Chocolate-Strawberry Celebration Cake Recipe

Reviewed on May. 12, 2011 by Kayla0110

I love the idea of this cake and it is really beautiful. I generally don't like using boxed cake mixes, though, so when I've made this again I use a from-scratch recipe. I also use my own chocolate buttercream recipe, this one always seems a bit grainy to me.

Reviewed on Apr. 24, 2011 by debannstl

Got lots of compliments on this cake. Like eating chocolate covered strawberries. Best to let the frosted cake set up/chill in the refrigerator before adding strawberries and ganache and then keep refrigerated until ready to serve. The chocolate garnish are fun and easy to make and are a nice touch to an already beautiful and tasty cake.

Reviewed on Dec. 17, 2010 by Scolwoman

I made this cake for my sons birthday and it was so fun and delicious! Very moist and yummy. He said it was the best cake he had ever had.

Reviewed on Dec. 16, 2010 by mscarboro

Everyone loved this cake! Turned out beautiful, although next time I make it I will make half of the ganache recipe, as it turned out to be alot!

Reviewed on Dec. 12, 2010 by Valeriemarieschaefer

This cake is worth the time and effort!! My husband said it was the best looking and best tasting cake I've ever made!

Reviewed on Nov. 30, 2010 by telferl

I make this cake for a United Way auction and it went for over $700. They would like me to make another one.

Reviewed on Nov. 02, 2010 by Beckwku

I made this for my husbands birthday, and had several people over. Everyone loved this cake and there was no leftovers!!! My husband has already requested this every year in advance for his birthday cake. The ganache was easy to make and so was the decorative garnishes which I actually spelled out his name. I was worried because I only had a chocolate fudge cake mix, but it turned out fine. The cake was very moist and the icing was nice and smooth. I will definitely be making this again.

Reviewed on Oct. 23, 2010 by cjcrawford317

This cake was fabulous. I had a difficult time eating too much of it knowing how much butter was in the frosting (4 sticks!) I think next time I will use my own chocolate buttercream frosting recipe that calls for 1/3 cup of butter instead. The texture of the cake itself was superb. The ganache and the chocolate garnish on top were very easy to make. I loved the overall taste and appearance of the cake and will definitely make it again (but with a less buttery frosting!)

Reviewed on Oct. 20, 2010 by raisin712

I made this for two Christmas parties last year, and it was a hit with everyone! I made the chocolate garnishes into musical notes! Very impressive when put together, and not difficult at all to make! A chocolate lovers dream!

Reviewed on Oct. 15, 2010 by tiffanypaddock

Perfect texture! Love the chocolate frosting! I went with a strawberry filling in the middle instead! came out beautiful!

Reviewed on Sep. 10, 2010 by thepinkbanana14

This is THE best chocolate cake I've ever tasted. It has had many compliments. And to think that I made it!! :)

Reviewed on Sep. 02, 2010 by hollyallen10

I have made this twice. It is so delicious and moist! Everyone loves it.

Reviewed on Aug. 24, 2010 by mcbryde

I thought this cake would be hard to make, but it turned out beautifully. It tasted fantastic and I got tons of compliments. This is a great cake for entertaining and turns out just as pretty as the picture

Reviewed on Aug. 21, 2010 by kanester

Very Very good cake, will make again, next time... Raspberries! After reading some of the reviews. People were having trouble with the frosting. I creamed the butter and alternated the powdered sugar/cocoa and milk, turned out great. The ganache was a little runny, next time I will add 1/4 C whipping cream. I made this for a dinner party and everyone cleaned their plate. They like that it wasn't to sweet.

Reviewed on Aug. 02, 2010 by HayesK

I made this cake for my sisters birthday and there were no left overs. It was very good. It took a while to decorate but it was very fun and easy to decorate so time actually went by really fast. I will definitely be making this again.

Reviewed on Jul. 23, 2010 by erinsnelick

delicious...so rich and heavy..my new go to cake for a grooms cake or tiered chocolate... the cake alone is heavy enough to hold up to stacking. This cake was very moist and delicious and I recieved many compliments. I would definitely make this again..icing needs either meringe powder or less milk for decorating purposes but if made as shown in the picture the recipe works great. I would definitely make this cake again, and again, and again

Reviewed on Jul. 12, 2010 by ledfam5

Got many rave reviews on this cake. Wasn't so sure that it was going to be so great because I thought that the cake was dense and that their was too much butter in the frosting, but after it was all put together and chilled in the fridge, it was excellent.

