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Slice of homemade Neapolitan cake with chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla layers, topped with pink and white buttercream swirls on a plate.

Neapolitan Cake

5 from 1 vote
A three-layer Neapolitan cake featuring chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry flavors inspired by classic Neapolitan ice cream. Each layer is made from a shared vanilla base batter with simple flavor additions, resulting in distinct colors and tastes without extra complexity.
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Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Cooling Time 1 hour
Total Time 2 hours 5 minutes
Servings: 12 slices
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 540
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Vanilla Base Batter
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup unsalted butter - softened
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 4 large eggs - room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 ½ cups whole milk - room temperature
Chocolate Layer Add-In
  • ⅓ batch - vanilla base batter
  • ⅓ cup cocoa powder
  • 3 tablespoon hot water mix with cocoa
Strawberry Layer Add-In
  • ⅓ batch vanilla base batter
  • ½ cup strawberry puree - Reduced from fresh or frozen berries
  • 2–3 drops pink food coloring - optional
Vanilla Layer Add-In
  • ⅓ batch vanilla base batter
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract - additional
Vanilla Bean Frosting
  • 1 ½ cups unsalted butter - softened
  • 6 cups powdered sugar
  • ¼ cup heavy cream - plus more if needed
  • 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 whole vanilla bean - seeds scraped
  • 1 pinch salt

Equipment

  • 3 8-inch round cake pans (Greased and floured or sprayed with baking spray)
  • 1 Stand mixer or hand mixer (For creaming butter & sugar)
  • 1 Electric mixerOffset spatula (For frosting)
  • 1 Rotating cake stand (Optional but helpful)
  • 1 Bench scraper (For smoothing frosting)
  • 1 Serrated knife (For leveling)

Method
 

  1. Reduce blended strawberries in a saucepan for 8–10 minutes until thickened to ½ cup. Cool completely before adding to batter.
  2. Cream butter and sugar; add eggs and vanilla. Alternate adding dry ingredients and milk until smooth without overmixing.
  3. Split batter into three equal portions using a scale.
  4. Bake all layers at 350°F for 25–30 min until a toothpick shows a few moist crumbs. Cool completely.
  5. Whip buttercream until fluffy 3–4 minutes.

Notes

Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should be considered an approximation. Actual values may vary based on specific ingredients used and portion sizes