Part cake and part confection, this heritage recipe for Chocolate Little Layer Cake is made by home cooks throughout southwest Georgia. The cake consists of tiny yellow layers baked individually, then filled and topped with old fashioned boiled chocolate icing.
I really love the way technology connects us. It makes it possible for us to share special recipes like this Chocolate Little Layer Cake beyond our closest circle of friends and family. What we used to do through cards and letters, newspaper and magazine clippings, or simply by word of mouth, we can now accomplish within seconds.
Just a quick internet search, and virtually any recipe ever thought of appears on your screen. I’m even more grateful that technology is helping us to preserve our old heritage recipes like this beautiful tiny layer chocolate cake.
— This post was originally published on April 24, 2012. It has been updated with new photos and additional information.
Recipe Snapshot
Cuisine: Southern, Vintage
Cooking Method: Oven and Stovetop
Total Time: 1 hour, 50 Minutes
Servings: 24
Primary Ingredient(s): Baking chocolate (see notes), sugar, flour, butter, evaporated milk
Skill Level: Intermediate
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING …
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
“Oh how I miss these cakes. All my family is from south Georgia and someone was always bringing one when we had big get togethers. And there was always some older lady who sold these cakes.”
— Marie
“I’m so glad to see this recipe! My aunt … made this cake many times, and it was always a hit and one of my all-time favorite desserts!!”
— Lucy
A Heritage Recipe
For as long as I can remember, these beautiful multi-layer cakes have been a part of family reunions, church dinners, and most holidays in the southwest corner of Georgia where I grew up. You might think at first glance that they’re standard cake layers that have been split and filled, but they’re not—not at all. Each little thin layer is baked separately.
To make it even more different from traditional layer cakes, it’s iced with warm boiled chocolate icing while the layers themselves are still warm. Totally goes against the conventional method, doesn’t it?
Years ago, Kim Severson of the New York Times did a story on these little layer cakes. I had the pleasure of hearing Kim speak once at a food blogging conference. She’s a very accomplished food writer and has received numerous accolades, including several James Beard Awards.
In her NYT story, she talked about how the cakes were made only in one area in Alabama and on Smith Island near Maryland. Well, I can assure you that they are part of the fabric of at least one small southwest Georgia town as well :-)
In the small town where I grew up, lots of ladies make these cakes for a little extra income on the side. They come in two versions – chocolate or caramel. Some of them make a fairly brisk business of it, especially around Christmas.
Way back when, the thin layers for these cakes were made by cooking each layer in a hoecake pan or iron skillet on top of the stove, but now most everyone cooks the layers in the oven. It just goes faster when you can bake three or four layers at one time, you see.
If you’re really experienced with little layer cakes, you can get as many as fourteen layers from your batter. I usually get a ten-layer cake. I need to practice more. If you’ve never made this cake before, aim for about seven layers your first time and gradually increase as you improve your technique.
A Modernized Recipe For You
The original recipe that I have for little layer cakes is so typical of old-time recipes. It assumes that the cook pretty much knows what to do, and only the bare essentials are given.
For instance, the instructions for making the batter read, “Mix well. Grease 8″ pans with Crisco. Put 2 large cooking spoonfuls in each pan. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes.” That’s it.
And the instructions for the boiled icing are “Place over low heat until all is dissolved. Do not boil. Be sure all sugar is melted.” Well, alrighty then!
In the recipe below, I’ve tried to re-write and modernize the instructions a bit for you.
What You’ll Like About This Recipe
- It has a unique boiled chocolate icing.
- It tastes great and is pretty easy to make once you get the idea.
- It’s a very old, sentimental part of southern foodways.
Ingredient Notes
This post contains affiliate links. Lana’s Cooking is reader-supported and earns a tiny commission at no extra cost to you when you shop from our links.
- Granulated Sugar – This is just plain old white sugar. We tend to use Dixie Crystals in the south.
- Baking Chocolate – It’s really important to use the right kind of chocolate for this recipe. You’ll need to purchase Baker’s Premium Unsweetened Baking Chocolate, which produces the distinctive look, texture, and taste required for this recipe.
- Evaporated Milk – Be sure you’re buying evaporated milk, NOT sweetened condensed milk.
- Butter – Like most old-fashioned southern cooks, I use salted butter in everything, including this recipe. I can’t remember the last time I purchased unsalted butter.
- Vanilla Extract – Use a quality extract such as McCormick’s.
- Eggs – The fresher, the better.
- Self-Rising Flour – Southerners love our White Lily flour for any type of baking. It’s made from soft winter wheat and produces very tender baked goods.
The complete ingredient list with detailed measurements is included in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
You’ll also find this recipe in my cookbook!