Reviewed on Jul. 03, 2010 by hlscolt

The cake was moist and delicious and it wasn't too much trouble to make. I would probably use my own ganache recipe for the top next time, as I like it better. But this is a fabulous recipe for a great chocolate cake!

Reviewed on Jul. 02, 2010 by Mellerfly

Sooo beautiful. It was very rich, but my husband loved the richness.

Reviewed on Jun. 18, 2010 by m.spradling

This cake was wonderful. However, I recognized the error in the icing before I baked the cake. I used only one stick of butter as is normally required for four cups powdered sugar. I have made it several times and the icing is excellent. Four sticks of butter would make the icing run off the cake

four sticks of butter

Reviewed on Jun. 15, 2010 by LizCav

Took about 3 hours from start to finish to make this cake. I made it for a fundraiser bake sale... it looked amazing! Unfortunately, it only made $10 at the bake sale.

Reviewed on May. 23, 2010 by RigginL2010

I tried this cake just to see if it was like other chocolate cakes... But it is much more! My family always calls me to make this special cake on all occasions! It is fun and decorative and is fun for all to enjoy! I even made cupcakes out of it for a birthday party and it was a huge it! Thank you to the lady who was runner up! It's #1 with my famil!

Reviewed on May. 10, 2010 by lorajean18

Made this for my grandmother's birthday. Got more compliments on this cake than anything I've ever made before! I don't like chocolate on chocolate cake typically, but this is my favorite cake now!

Reviewed on May. 01, 2010 by 8131946

Very //excellent everyoneone loves it.

Reviewed on Apr. 29, 2010 by missymagoo12

i made this for our christmas dinner for work dec/2009/ it was awesome/ i made to of these cakes last christmas. i am planning to make it again in the next few weeks. sue

Reviewed on Apr. 26, 2010 by momofgideonandeli

I did a fundraiser at a missions trip youth auction to do a dessert a month for 6 months. I did this one as the first one to present that day so people could see what kind of goodies they would be getting. People thought it was fake, it was so pretty! It helped bring in $120 for the auction!!! This was well worth the time!

Reviewed on Apr. 19, 2010 by kristinscotth

This cake is delicious! I've made it twice now, and I definitely prefer using a Devil's food cake mix over a milk chocolate mix. The chocolate flavor is more intense, which I prefer. I'm usually not a fan of buttercream frostings, but this one is pretty good, and I LOVE the ganache over the top. It really balances out the sweetness of the chocolate buttercream. I personally don't like really thick frosting on my cakes, and I felt there was too much buttercream. The second time I made this cake, I only made half, and it was the perfect amount of frosting, in my opinion. Very delicious cake!

Reviewed on Apr. 12, 2010 by bkgabby

This was a hit at our family Christmas party! I put more ganache on and Grandpa asked if I really made it or bought it! :)

Reviewed on Apr. 06, 2010 by darlacrogg

I made this in square 9x9 pans and bunched straberries to the center. It looked amazing and I was told by 3 baking women that is was the best chocolate cake they have ever had!

Reviewed on Mar. 27, 2010 by sanke5211

This cake was delicious. Had a lot of trouble with the frosting as would not set up with all that butter. Kept it in the refrigerator to keep it intact. If I make it again, will certainly change the frosting recipe.

Reviewed on Mar. 25, 2010 by markmichellepuma

This cake is TO DIE FOR! Probably the best chocolate cake I've ever made. Absolutely delicious and pretty easy to make. Just don't look at the calories and fat!

Reviewed on Mar. 21, 2010 by 39b9501

I made this for my sister's birthday, and it was a very big hit. Would definitely recommend it.

Reviewed on Mar. 14, 2010 by 3434242424

I already reviewed this and not sure why it didn't post? I've made this cake 3 times to rave reviews. There seems to be some question about the amount of butter in the frosting. It is correct. The flavor is chocolatey and butter and the consistency is soft but oh so good!

