High Altitude Coffee Layer Cake - Curly Girl Kitchen (2024)

This high altitude coffee layer cake is soft, tender and fluffy. The cake is brushed with melted butter, covered in espresso sugar, then layered with coffee buttercream. To make the cake design more special, one of the cakes is baked in a bundt pan, which gives this naked coffee layer cake such a pretty and unique look.

You might also love these coffee cupcakes, one layer coffee walnut cake, and toasted hazelnut coffee cake.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Fan Favorite Recipe. I based the recipe for today’s cake on my popular snickerdoodle bundt cake, but this time, flavored with espresso powder and coated in espresso sugar. And for the design, I borrowed from my brown sugar cinnamon cake, using the same method for coating the cake edges in sugar and filling the cakes with pretty piped swirls of buttercream. The bundt cake on top is unusual and makes the cake so unique.

High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.

See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.

Ingredients

Cake

• Butter + Cream Cheese. The high fat content of the butter and cream cheese makes a rich, velvety, flavorful cake that you’ll just love.
• Sugar. A combination of granulated sugar and light brown sugar adds sweetness and moisture.
• Eggs. The eggs give the cake structure and strength, as well as moisture and a bit of leavening action.
• Flour. For an incredibly soft, light texture in your coffee layer cake, I recommend using Swans Down Cake Flour. With its lower protein content, cake flour makes very soft, tender cakes.
• Salt. Balances the sweetness and enhances the flavors.
• Baking Powder. Leavening agent.
• Whole Milk. Adds fat, richness and moisture.
• Espresso Powder. You’ll need instant espresso powder or instant coffee to use in the cake, espresso sugar coating, and in the buttercream.
• Vanilla Extract. Flavor.

Espresso Sugar

• Butter. A little butter brushed onto the cake helps the sugar to stick.
• Granulated Sugar + Espresso Powder.

Coffee Buttercream

• Butter. Use unsalted or salted butter, whichever you prefer. If your butter is salted, you should omit the extra salt in the recipe.
• Powdered Sugar. Sweetens and thickens the buttercream.
• Meringue Powder. Adds stability and improves the texture.
• Salt. Balances the sweetness and enhances flavors.
• Milk + Espresso Powder. By dissolving the espresso powder in a little milk or cream first, you’ll get more coffee flavor than if you just mixed the dry espresso powder into the buttercream.
• Vanilla Extract.

Instructions

Cake

• Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Grease the pans with non-stick baking spray.
• In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, cream cheese, granulated sugar and brown sugar on medium speed (#4-6 on a Kitchen Aid mixer) for 7 minutes. Scrape the bowl down several times while mixing.
• Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, beating in each egg on medium speed for 1 full minute before adding the next egg.

• In a bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. Separately, stir together the milk, vanilla and espresso powder, until the powder is dissolved. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the milk mixture, starting and ending with the flour. Increase speed to medium and beat for 15 seconds.
• Divide the batter between the prepared pans. Bake the cakes for about 30-35 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Set the pans on a cooling rack, and cool for 15 minutes. Invert the cakes onto the cooling racks, cover loosely with a clean kitchen towel, and cool completely.

Espresso Sugar

• Melt the butter, then use a pastry brush to brush the butter onto the sides of the 8 inch round cakes, and all over the bundt cake. This will give the espresso sugar something to stick to.
• Combine the sugar and espresso powder and spread it onto a rimmed baking sheet or large plate.
• Gently coat the cakes in the sugar mixture, using your hands or a pastry brush to scoop the sugar onto the cakes..

Coffee Buttercream

• In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute until smooth.
• With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar by spoonfuls, the meringue powder and salt.
• Dissolve the espresso powder into the milk and vanilla, then add it to the buttercream.
• Increase the speed to medium, and whip the buttercream for 4-5 minutes, scraping the bowl down several times, until very light and fluffy. Turn the speed down to “stir” and mix for 1 more minute.
• Fit a 16-inch disposable piping bag with tip 1M, and fill with buttercream.
• Place one of the cake layers on a serving plate or cake stand, and pipe swirls of buttercream on top of the cake. Repeat with another layer of cake and buttercream. Finish by placing the bundt cake on top.

Recipe Variations

Standard Layer Cake. If you don’t have the “elegant party” bundt pan for the top layer, simply divide the cake batter between three 8-inch cake pans.

Standard Bundt Cake. Instead of the 3 cake layers, you can bake the batter in a standard, 12-cup bundt pan, and coat the whole cake in espresso sugar. Follow the temperature and baking instructions noted in this snickerdoodle bundt cake. You can also cut the recipe in half, and bake the batter in a 6-cup bundt pan.

6 Inch Layer Cake. Cut the recipe in half, and bake the cake batter in three 6-inch round cake pans. The baking time will be a few minutes less than for the 8-inch pans.

Sheet Cake. For a coffee sheet cake, bake the full cake recipe in a 9×13 inch pan, or half the recipe in a 9-inch square pan. Brush the top of the cake with the melted butter and sprinkle with espresso sugar.

Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common questions with cake making, so that you can be successful in your own baking! I also suggest reading these comprehensive posts on making Perfect American Buttercream, How to Stack, Fill, Crumb Coat and Frost Layer Cakes and How to Use Piping Bags.

Frequently Asked Questions

How should I store leftover cake?

Store the leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Can I use all purpose flour instead of cake flour?

You can use all-purpose flour instead of cake flour. Cake flour will make a lighter, fluffier, more tender cake, while all-purpose flour will make it a bit more dense.

Where can I buy espresso powder?

I used to recommend Medaglia D’Oro Instant Coffee Espresso Powder, since it was available at my grocery store, as well as on Amazon. The flavor is great for baking, as well as just for making a quick cup of espresso to drink. My grocery store no longer carries it, but I’ve found other brands in stock that work just as well. King Arthur espresso powder is also a good choice.

What bundt pan did you use for the top layer?

I used the Nordic Ware “elegant party” bundt pan. Its size works really well for this recipe as a top layer on an 8-inch cake.

Will another bundt pan work for the top?

You can certainly try using different bundt pans for the top layer, but you need to make sure the diameter is pretty close to the base cake layers. The elegant party bundt pan is close in diameter and similar in size to an 8-inch cake pan, so the combination of these pans works well together. If you want to make half the recipe and use 6-inch cake pans, you’ll need to use a smaller bundt pan for the top layer.

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