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Peach Ricotta Layer Cake with Browned Butter Buttercream. Favorite cake of the summer….hands down. Three layers of fluffy cake, filled with bourbon peach jam, raspberry jam, and the most delicious browned butter buttercream. This cake is light, airy, peachy, sweet, and all the things you want in a summertime cake. Trust me, you just have to make this!
It’s been long but great week, and ending it with this peach filled cake just seems like the right thing to do. Plus, I am not sure what it is about summer, but I have a serious baking bug right now. With all the amazing summer produce, it’s hard not to want to use produce in everything I am making. Anyone else feeling same?
I’m spending the next couple of days in Cleveland with family. I’m excited to check out the local markets here, especially the West Side Market, which has been a favorite of mine since I was a kid. My dad used to stop there on his way home from work to pick up fresh produce. It’s just one of the things I miss about living in Cleveland, it’s such a great market.
Assuming the weather is nice, I’ll be spending the first weekend of August outside my kitchen. Most of my family is in Cleveland this weekend, so it will be great to see them all. I know that my brother is really hoping I make Butter Chicken or Gumbo, so I’m sure I will still do a little cooking. The one thing I really want to do though?
Find peaches!! Local peaches are the best, and we have a few birthdays to celebrate, so a remake of this cake might just be in order. Not complaining, as it’s truly one of my favorites right now. What’s not to love about a peach filled cake with browned butter buttercream, you know?
For years now I have been wanting to make a peach layer cake, but summers have come and gone and I just never got around to making one. Well, I finally changed all that this summer, and I could not be happier with how this cake turned out.
This cake is everything…it’s so delicious, pretty, fun, and uses up all the summer peaches you probably have on hand. Not sure about you guys, but my eyes can tend to be larger than my stomach. I can get so excited when I see produce I love, that I buy way more than I actually know what to do with. This isn’t the best habit, but it does force me to get creative with my ingredients and think of new ways to use them up.
So it’s bad that I tend to over-buy…but it’s also kind of good too!
Anyway, let’s talk details.
This is a recipe that isn’t under thirty minutes, or less than ten ingredients, but it’s worth any extra time and effort. I promise.
OK, so you’ll start off by making the fluffy ricotta based cake. First of all, ricotta cakes are the way to go. Not only does the ricotta add a nice flavor, but it adds richness, moisture, and keeps the cake incredibly light and fluffy. This isn’t my first time using ricotta in a dessert, but it’s the first cake I’ve incorporated it into. And it for sure will not be the last…game changer.
While the cake is baking, make the peach jam. Honestly, if you have a surplus of peaches, you should just be making jam all the time. Peach jam can be used in both sweet and savory ways, and yes, it is good. The jam is spread over each layer of cake and it’s the main flavor. I used brown sugar to sweeten the jam. I also gave the jam a kick of flavor with a couple splashes of bourbon, because I will forever love the combination of peaches and bourbon. If you’re not someone who likes to cook with alcohol, not to worry, just omit the bourbon and replace it with lemon juice or two teaspoons of vanilla.
For the buttercream, you’ll need to brown some butter. If you’ve never browned butter, oh man, you are in for a real treat. Browning butter on the stove gives it a nutty, rich flavor, and I swear, makes almost any dish better, whether it’s sweet or savory.
In addition to the browned butter, I also used some mascarpone cheese in the buttercream to give it a very “whipped” feel. I didn’t want the buttercream to be heavy and weigh down the cake, so the lightness of the mascapone is perfect paired with this cake.
Also, I want to talk about cutting the cake layers in half. I have chatted with you guys about this before, but do not stress about this step. It’s a lot easier than you may think. You just need to use a long, serrated knife and try to cut in an even, straight line. The long knife will help make this so much easier.
Don’t worry too much if your layers are not perfectly even. One of the great things about frosting/buttercream is that it covers up mistakes. It’s a delicious and beautiful thing.
And in my opinion, you can never have too much frosting!
