The Ultimate Oreo Cake
This cookies ‘n’ cream Oreo cake is my favorite vanilla cake studded with Oreo chunks. The buttercream is infused with oreo milk and oreo crumbs and there are milk soaked oreos between every layer!
If you know me, you know I’ve always been a HUGE fan of Oreos… or anything cookies and cream, really. They’re that one childhood treat that I’ll never grow out of loving. Fortunately for me, my siblings feel the same way so I had to make us the ultimate Oreo cake.
Not to my surprise, my family highly approved of the cake and highly recommend you try it out for yourself *winky-face*.
What’s in this cake?
Some people might describe Oreos as a chocolate cookie with vanilla cream filling but if you’re a true Oreo lover, you would agree that Oreo isn’t just chocolate and vanilla, it’s its own flavor. Almost all of the Oreo cake recipes I’ve come across are made with a chocolate sponge. If I’m being honest, I think a chocolate sponge would completely mask the flavor of Oreos.
I chose to add roughly chopped Oreos to my favorite vanilla cake recipe and then add ground Oreos to vanilla buttercream frosting. For an extra indulgent touch, I even soaked some Oreos in milk until they were nice and soft and then placed a layer on top of each layer of buttercream. Let’s just say, I was very pleased with the Oreo-ness of this cake!
How to make this Oreo cake
See this detailed step-by-step post on my favorite 6 inch vanilla cake recipe. I just roughly chopped Oreos and folded them into the batter. To make the color between the cake and the Oreos more contrasted I didn’t add all the crumbs that came with chopping the Oreos. I saved them and added them to the frosting but it really doesn’t make a significant difference, you can do it either way.
I really wanted to make a Swiss meringue or a french buttercream for this Oreo cake so that it’s not too sweet but I ended up going with a classic American frosting for two reasons. First, it was my husband’s birthday and he prefers ultra sweet frosting and second, because I just felt that the idea of an Oreo cake would go better with American frosting.
If you do prefer a frosting that is less sweet you can try Swiss meringue buttercream recipe and add the Oreos and milk.
Assembling the cake
I love a fancy cake with a ton of layers but this Oreo cake is fairly simple to assemble. On top of each layer of cake is a layer of frosting and then a layer of milk (cream) soaked Oreos. In the photo, I used mini Oreos because that’s what I had at home but you can use regular size Oreos too.
I un-sandwiched the Oreos so they’re not super thick, let them soak for about 10 and then I used the milk/cream for the frosting. It might get a little messy since the Oreos are soggy but just cover it up with a little extra frosting and then layer the next cake on top.
How to decorate an Oreo cake
If you don’t already know or can’t tell, I can’t be bothered with piping bags or piping tips. To keep things simple. I chose to do a perfectly smooth side and an unfinished ridge at the top filled with Oreo cookie crumbs.
Put all the frosting on top of the cake and use an offset spatula to work the frosting around it. Then with the cake on a turntable, I spin it while gently scraping the sides with a cake scraper. Instead of cleaning the ridge on the top, I left it unfinished and just crumbled two Oreos on top.
Some other fun ideas are:
- a dark or white chocolate drip
- placing the Oreo crumbs in a crescent moon shape
- piping some frosting poofs on top alternating with whole Oreos
- use a unique cake scraper to make a fun design on the sides
- add some crushed Oreos to the bottom of the cake as well
How to store cakes
Before the cake is sliced, it can be stored uncovered. Keep it at room temperature for 1 night or in the fridge for up to a week.
Once the cake has been sliced, cover the open slices with plastic wrap or place them in an airtight container. The cake can be kept at room temperature for 1 night or refrigerated for up to a week.
To freeze the cake, wrap each slice individually with plastic wrap, place them in an airtight container and then place the container in a freezer bag. Freeze for up to 2 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can use dairy free butter, dairy free milk/cream to make any of my cakes or buttercreams.
All my cake recipes work well with a 1:1 gluten-free flour like Bob’s Red Mill and King Arthur Flour. Make sure to also use gluten-free Oreos.
