Chocolate Cream Dream Cake

Indulge in a Decadent Classic: The Ultimate Ding Dong Cake Recipe

Prepare yourself for an extraordinary dessert experience with our magnificent Ding Dong Cake. This isn’t just any chocolate cake; it’s a rich, multi-layered masterpiece featuring two moist chocolate cake layers, generously filled with a velvety vanilla bean cream, and crowned with a truly decadent chocolate caramel ganache. A true trifecta of flavor and texture, this cake offers a gourmet twist on the beloved Hostess Ding Dong snack cakes, promising a “WOW” factor that will impress everyone. Forget everything you thought you knew about Ding Dongs; this homemade version elevates a nostalgic treat into an irresistible celebration cake.

The inspiration for this recipe came during a special occasion – my son Tom’s birthday. Coming just two days after Christmas, I was admittedly experiencing a slight “dessert fatigue.” However, Tom graciously gave me creative freedom over his birthday treat, and I seized the opportunity to create something truly spectacular. The idea of a lavish, from-scratch Chocolate Ding Dong Cake Recipe immediately sparked my interest. After all, who could resist such an iconic and delightful creation? This cake proved to be the perfect choice, transforming a simple birthday into an unforgettable dessert moment, and it’s bound to do the same for your next special gathering.

Ding Dong Cake - a cake designed to look like a Hostess Ding Dong on a white cake stand, showcasing its chocolate layers, vanilla cream, and glossy ganache.

Contents

Why This Ding Dong Cake is an Absolute Must-Make

An Elevated Nostalgia Trip: If you harbor a fondness for the classic chocolate-covered, cream-filled Ding Dong, this from-scratch cake will not just meet, but far exceed your expectations. It takes the cherished flavors of your childhood and transforms them into a sophisticated, multi-layered dessert that’s rich in flavor and superior in texture. This is the Ding Dong, reimagined and perfected for the discerning palate.
The Perfect Centerpiece for Any Celebration: With its striking appearance and universally loved flavors, this Ding Dong Cake is destined to be the star of any party. Whether it’s a birthday, anniversary, holiday gathering, or just a special weekend treat, its impressive layers of chocolate cake, creamy filling, and glossy ganache make it an ideal dessert to celebrate life’s joyous moments. It’s a guaranteed crowd-pleaser that looks as incredible as it tastes.
A Dream Come True for Chocolate Lovers: This cake is a profound declaration of love for chocolate. Each element is carefully crafted to deliver an intense and satisfying chocolate experience, complemented perfectly by the smooth vanilla cream and the subtle sweetness of caramel in the ganache. If you have chocolate aficionados in your life, preparing this cake is sure to thrill and delight them beyond measure, solidifying your reputation as a master baker.

Overhead view of chocolate ding dong cake recipe, showing a perfectly sliced portion revealing the layers of chocolate cake and vanilla cream.

Essential Ingredient Tips for a Flawless Cake

Crafting the perfect Ding Dong Cake begins with understanding your ingredients. Quality and proper preparation are key to achieving those moist layers, silky cream, and glossy ganache. Here’s how to make every component shine:

Pantry Staples: Sugar, All-Purpose Flour, Baking Soda, Premium Cocoa Powder, Fine Salt: These are the foundational elements of your chocolate cake. Ensure your flour is fresh, and use a good quality unsweetened cocoa powder for the richest chocolate flavor. Sifting dry ingredients together can prevent lumps and ensure even distribution.
Baking Powder – The Freshness Factor: Baking powder is a leavening agent that loses potency over time. Always check its expiration date! For an extra assurance of its activity, perform a quick test: place a spoonful into a small amount of very hot water. If it fizzes and bubbles vigorously, it’s still active and ready to work its magic, helping your cake rise beautifully.
Buttermilk – The Secret to Moisture: Buttermilk contributes significantly to the cake’s tender crumb and moist texture. If you don’t have store-bought buttermilk on hand, don’t worry! You can easily make your own. Add one tablespoon of fresh lemon juice or white vinegar to a 1-cup liquid measuring cup. Then, fill the rest of the cup to the 1-cup mark with 2% or whole milk. Stir gently and let it rest for 5-10 minutes. The milk will curdle slightly and thicken, creating a perfect buttermilk substitute. Repeat this process if your recipe calls for more than one cup.
Hot Coffee – Flavor Deepener, Not Coffee Flavor: While it might seem unconventional, hot coffee is a secret weapon in chocolate cakes. It doesn’t make the cake taste like coffee; instead, it deeply enhances and intensifies the chocolate flavor, making it richer and more profound. If you’re not a coffee drinker, instant coffee granules dissolved in hot water work perfectly. Alternatively, leftover brewed coffee is also excellent.
Canola Oil – For Unmatched Moisture: Canola oil provides a neutral fat that contributes to an incredibly moist and tender cake, often more so than butter in certain chocolate cake recipes, without imparting any unwanted flavors.
Eggs – Room Temperature is Best: For optimal emulsification and a smoother batter, always bring your large eggs to room temperature before mixing. Room temperature eggs combine more easily and evenly with other ingredients, leading to a more consistent cake texture.
Vanilla Extract and Vanilla Beans – The Essence of Flavor: For the finest flavor, always opt for pure vanilla extract over artificial versions. For the luxurious vanilla bean cream filling, actual vanilla beans are unparalleled, offering those beautiful specks and complex flavor. If fresh vanilla beans are hard to find, high-quality vanilla bean paste is an excellent alternative that delivers similar depth and visual appeal.
Chocolate – Quality Matters: The ganache is a star component, so choose your chocolate wisely. High-quality semi-sweet chocolate chips or chopped semi-sweet chocolate bars will yield the best flavor and texture for your rich topping. The better the chocolate, the more exquisite your ganache will be.
Caramel Sauce – A Touch of Gold: A good quality caramel sauce is crucial for the ganache. Look for a brand that lists butter and cream as primary ingredients for the best taste and consistency. For those who enjoy a homemade touch, our Easy Microwave Caramel Sauce recipe is a fantastic, quick option.
Unflavored Gelatin – The Creamy Stabilizer: Unflavored gelatin, often found in the baking aisle near Jello products (like the Knox brand), is essential for stabilizing the vanilla cream filling. It ensures the filling holds its shape beautifully between the cake layers and doesn’t seep out.
Heavy Cream – The Foundation of Richness: For whipped cream that holds its peaks and provides a luxurious mouthfeel, use heavy cream with at least 36% butterfat. Ensure it is well chilled before whipping.
Powdered Sugar – For a Smooth Finish: Powdered sugar (confectioners’ sugar) is vital for the cream filling. Always sift it before use to remove any lumps, ensuring a silky-smooth, lump-free filling.

Mastering Your Ding Dong Cake: Expert Baking Advice

Achieving a truly professional-looking and tasting Ding Dong Cake requires a few insider tricks. Follow these expert tips to ensure your cake is nothing short of perfection:

Prepare Your Pans Meticulously: To guarantee an effortless release and perfectly shaped cake layers, always grease your baking pans thoroughly. Beyond greasing, lining the bottoms with parchment paper rounds is a non-negotiable step. This extra precaution ensures your beautiful chocolate layers slide out cleanly, preventing any sticking disasters.
Achieve Even Layers with a Kitchen Scale: For a cake that’s not only visually balanced but also bakes evenly, use a kitchen scale to divide your batter. Pouring approximately the same amount of batter into each cake pan ensures that both layers are uniform in thickness, leading to consistent baking times and a stunning, level presentation when stacked.
Navigating the Caramel Ganache: The addition of caramel makes the ganache exceptionally delicious, but it also means it will firm up significantly when cold, making it challenging to cut through. If pristine, picture-perfect slices are your top priority, you might consider omitting the caramel sauce from the ganache. However, if flavor and decadence are paramount (as they are for my family!), embrace the delicious stickiness. Be prepared for your slices to be a little less “clean-cut” but undeniably more flavorful.
PRO-Tip for Perfect Ganache Slices: To glide through the rich, firm ganache with ease, gently heat your knife. Run it under very hot tap water or carefully pour boiling water from a teapot over the blade. Thoroughly dry the knife immediately after heating. The warm blade will melt through the ganache more smoothly. Repeat this process as needed for each slice, ensuring cleaner cuts and a more elegant presentation.
Serving at the Right Temperature: For the best eating experience, allow the cake to sit at room temperature for approximately an hour before serving. This allows the ganache to soften slightly, improving its texture and making it easier to slice. When cutting, employ a gentle sawing motion with a serrated knife, letting the knife do the work rather than applying excessive pressure, which can squish the layers.
Refining the Cream Filling Consistency: In this recipe, I’ve slightly decreased the amount of heavy cream in the filling by ¼ cup compared to some original versions. This adjustment creates a firmer, more stable filling that provides excellent support for the top cake layer. Even with this firmer ratio, you might notice a slight “bulge” of filling (as seen in some photos) due to the weight of the top layer, which is completely normal and indicates a generous, luxurious filling.
Essential Refrigeration: Due to its luscious cream filling, it’s crucial to keep this Ding Dong Cake refrigerated when it’s not being actively enjoyed. This ensures the filling remains stable, fresh, and safe to eat, maintaining the cake’s quality and taste.
Cooling Completely: Patience is a virtue in baking, especially when cooling cakes. Ensure your cake layers are completely cooled on a wire rack before attempting to frost them. Warm cake will melt the ganache and cream, leading to a messy and unstable dessert.
Assembling with Care: When layering the cake, ensure the first cake layer is securely placed on your serving plate or stand. Spread the ganache and cream filling evenly, creating distinct, beautiful layers. Chilling the first filled layer briefly before adding the second can help stabilize the structure, especially if your kitchen is warm.