You can see this recipe on pages 268-269 of my cookbook, My Southern Table! Get your signed copy today.
How to Make Chocolate Little Layer Cake
Prep the Pans and Ingredients
- Before starting your baking, make sure to have all the ingredients at room temperature. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and go ahead and prep several 8-inch cake pans with shortening and set them aside.
Pro Tip
How many layers you bake at once depends on how many pans you have and can fit into your oven without them touching. Some people use disposable cake pans for this, but I don’t see the need. I just wipe the pans out and re-grease between each set of layers.
Make the Icing
Unlike other cakes, you actually start your little layer cake by making the icing first.
- Place a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-low heat. The heat should be barely medium-low. If in doubt, go lower.
- Add the sugar, baking chocolate, evaporated milk, butter, and vanilla all at once. Cook the mixture until the sugar is completely dissolved, stirring occasionally. It is important that the icing does not boil and that you make sure that the sugar is completely dissolved so that no grainy texture remains.
Make the Batter
- Meanwhile, make the batter. Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs all at once and beat until well incorporated. Add the flour and water alternately, beginning and ending with flour. Mix in the vanilla.
Pro Tip
The batter will appear to be curdled after each addition of water. This is normal.
Bake the Layers
- Pour approximately 3/4 cup batter into each prepared pan. Smooth the batter to the edges.
- Bake for approximately 10 minutes or until the layers are barely golden on top. Remove from the oven and turn out onto cooling racks.
- Clean the pans, grease them, and repeat baking.
- When the second set of layers goes into the oven, begin icing the first set.
Frost the Layers While Warm
- Place a still-warm layer on a cardboard round set on a cooling rack inside a baking sheet. Spread 1/4 cup of icing on the layer, smoothing it gently to the edges (an offset spatula is great for this job). Top with the next layer and repeat.
Pro Tip
Note that the icing will be thin and fairly runny. It will drip down the sides of the layers. This is to be expected. Any excess icing should be scraped up and returned to the pan and all of it used in icing the cake. This is why I strongly recommend doing the icing of the cake on a wire rack set inside a baking pan.
- When all the layers have been stacked and iced, spread the remaining icing over the top and sides of the cake. If the icing becomes thick, return the pan to very low heat until it returns to spreading consistency.
- Smooth the icing around the sides of the cake, but realize that the contours are supposed to be visible on the outside of the cake.
Variations
- Many cooks around my hometown also make this cake with a caramel icing. I don’t have the original caramel icing recipe, but the version I use for my Southern Caramel Layer Cake should work well.
- I’ve also seen commercial versions of the little layer cake done in coconut, red velvet, and even lemon. I prefer the chocolate and caramel versions.
What to Serve With Chocolate Little Layer Cake
This cake is the perfect dessert for practically any occasion. I’ve served this for Sunday night family dinner, birthday parties, family reunions, and even bridal showers. It’s the perfect ending to a traditional southern meal of country fried steak, old fashioned green beans, fried okra, cornbread, and a fresh cucumber salad!
Storage
Store the cake in a covered container at room temperature for three or four days.
This cake freezes very well. To freeze, wrap the cake tightly in plastic wrap, followed by a layer of aluminum foil. Place the wrapped cake in a freezer container and freeze for up to three months. Allow the frozen cake to thaw in the refrigerator overnight before serving.
More Popular Cake Recipes
Questions About Chocolate Little Layer Cake
As mentioned in the post, this icing is really thin and runny. It’s not the consistency that you usually think of for icing. The way I handle it is by placing a wire cooling rack inside a baking sheet and setting my layers on that to start. As I add icing, it drips off into the baking sheet. Keep scraping it up and adding it back to the pan. You’ll eventually use all the icing.
There are a few reasons that the icing can turn out grainy. A few tips are to make sure you have all the ingredients at room temperature before you start and to make sure all the sugar is completely dissolved.
The best way I’ve found to keep the layers from shifting is to insert two or three very thin bamboo skewers when you get about halfway up the stack. Keep layering and frosting, and cut your skewers off before you put the last layer on so they don’t show on the outside.
Have a question or thought to share?
If you have a question about the recipe or if you’ve made it and want to share how it turned out, I would truly enjoy hearing from you. Just scroll down to leave a comment or add your star rating.
Thank you for stopping by. It means a lot to have you here.
Recipe
Want to save this recipe?
Enter your email below and get it sent straight to your inbox.
Chocolate Little Layer Cake
Ingredients
- Solid shortening for greasing pans
For the icing:
- 3 cups sugar
- 3 ½ ounces unsweetened baking chocolate see notes
- 10 ounces evaporated milk
- ½ cup butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the layers:
- 1 cup butter
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- 6 eggs
- 3 ½ cups self-rising flour sifted
- 1 ¾ cups water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Have all ingredients at room temperature. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease 8” cake pans with shortening and set aside.Solid shortening for greasing pans
- Make the icing first. Place a large, heavy-bottomed pan over medium-low heat.