You can make this cake in:
Three (or more) round or square 6 inch baking pans – I used round
Two round (or more) or square 8 inch baking pan
Two round or square 9 inch baking pan (will be thinner than the cakes in the photo) – reduce bake time by 5-10 minutes
One round or square 10 inch baking pan – increase bake time by 10-15 minutes, look for cues.
A 9×13 inch pan – increase bake time by at least 10-15 minutes, look for cues.
Cupcakes – Should make about 23 cupcakes, bake for 18ish minutes (but not my favorite for cupcakes – see below)
Last time I tested this cake recipe as cupcakes, it didn’t turn out quite like I had hoped. If you want to make a cupcake version of this cake, I would recommend using my vanilla cupcake recipe and folding 5-6 chopped Oreos into the batter. Follow the bake time of the cupcake recipe +/- 1-2 minutes.
Use the frosting recipe below to generously frost 12 cupcakes.
Just like all the rest of my cakes, I test if it’s done baking by pressing gently on the tallest part of the cake. The cake will spring back if it’s done baking. If it stays indented, give it a few minutes in the oven, before testing again.
You can also insert a toothpick into the center of the cake (the tallest part) and make sure it comes out clean or with a few crumbs but without any batter on it.
You can double the recipe for the buttercream if you want to decorate the outside as well.
Alternatively you can also just make one batch of swiss meringue buttercream or american buttercream to decorate the outside of the cake as well.
If you do prefer a chocolate Oreo cake version instead, you can use my 6 inch chocolate cake recipe instead of the vanilla. It’s actually on my cake bucket list because it does sound like it would be amazing. You better send me some…or at least a picture if you try this!
Whether or not you’re an Oreo lover, I hope you enjoy this cake. If you have any questions just comment down below (in the comment section because I can’t respond to rating reviews) and leave a review if you’ve tried the cake.
As always, have a blessed day and happy baking!
Love, B
This cake looks amazing! Do you have any advice on adjusting the recipe to make for a party with 35 people? Thank you!
Hi Jenna, I would probably just double the recipe and bake it in three 10 inch pans or four 9 inch pans. They’ll make larger slices so I would just cut each slice half vertically. I haven’t made 12 inch cakes but if you want to serve 35 large slices, I would do that – triple the recipe in that case. Hope that helps!
Do we have to use sour cream
Hi, a convection oven is a fan oven isn’t it? Normally the fan oven temperatures are lower than the other oven types? But yours is higher..just checking I’ve not made a mistake.
Thanks
Do you use table salt or kosher salt? And do you use the same type of salt for your Oreo muffins? Thank you!
I use sea salt, if not I recommend kosher salt
Wow, this Oreo cake recipe is an absolute delight! I recently tried it and was blown away. The step-by-step instructions made it a breeze to follow, and the result was a showstopper at my last gathering. If you’re a fan of indulgent treats, this recipe is a must-try! ?✨ Thanks Bernice for sharing this delightful recipe!
Thanks so much for sharing Anne! So glad you enjoyed it!:)
This cake was so amazing. I made it and everyone raved about how delicious it was.Thanks so much for your recipe!
Hi Angela, thanks so much for sharing! I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it!
This cake was so amazing. I made it for my son’s birthday and everyone raved about how delicious it was. It is so moist and the crumb is fine. The cake was all I’ve ever wanted out of cake, but I wasn’t sure how to achieve it. Thanks so much for your recipe!
Can I substitute canola oil for vegetable oil or olive oil
yes
Hi there,
I would love to make this as a 10” cake or a 9″ cake, would doubling give me enough batter to divide between 3 tins?
hi there,
i would love to make this for my daughter’s birthday party. Does this only make 1 9” cake layer from the recipe above? and if i need to make 3 9” cakes doubling should work? thanks 🙂
Hi! the recipe makes three 6 inch layers, two 8 inch layers or one 9×13 layer. You can double the recipe to make three 9 or 10 inch layers 🙂
Hi! the recipe makes three 6 inch layers, two 8 inch layers or one 9×13 layer. You can double the recipe to make three 9 inch layers 🙂
Thank you very much:)
Hi, is there any substitute for sour cream
Greek yogurt