Chocolate Whiskey Cake with Homemade Dulce de Leche Buttercream and smothered in a decadent Chocolate Whiskey Ganache.
Chocolate Whiskey Cake and Dulce de Leche Buttercream
I was in Asheville, NC last week having a great time with 150 bloggers! It was a wonderful time of sharing ideas, learning new things, and eating new food. The Food Blog Forum was hosted by Foodtoipa, the Asheville tourism board, and they totally impressed me. Everything about the area was amazing – the mountains, the friendly people, the farms, the restaurants, and the desserts!
One little chocolatier totally caught my attention – Jael from French Broad Chocolate.
They have a cocoa farm in Costa Rica and they bring it back to Asheville where they roast them and make the chocolate. It’s a lovely place and it smells divine!
My husband has been bugging me to make a “man’s cake” for the past month. He bought me a bottle of Dewar’s and it took me so long to get to it that he had enjoyed 99% of the bottle himself. I was determined to make this cake before I left for North Carolina, and I had a large bundt cake made… but then life happened and that bundt cake was sacrificed to make cake pops for FBF. C’est la vie!
Also, while driving through the mountains, touring the farms and looking out over the Biltmore Estate, I got a total sense of “Outlander”. Not in Scotland, but when they move to North Carolina. I’m in to book 6 of the series and loving every moment with the Fraser Clan. So while I was there talking with a Foodtopian, I mentioned that with the Highland Brewery and the majestic mountains, they should really look into a full experience with Jamie and Claire. Yeah, I’d get into that… while stuffing my face with this cake.
Yes, I really think that all the Highland boys would enjoy this cake. At least my red-headed husband did 😉
Chocolate Whiskey Cake

Whiskey infused Chocolate Cake and Dulce de Leche buttercream will bring all the Scottish highlanders to your yard!
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 cup (2 sticks) Butter
- 2 cups Flour
- 5 ounces Dark Chocolate, I used 66% dark
- 1/4 cup Instant Espresso (or Coffee) Granules
- 2 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- Boiling water
- 1 cup Whiskey
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 1/2 cups Sugar
- 3 large Eggs
- 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
For the Frosting
- 1 pound (4 sticks) Butter (salted is good)
- apx 10 - 12 oz Dulce de Leche made from 1 14 oz can
- +/- 2 pounds Powdered Sugar (As needed to thicken)
- 2 - 3 Tablespoons Whiskey
Instructions
For the Cake
- Melt the chocolate pieces and set aside to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 325 and grease two 9 inch round pans. Line with parchment or flour.
- Use a 2 cup measuring cup and place the coffee granules and the cocoa powder into it and add boiling water up to the 1 cup line. When all is dissolved, add in the whiskey. Set aside to cool.
- Whip the butter until smooth then add in the sugar, eggs, vanilla, and baking soda. Add the cooled chocolate and then alternate the coffee whiskey and the flour.
- Transfer to the pans and bake for 35 minutes.
- Cool for 10 minutes in the pan before turning them out. Allow to cool completely and refrigerate..
For the Frosting
- Whip the softened butter and add in the Dulce de Leche. Slowly add in the powdered sugar and the whiskey. You'll need a lot of sugar for a thick frosting. Keep adding the sugar until the peaks are stiff yet it's still pliable.
- Tort the Cake and layer the frosting. You can leave the sides open if desired or cover it completely.
Notes
Cake recipe adapted from Simply Recipes
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
16Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1422Total Fat: 54gSaturated Fat: 33gTrans Fat: 2gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 189mgSodium: 711mgCarbohydrates: 211gFiber: 1gSugar: 184gProtein: 18g
Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.
Jena
Wednesday 17th of June 2020
Hi Karen! Looking forward to making your cake for Father’s Day! Just so I have this right, the frosting calls for 2 pounds of powdered sugar? That’s about 8 cups I think. Is this correct?
Thank you!
Karyn Granrud
Wednesday 15th of July 2020
and yes... 8 CUPS of powdered sugar. It's insane how much sugar American Buttercream uses. However, if you get to a good consistency before adding all the sugar, then stop. Don't make it too thick. You'll run into playing with the liquid to soften it and then sugar to thicken it.
Claire
Saturday 16th of May 2020
Hi, thank you sharing this wonderful recipe. I need to make this into 2 trays of 6 inches size.
How can I reduce the recipe? Many thanks
Karyn Granrud
Sunday 24th of May 2020
I don't understand what size you are trying to make. I would just make the recipe as is, fill your pans accordingly and watch your bake times. If there is leftover batter, consider making some cupcakes or additional cakes to freeze.
Carrie Rudolph
Monday 22nd of July 2019
If you were to use this recipe for cupcakes instead how would you adjust the cook time/ temperature?
Karyn Granrud
Friday 26th of July 2019
Temperature will stay the same, time will be cut to 18 - 22 minutes.
Miriam
Sunday 21st of April 2019
Can you tell me why I didn't get enough rise to make 2 layers out of each cake? Followed the recipe exactly as written and used a brand new box of baking soda.
The cake and frosting were absolutely delicious though! TEN stars!!
Karyn Granrud
Monday 13th of May 2019
So sorry, there are so many reasons why a cake won't rise. Maybe the oven temperature is off? Maybe it was over stirred before going into the oven? I really don't know what could have thrown it off, but I'm glad that they were delicious!
Kellie
Saturday 10th of November 2018
Flavor is absolutely great, but my cake is completey falling apart! definitely not over baked because it's super moist but I touch it and it falls apart. Still eating it, just looks like a hot mess
Karyn Granrud
Wednesday 14th of November 2018
Interesting. I don't know why it would fall apart. Do you mean it's crumbing? Do you mean it's too soft? Is it ripping when you were frosting it? I wrap my cakes with plastic and freeze them overnight before frosting them. This keeps them firm and easier to frost.