Ding Dong Cake topped with chocolate candies on a white cake stand, highlighting the rich chocolate and creamy filling.

Frequently Asked Questions About Ding Dong Cake

What Exactly is a Ding Dong?

A Ding Dong is a classic American snack cake, originally introduced by Hostess in 1967. It typically consists of a small, round, flat chocolate cake, filled with a rich, creamy white filling, and then completely enrobed in a thin, hard chocolate shell. Our homemade Ding Dong Cake pays homage to this iconic packaged snack food by meticulously recreating its two major, beloved components: a supremely moist and flavorful chocolate cake, and a luxurious, creamy vanilla bean filling. We then elevate it further with a decadent chocolate caramel ganache, offering a sophisticated interpretation of a nostalgic favorite.

How Should I Store a Ding Dong Cake to Keep it Fresh?

Due to its generous and delicate cream filling, it is absolutely essential to store your Ding Dong Cake in the refrigerator. To maintain its freshness and prevent it from drying out, always cover any exposed slices with plastic wrap, ensuring an airtight seal. Alternatively, if the cake is whole or mostly whole, you can place it in an airtight cake carrier. When properly stored in the refrigerator, your Ding Dong Cake will remain deliciously fresh and moist for 3 to 4 days.

Can I Freeze a Ding Dong Cake for Later Enjoyment?

Absolutely! This Ding Dong Cake freezes beautifully, making it an excellent option for meal prep or saving leftovers. For best results, first refrigerate the cake until both the chocolate caramel ganache topping and the vanilla cream filling are thoroughly cold and firm. Once firm, carefully wrap the entire cake (or individual slices) tightly in multiple layers of plastic wrap, ensuring it is completely airtight. Then, add a layer of aluminum foil for extra protection against freezer burn. It can be frozen for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to enjoy it, simply transfer the wrapped cake to the refrigerator to defrost overnight. This slow thawing process helps maintain the cake’s texture and moisture, ensuring it tastes just as good as fresh.

Explore More Decadent Cake Creations:

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The Recipe:

Ding Dong Cake Recipe

Prep Time
30 minutes

Cook Time
40 minutes

Total Time
1 hour 10 minutes

Yield
16 servings

A truly decadent chocolate layer cake, generously filled with luscious vanilla bean cream and topped with a rich chocolate caramel ganache. This cake is a luxurious homage to the classic Hostess Ding Dong snack cake, perfected for any celebration!

