Triple Berry Cake

This gorgeous triple berry cake is made with Genoise cake layers, filled with luscious mascarpone filling, and decorated with fresh mixed berries. It is perfect for a dinner party, birthday celebration, or another special occasion.

Follow my step-by-step photographed explanations, expert tips, and tricks to help you succeed with this incredibly yummy and delicious recipe.

On a warm summer night, a slice of cake with a combination of heavenly textures is a light and refreshing option. It combines the softness of the buttery cake, the rich creaminess of the filling, and the acidity of the fresh berries.

Jump to:

• Berry cake recipe
• Ingredients
• Recipe variations
• How to make berry cake
• Expert Tips
• Storing and freezing
• Recipe FAQ
• Love fresh fruits desserts? Try these next!
• Need to adjust your baking pan size?
• Recipe card
• Comments

Treat yourself to the delectable beauty of a cake with berries on top. Each bite promises a delicious mix of fruit within the cake and atop it as a beautiful decoration.

Berry cake recipe

• This simple berry cake is made with basic ingredients and berries of your choice.

• Thanks to the vibrant colors and flavors of fresh red fruit, this cake makes the best birthday berry cake in summer.

• It pairs wonderfully with sparkling wines and champagne, creating a perfect dessert for a romantic ambiance.

• The berry cake recipe comes with a make-ahead option for your convenience. Prepare Genoise cake in advance to save time and ensure a stress-free baking experience.

Ingredients

Get a quick overview of the necessary ingredients. For precise measurements and instructions, refer to the recipe card below. Also, discover the essential baking tools I rely on for daily baking.

• Eggs: Use large-sized whole eggs at room temperature. Bring them to the kitchen counter about an hour before you start.

• Sugar: The recipe calls for white granulated and caster sugar. For the best results, use superfine sugar for making mascarpone frosting. To make granulated sugar superfine, process it in a food processor a few times.

• Flour: Use all-purpose flour, which is plain flour in the UK, or replace it with cake flour.

• Butter fixes the aromas of the sponge cake, helps the coloring, and brings the cake's softness. Opt for an unsalted batter with 82% fat content, preferably.

• Heavy cream or heavy whipping cream with at least 30% fat content is the perfect choice for making mascarpone whipped cream.

• Mascarpone cheese is a delicious ingredient in the cake's filling. It brings a beautiful taste and flavor and also helps stabilize the whipped cream.

• Vanilla extract brings a beautiful flavor to mascarpone filling.

• Fresh berries are the stars of this gorgeous berries cake. Opt for mixed berries such as fresh blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries. Three types of berries are just enough, although you can experiment with another combination of berries.

• Flaked almonds are used to decorate the sides of the cake. To bring more color, toast them in the oven at 300°F (150°C) for 10-15 minutes. But keep an eye on their color!

Recipe variations

Although vanilla berry cake is a timeless classic, it is always fun to experiment with recipe variations to make it your own.

• Berry layer cake: Cut a Genoise cake into two equal layers and adjust the frosting quantity by reducing it by 25%.

• Berries and cream cake: Swap the mascarpone frosting for sugar-free whipped cream, cream cheese or sour cream frosting, or Chantilly cream. All the options make a great berry and cream combination and are easy to make.

You can mix berries and cream but don't forget to save some cream for covering the cake.

• Milk and berry cake: Soak the cake layers with tres leches syrup. Make it yourself by stirring equal parts of evaporated milk and sweetened condensed milk, mixed with one-quarter the amount of heavy cream.

• Fresh berry cake: Play with fresh berry filling by exploring other flavor combinations and have fun creating your perfect berry cake. Select your preferred berry cake, ranging from mixed or triple berry cake to single berry options, depending on the time of year.

How to make berry cake

Making a berry cake involves a few steps, from preparation to assembly:

• Preparation of sponge cake (Italian sponge cake, Genoise cake, vanilla cake, or a cake with a cake mix will work).
• Preparation of flavored sugar syrup.
• Preparation of mascarpone whipped cream.
• Assembling the cake.

Step 1. To make Genoise cake, heat oven to 355°F (180°C). Butter and flour the bottom and the sides of the 8-inch (20 cm) round pan (or springform pan). Melt the butter in the microwave and let it cool.

Pro tip: Consult the Genoise sponge cake recipe for step-by-step photographed explanations, helpful tips, and tricks.

Step 2. In the heat-proof bowl, place eggs and sugar and beat with a hand whisk a few times.

