My version of this cake is a little different from the common recipe, because we don't like nuts in cakes and not big fans of butter cream frosting either. Baker’s preference. The cream that I use for this cake is the same as the one I use with Cream Filled Pizzels. It's my favorite cream! Maybe because I love, love caramel… as equally as chocolate. 🙂
Oh and speaking of, I also like to drizzle some caramel sauce on top which makes this cake even better (it's optional though). This Korolevsky Cake is one of the cakes that doesn't stay around for long in our house. Do you know why? Because it’s a house full of chocolate and caramel lovers! 🙂 So give this cake a try, and taste what I'm talking about. 🙂
Ingredients you will need
Poppy seed layer:
3 large – egss
½ cup – granulated sugar
1 tsp. – baking powder
¾ cup – all-purpose flour
⅓ cup – poppy seeds
Chocolate layer:
3 large – eggs
½ cup – granulated sugar
1tsp. – baking powder
¾ cup – all-purpose flour
¼ cup – cocoa
Cranberry layer:
3 large – egss
½ cup – granulated sugar
1 tsp. – baking powder
¾ cup – all-purpose flour
¾ cup – dried cranberries (or raisins)
Cream Ingredients:
16 oz. – cool whip (thawed) or 5 cups of Heavy Cream
1 can – Dulce de Leche
Chocolate Ganache (use this simple recipe)
Chocolate Shavings and Caramel Sauce is optional
Instructions
For poppy seed layer:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Beat eggs and sugar on high for 5 minutes. Very gently fold in flour and baking powder mixture with hand whisker or spatula.
2. Add and fold in poppy seeds very gently.
3. Pour batter into 10 “greased pan lined with parchment paper on the bottom of the pan. Bake the cake for 25 minutes at 350 F. Remove cake from the oven. Let it cool for 5 minutes before removing it from the pan. Remove from the pan and set aside to cool completely.
Instructions for chocolate layer:
1. Beat eggs and sugar on high for 5 minutes (as for the poppy seed layer). While the eggs and sugar are beating, prepare dry ingredients. In a small bowl combine flour, baking powder and cocoa. Stir it with whisker. Remove bowl from mixer and very gently fold in the flour mixed with cocoa.
2. Pour it into 10 “greased pan lined with parchment paper on the bottom of the pan. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes at 350 F. Remove cake from the oven. Let it cool for 5 minutes before removing it from the pan. Remove from the pan and set aside to cool completely.
Instructions for cranberry layer:
1. Beat eggs and sugar on high for 5 minutes. Very gently fold in flour and baking powder mixtuure with hand whisker or spatula.
2. Add and fold in very gently dried cranberries.
3. Pour batter into 10 “greased pan lined with parchment paper on the bottom of the pan. Bake the cake for 25 minutes at 350 F or until golden brown. Remove cake from the oven. Let it cool for 5 minutes before removing it from the pan. Remove from the pan and set aside to cool completely.
Instruction for the cream:
While the cake layers are cooling down, we can work on the cream. Beat Dulce de Leche with thawed cool whip for 2 minutes. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula and beat it on high for another minute.
Assembling the cake:
1.Place poppy seed layer onto a cake platter. Place ¼ amount of the cream on top of the poppy seed layer and spread it out evenly. Then place chocolate cake layer on top of the cream and add another ¼ amount of the cream (half of the total cream will go inside the cake). Spread it out evenly.
2. Then place cranberry cake layer on top of the chocolate cake layer with cream. Crumb coat the cake first to ensure that you get no crumbs on the final cream coating. Use almost all cream for the top of the cake. (Save a cup of cream to decorate the base of the cake). Coat and spread the cream evenly.
3. Decorate the base of the cake. You can use any desired Wilton tip. Pour prepared and cooled Chocolate Ganache. Sprinkle chocolate shavings on the top edge of the cake and then drizzle with caramel sauce if desired.
