Nutella Cake

This Nutella cake is pure indulgence for chocolate and hazelnut lovers: three layers of incredibly moist chocolate hazelnut sponge, filled and covered with a silky, custard-based Nutella mousseline cream, and finished with roasted hazelnuts. It tastes deeply of Nutella without the sugar overload of a typical buttercream cake recipes, and it is a stunning centerpiece for birthdays, holidays, and any celebration.

This Nutella cake recipe has been on Spatula Desserts since 2022. Since then, I've scaled the recipe up to an 8-inch cake at your request and updated the post with new photos, helpful baking tips, and ingredient substitution options based on your questions.

Best Nutella Cake Recipe

Most Nutella cakes online follow the same formula: a basic chocolate cake covered in Nutella buttercream. They look tempting, but the frosting is usually so sweet that it drowns out the chocolate and hazelnut, and many recipes need a soaking syrup to keep the sponge from tasting dry. This Nutella cake is different in two major ways.

First, the sponge. It is based on my chocolate sponge cake, made with oil and coffee for an incredibly moist crumb that needs no syrup, and enriched with hazelnut flour for a real, nutty depth that Nutella alone can't provide.

Second, the cream. Instead of buttercream, I use my Nutella frosting, a custard-based Nutella mousseline cream with real Nutella flavor. Because it is thickened with egg yolks and starch rather than powdered sugar, it is silky, luxurious, and perfectly balanced, so you taste chocolate hazelnut flavors in every bite without the sugar overload.

The sponge and cream are the same ones I use in my Ferrero Rocher Cake, one of the most loved cakes on the blog. This version lets the Nutella shine on its own.

Start with a Chocolate Pastry Cream

Start with the pastry cream, as it needs time to cool and set before it can become mousseline.

Whisk the egg yolks and sugar by hand for one to two minutes until slightly pale and a little fluffy, then add the cornstarch, cocoa powder, and vanilla and whisk until perfectly smooth, with no dry lumps.

Warm the milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat, then remove it from the heat as soon as it starts to simmer. Do not let it boil hard. Pour it slowly into the yolk mixture in a thin stream, whisking the whole time so the yolks heat gently. This is tempering the egg yolks, and the mixture may start to thicken slightly as the milk goes in.

Return everything to the pan and keep whisking over medium heat, scraping the bottom and corners. The cream thickens quickly once it reaches a boil; keep cooking and whisking for about one more minute so the starch fully sets. It may look lumpy for a moment, which is completely normal. Keep whisking firmly, and it will smooth out and become glossy. If any lumps remain, pass it through a fine sieve while still hot.

Take the pan off the heat before adding anything else. Stir in the finely chopped chocolate in three additions, letting each melt completely, then add soft, room-temperature butter, also in three additions. The butter should be soft but not melted.

Spread the cream into a shallow dish so it cools evenly, and press plastic wrap directly onto the surface to stop a skin from forming. Let it cool at room temperature, then refrigerate until fully set. For troubleshooting, see my chocolate pastry cream guide.

Bake the Chocolate Hazelnut Sponges

Measure every ingredient by weight before you begin, and make sure the eggs, milk, and coffee are at room temperature. Cold ingredients do not emulsify properly.

Brush three 20 cm / 8-inch cake pans very lightly with oil, just enough for the parchment to stick, then line the base and sides with parchment paper so the sponges release cleanly. Heat the oven to 175°C / 345°F.

If you cannot find hazelnut flour, replace it with an equal weight of all-purpose flour, or toast whole hazelnuts, then pulse-blend them with the flour for a few seconds to make your own.

Regarding the oil, any neutral oil, such as sunflower, canola, or light avocado oil, can replace the vegetable oil in the sponge. For more options, see my vegetable oil substitute guide.

Whisk the eggs, oil, both sugars, milk, and coffee together with an electric mixer for one to two minutes at medium speed. In a separate bowl, sift the all-purpose flour, hazelnut flour, Dutch-process cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to remove any lumps. Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and fold gently with a rubber spatula just until no streaks remain. Overmixing makes the sponge tough and dry.

Divide the cake batter equally into the three pans so the layers are the same height, then bake for 25 to 30 minutes at 175°C / 345°F or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let the sponges cool completely on a rack before moving them, as they are fragile while warm. Once cool, wrap and chill them. Cold sponges are much firmer and easier to stack and frost.

Whip up the Nutella Mousseline Cream

Take the pastry cream out of the fridge well ahead of time so it is fully at room temperature, and make sure the butter is soft and pliable but not shiny or melting. Temperature is everything here: if either is too cold, the cream turns lumpy or curdled; if either is too warm, it becomes greasy and runny. They both need to be exactly at room temperature.

Cream the soft unsalted butter in a stand mixer or with an electric hand mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about two to three minutes. Add the cocoa powder and salt and whip for a minute, then add the Nutella and whip until evenly blended.

Add the room-temperature pastry cream in four equal portions, letting each one mix in completely before adding the next. Then whip for about three minutes more until the cream is light, smooth, and pipeable.

Don't walk away; watch the frosting's texture. Stop the moment it looks fluffy and holds its shape. Mousseline doesn't get firmer with more whipping; it can split, the butter separates, and you have to start the cream again. If it is light and airy after whipping but softer due to a warm kitchen, chill it for 30 to 60 minutes before using.

The mousseline is easiest to work with when freshly made. If you chill it for too long, it firms up like butter, so let it come back to near room temperature before piping.

