50+ of Our Best Cake Recipes

updated Jul 7, 2023

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ding dong cake on plate, slice being removed — Credit: Photo: Ryan Liebe; Food Styling: Ben Weiner

I firmly believe you don’t need an excuse to a bake a cake. Rather than it being a special-occasion treat, I think cakes are situational. Of course, there’s multi-layered, sprinkle-topped cakes to celebrate birthdays, apple cakes for a successful haul at the pick-your-own farm, fruit-topped angel food cakes for hot summer days, and the chocolate cupcakes that mark your Valentine’s Day celebrations each year.

There’s never a wrong time for cake, so it might be time to head into the kitchen and start baking. In this spirit, we’ve rounded up our best cake recipes for every occasion and every skill level.

In This Article

Chocolate Cake Recipes
Vanilla Cake Recipes
Birthday Cake Recipes
Bundt Cake Recipes
Poke Cake Recipes
Cupcake Recipes
Easy Cake Recipes for Beginners

Chocolate Cake Recipes

For some, cake isn’t cake unless chocolate is involved. I can’t say I disagree. These will satisfy even your deepest craving.

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Make a rich chocolate cake with layers of fluffy chocolate buttercream frosting.

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German Chocolate Cake

A step-by-step recipe for making a classic German chocolate cake, complete with a gooey coconut-pecan filling and a creamy chocolate frosting.

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Texas Sheet Cake

This classic Texan cake is rich in chocolate flavor with a delicious, gooey texture from warm frosting melding with the warm cake.

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Inspired by the classic snack, this decadent chocolate cake is filled with a fluffy marshmallow-esque frosting and covered in fudgy ganache.

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Chocolate Olive Oil Cake

This ultra-moist chocolate cake is deep and rich in flavor and best served with whipped cream and toasted hazelnuts.

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The Deepest Darkest Chocolate Cake

Using our favorite chocolate tricks we streamline a decadent cake into seven layers of chocolate bliss.

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Easy Chocolate Lava Cakes

With just five ingredients, this classic restaurant dessert is surprisingly easy to whip up at home, and thanks to their surprise-inside center, they're guaranteed to delight whoever you're serving.

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Chocolate Guinness Cake

Learn how to make rich, dark chocolate Guinness cake with billowy cream cheese frosting with our step-by-step tutorial.

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Chocolate Bumpy Cake

This beloved Midwestern treat will be quick to bring oohs and aahs all around.

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Chocolate Banana Cake

This easy chocolate-banana sheet cake with salted peanut butter cream cheese frosting is quite possibly the best ever way to use up those overripe bananas on your counter.

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Ina Garten's Triple Chocolate Loaf Cakes

With its crackly top and walnut-and-chocolate-studded crumb, Ina Garten's triple chocolate loaf cake might just be her best chocolate dessert yet.

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Flourless Chocolate Cake

A truly flourless chocolate cake that manages to be light and rich at the same time. It's genuinely gluten-free, fabulously foolproof, and all chocolate.

Vanilla Cake Recipes

A humble vanilla cake is simplicity at its very best. These are bright, cheery, and totally classic.

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The best birthdays have this homemade yellow cake with chocolate frosting: it’s moist, fluffy, and flavorful.

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The Easiest One-Bowl Vanilla Cake

One-bowl cakes are popular for their ease. This smart version can be turned into a dozen treats. Here's how to bake it, and a few ideas on easy upgrades.

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Between the pillowy cake, fluffy filling, and golden halo of crunchy almonds, it’s heaven in a cake.

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Vanilla Sheet Cake with Sprinkles

This vanilla sheet cake only requires one bowl for mixing and one pan for baking, making it extra easy.

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Meet the foolproof hot milk cake, a fluffy and not-too-sweet sponge cake. that will be the life of the party.

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Confetti Gooey Butter Cake

This playful mashup of gooey butter cake and vanilla-scented confetti cake is guaranteed to spark child-like giddiness

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Vanilla Magic Cake

Magic cakes are a one-pan wonder for folks who love lots of different textures in their desserts, thanks to a custardy center and cake-like top.

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One-Bowl Vanilla Ice Cream Cake

While it's raspberry sorbet that's called for in this recipe, strawberry or lemon would be great, too.

