There are cakes that feel like celebration, and then there are cakes that feel like home. This Chocolate Hazelnut and Raspberry Cake manages to be both. It’s rich and decadent, yet soft and familiar — the kind of cake that turns a simple afternoon into something a little special.
Hazelnuts and chocolate are already best friends in the baking world, but bring raspberries to the party, and suddenly you have something complex, bright, and completely irresistible. The raspberries cut through the richness, adding little bursts of tartness that make each bite sing. I did contemplate if the cake would taste better with a chocolate or a vanilla frosting. Just so I could add a pop of colour (or two) with the vanilla version, I went with that.
This is the cake I bake when I want to feel creative — when I miss the sound of spoons scraping against mixing bowls or the smell of something nutty and chocolatey drifting from the oven. It’s a cake that invites conversation, quiet moments, and maybe just one more slice.
It’s also endlessly giftable — whether for a friend going through a tough week or a neighbour who deserves something sweet. Simple ingredients, thoughtfully combined — that’s the kind of comfort we all need more of.
If you enjoy baking hazelnut cakes, you will love my Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut Mini Cakes
Chocolate Hazelnut and Raspberry Cake
Makes an 8 inch (20 cm) round cake
Chocolate, Hazelnut and Raspberry Cake
3/4 cup (170 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
11/2 cups (330 g) brown sugar
3/4 cup (180 ml) milk
1/2 cup (44 g) cocoa powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate soda
1 cup 125 g) self-rising flour
1/4 cup (51 g) hazelnut meal (ground hazelnuts)
3 eggs, lightly whisked
½ cup (62 g) raspberries, fresh or frozen
extra raspberries, for decoration
edible flowers, for decoration (optional)
Vanilla Buttercream
1/2 cup (114 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups (240 g) icing/powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp milk
Make the chocolate, hazelnut and raspberry cake: Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease the base and sides of a 8-inch (20 cm) round pan with 3-inch (8-cm) height and line the base with baking paper.
In a large saucepan, place the butter, sugar, milk, cocoa powder and bicarbonate soda and cook over low heat until butter has melted and mixture is smooth. Remove the pan from the heat and leave it aside for 15 minutes to cool.
Fold in the flour and hazelnut meal. Mix. Add the eggs and mix till incorporated. Fold in the raspberries.
Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake for 45-55 mins or until a skewer inserted in the middle of a cake comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven. Leave it aside for 10 minutes, then gently run a blunt knife around the edges to loosen the cake. Carefully turn it onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the vanilla buttercream : In a large bowl, using an electric mixer beat the butter until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes. Add the powdered sugar, a little at a time beating continuously until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as and when required. Add the vanilla extract and milk and beat until smooth. Divide the butterceam between two bowls. Add 1-2 drops of gel food colouring of your choice in each bowl. Mix till smooth.
Assemble: Place the cooled cake on a serving plate or cake stand. Using two piping bags, one fitted with a closed star tip, and the other with a plain round tip, pipe kisses on the top of the cake leaving spaces in between for the raspberries. Decorate with raspberries.
