In honor of the spookiest season of all, I’ve whipped up a cake recipe that’s sure to satisfy all the Halloween lovers: black velvet. The cake layers are super moist and decadent, naturally colored pitch black with black cocoa powder, and taste just like the delicious shell of an Oreo cookie! Paired with my favorite dye-free black buttercream recipe and lambeth piping, this black velvet cake is a real stunner. It’s elegant and a little eerie all at the same time, which makes it the perfect Halloween party cake!
One Reader, Stacie, says: “I made this cake for my daughter’s birthday last year and it was fantastic – so much so that she requested it again this year! I shared a few slices with friends at work and one of them told me it was the best slice of cake she had ever had in her life! Love, love, love this recipe (and the black color) and won’t wait a year again to make it.” ★★★★★
Why You’ll Love This Black Velvet Cake
- Completely Dye-Free. Instead of using black food color gel, this recipe uses black cocoa powder to achieve the rich black color in the frosting and cake!
- Won’t Turn Anyone’s Mouth Black. Even though this entire cake is black, it won’t turn anyone’s mouth black or turn anything else crazy colors (iykyk) because it doesn’t contain any dye.
- So Easy to Make. The black velvet cake is a one-bowl recipe that is extremely fail-proof, and the black frosting is simple and straightforward as well. There are no fancy techniques involved and the only thing you’ll need to account for is giving the frosting time to darken in color (it’s best made a day ahead to get the darkest black color).
- Tastes Like Oreos. Since black cocoa powder is the main ingredient in Oreo cookie shells, this cake basically tastes like the layer cake version of an Oreo! So delicious and a total crowd pleaser.
- Perfect Halloween Party Cake. What’s better than an all-black cake for a Halloween party? It’s a little spooky yet elegant and the lambeth piping makes it a total showstopper for any Halloween gathering!
What Kind of Black Cocoa Powder Should I Use?
Black cocoa powder is basically an ultra-Dutched cocoa powder, meaning it’s been treated with an alkaline solution to reduce its acidity. Over the years I’ve discovered that not all black cocoa powders are created equal! The amount of alkalization varies between brands, which can affect both the color and the way black cocoa performs in baked goods.
For this Black Velvet Cake recipe, I recommend using a black cocoa powder that is moderately alkalized. More heavily alkalized black cocoas tend to produce a deeper black color, but they can behave differently in cake recipes when used as a 1:1 substitute in this recipe. That said, here are my recommendations:
- My Favorite Black Cocoa Powder for the CAKE LAYERS: OliveNation Jet Black Cocoa Powder or another moderately alkalized black cocoa powder.
- My Favorite Black Cocoa Powder for the FROSTING: The Cocoa Trader Black Cocoa Powder. It’s the darkest black cocoa powder on the market and makes a beautifully black frosting without needing any black food coloring.
- If You Only Want to Purchase ONE Black Cocoa Powder (Understandable!), Either:
- Use The Cocoa Trader for the frosting and cake layers, but for the cake layers you’ll need to reduce the amount and add a little Dutch-processed or regular cocoa powder to make up the difference — just see the substitution note in the recipe card below, OR
- Use OliveNation (or another moderately Dutched black cocoa powder) for the cake layers and frosting, but add a little squirt of black food coloring to the frosting to make it dark black.
How to Make Black Velvet Cake
This black velvet cake batter comes together in one bowl and you can choose to whisk the whole thing by hand or use an electric mixer. Here’s how to make it:
Mix Together All the Dry Ingredients
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and black cocoa powder.
Add Most of the Rest of the Ingredients
To the dry ingredients, add the eggs, oil, vanilla, and buttermilk (or whole milk mixed with vinegar). Mix together until it resembles thick brownie batter.
Add the Hot Coffee (or Hot Water)
Add the hot liquid (coffee or water) and mix vigorously for about 2 minutes until smooth. The batter will be thin.
Bake and Cool the Cake Layers
Pour the black velvet cake batter into three 6-inch cake pans (as pictured) or two 8-inch cake pans that have been prepared by spraying the sides with baking spray and lining the bottoms with parchment paper. Bake at 350ºF (177ºC) for 32-36 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.