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One-Bowl Vanilla Cake with Yogurt Buttercream

This pretty naked cake starts with a one-bowl vanilla batter and is coated in a rich and tangy yogurt buttercream.

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The Best Basic Butter Cake

This classic cake is way better than the boxed mixes, and practically as simple.

Birthday Cake Recipes

Is it even a birthday if cake isn’t involved? These festive recipes are the perfect way to celebrate.

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This delicious homemade cake easily transforms any occasion into a celebration.

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Classic Birthday Cake

It doesn't get more classic than buttery yellow cake, chocolate frosting, and sprinkles.

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Birthday Bundt Cake

This milk chocolate Bundt cake is easy enough to bake up on a weeknight, but beautiful enough for a celebration.

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Easy Lemon Cake with Whipped Raspberry Frosting

This cake fits the bill for the most special occasions, yet is easy enough to make any day of the week just because.

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The Best Ice Cream Cake

If a birthday isn't a birthday without ice cream cake, here's the recipe you're looking for.

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Victoria Sponge Sandwich Cake

A tender vanilla cake, a layer of your favorite berry jam, and a puff of whipped cream make Victoria sponge a British classic.

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Classic Carrot Cake

This ultra-moist cake, topped with lightly sweetened cream cheese frosting, is a favorite for good reason.

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Easy Banana Pudding Cake

A simple layer cake recipe that captures all of the flavors, textures, and nostalgia of classic Southern banana pudding.

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The Best Classic Coconut Cake

Learn how to make a classic, fluffy coconut cake at home with a few supermarket shortcuts.

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Thandai Layer Cake

This layer cake is a true celebration from the Thandai masala-infused sponge cake, milk soak, almond-fennel cream, and beautiful floral decorations.

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Layers of fluffy key lime-infused cake with a tangy creamy cheese frosting.

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This three-layer pistachio cake contains no artificial flavors, cake mix, or pudding mix, but is still infused with a delicate pistachio flavor.

Bundt Cake Recipes

A Bundt is one of the most likable cakes around. It’s easy to make, feeds everyone, and also feels perfectly homey.

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The Best Foolproof Bundt Cake

This Bundt cake is simple enough for absolutely anyone to make, classic enough to satisfy everyone’s tastebuds, but special enough that you’ll turn to it time and time again.

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Sour Cream Pound Cake

Sour cream is the secret to making super-tender pound cake with a subtle tang.

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Easy Lemon Bundt Cake with Fresh Lemon Glaze

Not only is it fast, fancy, and packed with sweet citrus tang, but this is the easiest, most foolproof lemon Bundt cake you'll ever make.

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Peach Cobbler Pound Cake

A tender yet perfectly dense cake with a brown sugar-peach cobbler topping and a cinnamon sugar glaze.

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Triple Lemon Cake

Inspired by Malinda Russell's cream cake, this lemony bundt cake has a delicate crumb and is bursting with flavor.

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Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake

A buttery-rich pound cake with fresh lemons to add a citrusy flavor to the batter and fresh (or frozen) blueberries to embellish every slice.

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Pumpkin Bundt with Cinnamon Streusel and Salted Caramel

The ripple of cinnamon streusel that runs through the center of this cake takes a cue from our favorite crumb cake for a bit of sweet crunch in every bite.

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Buttered Toast Bundt Cake with Honey and Jam

Here, brown butter shines in both the cake batter and the simple honey glaze, and its toasty, complex notes give off the most incredible buttered toast vibes.

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One-Bowl Bundt Cake with Chocolate Fudge Glaze

What makes this cake — beyond its ease and beautiful Bundt shape — is the layer of rich chocolate glaze.

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Molten Chocolate Bundt Cake

Here's how to make a delicious, fudge-filled chocolate Bundt cake (a riff on Tunnel of Fudge cake) without a nut in sight.

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One-Bowl Apple Bundt Cake

This ultimate apple cake comes together without fuss and features a sweet and tangy cream cheese glaze.

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Matcha-Vanilla Sour Cream Pound Cake

If you're after something surprising and show-stopping, this mint-hued Bundt will definitely do the trick.