Reviewed on Feb. 24, 2010 by chrissteve

The best chocolate cake I have ever made. It was so impressive and so delicious. I don't ever want to lose this recipe!

Reviewed on Feb. 10, 2010 by yankee24

Two teenage girls made this with little help! It was delicious and moist. Wonderful combination of ingredients. We will definitely make this again!

Reviewed on Jan. 30, 2010 by ernie737

Just got done making this cake with my niece. Easy to follow. Only used 1 1/2 cups butter in the frosting. Really rich.

Reviewed on Jan. 28, 2010 by lorettasapp

I've made this cake 4 times in a month. Its awesome, everyone loves it!

Reviewed on Jan. 22, 2010 by dedaniel

Absolutely fun and fantastic yummy. Did not follow frosting recipe, felt it was too much butter. Used a chocolate butter cream recipe that used 6 tablespoons. Just as good! Will definitely make this again.

Reviewed on Jan. 20, 2010 by bekita21

Made for Christmas. Did not use strawberries, but decorated the top with holiday M&M's. I decreased the frosting a bit - used 1 less stick of butter and slightly less sugar, cocoa, and milk. It still turned out enough and delicious. One of the best chocolate cakes I've ever had!

Reviewed on Jan. 18, 2010 by nwheeler2

I have made this cake a couple of times! It was really good. One thing I did leave out the second time was the 1/2 cup of milk in the frosting. The frosting, to me, did not need the milk. it was much easier to work with without it! But a great cake!

Reviewed on Jan. 15, 2010 by brilorgodfrey

Ok so just made this cake, have not tried it yet, but tried the frosting and I think it is way buttery, next time I make it I might just use store bought or find a differnt frosting.

It is very easy to make!

Reviewed on Jan. 15, 2010 by MrsSambora78

ok, so this may sound like a dumb question, but I'm making this now, and as I'm mixing it, it is extremely thick.. do I add the water and oil called for on the box of the cake mix PLUS whats in the receipe here, or just what is called for in the receipe listed here?? Or is the thickness normal?? Didn't see anyone else comment about it so...???

Reviewed on Jan. 14, 2010 by abrown1120

This was so simple and easy! I am making it for a bridal shower as the bride requested chocolate and strawberries! How perfect! I made a "practice" cake before the shower, and it was so easy! Except I used a choc marshmallow fondant over the icing because my icing is never perfect! It was delicious!!

Reviewed on Jan. 14, 2010 by pampat30

This cake, while very fancy looking, was extrmely easy to make. It was rich and delicious. I made it to take to a friend's house when we went for dinner and everyone LOVED this cake, even those of us who are not normally "thrilled" with chocolate cake. My only suggestion: DO NOT read the nutrition facts... just enjoy the cake! I definitely will make this elegant cake again!

Reviewed on Jan. 13, 2010 by denny1972

My sister made this cake for Christmas Eve dinner. We all loved it! I will definitely make it for myself in the very near future!

Reviewed on Jan. 11, 2010 by bbragg

Oh my goodness would I make this again? Absolutely! I made it for a family gathering over Christmas and everyone loved it. I'm making it tonight for a co-worker's birthday tomorrow. One little tip - wrap your cakes in saran wrap, then reynolds wrap and freeze until firm. This really helps in making the cake easy to trip and frost. Such a beautiful and scrumptious case! I don't mind the time involved whatsoever.

Reviewed on Jan. 10, 2010 by lmcerra

Won rave reviews! Will definately make again. I agree this is labor-intensive, especially because I doubled it the first time I made it and was worried to 'try it out' Christmas day. I used 2 cake mixes in 9x13 in pans- was afraid it wouldn't be enough for everyone. I had to increase the baking time, of course. Kept checking for doneness- ended up 40+ minutes at same temp. Didn't need 2x frosting and really not 2x ganache - but I used all of it! I cut the strawberries in half to cover larger cake surface. I used choc chips for the semi-sweet chocolate and melted in microwave-that worked great. Next time I will use a plastic bag with hole snipped in corner to "pipe" the decorative designs. Never got runny enough to drizzle from a spoon and was a mess to get out of my cake decorator once it hardened. Transported the decorations in a shirt box wrapped in waxed paper and inserted just before we ate dessert. Swore I would not make again if it was only as good as the box mix, but everyone raved. I guess it will become a tradition!

