of Australian home bakers have trusted for good reason. Mock cream holds its shape at room temperature and under the weight of three stacked layers, so the whole cake can be built the day before a party without any worry about spoiling or the layers going stale. Trimming the top edge of each sponge before stacking gives the finished cake that neat, rustic stack, though it holds together just as well left untrimmed if that's your preference.

Prep: 45 min · Cook: 20 min · Serves: 8 · Cuisine: Australian · Category: Desserts

Ingredients

Chocolate Layer Cake

Vanilla Mock Cream

Assemble

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 175°C conventional or 165°C fan-forced.
  2. Line three 18cm (7-inch) cake tins or two 20cm (8-inch) cake tins with baking paper.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt and 120g of the caster sugar.
  4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, oil, milk and vanilla.
  5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk until smooth.
  6. In a clean bowl, beat the egg whites until frothy.
  7. Gradually add the remaining 60g caster sugar and beat until medium-stiff peaks form.
  8. Fold one-third of the egg whites through the chocolate batter to loosen it.
  9. Gently fold through the remaining egg whites until no white streaks remain.
  10. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared tins.
  11. Bake three 18cm layers for 18–22 minutes, or two 20cm layers for 22–28 minutes.
  12. The cakes are ready when they spring back lightly and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
  13. Cool in the tins for 5–10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
  14. In a small saucepan, whisk together the milk and cornflour until completely smooth.
  15. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens into a very thick paste.
  16. Transfer to a bowl, cover the surface with plastic wrap and cool completely.
  17. Beat the softened butter for 5–8 minutes until pale and fluffy.
  18. Gradually add the icing sugar, beating well after each addition.
  19. Beat in the vanilla bean paste and salt.
  20. Beat the cooled milk paste until smooth on its own.
  21. Add the milk paste to the butter mixture one tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition until smooth and silky.
  22. Refrigerate while the cake layers cool.
  23. Trim the top edge of each cooled sponge layer flat if you'd like a neat stack, or leave untrimmed for a rustic finish.
  24. Place one cake layer onto a serving plate.
  25. Spread with a thin, even layer of raspberry jam.
  26. Pipe or spread a layer of vanilla mock cream over the jam.
  27. Arrange a layer of sliced strawberries over the cream.
  28. Repeat with the second cake layer: jam, cream, then sliced strawberries.
  29. Top with the final cake layer.
  30. Pipe swirls of mock cream over the top and finish with whole and halved strawberries.
  31. Dust generously with icing sugar before serving. (Optional)

Serving Suggestion

This is a cake built for the table rather than a slice on the run, so give it a little time to come back to room temperature before serving so the mock cream softens properly. It pairs naturally with a pot of tea or coffee after a family lunch, and sits well alongside other celebration bakes like Whole Orange Olive Oil Cake or Classic Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting if you're setting out a dessert table.

Storage Notes

Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes before serving for the best texture.

Make Ahead Notes

The mock cream filling is what makes this a genuine make-ahead cake. Unlike fresh whipped cream, it holds its structure and doesn't spoil or weep between the layers, so the whole cake can be assembled the day before you need it and kept in the fridge until serving.

Notes

Make sure the milk and cornflour paste is completely cool before adding it to the butter, otherwise the mock cream can split or turn grainy.

Fold the egg whites through gently and in stages. This is what keeps the sponge light rather than dense.

Get the batter into the oven as soon as the egg whites are folded through, so you don't lose the air you've just beaten in.

If baking in two 20cm tins instead of three 18cm tins, allow closer to 22 to 28 minutes and check with a skewer rather than going by time alone.

The Grace Table Tip

Trim the top edge of each cooled sponge layer flat before stacking. It only takes a minute with a serrated knife, and it's what gives the finished cake that neat, straight-sided stack with even layers showing around the sides. If you'd rather skip it, the cake holds together just as well with its natural domed edges left on for a softer, more rustic look.