Assemble and Decorate the Nutella Cake

Make sure you have everything ready: three chilled sponges, freshly whipped mousseline cream, and roasted chopped hazelnuts. Remember that the same cream fills the layers, coats the outside, and makes the piped decoration, so keep enough aside for each stage.

Place the first cake layer directly on your serving plate or cake board, as a filled three-layer cake is very hard to move later. Pipe a ring of cream around the edge as a dam, then fill the center and level it with an offset spatula. Repeat with the second sponge, then add the third on top.

Check from eye level that the layers are even and straight, as an uneven filling can make the cake lean or slide. Chill the assembled cake for one hour in the fridge, or 15 minutes in the freezer, until the cream is firm.

Spread a thin crumb coat over the whole cake to trap loose crumbs, then chill for 30 minutes. For the final coat, pipe cream around the sides, then smooth it with an offset spatula while turning the cake on a turntable. A slightly textured finish looks lovely, so you don't need perfectly smooth sides. Chill again for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.

To decorate, use roasted chopped hazelnuts and pipe swirls of the remaining cream around the top edge with a large star nozzle such as a Wilton 1M.

Expert tips

1. Forgot to take the eggs out of the fridge? Place them in a bowl of warm tap water for 10 minutes. For butter, cut it into small cubes so it softens evenly, and see my tips on softening butter quickly.
2. If you grind your own hazelnut flour, do it with the flour. Here is the process: roast the hazelnuts first and let them cool completely. Roasting deepens their flavor considerably, and warm nuts turn oily much faster in the food processor.
3. If your sponges bake with a slight dome, level them with a long serrated knife once chilled, and place the top sponge upside down so the flat bottom becomes the top of the cake.
4. If your sponges ever sink in the middle, see my guide on why cakes sink.
5. If your cake ever turns out dry, the usual causes are measuring flour by cup instead of weight, overmixing the batter, or an oven running hot.
6. When making the chocolate pastry cream, chop the chocolate very finely before adding it to the hot pastry cream, so it melts completely without leaving specks.
7. If the mousseline looks curdled while whipping, the pastry cream or butter is too cold. Keep the mixer running and gently warm the outside of the bowl with a warm towel or a hair dryer for a few seconds at a time until it comes together. If it looks soupy, it is too warm: chill the bowl for 15 minutes, then whip briefly again.
8. For clean, picture-perfect slices, chill the cake well and cut it with a long knife dipped in hot water and wiped dry between every cut.
9. Can I make this cake in a different size? Yes. Use my cake pan sizes conversion guide to adjust the quantities.

Storage & Make-Ahead

Store the Nutella cake in the fridge, covered or in an airtight container, for up to 3 days. Individual slices should be stored the same way. Because the cream contains butter, it firms up when cold, so take the cake out about 30 minutes before serving to let the cream soften and become silky again.

You can make this cake in stages:

• Up to 2 days ahead: make the chocolate pastry cream and keep it chilled with plastic wrap on the surface.
• 1 to 2 days ahead: bake the sponges, wrap them tightly, and refrigerate. The baked sponges also freeze well for up to 2 months.
• The day before serving: whip the mousseline, then assemble and decorate the cake. It tastes even better after a night in the fridge.

Do not freeze the mousseline cream or the assembled cake.

Substitute Ingredients Wisely

For a dairy-free Nutella cake, replace the milk with an equal amount of vegan milk. The pastry cream needs a little more care, as most plant-based milks are low in fat, which can affect the richness and set. I recommend mixing coconut milk and coconut cream to bring the fat content closer to whole milk, plus vegan butter with a high fat content. Increase the cornstarch slightly and add a little extra vanilla to make up for the missing dairy richness. You will also need a dairy-free chocolate and chocolate hazelnut spread.

You can use buttermilk in the chocolate sponge instead of whole milk.

The eggs, on the other hand, cannot be replaced. The egg yolks are what thicken the pastry cream and give the mousseline its custard flavor and silky texture, and the whole eggs give the sponge its structure.

Do not substitute unsweetened cocoa powder; the recipe simply won't work, or it will become way too sweet with hot cocoa powder.

Nutella is the heart of the cream, but you can swap it for other sweet spreads. My homemade Nutella, or any good-quality chocolate hazelnut spread, works 1:1. Sweetened pistachio cream makes a pistachio mousseline, and Biscoff spread makes a caramelized cookie version. If you use an unsweetened nut butter, such as hazelnut butter, the cream will be much less sweet, so taste it and add a little sifted powdered sugar.

To replace the coffee, use the same amount of lukewarm water; it is only there to deepen the chocolate flavor. No brown sugar? Use granulated sugar with a little molasses, as explained in my brown sugar substitute guide.

In the pastry cream, you can replace the cornstarch with the same weight of all-purpose flour. For a gluten-free cream, use cornstarch only.

What Equipment to Use

A digital kitchen scale is essential for weighing the ingredients and dividing the batter and cream evenly. A digital oven thermometer helps you bake at the right temperature.

Use an electric hand mixer or stand mixer for the batter and the mousseline, a rubber spatula for folding and stirring, and three 8-inch (20 cm) tall round cake pans. An offset spatula and a cake turntable make frosting much easier, and a piping bag with a star nozzle gives you neat swirls on top.

Try Some of My Other Cakes

If you loved this Nutella cake, here are more celebration cakes to try next:

• Berry Chantilly Cake
• Carrot Cake
• Hazelnut Cake
• Triple Chocolate Cake
• Victoria Sponge Cake

Also, check out my roundup of layer cake recipes for more inspiration for celebration cakes.

Want the same flavors in a cupcake form? Try my Nutella cupcakes recipe.

Have you tried this recipe?

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