Cool the cake layers completely before leveling them to your desired height, then filling and frosting with black buttercream (decorating tutorial below).
How to Make a Lambeth Cake
After making these cake layers, I couldn’t stop imagining black lambeth piping as the final decoration. Turns out that lambeth was the perfect choice to turn this black velvet cake into a spooky showstopper. The thing about lambeth is you can add as many layers of piping as you want, so feel free to go overboard. NOTE that to create the look pictured, you’ll need a little more buttercream than the recipe calls for. See the notes section of the recipe card below for the ingredient amounts.
Here’s how I decorated the cake pictured: I used the black buttercream to fill and stack the cake, crumb coat it, and frost it with a smooth buttercream finish. After chilling the cake until the frosting was firm, I made a template for the garlands using this same parchment paper technique from my cherry chip cake recipe. Then, I used the following piping tips to decorate:
- Wilton Tip 4B for the shell borders
- Wilton Tip 104 for the ruffle garlands
- Wilton Tip 32 for the overlapping shells below the garlands
My cherry chip cake recipe shows these piping techniques in more detail. I finished the look by placing a few round black sprinkles to accent the ruffle garlands.
Black Velvet Cake Recipe Video
Here’s a quick video that shows this cake recipe from start to finish + a decorating tutorial (for an older but similar design):
If you love recipe videos like this one, be sure to check out my YouTube channel! I’ve got a growing collection of cake recipes, decorating tutorials, and Cake Basics over there. Hit the subscribe button on my page so you never miss a new video.
Recipe FAQs
- What brand of black cocoa powder should I use for black velvet cake? For the cake layers, I recommend using a black cocoa powder that is moderately alkalized (like this one by OliveNation) but for the frosting to be completely dye-free, using this extra dark black cocoa powder by The Cocoa Trader is crucial. If you only want to purchase one black cocoa powder (understandable), get The Cocoa Trader brand but see the notes section of the recipe card for the amount instructions (it won’t make the best 1:1 substitute in this recipe, but can be easily adapted for best results).
- Can I find black cocoa powder at the grocery store? I haven’t been able to find black cocoa powder at any local grocery store, but you can certainly try.
- What makes this a “velvet” cake? The term “velvet cake” dates back to the 1800’s. The term was used to describe the soft, delicate texture of the cakes served at fancy dessert parties. Today, there are recipes for virtually every color of velvet cake – red velvet and white velvet being the most popular. The common denominator between all of the velvet cake recipes of today is the use of buttermilk or vinegar. These acidic ingredients help give the cakes their velvety texture.
- Can I bake this in a 9×13 pan? Yes! But use this black velvet sheet cake recipe for the perfect frosting amount.
- Can I make this black velvet cake vegan? I have a recipe for vegan black velvet cake here!
- Can I make this recipe into cupcakes? I have dedicated recipes for black velvet cupcakes, and even a small batch black velvet cake if you want to make a mini-size to serve just 2-4 people.
Similar Cake Recipes & Tutorials You’ll Love:
- Red Velvet Cake
- Oreo Layer Cake
- Buttercream Monster Cake Tutorial
- Vintage Halloween Lambeth Cake Tutorial
- Black Velvet Cupcakes
- Mini Black Velvet Cake (a small-batch version of this recipe!)
I hope you love this black velvet cake recipe as much as I do! Let me know if you make it in the comments below (be sure to leave a star rating!) and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me if you post a photo. I love to see what you create with my recipes!
Black Velvet Cake
Ingredients
Black Velvet Cake
- 2 Cups (265g) all purpose flour
- 1 2/3 Cups (340g) granulated sugar
- 2/3 Cup (80g) black cocoa powder* see notes
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 Cup (120ml) vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 Cup (240ml) full-fat buttermilk*, room temperature DIY recipe in notes
- 1 Cup (240ml) hot coffee or hot water
Dye-Free Black Buttercream
- 2 Cups (452g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 5 Cups (600g) powdered sugar
- 1 Cup (112g) black cocoa powder* Use The Cocoa Trader brand for best results here
- 4 Tbsp whole milk, room temperature
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
Instructions
Make the Black Velvet Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and prepare three 6-inch or two 8-inch cake pans by spraying the sides with cooking spray and fitting the bottoms with a wax paper or parchment cake circle.
