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.
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.
Why make this cake?
- Fresh Mango Flavor: This cake recipe uses fresh, seasonal mangoes to infuse every bite with the irresistible taste of ripe, juicy mangoes.
- Moist and Tender Layers: The cake layers are incredibly moist and tender, thanks to the addition of mango puree in the batter, ensuring a delightful texture with each bite.
- Creamy Mango Frosting: The creamy mango frosting is the perfect complement to the cake, adding an extra layer of mango flavor and a luscious texture that melts in your mouth.
- Versatility: Whether it’s a birthday celebration, a special occasion, or simply a craving for something sweet, this mango cake recipe is versatile and suitable for any event or dessert craving.
Ingredients and substitutes
- All-purpose flour – I prefer to use all-purpose flour instead of cake flour because it adds stability to the heavy mango puree.
- Unsalted butter – I always use unsalted butter so I can control the amount of salt. And yet, if salted butter is all you have, use it and omit salt in the recipe. If you have a dairy allergy, you can replace the unsalted butter with a vegan or dairy-free alternative.
- Sugar – I’m using white sugar so I can have a white cake. It’s always best to use fine-grain white sugar, as it dissolves easily in the butter.
- Buttermilk – If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, don’t worry. It takes just 5 minutes to make homemade buttermilk for baking.
- Vanilla extract – A good-quality vanilla extract is very important and adds a nice flavor to your baked goods.
- Mango – I am using fresh mangoes, but you can also use frozen mangoes for this recipe. However, do not use frozen mango slices on top of the cake, as the condensation may cause issues. For the top garnish, you can also use a mango puree instead of fresh slices.
Also, if you can’t find mango purée, you can substitute it with another fruit purée, such as pineapple or peach.
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.
Mango Cake Recipe
Give your next layer cake a seasonal flavor with this fresh mango cake. Made with moist layers of mango sponge filled with sweet mango puree, and frosted with mango Swiss meringue buttercream. And, of course, topped with slices of fresh mangoes for that ultimate finish.
Video
Ingredients
Mango puree
- 4 large Mangoes ripe
Cake
- 400 g (3¼ cups) All-purpose flour
- 2½ tsp Baking powder
- ½ tsp Baking soda
- ½ tsp Salt
- 340 g (1½ cups) Butter unsalted, room temperature
- 400 g (2 cups) White sugar
- 4 large Eggs room temperature
- 180 ml (¾ cup) Buttermilk
- 180 ml (¾ cup) Mango puree (see above)
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
Mango Swiss meringue frosting – Enough to fill and frost x 4 layers
- 6 large Egg whites
- 200 g (1 cup) White sugar
- ¼ tsp Cream of tartar (optional)
- 450 g (2 cups) Unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- ½ tsp Salt
- 60 ml (¼ cup) Mango puree (see above)
- 2 drops Egg yellow food color
Plus
- 1 cup Mango puree for filling (see above)
- 1 large Mango freshly sliced
Method
- Reduced 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 over low heat until it is reduced by about half. Divide as required in the recipe below for cake, filling, and buttercream.4 large Mangoes
Cake batter
- Preheat the oven to 320 °F / 165 °C / Gas Mark 3. Grease and line 3 x 8-inch round cake pans or 2 x 9-inch round cake pan with parchment paper.
- Dry ingredients – Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.400 g All-purpose flour, 2½ tsp Baking powder, ½ tsp Baking soda, ½ tsp Salt
- Whip eggs – In the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whip eggs with half the sugar until light and foamy (ribbon stage) – remove whipped eggs to a separate bowl and set aside.4 large Eggs, 400 g White sugar
- Cream batter – In the same bowl fitted with the paddle attachment on the stand mixer, cream the butter and remaining sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract. Followed by the flour, mango puree and buttermilk in three batches until you have a smooth batter.340 g Butter, 180 ml Buttermilk, 180 ml Mango puree, 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- Fold in whipped eggs – 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.
- Bake – Divide the batter between the prepared baking pans. Spread evenly with a spatula, Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes. When done, cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then, invert onto a cooling rack and cool completely before decorating.
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 constantly whip until all the sugar has dissolved and the egg whites are fairly warm (about 160 F).6 large Egg whites, 200 g White sugar, ¼ tsp Cream of tartar (optional), 1/2 tsp Salt
- Take the bowl off the heat and whip the egg whites until you have a thick meringue with stiff peaks.
- Take the bowl off the heat and whip the egg whites until you have a thick meringue with stiff peaks. Let the mixer whip on medium-low until the mixer bowl feels cool. 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 buttercream in a piping bag for the buttercream dam.450 g Unsalted butter, 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- Mango buttercream – Add mango puree to the remaining buttercream. Add a few drops of yellow food color.60 ml Mango puree, 2 drops Egg yellow food color
Assemble
- Once cooled, cut the domes off the cake layers using a serrated knife. Place a cake layer on the cake board or cake stand.
- Fill the cake – Pip 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 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.1 cup Mango puree
- 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. A straight-edge spatula for the top, an offset spatula, and a bench scraper for the sides work better. Final smoothing – dip an off-set spatula and bench scraper in warm water and smooth the sides and top of the cake.