- Add the sugar, baking chocolate, evaporated milk, butter, and vanilla all at once. Cook until the sugar is completely dissolved, stirring frequently. Do not boil. It is important to make sure that the sugar is completely dissolved and no grainy texture remains.3 cups sugar, 3 ½ ounces unsweetened baking chocolate, 10 ounces evaporated milk, ½ cup butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Meanwhile, make the batter. Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs all at once and beat until well incorporated. Add the flour and water alternately, beginning and ending with flour. (Note: the batter will appear to be curdled after each addition of water – this is normal.) Mix in the vanilla.1 cup butter, 1 ½ cups sugar, 6 eggs, 3 ½ cups self-rising flour, 1 ¾ cups water, 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Pour approximately 3/4 cup batter into each prepared pan. Smooth the batter to the edges.
- Bake for approximately 10 minutes or until layers are barely golden on top. Remove from oven and turn out onto cooling racks.
- Clean the pans, grease them and repeat baking.
- When second set of layers goes into the oven, begin icing the cake.
- Place a still-warm layer on a cardboard round set atop a cooling rack inside a baking sheet. Spread 1/4 cup icing on the layer spreading it gently to the edges. Top with the next layer and repeat.
- When all layers have been stacked and iced, spread remaining icing over top and sides of the cake. If the icing becomes thick, return the pan to very low heat until it returns to spreading consistency.
- Smooth the icing around the sides of the cake, but realize that the contours are supposed to be visible on the outside of the cake.
Notes
- The specific type of chocolate traditionally used for this recipe is Baker’s Premium Unsweetened Baking Chocolate. This chocolate produces the distinctive look, texture, and taste of this recipe.
- Store your cake in a covered container at room temperature for three or four days.
- To freeze, wrap the cake tightly in plastic wrap followed by a layer of aluminum foil. Place the wrapped cake in a freezer container and freeze for up to three months. Allow the frozen cake to thaw in the refrigerator overnight before serving.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
I’m Lana Stuart, an award-winning cookbook author, food blogger, and lifelong cook raised deep in Southwest Georgia. I started Lana’s Cooking in 2009 to share the tried-and-true recipes I grew up with. Around here, the food is full of flavor, the traditions run deep, and there’s always room at the table.
I made your cake today and it was delicious! My mother-in-law made a cake like this but added pecans in the frosting. I did 7 layers with pecans. It wasn’t as pretty as yours but it we are all enjoying it. I was born and raised in Charleston SC . Thank you!
I’m so glad it turned out good for you, Connie!
You asked if this were localized to the Alabama-Georgia line area. The answer is no. I am from the Raleigh, NC area and my grandmother (who was from rural Johnston and Harnett counties in North Carolina) made this cake when I was growing up. I miss it dearly and am exceedingly happy to have found the recipe.
Cheers!
Glad you found the recipe, Craig, and hope you enjoy the cake. Yes, it’s quite widespread throughout the southeast.
Thank you for posting this recipe. This looks exactly like my Grandma’s “Granny Britt” cake. She was from Goldsboro, NC.
the texture was tough and did not have much flavor. I won’t use this recipe again to make this type of cake.
Hi,
When I tried to make this cake my layers started to look like a dome. HELP!
It’s so hard to say what went wrong without being in the kitchen watching how you make the recipe, but my best guess would be that you used too much batter for the individual layers. I’ve never had them turn out any way other than flat or maybe with a very slight rise in the center. If you try again and the same thing happens, maybe try stacking them alternating with the bottom up and the top down every other layer to try to even it out.
The seven layer cakes my mother and grandmother before her made were jelly cakes. We live in Kansas and the jelly used is Sand Plum Jelly…..I am 83 and have been making this seven layer jelly cake for my daughter’s birthday for 60 years now.
My mother made this. She was originally from Hoboken- Jesup. Strangely enough, a bakery called Cakes, Cakes, Cakes opened in the 80’s next door to the Castle Park Harvey’s and they featured this cake.
It’s one of the oldest recipes on my blog. The original recipe was just a few lines – no real instructions. I do hope I’ve done it justice in this post.
My mammo used to make this cake, and I have tried, all of my adult life, to replicate it. I am going to try this recipe, to see if it comes close. It is the icing that gives me trouble. I don’t know if I cook it too long, or not long enough, but I can never get it to come out with the perfect glaze-like consistency that hers had. Thanks for posting this.
Yes, that icing can be tricky! Hope you have good luck with this recipe.