- Place all of the dry ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer and stir on low for 30 seconds to fully combine them. Add the vegetable oil, eggs, vanilla, and buttermilk and mix on low until just combined. With the mixer still on low, add the hot coffee (or hot water) in a slow stream, then turn the mixer to medium and beat until smooth, about 2 minutes. The batter will be very thin.
- Pour into prepared cake pans no more than 2/3 full and bake for 32-36 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.
Make the Black Buttercream
- If making the lambeth design pictured, you'll need slightly more buttercream than this recipe calls for. See the notes for the ingredient amounts. The recipe as written makes enough to fill, frost, and decorate with a swirl border on top or a couple shell borders and simple piping.
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, whip the butter on medium speed until creamy and light in color, about 4 minutes. Scrape down the bowl and paddle, then add half of the powdered sugar. Mix on low speed until just incorporated, then add the rest of the powdered sugar. With the mixer still in the off position, sift in the black cocoa powder and add the vanilla, milk, and salt. Mix on low until all ingredients are thoroughly combined, about 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl and paddle as needed.
- The buttercream will look dark brown at this point, but the color will darken significantly over the next several hours. If you need it darkened faster, an immersion blender works great and darkens the buttercream to black in minutes. See the recipe notes for storage instructions if you're not planning on frosting the cake the same day.
Assembly
- Once the cake layers have cooled completely, level them to your desired height. Fill and stack the layers with black buttercream, then crumb coat the cake with more black buttercream. Refrigerate the crumb coated cake for 20-30 minutes to let the frosting firm up.
- To create the design pictured, use the black buttercream to create a smooth finish on the cake, then refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes. Use the rest of the black buttercream to create lambeth piping (feel free to use this tutorial as guidance). Accent the lambeth piping with round black sprinkles where desired.
Notes
- The Black Velvet Cake layers 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 Black Buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 day. Alternatively, you can store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and rewhip with your stand mixer to bring back to frosting consistency.
This cake was a huge it! It was moist and delicious. It was perfectly black too!
Oh my gosh I made this for my 25th birthday and it turned out amazing! Everyone loved it even my mom who had her doubts about the cake. Funnily enough this recipe popped up on Instagram right after my mom said I couldn’t have a black birthday cake because “no one is going to eat a cake with all that dye in it” so this recipe was literally my savior. So thank you for making a black cake with no dye! This was so easy to follow and genuinely delicious. It definitely tasted more cookies and cream/oreo than chocolate which I loved
Yay, Susan! Happy birthday, I’m glad it was such a hit!!
on you-tube you reversed the baking powder and the baking soda i followed the recipe and it took about 25 more mins to bake and it did not rise at all, i also made 3 cupcakes and they just sunk couldn’t figure out what i did wrong so i went to your you-tube to see step by step and you were saying the ingredient and then you said 2 tsp of baking powder and 1 tsp of baking soda!! well in your recipe that i followed it says 2 baking soda and 1 baking powder so that’s were i went wrong i will try again cuz i love everything you make! hopefully you will change the error for the others that want to make this!!
Oh no, Sandy! I’m so sorry that there was an error on my youtube video. I will look into that. If you make this again please use this blog version!
The error was in the recipe, not on your youtube video.That one was spot on and I did make it again, and it turned out great.So it’s two teaspoons of baking powder and one teaspoon soda.Thank you hun
I made this cake for my partner’s birthday yesterday and oh my stars! It came out amazing! I’m a home baker so the finished product was a little lopsided but the taste was incredible! I found the recipe super easy to make (so much so I was afraid i was missing steps :D) and the cake was scrumptious, both cake layers + buttercream together as well as s by themselves. The only thing that didnt come off as per your descripton was the depth of colour in the buttercream. Mine settled for a muted grey but I added some gel colour and was quite happy with the “graveyeard marble grey” I ended up with. The cake layers were dark as a ravens wing and perfect. Thank you so much, I can’t wait to try your other recipes!