Recipe Card
Korolevsky Cake (Kings Cake)
Ingredients
- Ingredients you will need:
- Poppy seed layer:
- 3 large – egss
- ½ cup – granulated sugar
- 1 tsp. – baking powder
- ¾ cup – all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup – poppy seeds
- Chocolate layer:
- 3 large – eggs
- ½ cup – granulated sugar
- 1 tsp. – baking powder
- ¾ cup – all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup – cocoa
- Cranberry layer:
- 3 large – egss
- ½ cup – granulated sugar
- 1 tsp. – baking powder
- ¾ cup – all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup – dried cranberries or raisins
- Cream Ingredients:
- 16 oz. – cool whip thawed
- 1 can – Dulce de Leche
- Chocolate Ganache use this simple recipe
- Chocolate Shavings and Caramel Sauce is optional
Instructions
- Instructions for poppy seed layer:
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Beat eggs and sugar on high for 5 minutes. Very gently fold in flour with hand whisker or spatula.
- Add and fold in poppy seeds very gently.
- Pour batter into 10 “greased pan lined with parchment paper on the bottom of the pan. Bake the cake for 25 minutes at 350 F. Remove cake from the oven. Let it cool for 5 minutes before removing it from the pan. Remove from the pan and set aside to cool completely.
- Instructions for chocolate layer:
- Beat eggs and sugar on high for 5 minutes (as for the poppy seed layer). While the eggs and sugar are beating, prepare dry ingredients. In a small bowl combine flour, baking powder and cocoa. Stir it with whisker. Remove bowl from mixer and very gently fold in the flour mixed with cocoa.
- Pour it into 10 “greased pan lined with parchment paper on the bottom of the pan. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes at 350 F. Remove cake from the oven. Let it cool for 5 minutes before removing it from the pan. Remove from the pan and set aside to cool completely.
- Instructions for cranberry layer:
- Beat eggs and sugar on high for 5 minutes. Very gently fold in flour with hand whisker or spatula.
- Add and fold in very gently dried cranberries.
- Pour batter into 10 “greased pan lined with parchment paper on the bottom of the pan. Bake the cake for 25 minutes at 350 F or until golden brown. Remove cake from the oven. Let it cool for 5 minutes before removing it from the pan. Remove from the pan and set aside to cool completely.
- Instruction for the cream:
- While the cake layers are cooling down, we can work on the cream. Beat Dulce de Leche with thawed cool whip for 2 minutes. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula and beat it on high for another minute.
- Assembling the cake:
- Place poppy seed layer onto a cake platter. Place ¼ amount of the cream on top of the poppy seed layer and spread it out evenly. Then place chocolate cake layer on top of the cream and add another ¼ amount of the cream (half of the total cream will go inside the cake). Spread it out evenly.
- Then place cranberry cake layer on top of the chocolate cake layer with cream. Crumb coat the cake first to ensure that you get no crumbs on the final cream coating. Use almost all cream for the top of the cake. (Save a cup of cream to decorate the base of the cake). Coat and spread the cream evenly, then decorate the base of the cake. You can use any desired Wilton tip you like.
- Pour prepared and cooled Chocolate Ganache. Sprinkle chocolate shavings on the top edge of the cake and then drizzle with caramel sauce if desired.
- Enjoy!
Enjoy!
If you make this Korolevsky Cake (Kings Cake) Recipe please share a picture with me on Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest. Tag with #valyastasteofhome. I’d love to see your creations! ?
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Alena says
Valentina, what is the best way to add the ganache on top of the cake so that it has those nice drips on the sides. ( I hope I'm making sense.) Yours looks very uniform and beautiful. Thanks!
Valya of Valya's Taste of Home says
I transfer warm ganache into a sandwich ziplock bag, cut a little piece off one end and make drips first then fill the top of the cake with the rest of the ganache. Then using cake spatula even out the ganache on top of the cake. I hope this helps.
