raspberry chocolate chip cake with chocolate frosting

over the weekend we celebrated ryan's grandmother's 93rd birthday.

we wanted to make something different for dessert instead of typical birthday cake, so we tried a new recipe: raspberry chocolate chip cake with chocolate frosting.

three layers of vanilla cake with fresh raspberries and chocolate chips through out the cake.

the raspberries provided little pops of pink, and the chocolate chips looked like polka dots in the cake.  so festive!

the chocolate frosting was so rich and creamy.  i could eat this frosting with a spoon, it's so good.  it tastes just like fudge.

we decorated the top of the cake with fresh raspberries and mini chocolate chips.

we just bought this cake pedestal last week, and it was such a pretty base for this birthday cake.

can you believe that this cake pedestal was only 18 cents?!  it was originally marked as $50 . . . that's some good coupon use if i do say so myself!

ryan's grandmother seemed to really like her birthday cake!  our whole family loves the combination of raspberries and chocolate.

if you're looking for some other tasty raspberry-chocolate recipes, we also love our chocolate raspberry sacher torte and our chocolate sour-cream cake with raspberry filling and chocolate-raspberry frosting.

raspberry chocolate chip cake with chocolate frosting
prep time: 20-25 minutes
baking time: 25 minutes
yields: one 3-layer 9-inch round cake
adapted from sally's baking addiction

cake ingredients:
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup salted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups buttermilk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups fresh raspberries
3/4 cup chocolate chips (mix of semi-sweet and milk chocolate)

frosting ingredients:
1 cup salted butter, softened
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
4 tablespoons half-and-half
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

directions:
preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.  grease and flour the sides of three 9-inch round cake pans, and line the bottom of the cake pans with parchment paper.  set aside.  to make the cake, sift the flour, baking powder, and baking soda together into a large bowl.  in a separate bowl, whisk together the melted butter and the sugar.  add the eggs, one at a time, whisking well after each addition.  add the buttermilk and vanilla, stir well.  slowly whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until no lumps remain.  be careful not to over mix.  the batter will be very thick.  gently fold the raspberries and the chocolate chips into the batter with a spatula.  divide the batter evenly between the three prepared cake pans.  bake the cakes for 22-24 minutes.  the cakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean.  allow the cakes to cool in the cake pans for 10 minutes, then remove the cakes from the cake pans and allow them to cool completely on a wire cooling rack.

to make the frosting, in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes).  add 3 cups of powdered sugar along with the cocoa powder.  mix on low to combine.  add 3 tablespoon of half-and-half along with the vanilla.  mix on low to combine.  add the remaining powdered sugar and/or half-and-half as needed to reach your desired frosting consistency.  frost the cakes once they have cooled completely.  decorate with additional raspberries and mini chocolate chips.

enjoy!

love, laurie