Last Summer, I whipped up this recipe for berry Chantilly cake and it was just the dreamiest Spring/Summer cake ever. With berry season in full swing, this recipe was top of mind all over again and I thought it would be nice to offer a sheet cake variation for those of us who don’t feel like building a layer cake. It’s got all the elements of the layer cake version (which is heavily inspired by the berry Chantilly cake from my local Whole Foods): fluffy white cake, sweet berry jam, creamy mascarpone-infused Chantilly cream frosting, and lots of lemon juice coated berries.
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One Reader, Anzhela, says: “I made this cake for my daughter’s first birthday in April and it was A HIT! While people asked for seconds, my husband said it’s the best cake he ever tried in his life and banned me from giving any cake to go. It’s light, fluffy and berries bring balance to whole thing. It’s going to be a staple in our household moving on!” ★★★★★
The great thing about sheet cakes is they’re quicker to decorate and so easy to transport. There’s no need to worry about the structure, crumb coating, or getting a perfectly smooth finish. Therefore, it’s the most beginner friendly version of this cake recipe that still yields incredible results. Between the fluffy cake, just-sweet-enough Chantilly cream frosting, and berries, this cake is so light and fresh and sure to please any dessert lover. It’s gonna be a total hit at your next gathering!
PS: you can make any of my layer cake recipes as a sheet cake! Here’s how.
What is Chantilly Cake?
The name Chantilly is a French term meaning “sweetened whipped cream” and in the Southern United States, Chantilly cake pairs that beautiful sweetened whipped cream frosting with light and fluffy vanilla cake. It’s traditionally layered with fresh berries – strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and sometimes blackberries. It was made famous by a baker working at a Whole Foods and has been a staple at the grocery store chain ever since (which is where I fell in love with it).
If you don’t like your frosting to be overly sweet, this Chantilly cream frosting is for you. It’s a subtly sweet whipped cream frosting made rich in flavor with mascarpone cheese, cream cheese, and almond extract. The cream cheese and mascarpone are the stabilizers here, making this frosting so easy to work with. You can frost a smooth finish, add some texture, and even pipe with it!
How to Decorate a Berry Chantilly Sheet Cake
Assembling and decorating this berry Chantilly cake is pretty easy to do with the support of a cake pan or baking dish. You can certainly take the cake out of the pan and decorate it that way, but I chose to assemble the cake in the same pan I baked it in. I did turn the cake out of the pan to torte it into two layers, but then it went right back into the pan for assembly. One layer of cake, then a layer of jam, then Chantilly cream frosting and fresh berries, then the other cake layer.
To decorate, I frosted the cake with more Chantilly cream frosting and added some simple rustic texture with a small icing spatula. Then, I fitted a piping bag with Wilton Tip 32 and filled it with the rest of the Chantilly cream frosting before piping a braided border all around the edges of the cake. To finish the look, I arranged some fresh berries in two opposite corners.
The Chantilly cream frosting is super easy to work with, so feel free to follow your heart with the decorating! Just be sure to top it with some fresh berries for a pop of color and you’re good to go.
Side note: I originally got my ceramic baking dish from Target, but they don’t make it anymore! I did find this one on Amazon that is similar.
How to Store Chantilly Cake
One thing that is definitely worth noting is that this Chantilly cake has to be refrigerated. I recommend taking it out of the refrigerator an hour or so before serving just so it’s a little closer to room temperature, but you can absolutely serve it cold.
Also worth noting: you can assemble this Chantilly cake up to one day ahead of time, any longer than that and the berries may start weeping inside the cake. Check out the Make Ahead Tips in the notes section of the recipe below to help plan your cake baking/decorating timeline out.
