249 better cake recipes

Chocolate sheet cake (Texas sheet cake) with hot cocoa-buttermilk batter and a poured cocoa-buttermilk icing finished while the cake is still hot. The Southern church-supper crowd-feeder cut into 24 squares.

Yum yum cake is a sour-cream chocolate layer cake with cocoa powder batter and melted chocolate chip frosting. Old-fashioned church-cookbook favorite with lunchbox simplicity.

Cape Cod blueberry cake folds fresh blueberries and bran flakes cereal into a lightly spiced one-bowl batter. A New England farmhouse cake with a tender, fiber-rich crumb served warm with whipped topping.

Jewish-Catholic apple cake with cinnamon-sugar apples layered through an oil-based batter with walnuts and orange juice. A dairy-free tube pan cake that freezes beautifully.

Chocolate mousse cake with semisweet chocolate, orange liqueur, and whipped egg whites folded into a rich batter. Part one covers the cake layers with a thin, flaky crust.

Fresh apple bundt cake packed with three cups of chopped apples and pecans in a thick, oil-based batter. More fruit than cake, with a dense, moist crumb that stays soft for days.

Pennsylvania Dutch cake-and-custard pie: a soft cake batter and a spiced applesauce-molasses custard poured into one crust bake into two distinct layers, finished with a coffee glaze. A clever heritage dessert.

Classic chocolate sheet cake with cinnamon and vinegar in the batter, topped with warm cocoa icing poured over the hot cake so it soaks into every prick-marked inch.

Chocolate malt cake with malted milk powder in both the batter and frosting, made with cocoa, half-and-half, and butter. A nostalgic malt shop flavor in cake form.

German chocolate layered apple cake with sliced apples and cinnamon-nut batter in alternating layers, topped with cream cheese frosting. A semi-homemade cake that tastes fully from scratch.

Omie's apple torte loaded with chopped apples and nuts in a buttery cinnamon batter. A dense, rustic German-style apple cake that's more fruit than cake in every bite.

Cajun cake with crushed pineapple batter and a boiled pecan-coconut icing. A simple Southern sheet cake where the pineapple keeps it moist and the sticky topping steals the show.

Plum cake is the grand Victorian celebration fruitcake: pounds of raisins, currants, dates, citron, and almonds bound by spiced butter cake batter. Christmas, weddings, and christenings on a serious scale.

Coca-Cola marshmallow cake with hot nut icing: a Southern sheet cake made with cola in the batter, mini marshmallows folded through, and a warm fudge-pecan glaze poured over while still hot.

Surprise carrot cake baked in a Bundt pan with a hidden cream cheese filling layered inside the spiced batter. Cut a slice and find a tangy, creamy ribbon running through the center of the cake.

Vegan self-saucing chocolate pudding cake with walnuts. Hot water poured over cocoa-sugar batter creates a fudgy chocolate sauce underneath as the cake bakes. No eggs, no dairy, total magic.