Poke Cake Recipes

Poke cake is exactly what it sounds like: a cake poked full of holes! But why add this seemingly silly step to an already delicious cake? Because it’s going to soak up a delicious topping.

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Banana Split Poke Cake

This over-the-top celebratory banana split poke cake blends together two beloved and classic American desserts.

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Pink Champagne Poke Cake

A riff on the classic, this pink Champagne cake treats you to moist, tender cake lightly spiked with Champagne and dotted with wells of strawberry syrup.

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Jell-O Poke Cake

This crowd-friendly cake needs to be made ahead of time, which makes it perfect for your next potluck.

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Cherry-Almond Poke Cake

A completely delicious almond-flecked crumb, dripping in luscious cream and cherry syrup, with a tangy, sour cream frosting really takes it over the top.

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Triple Coconut Poke Cake

This triple coconut poke cake gets its rich coconut flavor from coconut cake, pudding, and fluffy coconut topping.

Cupcake Recipes

While cupcakes might have been a trend, it’s hard not to like their individual size, so they’re definitely a trend worth keeping around.

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Piña Colada Cupcakes

If a cupcake slurped up a pina colada, it would become this tender and tropical dessert.

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Easy Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

These cupcakes are as easy as can be, requiring just one bowl and a whisk to make the batter.

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Chocolate Cupcakes with Marshmallow Cream

Once you've tried this marshmallow cream, regular ol' frosting will just never compare.

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Key Lime Icebox Cupcakes

A cheesecake-meets-key-lime-pie filling makes these no-bake cuties the perfect light and refreshing dessert.

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Vanilla Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream

Lemon lends the perfect amount of brightness to these timeless cupcakes.

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Chai Sweet Potato Cupcakes

These spiced cupcakes bring the flavor of masala chai to every bite, from the black tea-laced frosting to the fragrant sweet potato base.

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French 75 Cupcakes

Now you can have your cake and drink it too with this lemony, Champagne-infused cupcake.

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One-Bowl Funfetti Cupcakes

Our super easy, one-bowl vanilla cake recipe with a dash of rainbow sprinkles.

Easy Cake Recipes

If you’re a beginner baker, start here. These simple cake recipes won’t steer you wrong and you’ll have killer results.

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Do-Nothing Cake

Do-Nothing Cake often starts with boxed cake mix, but our homemade version is just as easy: A one-bowl cake is topped with a buttery glaze that soaks into the pineapple-studded cake.

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The flavor will remind you of banana bread, but this lives firmly in dessert territory.

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One-Bowl Tres Leches Cake

Served cold straight from the pan, our one-bowl tres leches cake tastes much like vanilla ice cream with a pudding-meets-cake texture.

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Easy Lemon Drizzle Cake

This easy, tender cake is filled with lemon zest and crowned with a tangy lemon glaze.

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Bolo de Cenoura (Brazilian Carrot Cake)

This brilliant dessert lets you skip the annoying task of grating carrots altogether.

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Flourless Lemon Almond Cake

Lightly sweetened and full of bright lemon flavor, you can't go wrong serving this cake simply with a dusting of powdered sugar or some fresh berries.

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One-Bowl Apple Cranberry Upside-Down Cake

This pretty fruit-topped treat is glazed with a cinnamon caramel and comes together in an hour.

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Classic PB&J Snack Cake

If you’re a fan of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches then boy oh boy, are you in for a treat.

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French Apple Cake

This simple, traditional French cake is made with a rum-based batter and is studded with chunks of sweet apple.

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Sticky Gluten-Free Lemon Cake

Almond flour and polenta form the base of this gluten-free cake that gets a double dose of flavor from lemon zest and lemon syrup.

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Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

A classic sweetly-spiced pumpkin sheet cake with soft cream cheese frosting.

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Banana Coffee Cake

With a cinnamon-walnut streusel, this banana bread-coffee cake mash-up is a match made in heaven.

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One-Bowl Yogurt and Honey Olive Oil Cake

This humble cake is moist, tender, and perfumed with just a touch of fresh thyme and lemon zest.

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An ultra-moist, sheet cake-style banana bar with tangy cream cheese frosting.

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