If you make this peach ricotta layer cake, please be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! I love hearing from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every one of you. Oh, and of course, if you do make this cake, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram so I can see! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Peach Ricotta Layer Cake with Browned Butter Buttercream
Servings: 14 makes ( layer) cake
Calories Per Serving: 2192 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 cup canola oil
- 1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 3 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Bourbon Peach Jam
- 6 cups fresh or frozen peaches
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons bourbon
- 1/3 cup raspberry jam
Brown Butter Buttercream
- 3 sticks salted butter, at room temperature
- 4 ounces mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 2 (8-inch) round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter/spray with cooking spray.2. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand-held mixer) beat together the canola oil, ricotta, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and buttermilk. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt, mix until just combined. 3. Pour the batter among the cake pans and bake 30-35 minutes, until the tops are just set and no longer wiggly in the center. Remove and let cool five minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the pan and turn the cakes out onto a cooling rack. Cover and let the cakes cool completely before assembling.4. To make the jam. Add the peaches and brown sugar to a medium size pot set over high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, once boiling use a potato masher or fork to break down and mash the peaches. Continue to cook for 5-8 minutes or until the jam has reduced and thickened by 1/3. Stir in the bourbon during the last minute of cooking. Remove from the heat and let cool. Should thicken as it cools. 5. To make the buttercream. Add 2 sticks butter to a skillet set over medium heat. Allow the butter to brown lightly until it smells toasted, about 2-3 minutes. Stir often. Remove from the heat and transfer the butter to the mixing bowl, let cool until it's room temp. 6. Add the remaining stick of butter, mascapone, and powdered sugar and beat the butter and powdered sugar together until the butter is light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and beat until combined.7. To assemble. Using a large serrated knife, carefully cut each cake in half horizontally. Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread 1/4 of the buttercream over the cake and layer with about 1/4 cup of peach jam and 2 tablespoons raspberry jam. Repeat with the remaining 3 cake layers. Be careful not to overfill your layers or the cake will be hard to slice. Frost the outside of the cake. Chill 30 minutes. Serve, or store in the fridge for up to 2-3 days.Â
Thanks for walking me through the browned butter process, Tieghan. I had quite a bit of peach jam left over but it was delicious. My number 1 is still your blackberry lavender with white chocolate buttercream, but this was a solid #2! Keep ‘em coming! ?? ??
Thank you so much Hope! I am really glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
This cake was Devine and a hit for a friends birthday last month. Truly the brown butter buttercream takes everything to a next level. I was eating it by the spoonful! The only thing that caused a problem was cool time. These cakes took about double than what was recommend in the recipe. We never thought they were going to get cooked!
Haha wow that is so amazing to hear! Thank you so much Nicole! Is there anything I can help you with? Please let me know! xTieghan
I really liked how this cake turned out, it was very sturdy and easy to cut and handle. The brown butter buttercream was so different and tasty I will be making it again! My only issue is the units of measure in the recipe, I buy butter by the pound not in sticks so I had to do some calculating for the butter and the mascarpone measurement of 4oz is tricky for us using the metric system (especially when everything else is in cups).
Just my two cents, but it turned out great for my mom’s birthday and she loved the flavors!
Thank you so much Ashley! I am so happy this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
My daughter made this just recently and it was impressive and delicious. Worth it. My oven might have been a bit off so she had to cook a bit longer so be aware of that. The cake itself was moist and the jam fillings made it especially nice.
Thank you so much Margaret!! I am so glad this recipe turned out so well for you! xTieghan
In step 6, you mention adding the rest of the mascapone. However I don’t see that anywhere on the ingredients list. What does that mean? This cake looks absolutely incredible and I want to be sure to do it right!
Hey Sarah,
The mascarpone is listed under the brown butter buttercream ingredients. I hope this makes sense now! Please let me know if you have any other questions:) xTieghan
Hi looks delicious! I do have a lot of mangoes right now and was wondering if I can substitute for peaches? Thanks!
Hi looks delicious! I do have a lot of mangoes right now and was wondering if I can substitute for peaches? Thanks!
Hey Wil,
Sure mangoes would be great. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Would love to try this, but I would like to avoid using canola oil. How much butter could be a good substitute for one cup of oil? Thank you!
Hey Sam,
Yes an equal amount of butter will work. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Cannot wait to make this cake with the fresh peaches I just got! Do you recommend peeling the peaches or is unpeeled okay?
Hi Audrey,
That is personal preference, I don’t feel the need to peel the peaches. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi Tiegan! This recipe looks so good! My cousin specifically requested a raspberry cake 🙂 do you think I switch out the peach jam for raspberry?
Love all your recipes! Thank you, Lauren
Hi Lauren,
I think that would work well! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
When do you add the raspberry jam to the filling?
Hey Karissa, the raspberry jam is added to the cake during assembly. It’s in the final step of the recipe. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
Hi Tieghan,
Am I able to make the peach jam ahead of time, or will it not keep in the fridge? I bought some fresh peaches last weekend at the market and don’t want to wait too long, but was wanting to make this cake for Father’s day this weekend! Please let me know.
Hi Stacey,
Yes that is totally fine to do! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Can’t wait to try your lovely cake…quick question…can you freeze this cake after frosting the cake… wasn’t sure about the filling. Please respond asap, if possible… wanting to make this Saturday to freeze. For an event next week…which I won’t have time to make then. Thanks, Angie
Hey Angie, yes you can freeze the cake after baking. The filling should hold up just fine! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
If using fresh peaches, would you suggest skinning them?! Thanks!
Hi Amanda,
No need to but if that is your preference that is totally fine! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
This cake is amazing! My daughter and I made it together for Mother’s Day and then dropped off pieces to my Mom and sister. Since we’re social distancing we couldn’t be together but we could share cake. We used frozen peaches and it was delicious. Everyone agreed it’s one of the best cakes we’ve ever eaten. The frosting is unbelievably good!
Aw that is so amazing to hear! I am so glad you all enjoyed this recipe, Ann Marie! Thank you for trying this! xTieghan