Berry Chantilly Sheet Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
White Cake
- 2 1/2 Cups (265g) sifted cake flour* DIY recipe in notes
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 Cups (300g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 Cup (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 4 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1/2 Cup (120ml) vegetable oil
- 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 Cups (300ml) full-fat buttermilk*, room temperature DIY recipe in notes
Chantilly Cream Frosting*
- 16 Oz (452g) mascarpone cheese, room temperature
- 8 Oz (226g) full-fat, brick-style cream cheese, room temperature not the spread
- 3 Cups (360g) powdered sugar
- 2 Cups (480ml) heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
Berry Filling
- 1/2 Cup berry jam of your choice
- 2 Tbsp water
- 4 Oz (105g) fresh strawberries, quartered
- 4 Oz (55g) fresh blueberries
- 4 Oz (55g) fresh raspberries
- juice and zest of 1/2 lemon
Garnish
- 1/2 Cup fresh mixed berries
Instructions
Make the White Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/177°C and prepare a 9×13 inch sheet pan or casserole dish by spraying the sides with baking spray and lining the bottom with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter at high speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and cream it together with the butter at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes, scraping the bowl and paddle at the halfway point. Turn the mixer to low and add the egg whites one at a time, mixing until they are just combined and scraping down the bowl and paddle as needed. Add the vegetable oil and vanilla, increase the mixer speed to high and beat for 1 minute.
- Turn the mixer off and add the flour mixture all at once. Mix the ingredients on low speed until just combined, then slowly pour in the buttermilk. Continue mixing at low speed for about 30 seconds, until the batter is uniform and combined. The batter will be slightly thin.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 28 to 32 minutes. The cake is done when it springs back to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs on it. Let the cake cool completely to room temperature before moving on with the recipe.
Make the Chantilly Cream Frosting
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, combine the mascarpone and cream cheese. Beat on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 30 seconds. Add the powdered sugar a few spoonfuls at a time, beating on low speed until combined. Once fully incorporated, scrape down the bowl and increase speed to medium, and beat until fluffy, about 30 seconds.
- In another large mixing bowl, beat the cream, vanilla, and almond extract on medium speed until stiff peaks form, 2 min. Fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture.
Make the Fillings
- Mix together the berry jam and water. Set aside.
- Add the strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries into a medium bowl. Toss together with the lemon juice and zest. Set aside.
Assembly
- Once the white cake is completely cooled, gently remove it from the pan by placing a large cutting board on top of the cake pan and flipping it upside down, then lifting the pan away from the sheet cake. Use a serrated knife or large cake leveler to torte the cake (slice through the center horizontally) and create two equal sized cake layers. Place one of the cake layers back into the pan.
- Spread the jam mixture onto the cake layer, then add a layer of chantilly cream frosting. Press the lemon coated berries on top. Place the other white cake layer on top.
- To create the design pictured, frost the cake with chantilly cream frosting and use a small spatula to make diagonal swipes in the finish. Prepare a piping bag with Wilton Tip 32 and place the remaining chantilly cream frosting inside, then pipe a braided buttercream border around the edges of the cake (here’s a video that shows the technique). Garnish two opposite corners with fresh berries.
Notes
- The white cake can be made ahead and stored at room temperature, covered tightly in plastic wrap, for up to two days. Alternatively, you can cover with plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to two months before thawing to room temperature.
- The berry chantilly frosting can not be made ahead because it will lose too much air when stored in an airtight container and therefore won’t be workable. You’ll want to whip up the frosting right before you’re ready to assemble.
- This cake can be assembled up to 1 day in advance and stored in the refrigerator. Any leftovers should be refrigerated, covered, for up to 4 days.
- I don’t recommend freezing an assembled berry chantilly cake, but you can bake the white cake layers in advance and freeze them for up to 2 months.
I hope you love this recipe as much as I do! Let me know what you think in the comments below and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me! I love to see your bakes.
would the flavour be just as good without blueberries / sub with blackberries instead?
Hi Marianne! Yes, you could totally sub in blackberries. I actually just tried that a few days ago and it was delicious!
It is a great recipe but if anyone has difficulty finding mascarpone cheese, I did half the frosting recipe and used 1 cup of whip cream which I whipped & stabilized and separately whipped 8 oz block cream cheese and an 8 oz tub of strawberry spreadable cream cheese. It worked well and has a nice pink hue.
Hi Judy! I’m so happy you loved this recipe and thanks so much for the mascarpone substitution idea! That sounds delicious.