- Add the remaining frosting in 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).1 large Mango
Notes
- Use ripe, sweet mangoes for the best flavor and color.
- Frozen mango can be thawed and pureed if fresh mangoes are not available.
- Whip the eggs until thick and ribbon stage before folding into the batter for a lighter texture.
- Do not overmix once the flour is added.
- This recipe makes 3 x 8-inch cake layers, 2 x 9-inch cake layers, or about 20 cupcakes.
- Store the frosted cake in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.
- Cake layers can be wrapped well and frozen for up to 2 months.
- If using canned mango puree, choose unsweetened puree and adjust sweetness if needed.
Equipment you will need
Nutrition
Tried this recipe?
Mention @veenaazmanov_kitchen or tag #veenaazmanovkitchen!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.
Frequently asked questions
How long will this mango cake keep?
This cake will keep at room temperature, unfrosted, for 3 days. And, once frosted, in the fridge for up to a week. You can also freeze it for up to a month.
Can I make this cake ahead of time?
Yes, you can make this cake ahead of time. Simply bake the cake, let it cool completely, and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Then frost it on the day of your event or a day ahead.
Can I use mango fruit powder for this mango cake?
Absolutely. You can soak 1/3 cup mango powder + 1/4 cup water, then add it to the cake batter. Also, use 1/2 cup mango powder for the Swiss meringue buttercream. Beat it in at the last minute.
What other frostings can I use for this cake?
Yes, Swiss or Italian meringue also works wonderfully with this cake. In addition, I have 50-plus buttercream frosting recipes on this blog, so there’s plenty to try.
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Hi Veena,
I am going to be baking this cake for my son’s birthday party and I have three questions:
1) If I make it as a sheet cake, as you mention above, what adjustments to bake time/temp would you make? What about as cupcakes?
2) Based on what I am gathering from your recipe I need 2 cups of mango puree. Is this correct? (.75 for cake, .25 for frosting, 1 for between layers/drizzle or just to eat by the spoonful)
3) If I were to attempt cupcakes, do you think the puree would work if injected into the cupcake? I am tempted, but worry they would become soggy.
Becky,
1. Yes, you can make a sheet cake as well. It should take about 25 to 30 minutes.
2. We use more in the cake and less in the frosting – that is correct. If you use too much in the frosting, it will be too soft to work with.
3. You can fill the cupcakes after they are baked and cooled. Core the cupcakes from the center and fill in a little mango puree. Close the top and pipe a swirl. That should work well.
To prevent sogginess, make sure you have good quality puree that is thick (not watery, especially with defrosted mangoes). If necessary, reduce the puree on the stove and cool completely before using.
Happy Birthday to you son. Enjoy!
May i know if we can use Canned mango puree? if yes, should i use sweetened or unsweetened mango puree?
Lena, I used fresh mango puree. If you use canned its best to use unsweetened. Thanks
Hi. Can I cover this with fondant? Thank you.
Yes sure you can – make sure you chill the cake well before fondant.
I am making this cake today & will decorate it tomorrow, then serve it on Monday for my great niece’s birthday. My question for you is the frosting, will it hold up in south Florida humid heat? I plan on decorating the sides with dry tropical fondant cut outs & some piping of frosting. We do have air conditioning but we have to transport it her house. I have never made swiss meringue frosting before. Should I freeze the whole thing when finished or refridgerate or ? Any tips? Or even use a different frosting? I thank you in advance.
Jan, When done properly Swiss meringue does well in an air-conditioned room. That said, it will still depend on how hot and humid the conditions are and how long the cake will stay out. I have used SMBC in warm weather successfully.
Hi Veena
I have been following your recipes from quite a few years and they have never disappointed me.
About to try this one today. I have one doubt. in the beginning you say to chill the cake for atleast 4 hours. At what point do we need to chill it for 4 hours? do you mean the cake bases other cake once it’s completely ready?
When the cake is baked it is important to cool completely. I like to say 4 hours but 2 hours will work just as well.
hi I was wondering if you are able to store or make the frosting ahead of time and save it? and if you are able to how long does it last for?
Cakes with fresh fruit should not be kept for long. Though, this cake will keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
Hello Veena, I would like to ask if I can substitute the butter to oil. Also, I noticed the flour is 3 1/2 cups. Isn’t that too much flour? I just want to clarify.
No, You can’t substitute butter in this recipe. And, yes, it is a big cake with 3 layers so the flour is a correct amount. You can half the recipe to make a smaller cake. Thanks
Can we use canned mangoes when fresh mangoes are not in season? And if so, what kind of canned mangoes would you recommend? Thank you so much.
Ritchie. You can use canned mangoes, preferably unsweetened varieties. If not, adjust the sweetness in the recipe.
Looks amazing. Not mango season here in Australia at the moment but come mango season cant wait to try this. Thanks
Mango Cake looks gorgeous. Can I bake this in bundt cake pan and for how much time and at what temperature?
Thanks
Yes, you can bake this in an 8-inch bundt pan and it should take about 40 to 50 minutes at 325 F/ 165 C.