Step 3. Bring the bowl over a water bath or bain-marie with hot water and whisk the egg mixture until foamy. Warm it to 104°F (40°C): check with a cooking thermometer. If unavailable, the mixture should be warm to the touch.

Step 4. Bring the bowl to the counter and beat the preparation with an electric hand mixer (you can use a stand mixer with a whisk attachment) for 10 minutes until the ribbon stage.

Step 5. Sift half the flour over the bowl and mix with a rubber spatula from the bottom to the top. Add the remaining flour and gently mix.

Step 6. Mix a few spoonfuls of the batter with the warm melted butter, and add to the principal preparation. Gently mix the batter, making sure it does not deflate.

Step 7. Pour the cake batter into the prepared baking dish. Bake in the middle oven rack for 30-35 minutes until golden brown. Check the cake for doneness with a toothpick: it should come out clean after inserting it in the center of the cake.

Step 8. Remove it from the oven and rest for 5-10 minutes. Then turn the pan on a cooling rack, allowing the cake to slide off. Let the cake cool completely.

Step 9. To make sugar syrup, pour water, sugar into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, add vanilla extract or strawberry liqueur (optional), and let the syrup cool down.

Step 10. To make mascarpone whipped cream, bring the bowl of a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl to the freezer for 10 minutes.

Pro tip: Consult a mascarpone frosting recipe for step-by-step photographed explanations, helpful tips, and tricks.

Step 11. Pour the cold heavy cream, add cold mascarpone, and whisk at low speed until soft peaks (photo 1).

Step 12. Add the caster sugar and continue beating at medium, then high speed. The cream will go through medium peaks until stiff peaks (photo 2).

Step 13. To assemble the cake, cut a few strawberries into half, then into more slices each, and place aside (photo 3).

Step 14. Adjust a mousse cake mold cake to a diameter of 8 inches (20 cm) and line it with an acetate strip. Place it on a cake board or a serving plate.

Step 15. Use a large serrated knife or a cake leveler to cut the cake into three sponge layers. Place the first cake layer inside the ring (photo 4) and soak the cake with the cold sugar syrup using a pastry brush.

Step 16. Add ⅓ of the mascarpone filling and spread it with a spoon or spatula. Place a handful mix of berries over the cream, sinking them slightly (photo 5).

Step 17. Add the second cake layer and slightly press it to adhear to the cream. Soak it, and fill it with cream and a new layer of berries. Place the third layer of cake and press it slightly.

Step 18. Cover the ring with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2-3 hours. Cover the bowl with the cream using plastic film and chill until the cake is firmed up.

To serve, take the cake and cream from the fridge. Remove the ring and acetate collar. Coat the top and sides of the cake with the remaining cream with the spatula. Sprinkle the cake's sides with toasted flaked almonds (photo 6).

Decorate the top of the cake with the remaining berries, dust with confectioners’ sugar (if desired), and serve.

Expert Tips

1. Don't skip the soaking of the cake. Genoise cake requires additional moisture during the assembling process.
2. Alternate the layers of berries if desired: a layer of raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries.
3. If you plan to serve the cake within 1-2 hours, you may complete its entire preparation without using a mousse cake ring. However, if you plan to do it later, it is advisable to finish coating and decorating the cake just before serving to preserve the freshness of the red berries on top.
4. Recalculate ingredients for cake pans of different sizes using this simple cake pan size converter.
5. Make ahead option: Bake Genoise cake in the evening and store it covered with plastic wrap at room temperature. Finish the cake the next day.

Storing and freezing

Keep the berry cake under a glass dome to prevent it from drying out and absorbing the odors of other foods in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days. Store the leftover cake in an airtight container.

Can you freeze berry cake? Freezing an assembled berry cream cake is not recommended, but you can bake the Genoise cake ahead and freeze it for up to 3 months.

Recipe FAQ

Love fresh fruits desserts? Try these next!

If you like this easy berry cake, check out other fruit dessert recipes, from simple mixed red fruit muffins to elaborate Coconut Dacquoise cake with berries on top.

• Strawberry Charlotte
• Mixed Berry Muffins
• French Strawberry Tart
• Coconut Dacquoise Cake
• Uruguayan Cake Chaja
• Jordgubbstårta (Swedish Strawberry Cake)
• Triple Berry Cake
• Fresh Fruit Cake

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Recipe card

The nutritional information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator such as Verywellfit.com and is intended for informational purposes only. These figures should be used as a general guideline and not be construed as a guarantee.