I have a similar recipe. I have milk in the batter. I cook mine in an iron skillet in my oven. It is so good. I’m lucky to have 2 ovens and 4 skillets. So I get 4 cooked at the time.
The recipe for these cakes are scary. But once you’ve tried it. You’ll hope for excuses to bake this.
Hi Lana! I am originally from southeast Alabama and grew up with both the kinds! Do you happen to know how to make the caramel icing??? I have tried many recipes, and none taste quite right! Thanks!
Hi Laurie – No, I don’t have the caramel icing recipe. Sorry!
My Grandmother -1896 birthday- had a hardcover blue cookbook that was published 1898 or 1899, we cannot recall exact year nor who published it. Her mother and her 8 older sisters had really used it. It was coming apart when we cleaned out her home after her death in the 1980s. One of my sisters took the book. There was a recipe for a cake like this, I saw it on her dining table enough to remember it. She entertained mostly women’s groups related to church. When I was 8-9 she told me, “ it’s a lot of trouble”, with her fun smile. She loved to share her big farmhouse for women’s gatherings and was a really good cook and baker, most all food from their farm/ranch. This was all in NORTH TEXAS!
My grandmother made this cake, just seeing yours brings back sweet memories. She was born in 1920 and grew up in Baker County, GA but lived in Albany, GA as an adult. She didn’t split the layers like some do but made them thin like yours.
My grandma who raised me grew up making this cake religiously. I now make it as well:) She grew up deep in the Florida panhandle. It was a normal thing for people to make for funerals, birthdays, Christmas, whenever. There is a trick with this cake that she always told me..it can’t be rainy or looking like rain that day..the icing won’t set right;) It’ll taste good always though;))
My Grandmother & her sisters and my Greatgrandmother all made these while they were alive. I miss then & the wonderful Caremel and Chocolate Cakes that appeared for every holiday. Jesup & Savannah, Georgia
Lana do you have a cookbook with this choc. receipes in it
Thanks
Shirley
Hi Shirley – Thanks for asking. But, no, I don’t have a cookbook. Maybe one of these days!
I have had these numerous times. (and made a few times) My husbands family is from Moultrie GA, where we would have them. I am curious, my aunt-in-law says there is one flavor of that type of cake called ‘lemon cheese’, I’ve had it before but would love to make one, but do not know how. Do you know what I am meaning? Any direction would be appreciated.
Hi Treena – Yes, lemon cheese is the same thing as lemon curd. My mother makes a wonderful lemon cheese cake. It has the normal size layers with the lemon cheese (curd) as filling and a white seven-minute frosting. You could easily make that into a little layer cake, but I like it the traditional way.
Thank you a ton! I will keep you posted on how it turns out (when I can syke myself up to make one, they are a lot of work!!) ❤️
I’ve made this cake several times and it always turns out creamy, not hard/crunchy. I usually make my layers ahead of time and freeze them, because I have to make so many at one time. Recently, I cooked the icing, put it on the layers while the layers were still cold. After it set, the icing became crystallized. Any idea why? I can’t figure this out. I let the sugars melt. Oh, and does anybody know why you can’t let the icing boil? I never do, but was just curious as to why.
Hi my name is Janice. I am from Opelika, AL. Both of my grandmothers, my mother and many of my aunts were great bakers. I have made many cakes and love how each one is so unique. Your cake recipe intriges me. I have always made my cakes using buttermilk. I have never made a cake using water as the only liquid. I am curious as to the reason for this.
Hi Lana, I decided to give your chocolate layer cake a try. I made it exactly like your recipe. The cake turned out great. I am thinking the recipe used water instead of buttermilk so the layers would not rise too much in the middle. As for the icing, I did not have any bakers chocolate bars so I used Hershey’s Cocoa powder instead. I did not know the conversion amount so I guesstimated. My icing’s consistency was creamy and thicked up nicely as it cooled. I think I put a little too much cocoa powder because the icing has a dark chocolate flavor. Overall, I was very pleased with the recipe and will be using it again.
Hey from South Carolina! I am about to attempt to make this awesome cake for my youngest sons 11th birthday! My Great-Grandma always made this cake for our family reunions! She was from Princeton, South Carolina, which is in the upstate of SC, kinda near Greenville! Best cake I’ve ever had, and I can still remember us making sure we got a slice of “Lil Grandmas” chocolate cake! We even call the icing “Lil Grandmas Icing”! ?
My grandmother made these. She lived in Cochran Georgia. Church dinners, family reunions, and Christmas. My favorite cake.
If you showed up to a Church dinner with a “store bought cake” you were shunned from the church,
Grandma once gave my wife and I a cake to take home to Panama city. The cake did not make it there.
My husband cousin lives in Cochran. Carol Sykes.