Natalia says
Want to try making this cake for my mom in laws birthday and wondering can I make cake layers a day or two ahead?
www.valyastasteofhome.com says
You sure can. I usually bake the cake sponges, cream and rough coat the cake the day or 2 ahead of time, then decorate it later for the best results. That way the cake has the time to absorb the flavor and moisten. Keep rough coated cake covered (either with plastic food wrap or cake cap) to prevent from drying out. I hope this helps! Happy birthday to your mama-in-law! 🙂
Natasha says
Hi Valya,
How’s your chocolate layer looks perfect 😅I just can’t do Chocolate layer, always over mix it and it comes out hard and flat. It’s hard to incorporate flour with cocoa.. please advise how not to over mix it.. Thank you!
Valya's Taste of Home says
Add flour/cocoa mixture in small additions and using hand whisk or spatula gently fold the dry ingredients. See post about how to make the Best Chocolate Sponge Cakes. Hopefully you find more useful information in this post. I will have to make a reel or a video about it soon.
Tanya says
Is the batter suppose to be sticky? Mine was sticky.
valya'stasteofhome.com says
Hmm..., do you mean raw better? No, it shouldn't be sticky at all. It should be like regular cake better.
Rimma says
Is it possible to post a picture of the package with chocolate curls? Thanks
valya'stasteofhome.com says
I don't have one on hand at a moment. I soon as I get one from a grocery store I will post it. Thank you Rimma 🙂
Lainy says
Hi Valya,
love your web site, and love how neat your work always is 🙂
question for you: do u moisten the layers? cake is not to dry? I know some of the food bloggers do use some sort of syrup, so just wondering? let me know please:) keep up the good work, your really good at it:)
valya'stasteofhome.com says
Hi Dear,
No, I do not moisten the layers at all on this cake. It's depends how moist you like the cake to be. We like it as is. If you want this cake to be a little more moister, I recommend this syrup: 1/2 cup warm water, 1 tbsp. sugar, 1 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon. Mix everything and lightly soak the sponges. Try both ways and see how you like it. Thank you very much for such a warm words! Really appreciate you stopping by and commenting 🙂
Chinky says
Thanks! ?
valya'stasteofhome.com says
You are very welcome! 🙂
Chinky says
Hi!
If I don't have poppy seeds what can I substitute it with or can I ommit it all together. Thanks so much!!
valya'stasteofhome.com says
You can substitute poppy seeds with raisins or nuts.
Julie says
Hi,
Can i use same proportions for a rectangular shape baking pan or 8 will need to double all the ingredients? Thanks.
valya'stasteofhome.com says
What is the size of your rectangular baking pan?
Julie says
Pan size is 12x8
valya'stasteofhome.com says
You can give it a try making by the recipe. The layers may be slightly thinner than original recipe. If you double the recipe it will be too much batter for 12x8 size pan. I was doubling the recipe when I was making 12" round cake for an order not long ago. Hope that helps.
lana says
you only mentioned baking powder in your chocolate layer in the directions, Is that means no need for it in the poppy seed and cranberry one?
valya'stasteofhome.com says
Oh, thank you for catching that. I meant stir flour and baking powder with hand whisker before adding it to the batter. It's already corrected. Thanks again 🙂
Lana says
Thank you for such a prompt reply. I made the layers and they came out beutiful. I love your blog?
valya'stasteofhome.com says
I'm glad the layers turned out beautiful for you. Thank you for the warm words of encouragement, I truly appreciate it Lana 🙂
Olga says
Do you buy those chocolate shavings or do you make them? Can you tell us where you buy them or how to make them please? 🙂
valya'stasteofhome.com says
I bought these at Walmart in the baking aisle. You can make your own by freezing a thin chocolate bar and shave it with a potato/vegetable peeler. More questions? Please do ask. Thank you Olga
Natasha says
This looks like kings cake so many option in one bite. Delicious!
valya'stasteofhome.com says
You are right! I like many options in one bite. Thank you Natasha 🙂
Nina says
When you're a king, why not have it all? 😉 Looks unique and delicious.
valya'stasteofhome.com says
Yep! Thank you Nina. 🙂