Chocolate chip butterscotch cake is the most velvety vanilla cake with chocolate chips and frosted with a chocolate ganache frosting and homemade butterscotch sauce!

Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Cake inside shot

Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Cake. Need I say more?! I think not. I have a similar chocolate chip cake however that one has bourbon caramel with vanilla frosting. That one is much richer, while this one is a bit lighter but more chocolatey at the same time.

How to make chocolate chip cake

This cake is a bit different than many of my either cakes. I generally like to use all-purpose flour for my layer cakes because I’m not the biggest fan of flavor that comes from cake flour. However, when I was testing this cake recipe, I couldn’t pass up how silky the batter turned out and how tender the cake baked up. If I’m being totally honest, these photos don’t do it justice.

I also recommend using either mini chocolate chips or chopping a chocolate bar into small chunks as opposed to large chocolate chips. This will ensure that they’re not too heavy for the batter and won’t sink to the bottom.

Ingredients:

Flour – like I said, I decided on cake flour for this recipe instead of my usual all-purpose flour.
Sugar – I used both granulated sugar and brown sugar for this recipe to give a more “butterscotch-y” flavor.
Vanilla – well, it is a vanilla cake base.
Eggs – always use large, room temperature eggs if you can.
Baking powder – gives the cake rise
Salt – balances the flavors
Buttermilk – the 5 eggs plus the buttermilk give the batter the silkiest texture I’ve ever seen!
Chocolate – use either mini chocolate chips or chocolate chopped into small chunks

How to make butterscotch

Butterscotch is essentially caramel made with brown sugar. It’s not quite as finicky/sensitive as making classic caramel but it’s similar. I just combined all the ingredients in a saucepan and brought them to a boil. The longer you let it boil, the thicker the butterscotch sauce will be. I was aiming for something that was the same consistency of caramel, where it’s runny when it’s warm and stiff when it’s chilled. To get that, I boiled the butterscotch for about 4-5 minutes.

How to assemble the cake

If you look closely at the photos you can see the edge of the cake has a thicker layer of chocolate icing. This is the ‘border’ that I pipe when assembling the cake. If you ever use any filling other than the frosting you would frost the outside with, it’s good to have a border on the edge to keep something like caramel or curd from squeezing out between the layers. You can see the steps in both my chocolate chip caramel cake and my caramel chocolate cake.

For this chocolate chip butterscotch cake, I have three layers of filling. I started with a layer of butterscotch, then a layer of chocolate icing & topped with some extra butterscotch. I did two layers of butterscotch because the flavor is much more subtle than the chocolate flavor and I wanted to ensure you would be able to taste both.

How to store chocolate chip butterscotch cake

If the cake is not sliced yet, store it in the refrigerator as it is. If it’s sliced, cover any open areas with plastic wrap and place any cut slices in an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

To freeze, slice the cake and either wrap each slice in plastic wrap or place them really tightly next to each other in an airtight container and then in a freezer bag to prevent freezer burn. Make sure to let all the air out of the freezer bag before closing it.

Now that we’ve got all the details in place, you’re ready to make this delicious cake! If you do, make sure to tag me @baranbakery on Instagram or send me a picture. If you have any questions, feel free to comment down below or send me a message. Go bless someone’s day with this amazing homemade cake and as always,

Love, B

Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Cake Recipe

Bernice Baran

Layers of moist chocolate chip vanilla cake with chocolate ganache frosting and butterscotch sauce.

No ratings yet

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 30

Additional Time 2

Total Time 3 30

Course Cakes

Cuisine American

Servings slices

Calories 1133 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

Chocolate Chip Cake

1 cup (226g) unsalted butter softened
1/3 cup (80ml) canola oil
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
1 cup (220g) light brown sugar lightly packed
2 tsp (10ml) vanilla
5 large eggs room temperature
3 cup (360g) cake flour spooned and leveled
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp (10g baking powder
1 cup (240ml) buttermilk
2 cup (340g) mini chocolate chips + 1 Tbsp (8g) flour

Butterscotch Sauce

1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter
1 cup (220g) light brown sugar lightly packed
1 cup (240ml) heavy cream
1 tsp (5ml) vanilla
1/2 tsp salt

Chocolate Frosting

1/2 cup (120ml) heavy cream
1 cup (175g) bittersweet chocolate chips
1 cup (226g) unsalted butter softened
1 1/2 cup (190g) powdered sugar spooned and leveled
1/2 cup (50g) Dutch-process cocoa powder spooned and leveled
1 tsp (5mL) vanilla
1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

Chocolate Chip Cake

Preheat the oven to 350F/177C convection (325F/163C conventional) and grease four 6" pans (or three 8-9").
In a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, combine the butter, oil, granulated sugar, and light brown sugar on medium speed. Add in the vanilla and eggs, one at time, beating for a minute after each.
1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, 1/3 cup (80ml) canola oil, 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar, 1 cup (220g) light brown sugar, 2 tsp (10ml) vanilla, 5 large eggs
Combine the flour, salt and baking powder. Add the flour mixture into the butter mixture by alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Beat just until the flour is fully incorporated.
3 cup (360g) cake flour, 1/2 tsp salt, 2 tsp (10g baking powder, 1 cup (240ml) buttermilk
Mix 1 Tbsp of flour with the chocolate chips (to prevent them from sinking in the batter) and then fold the chocolate chips into the batter.
2 cup (340g) mini chocolate chips + 1 Tbsp (8g) flour
Distribute the batter evenly between the pans and bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown. Remove them from the pans and allow them to cool completely before frosting.

Butterscotch

Melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add in the sugar and heavy cream and mix until everything is fully combined.
1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, 1 cup (220g) light brown sugar, 1 cup (240ml) heavy cream
Bring the mixture to a boil and then lower the heat to low-medium for 4-5 minutes. Remove the butterscotch from the heat and stir in the vanilla and salt. Cover it and allow it to cool to room temperature.
1 tsp (5ml) vanilla, 1/2 tsp salt

Chocolate Ganache Frosting

Heat the cream in a saucepan and remove it just before boiling. Pour in the chocolate chips, let it sit for a minute, and then stir until smooth. Allow it to cool to room temperature.
1/2 cup (120ml) heavy cream, 1 cup (175g) bittersweet chocolate chips
Beat the butter until it is pale and fluffy. Add in the sugar and cocoa powder and beat for 5-10 minutes until everything is fully dissolved and fluffy. Mix in the chocolate ganache, vanilla, and salt; beat for another few minutes. The color will continue to lighten the more you beat it.
1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, 1 1/2 cup (190g) powdered sugar, 1/2 cup (50g) Dutch-process cocoa powder, 1 tsp (5mL) vanilla, 1/4 tsp salt

Assemble

Place the bottom cake layer on a cake stand/board. Pipe a rim of chocolate ganache icing around the edge of the cake to make a border. Spread a layer of butterscotch on the cake inside the 'rim'. Spread a layer of chocolate ganache icing and top with a little extra butterscotch .
Place the next layer of cake on top and repeat until all layers are used. Refrigerate the cake for 1-2 hours before using left over icing and butterscotch to frost the outside of the cake.
Bring to room temperature before serving. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 1133kcalCarbohydrates: 115gProtein: 11gFat: 73gSaturated Fat: 41gPolyunsaturated Fat: 28gCholesterol: 214mgSodium: 433mgFiber: 5gSugar: 78g

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Cake