Moist Mango Cake

Made with real mango puree, this mango layer cake combines tender sponge cake, fresh mango filling, and smooth mango buttercream for a dessert that’s light, fruity, and full of tropical flavor.

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Let me tell you about my son’s birthday last year. He’s a huge mango fan, so I wanted to make something extra special for him. After some thought, I decided to go all out and bake a frosted mango layer cake using fresh, seasonal mangoes.

When my son saw the cake, his eyes lit up with excitement. He couldn’t believe I made it a mango-flavored cake! As we sang Happy Birthday, I couldn’t help but feel a swell of pride. Seeing the joy on my son’s face made all the effort worth it.

The cake was a hit! The soft, moist layers paired perfectly with the creamy mango frosting, creating a flavor explosion with everyone returning for seconds. I couldn’t help but feel grateful for moments like these—when a simple dessert becomes a sweet memory to cherish forever.

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Step-by-step: Mango Cake with SMBC

Mango puree

• Peel and slice the mango around the seed. Place in a food processor or blender and pulse until smooth.
• Pour into a saucepan and reduce on low heat until almost half of its original volume.
  Pro tip – We reduce the mango puree for a more concentrated flavor. You can also use fewer mangoes and skip the reduction.
• Divide as required in the recipe below for cake, filling, and buttercream.

Mango cake

• Preheat the oven at 320°F / 165 °C / Gas Mark 3
• Grease and line 3 x 8-inch round cake pans or 2 x 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
• Dry ingredients – Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whip eggs with half the sugar until light and foamy (ribbon stage). Remove the whipped eggs to a separate bowl and set aside.
• In the same bowl of the stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and remaining sugar until light and fluffy.
• Add the vanilla extract. Followed by the flour and buttermilk in three batches. Then, add the mango puree. Scrape the sides and bottom to ensure you have a smooth batter.
• Finally, fold in the whipped eggs in three batches.
• Divide the batter between the prepared baking pans. Spread evenly with a spatula.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes. When done, cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then, invert onto a cooling rack and cool completely before decorating.

Mango Swiss meringue buttercream

• Watch my video on how to make Swiss meringue buttercream
• Place egg whites and sugar in the bowl of the stand mixer.
• Using a whisk, place the bowl over a double boiler and whip constantly until all the sugar has dissolved and the egg whites are warm (about 160°F).
• Take the bowl off the heat and whip the egg whites until you have a thick meringue with stiff peaks.
• Let the mixer continue to whip on medium-low until the bowl feels cool to the touch. Then, gradually add butter, one cube at a time, with the mixer at medium speed.
• Once all the butter is added, whip on medium-high for 2 minutes. Lastly, add the vanilla. Combine well until everything is well combined.
• Put 2 cups of buttercream in a piping bag for the buttercream dam.
  Pro tip – Don’t skip the buttercream dam; otherwise, all the filling will ooze out of the cake from the sides, which looks very messy.
• Mango buttercream – Add mango puree to the remaining buttercream. Add a few drops of yellow food color.
  Pro tip – Mango is yellow, but it does not make the buttercream very yellow in color. You can skip the yellow food color but the frosting will be very pale.

Assemble

• Once cooled, use a serrated knife to cut the domes off the cake layers.
• Place a cake layer on the cake board or cake stand.
• Fill the cake – Pipe a buttercream dam (edge) on the cake layer. Top with a big dollop of mango puree – spread evenly but within the piped buttercream dam/edge. (see video)
• Next, top the second cake layer, followed by the buttercream dam and filling. Then, place the last cake layer on top.
• Place the cake in the fridge to chill for 10 to 15 minutes.
  Pro tip : Chilling the cake at this point will keep the layers from shifting when you frost the outside.

• Crumb coat – Spread more buttercream around and on top of the cake. (see video). Chill the cake for another 15 to 30 minutes.
• Spread the remaining buttercream around and on top of the cake.
  Pro tip – A straight-edge spatula for the top, an offset spatula, and a bench scraper for the sides work better.
• Final smoothing – dip an offset spatula and bench scraper in warm water and smooth the sides and top of the cake.
• Add the remaining frosting to a large piping bag with the star tip. Pipe a border around the cake at the top. (see video)
• Decorate with slices of fresh mango (see video).

Storage

• This cake will stay in the fridge for up to a week.
• You can keep the unfrosted cake at room temperature for 2 days.
• You can even freeze this cake for up to a month.

Tips for Success

• Divide the batter evenly between the pans for even baking.
• Use room-temperature butter, eggs, buttermilk, and mango puree for a smooth batter.
• Whip the eggs until thick and ribbon-like for a lighter cake crumb.
• Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt thoroughly before adding to the batter.
• Fold the whipped eggs gently into the batter to keep as much air as possible.
• Do not overmix once the flour is added or the cake can become dense.

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Frequently asked questions

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