Easy Berry Chantilly Cake is made from tender, vanilla cake, layers of whipped cream frosting, a hint of fresh jam and plenty of berries! This recipe saves a ton of time by doctoring up a yellow cake mix!
For the Frosting (This is just whipped cream that will stay set up!)
3teaspoonsunflavored gelatinKnox is the name brand but any brand is fine
4Tablespoonscold water
3cupsheavy whipping cream40% is recommended
1 1/3cuppowdered sugar
¾teaspoonalmond extract
¼teaspoonsalt
To Assemble the Cake Layers & Decorate
6ozblueberries
12ozraspberries
16ozstrawberries
6ozblackberries
¾cupof jamsee note on types
Fresh mint leaves and white spray roses are optional garnishes
Instructions
Tip: A great cake is baked in such a way that it rises flat and doesn't need to be leveled! The sides and bottom will be more tender and the entire cake is taller and more fluffy. See the full tutorial here.
To Make the Cake
Put one of your oven racks in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
Line the bottoms of two 9” cake pans with parchment paper.
Grease the sides of the cake pans with butter or pan spray. (I prefer butter but either works.)
Put the cake mix in a large mixing bowl.
Add the milk, vanilla, eggs and the egg white (you do NOT need to beat the egg white – just toss it into the bowl).
Use a hand mixer and mix on low speed for 30 seconds.
Add the melted butter and use a hand mixer to beat for two minutes with a timer. (If beating by hand beat vigorously for two minutes with a timer!) Not beating the cake batter well can cause the cake to be dense and not rise well.
Divide the batter equally between the pans. Bake on the middle rack of your oven for 23-28 minutes. The cake is done when is starts to pull away a little bit from the sides and a toothpick or cake tester inserted comes out with moist crumbs but no batter.
After the cake is baked place the pans on a rack to cool until they are room temperature. (If you are in a hurry you can put the cakes in the refrigerator after the pans are cool enough to handle without oven mitts.
While the cake is cooling prepare the berries.
Wash and drain well.
Put half the blueberries, and half the raspberries into a measuring cup. Dice up strawberries and add them to the cup until you reach 3 cups total.
Set aside the remaining berries to decorate the cake.
To Make the Frosting
When the cake is fully cool make the frosting.
Measure water into a small microwave safe bowl or measuring cup. Stir the gelatin into it. Set it by the microwave while you start the cream.
In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the cream, powdered sugar, almond extract, and salt. Beat with the whisk attachment on high for 1 minute. Taste and add additional sugar if you like. (You can do this with a hand mixer if you prefer – just use a large mixing bowl – tall and narrow if you have one.)
Microwave the gelatin mixture for 20 seconds or until the chunk of gelatin turns to thick, syrupy liquid.
Turn the mixer on high and continue beating the cream while slowly pouring the gelatin into the cream in a thin stream.
Beat until stiff peaks form.
To Assemble the Cake
Slice each cake in half horizontally to make it into two layers. Use a thin cookie sheet without sides or a dinner plate to slide the top layer off of the bottom.
Layer #1: Place the first layer of cake in the center of your serving plate. Use a butter knife to spread ¼ cup of the jam across the cake. Use a frosting spatula or butter knife to spread about ½” of frosting on the layer. Scatter about 1 cup of berries across the layer. Gently press them down into the frosting. They won’t be perfectly level – don’t worry about it.
Layer #2: Put another layer of cake on top of the 1st one. Repeat the process with jam, frosting and berries.
Layer #3: Put another layer of cake on top of cake. Repeat the process with jam, frosting and berries.
Layer #4: Put the last layer of cake on top. Use a frosting spatula to tuck some frosting into the sides of the cake where there are gaps between layers.
Apply some “frosting glue” to the side to hold crumbs down: This means spread a thin layer of frosting around the sides of the cake not worrying about crumbs. This will look messy.
Frost the top of the cake with a solid 1/2” of frosting. Add enough frosting to make the cake level. Smooth it some but don’t fuss too much because we are going to cover it all with decorations. It is supposed to look casual.
Add frosting to the sides of the cake over the “glue layer”. Again, smooth some but not overly much. A rough, natural look is the goal.
Garnish the cake with the remaining berries. It looks good to have some whole strawberries and some half berries. This is where I use blackberries for additional color and texture. Fresh mint leaves and white spray roses also look great here. I decorate the top and then put some details along the sides at the base of the plate.
Storing and Serving the Cake
I make the cake a few hours before serving and leave it uncovered in the refrigerator.
Serve it COLD for best flavor and texture.
Cover leftovers with plastic wrap.
This cake won’t last long because it has cut fresh berries in it! It tastes best the first day and still great the 2nd day. After day #2 it will start to go downhill. Discard leftovers after 3-4 days. (You can get a few extra days by using only whole berries such as raspberries and blueberries instead of cut up strawberries.)
Notes
Using Boxed Cake Mix: To make the cake I’ve got a formula for any brand of box cake mix! - Add an additional egg white - Replace water with the same amount of milk. - Take the amount of oil the recipe asks for and double it. Then instead of oil use butter! For example, if the box says ½ cup oil use 1 cup of melted butter! - Follow the same directions I give above for baking!Berries: You need 3 cups of berries to use for cake filling and as many additional as you like to garnish the top. Use any berries you want to! If you use strawberries inside dice them up small. I’ve listed the berries I used. Choosing Jam: I made this cake with a very simple homemade strawberry freezer jam (10-minute recipe)! It was amazing and was like smearing thick, sweet strawberry sauce on the cake layers. You can also get a good quality mixed berry jam or other favorite jam at the store to use. Seedless raspberry would be wonderful.