Ingredients

For the Rich Chocolate Cake:

2 cups granulated sugar
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon fine salt
1 cup buttermilk (or homemade substitute)
1 cup hot coffee (freshly brewed or instant)
½ cup canola oil (or other neutral vegetable oil)
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the Decadent Chocolate Caramel Ganache:

10 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips or finely chopped semi-sweet chocolate bar
8 ounces high-quality homemade caramel sauce or best-quality store-bought caramel sauce

For the Velvety Vanilla Bean Cream Filling:

2 tablespoons cold water
1 ¼ teaspoons unflavored gelatin (such as Knox brand)
1 ¼ cups chilled heavy whipping cream (at least 36% butterfat)
¾ cup powdered sugar (confectioners’ sugar), sifted
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, with seeds scraped from inside

Instructions

Prepare for Baking: Adjust your oven rack to the middle position. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Thoroughly butter and line the bottoms of two 8-inch round baking pans with parchment paper circles. Set these prepared pans aside.
Combine Dry Ingredients: In the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer), add all the dry cake ingredients: sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix on low speed until they are thoroughly combined.
Add Wet Ingredients: To the dry mixture in the mixer bowl, add the buttermilk, hot coffee, canola oil, room temperature eggs, and pure vanilla extract. Mix on medium speed for 1-2 minutes until the batter is smooth and all ingredients are well combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Bake the Cake Layers: Divide the prepared cake batter evenly between your two buttered and parchment-lined 8-inch cake pans. Bake for approximately 35 to 40 minutes, or until a wooden skewer or toothpick inserted into the center of each cake comes out with only a few moist crumbs attached.
Cool the Cakes: Allow the baked cake layers to cool in their pans on a wire rack for about 10-15 minutes. This helps them firm up slightly. After this initial cooling, carefully invert the cakes onto the wire rack, remove the pans and parchment paper, and let them cool completely to room temperature. For easier handling and assembly, you can wrap the cooled layers in plastic wrap and freeze them overnight, if desired.
Prepare the Caramel Ganache: In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the 10 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate (chips or chopped chocolate) in 30-second intervals, stirring well after each, until completely smooth and melted. Be careful not to overheat the chocolate.
Finish the Ganache: Stir the 8 ounces of caramel sauce into the melted chocolate. Whisk continuously until the mixture is completely smooth and uniform. Set the ganache aside at room temperature to cool and thicken slightly to a spreadable consistency.
Bloom the Gelatin: Pour the 2 tablespoons of cold water into a small, heatproof bowl. Sprinkle the unflavored gelatin evenly over the water. Allow it to sit undisturbed for about 5-10 minutes, giving the gelatin time to “bloom” and absorb the water, becoming soft and spongy.
Dissolve the Gelatin: Create a double boiler by adding about ½-inch of water to a small skillet or saucepan and heating it over medium-high heat until simmering. Place the small bowl with the bloomed gelatin directly inside the skillet, ensuring the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Stir the gelatin mixture constantly until it is fully melted and clear, which should take about 2 minutes. Immediately remove the bowl from the skillet and let the dissolved gelatin cool slightly (but do not let it set).
Whip the Cream Filling: In the bowl of your stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl) fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the chilled heavy whipping cream, sifted powdered sugar, and the scraped vanilla bean seeds. Beat on high speed until soft peaks begin to form.
Add Gelatin to Filling: With the mixer still running on medium-high speed, slowly pour the slightly cooled, melted gelatin mixture into the whipped cream. Continue beating until stiff peaks have formed, and the cream filling is thick and stable.
Assemble the First Layer: Place one of the completely cooled chocolate cake layers onto your desired cake plate or serving stand. Spread half of the thickened chocolate caramel ganache evenly over the top of this first cake layer. Then, carefully spoon and spread all of the vanilla bean whipped cream filling over the ganache layer.
Chill to Stabilize: To ensure the cream filling is firm enough to support the second cake layer without bulging excessively, place the partially assembled cake into the refrigerator to chill for about 30 minutes.
Complete Assembly and Chill: Carefully place the second chocolate cake layer on top of the chilled cream filling. Spread the remaining half of the chocolate caramel ganache evenly over the top of the second cake layer. Once assembled, return the entire cake to the refrigerator to chill for at least 1-2 hours to allow all layers to set completely before slicing and serving.

Notes

The chocolate caramel ganache, while incredibly delicious, becomes quite firm when cold. This makes the cake a bit challenging to slice perfectly straight out of the refrigerator. For the best slicing and serving experience, remove the Ding Dong Cake from the refrigerator at least one hour before you plan to serve it. Allowing it to sit at room temperature will help the ganache soften slightly, making it much easier to cut. Your slices might not be absolutely picture-perfect, but we promise they will be incredibly delicious and worth every bite!

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