I’m so happy to hear that you loved this recipe, Rute!
I made this cake for my daughter’s birthday last year and it was fantastic. So much so that she requested it again this year. I shared a few slices with friends at work and one of them told me it was the best slice of cake she had ever had in her life! Love, love, love this recipe (and the black color) and won’t wait a year again to make it. Super light with a nice flavor.
I just made the 2 8” layers. I. I normally like to torte my cakes to make more layers. I’m worried that this cake might be too delicate. I don’t want the layers to break. What do you think?
Hi Stephanie! As long as you wait until the layers are room temperature they will torte just fine 🙂
Is this recipe enough for 3 8inch pans?
Hi Bethany! For three 8-inch pans, you’ll need to make 1.5x the recipe (multiply each ingredient by 1.5). Hope that helps!
This looks amazing! Would any adjustments be necessary to make this cake gluten free? I’d like to make for Halloween at work but a coworker is gluten intolerant.
Hi Marissa! I’m excited for you to make this cake! If you want to make it GF you can use an equal amount of GF all purpose flour in place of the flour in the recipe. Enjoy!
Thank you for sharing this recipe!!
Have you tried this cake with a less amount of the black cacao? If so, does it still give the black color? The 16oz. packet of cacao yields enough for two cakes with icing. How much would you say it cost to make this cake?
Hi LaShawn! I haven’t made this recipe with any less black cocoa powder, so I can’t recommend it. I use this brand of black cocoa powder to get the darkest black color: https://amzn.to/4mY1xW4 it’s currently $17 for one pound. You need 192g total for one cake, so that would cost about $7 per cake for the black cocoa powder. The other ingredients are super variable depending on where you live so it’s hard for me to calculate the total cost of the cake.
Thank you! Best cake I ever made myself!!!
I made this cake for my niece’s boyfriend‘s birthday absolutely one of the best cakes I’ve made the taste the texture super moist and delicious. I purchased the black cocoa powder. I will never use black food coloring again literally taste like an Oreo cookie.
I look so forward to trying this cake! Do you use the coffee or water when making it? Is there an advantage on using one over the other? Thanks.
I love using coffee! It helps amplify the chocolate flavor and you can’t taste coffee flavor in the baked cake. Hot water works and the results will still be delicious, but coffee makes it next level.
So Valentine’s is definitely not my favorite holiday (quite the opposite) but I wanted to have a day of self love. This recipe is the cake I chose and it came out fantasticly!! I am a novice at baking from scratch so I give most of the credit to the recipe itself. Thanks so much!!!
Hi, I only have 1 deep 8 inch cake tin rather than two sandwich tins. Could I put the the mixture in there then slice through it to fill with butter cream? Thanks
Hi Claire! Yes, you can bake it in a deep 8-inch pan and torte it into 2 layers. The only thing I’m not sure of is the baking time/temp. I would bake the cake at the time/temperature you’re used to baking other recipes in a pan that size.
What is the difference between the black velvet cake recipe and the cupcake recipe? I’m making 30 cupcakes so I figure I can use the cake recipe.
Hi Sheila! There isn’t a difference, the cupcake recipe is just scaled down to yield less cupcakes. You can certainly use the cake recipe as cupcakes.
This cake was absolutely delicious and came out gorgeous like midnight. I actually was able to pipe some pretty swirls and on the inside I made a well and filled it with white chocolate ganache dyed with red gel food coloring to look like blood when cut into. Thank you for this delicious and beautiful recipe.
I followed this recipe exactly for cake, cupcakes and icing and it turned out fabulous!! I filled the cupcakes with raspberry curd to give them a bloody looking inside, and the cake with salted butter caramel. The cake made the most perfect centerpiece for the funeral themed party.