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Our easy Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake is a dream come true for peanut butter cup lovers. It's a moist, rich chocolate cake stacked with fluffy peanut butter frosting and smothered in silky chocolate.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake–need I say more?
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake–need I say more?This is the best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake recipe! It takes everything I love about peanut butter cups and turns it into a show-stopping dessert. The rich, moist chocolate cake layers paired with the fluffy peanut butter frosting are totally irresistible, and the smooth chocolate frosting on top pulls it all together like a bakery-style treat. It’s the kind of cake that always gets rave reviews and recipe requests. It's perfect for birthdays, holidays, or any time you want to impress!
Check out all of my cake recipes, like German Chocolate Cake, Better than Sex Cake, Biscoff Cake, or Flourless Chocolate Cake!
How to make Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake:
Make Cake Batter: Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt). Add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla; beat for 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water or hot coffee until the thin batter is smooth. Pour into greased and parchment-lined round cake pans.
Bake at 350°F for 30–35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in pans, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Slice each cake layer in half horizontally to make four thin layers.
Assemble and Decorate: Spread ⅓ of the peanut butter frosting on top of the first cake layer then repeat with the remaining 3 cake layers. For the chocolate frosting, combine melted butter and cocoa powder then add powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla. Beat with electric mixers until smooth. Thicken or thin frosting as needed then spread chocolate frosting evenly over the outside of the cake. Optionally, pipe swirls on top of the chocolate and peanut butter cake and garnish with mini Reese’s peanut butter cups, if desired.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake:
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 3/4 cups + 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup oil, (vegetable, canola or avocado oil)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup boiling water, , or hot coffee
Peanut butter frosting
- 1 batch Peanut Butter Frosting
Chocolate Frosting:
- 1/2 cup butter, (1 stick), melted
- 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 12 mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, for topping on cake, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two 8-inch round baking pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper.
- Dry Ingredients: Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl.2 cups granulated sugar, 1 ¾ cups + 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour, ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder, 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt
- Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla and beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes. Stir in the boiling water (your batter will be very thin–that's OK!). Pour batter into prepared cake pans.2 large eggs, 1 cup buttermilk, ½ cup oil, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, 1 cup boiling water
- Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.
- Torte: Once cakes have cooled, use a sharp serrated knife to cut each cake horizontally in half, so that you end up with four, thin cake rounds.
- Assemble: Place one cake layer on serving plate. Smooth ⅓ of the peanut butter frosting on top of that cake layer. Repeat with the remaining cake layers, adding a layer of peanut butter frosting between each layer of cake.1 batch Peanut Butter Frosting
- Chocolate Frosting: Add melted butter to a large mixing bowl. Stir in cocoa powder. Add powdered sugar, milk and vanilla and beat with electric mixers until smooth. Add additional powdered sugar to thicken frosting or milk to thin it, as needed.½ cup butter, 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 3 cups powdered sugar, ⅓ cup milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Use an offset spatula or butter knife to spread the frosting evenly over the outside of the cake. I piped swirls of extra chocolate and peanut butter frosting on top and topped with a mini Reese's peanut butter cup. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.12 mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I originally shared this recipe March 2016. Updated September 2021 and October 2025.
I made this cake and my layers seem very thin. Once they are stacked the cake will be 2in high. Of course that doesn’t count the frosting. Does that seem correct?
Hi Heather, it sounds like your cake didn’t rise properly while baking. The most common reasons would be using the wrong type of flour, forgetting to add baking powder of baking soda, or using old baking powder or baking soda. Do any of these sound like they could have been the problem. I’m so sorry you had trouble–hope you get to try it again soon!
My bf loves peanut butter on everything. I recently made brownies and we put peanut butter on them. They were delicious. His birthday is coming up and I plan on making this for him. I’m so excited! 🙂
Yay! I hope he loves it! I’d love to hear!
Hi Lauren ! As a homebaker, finding this recipe in the last Minute saved me, cz my regular recipe stopped Working for me.. my client was very happy with this cake , thank you!!
I made this cake with coconut flour, coconut sugar, coconut oil, and coconut milk, and it turned out awesome and moist!!! Makes it GF, dairy free, soy free annnnnd pretty sure that makes it vegan, or at least vegetarian. I’m at regular altitude. Just wanted to share that these version of the ingredients turned out great for me. Just a slight hint of coconut flavor.
Thanks so much for the input!
Just made this cake for my husband’s birthday. It was AMAZING! Usually I’m not a big fan of chocolate cake. I usually feel that it’s too rich or bitter and leaves an awful aftertaste. But not this recipe. It was light with just enough peanut butter and chocolate. Nothing dominated the other components, they complimented each other so well. Thank you SO much for sharing. I will definitely be making this again.
So great to hear you liked it so much! Thank you! Hope it was a very happy birthday 🙂
where’s the peanut butter in the frosting???
In the ingredients it calls for “1 batch of peanut butter frosting”, with a direct link that recipe: http://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/2015/04/reeses-peanut-butter-cupcakes.html
Amazing! This chocolate cake is decadent and the perfect marriage of chocolate and peanut butter.
Adding the water at 6,500 ft completely ruined the cake. Literally it over flowed in the oven and didn’t solidify at all after 35 minutes. Huge thumbs down at altitude.
This really does sound amazing. i love peanut butter. Thanks for sharing this.
Simon
Hi Lauren, I found your beautiful blog through Princess Pinky Girl. Your content is awesome and your pics too. Loving this delicious cake, yum!