Reviewed on Jan. 09, 2010 by mmsl

This is the BEST chocolate cake I have ever made! It is moist for days after it's made. This will now be the cake I will always make when choclate cake is requested! Excellent!

Reviewed on Jan. 08, 2010 by stephr325

This cake got rave reviews at Christmas! Very light and airy, not overly sweet or rich at all. The frosting was just delicious!

Reviewed on Jan. 06, 2010 by Boycie

made it for my daughters birthday.Could not justify 1lb of butter in the frosting so used 2 sticks and it turned out great.

Reviewed on Jan. 02, 2010 by estebal

This was the best cake I'd ever made.

So delicios

Reviewed on Dec. 28, 2009 by Katesanne

Made this for Christmas day and everyone loved it. Definitely a cake that gets noticed. Thinking of making a 4th of July version and make white frosting and white choc swirl sticks and then have blueberries and strawberries. Such a great recipe!!

Reviewed on Dec. 24, 2009 by kgagnon

Love this cake! I used raspberries and blackberries instead of strawberries. It was great!

Reviewed on Dec. 24, 2009 by MnMforever

How do you do the ganache? The picture has it on before the strawberries but the recipe says to drizzle ON top...help?!

Reviewed on Dec. 23, 2009 by Fran Rushing

The cake turned out well, but I think 2 cups of butter is too much butter--I now have chocolate soup chilling so I can ice this cake--thinking about only making the ganache instead.

Reviewed on Dec. 23, 2009 by blondie478

I made my own chocolate frosting which was similar to this one and we LOVED it this cake was easy and a total show stopper. Next time though I am using raspberries rather than strawberries as we prefer those!

Reviewed on Dec. 22, 2009 by eanault

A show-stopper! A bit labor-intensive, but so worth it. The frosting is amazing. Would make this anytime for a special occasion!

Reviewed on Dec. 22, 2009 by penelopemurray

Fantastic cake recipe and very easy. Super moist! My family isn't crazy about the "butter" icing, so I switch to a cool whip and chocolate pudding icing. The combination of chocolate and strawberries was delicious and it looked beautiful! I took this to our annual family Christmas gathering and it was a hit!

Reviewed on Dec. 17, 2009 by kittkat

Lovely, lovely cake. I had a hard time finding nice strawberries...so I used a can of pie cherries instead. It looked beautiful with the chocolate accents and the cherries cascading down the sides as well as the ganache. A big hit at the office Christmas party. Thanks.

Reviewed on Dec. 12, 2009 by lllsews

I just made this for my husband's birthday via a request from him after he saw the magazine cover picture. It turned out very delicious. I would not place the strawberries on top next time although it makes for a beautiful cake. The strawberries go bad before we can eat the cake, I would serve it with strawberries on the side next time. I don't understand the others problems with the frosting, we loved it not to sweet and it wasn't too soft as others said.

Being as it is December I had a hard time finding "nice" strawberries. My husband loved it. I would also leave off the ganache as it is just not needed the frosting is rich enough without it.

Reviewed on Dec. 07, 2009 by rainbowpsl2000

I made this for my neighbor for his birthday, he raved about it repeatedly, his wife said it was the very best chocolate cake she had ever eaten. I had to agree. In baking this cake I found that it took longer than the 28-32 minutes it called for to bake throughly. The frosting was soft but easily spread without running and it was delicious. I couldn't get the ganache to harden so I just dripped it over the strawberries and down the sides of the cake. It was superb and the cake I thought was going to be dried out from extra baking time but it was beautifully moist. A real surprise for excellency because it was formed from a cake mix. I will definitely bake this again.

Reviewed on Dec. 06, 2009 by 3434242424

I thought this was heaven! The frosting was alittle too soft so I just kept it chilled. YUM

Reviewed on Dec. 05, 2009 by amerrosa

It was a really good cake the only problem i had was with the frosting so if i make it again i wouldn't use this frosting....Other wise good cake

Reviewed on Dec. 01, 2009 by lesliepo

The cake looked so great we didn't want to cut in to it, it was easy to make and delicious!!