Moist and fluffy layers of chai-spiced cake between layers of creamy white chocolate mousse and frosted with the silkiest brown sugar buttercream!
When it comes to hot beverages, I’m normally a hot chocolate kinda girl. However, I will make an exception for tea, especially when it’s a good chai tea latte. Although pumpkin spice lattes are all the rage this time of year, you can’t beat the aroma of a good cup of chai. The smell is so reminiscent of a brisk and sunny autumn day.
So in honor of my favorite tea, I decided to dedicate an entire cake to this wonderful autumnal drink!
Let me tell you, this cake is absolutely BRIMMING with flavor. With those gloriously aromatic chai spices baked into soft cake layers, incredibly creamy white chocolate mousse, and a silky whipped brown sugar buttercream, this cake could not be more perfect for fall. You don’t even have to be a chai lover to fall completely in love with this cake.
In order to infuse this cake with as much chai flavor as possible, I did two things. First, I added the traditional chai spice blend (cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, allspice, and cloves) to the dry ingredients. And second, I poured boiling water over a chai tea bag and allowed it to steep before adding it to the batter at the end. Both of these techniques help to achieve that wonderfully cozy chai flavor.
Although there’s absolutely nothing wrong with simply filling and frosting a cake with one buttercream, I like to add a little extra indulgence to my cakes by creating a separate filling. For this cake, I went with a white chocolate mousse filling. Not only does white chocolate pair well with pretty much anything (except for maybe sardines), but I didn’t have to worry about it competing with or overpowering the flavor of the chai spices. It only enhances the sweetness of the chai.
The white chocolate mousse filling is actually quite easyto make for how creamy and wonderfully light it is. All you have to do is whip up some heavy cream, then fold it into some melted white chocolate. That’s it! Super simple, right?
To frost this cake, I decided to go with a light,less overpowering whipped brown sugar buttercream. Brown sugar seemed likethe obvious choice since the warm sweetness of the molasses pairs so well with cozy chai spices.I’ve usedthis heavenly buttercream on my Fresh Pear Cake and Brown Butter Cupcakes, and I’ve been dying to incorporate it into another recipe! It’struly unlike any buttercream you will ever try. It’s unbelievably smooth, satiny, and contains the perfect balance of sweetness.Even those who don’t care for frosting (aka, fun killers) will go crazy over this buttercream.
Unlike most buttercream frosting recipes, this buttercreamstarts off with a cooked flour-milk base. You’ll whisksome flour and milk together in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until it thickens into apaste. It should basically have the consistency of pancake batter. Once this mixture cools completely, it’s vigorously whippedinto a well-beaten mixture of butter and brown sugar until it transforms into a beautiful silky cloud of deliciousness.
Now, I will say that there are a few tricks to achieving the perfect texture as well as avoiding any frosting frustrations.
First off, make sure to whipthe butter and brown sugar together long enough so that the brown sugar granules are able to dissolve into the butter. It should be smooth and fluffyso that you don’t end up with a grainy texture.
Secondly, the flour-milk mixture MUSTbe completely cool (room temperature) before it’sadded to the butter and brown sugar mixture. You can refrigerate the flour-milk mixture to speed up the cooling process, but make sure it isn’t cold when added to the whipped butter and brown sugar. This will cause your buttercream to look curdled. Luckily, there’s a super easy fix to this!Simply remove a couple of tablespoons of the curdled buttercream and place it into a small microwaveable bowl. Heat it in the microwave until it’s completely melted, then add it back into the mixing bowl. Turn the mixer on, and beat everything until it’s smooth. If it still looks curdled, just keep repeating this reheating technique a tablespoon at a time until the mixture comes together. Trust me, it eventually will!
Now, when it comes to layering the cake and filling, to prevent the filling from peeking out of the sides of the cake, I always pipe a border of buttercream along the top edges of the cake first. Then I use an offset spatula to spread the filling inside of that ring of buttercream. This cake ends with a layer of filling on top, so you’ll need to place the whole cake in the freezer to allow everything to firm up before frosting the top and sides.
The great thing about this whipped brown sugar buttercream is that it spreads like a dream because of how smooth and silky it is. I usually end up frosting the whole cake with a thin layer of buttercream (crumb coat), chilling it in the freezer for about 30 minutes to an hour, then spreading on a final layer of buttercream.
To add a pop of color, I decorated the cake with some cute autumn sprinkles. Chopped toasted pecans would also be great for added crunch and flavor!
Moist and fluffy layers of chai-spiced cake between layers of creamy white chocolate mousse and frosted with the silkiest brown sugar buttercream!
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins
Cook Time 18 minutes mins
Chilling Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins
Total Time 3 hours hrs 18 minutes mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 10 Servings
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1 Chai tea bag
- ½ cup boiling water
- 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¾ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
White Chocolate Mousse:
- 8 ounces white chocolate chips or chopped
- 1 ½ cup heavy cream divided
Whipped Brown Sugar Buttercream:
- 7 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 ⅓ cup milk
- 1 ¼ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
Make the Cake:
Place tea bag in a cup or bowl and pour the boiling water over it; steep for 15 minutes. Allow to cool.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF degrees. Line three 8-inch round cakepans with parchment paper and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
In a mixing bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together until combined; set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium speed until lightened and creamy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla on medium speed.
Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until combined. Add the chai water, then mix until just combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
Divide batter among the three pans, spreading it out into an even layer. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Mousse:
Place chocolate in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Add 3 Tablespoons of the heavy cream. Heat in the microwave for 30-45 seconds, remove and stir until smooth. Allow to cool to room temperature.
Place the remaining heavy cream in a well-chilled bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip on high until stiff peaks form.
Stir a quarter of the whipped cream into the melted chocolate until smooth and completely incorporated. Add the combined whipped cream and chocolate mixture to the remaining whipped cream and use a rubber spatula to gently fold together. Refrigerate until ready to assemble cake.
Make the Buttercream:
In a small saucepan over medium heat, whisk flour and milk together, stirring constantly, until it thickens. It should look like thick pancake batter. Remove from heat and immediately pour milk mixture into a bowl to cool completely.*
After the milk mixture has come to room temperature, use a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or a beater to cream the butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt together on medium high until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Add the completely cooled milk mixture, and beat it for about 5-7 minutes on high until it looks like whipped cream.**
To Assemble:
Place a cake layer on a cake plate or pedestal. Pipe a border of buttercream along the perimeter of the cake to prevent filling from peeking out of the sides. Spread a third of the mousse on top and inside the frosting border. Repeat steps with the remaining cake layers and mousse, ending with a layer of mousse on top.Chill cake in the freezer for 1 hour.
Once chilled and solid, frost the cake with the buttercream.*** Freeze cake for at least 30 minutes to set the buttercream. Remove cake and frost with a final layer of buttercream. Decorate with sprinkles, if desired.
Notes
*The milk mixture can be refrigerated to speed up the cooling process.
**If your frosting still looks curdled after several minutes of beating, no need to panic! This is most likely because your butter or flour mixture was too cold. Simply remove a couple of tablespoons of the curdled mixture and place it into a small microwaveable bowl. Heat it in the microwave until it’s completely melted, then add it back into the mixing bowl. Turn the mixer on, and beat everything until it’s smooth. If it still looks curdled, just keep repeating this reheating technique a tablespoon at a time until the mixture comes together. Trust me, it eventually will!
***Since the filling will soften quicker than the cake layers, I recommend frosting the top first and then frosting the sides.
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