This Copycat Hostess Ding Dong Cake recipe is a rich, decadent chocolate cake, with a creamy filling and chocolate ganache spread over the top! So easy, you’ll love it!
Remember Hostess Suzy Q’s? These Chocolate Whoopie Pies remind me of that classic treat! Or try our easy homemade hostess cupcakes next!
Why Make a Ding Dong Cake
Growing up my mom would buy us Little Debbie oatmeal cream pies and Hostess snacks for our lunch boxes. We never knew what she would come home with, but I always got a little giddy when a box of Ding Dongs were in the cabinet.
Two layers or chocolate cake with a cream filling, all coated in chocolate ganache.
Look familiar? Today’s Ding Dong Cake is just that, only….bigger!
How to Make a Ding Dong Cake
Bake the Cakes. Start by baking up two 9-inch chocolate cakes. I used my favorite chocolate cake recipe for this, so fudgy and perfect. If you choose to go with a boxed mix, make sure it’s a rich and fudgy version, like a Devil’s Food cake.
Cream Filling. Next you’ll make the cream filling. It’s a less sweet buttercream frosting, sometimes called Ermine frosting. A friend at our old church called it boiled milk frosting. But I think that sounds gross, so let’s call it cream filling.
You’ll first put your cold milk and flour in a small saucepan and whisk until the lumps are gone. Heat this up until thick, stirring the whole time. You want to keep stirring and heating until it becomes thick, almost like pudding. Be patient.
Once your milk mixture is thick, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. COOL. Very important here. You don’t want this warm and melting your butter in the next step.
In a mixing bowl, cream your butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Slowly add in the COOLED milk mixture, beating until it resembles a thick whipped cream or frosting. Don’t be scared if it initially appears curdled, keep beating!
Assemble. Spread this thick layer of cream filling between your two cooled chocolate cake layers.
Cover in Ganache. Whip up some chocolate ganache (follow recipe instructions below) and pour it over the top and sides. Allow it set, and enjoy.
More Copycat Recipes
- Decadent and delicious, these Copycat Hostess Cupcakes are better than the original! Fudgy with a cream filling, just like the original!
- These Flourless Chocolate Cookies are a chewy cookie with a crunchy topping! You’ll love the rich chocolate flavor in a unique cookie! Move over Starbucks, we’ve got a copycat recipe on our hands!
- Making Homemade Cracker Jack popcorn is super easy and delicious! Sweet and crunchy, this addictive caramel corn is better than the original!
- The BEST Red Velvet Cheesecake Cake recipe starts with two layers of homemade red velvet cake with a layer of cheesecake in the middle. Topped with delicious cream cheese frosting and white chocolate curls!
- Delicious, easy, copycat Twinkie Cake recipe made with yellow cake and sweet whipped cream filling. The perfect, not overly sweet, cake recipe!
Easy Cake Recipes
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Ding Dong Cake Recipe
Ingredients
For the cake:
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup unsweetened dark chocolate cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ cup strong brewed coffee cooled
- ½ cup milk
For the cream filling:
- 5 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
For the ganache:
- 1 bag semi-sweet chocolate morsels 12 ounce
- 1 ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
For the cake:
- Spray two 9-inch cake pans with baking spray. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Set aside.
- In a measuring cup, combine cooled coffee with milk*. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar for 5 minutes with an electric mixer. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Slowly add in dry ingredients and alternate with the coffee/milk mixture (about 3 additions of each).
- Once all the ingredients are added, beat cake mixture for about 2-3 minutes until fluffy (scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed).
- Divide cake batter into the two cake pans. Bake in oven for 25 minutes. Remove and allow to cool about 10 minutes in pan. Invert on a wire rack and cool completely.
For the cream filling:
- In a small saucepan, combine the flour with milk, whisking until lumps removed. Turn on medium heat and continue to whisk until mixture becomes thick, like a pudding.
- Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Cool completely.
- In a mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar, beat until light and fluffy (about 4 minutes). Slowly add in the COOLED milk mixture, beating until combined. It may curdle slightly in the beginning, that’s okay, keep beating until it becomes the texture of whipped cream!
For the ganache:
- In a glass bowl (safe for the microwave) combine semi sweet chocolate with heavy cream. Heat for 1 minute. Remove from microwave and stir until smooth (you may need to heat for another 15-30 seconds). Do not over heat. Set aside while you begin to assemble the cake.
To assemble:
- Place first layer of cooled cake on a cake plate. Top it with ALL of the cream filling. Add the second layer of cake on top.
- Slowly pour the ganache over the cake, using an offset spatula to help cover the top and sides. Allow to set, about 15 minutes. Slice and enjoy!
Notes
- The coffee in the cake does NOT give it a coffee flavor, it just boosts the chocolate flavor. If you desire, you can replace the 1/2 cup of coffee with an additional 1/2 cup of milk instead (making the total amount 1 cup of milk)
- Freeze Cake. Wrap slices of cake in plastic wrap and slide into freezer safe ziploc bag or airtight container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in refrigerator and serve.
Video
Nutrition
This Copycat Hostess Ding Dong Cake recipe is a rich, decadent chocolate cake, with a creamy filling and chocolate ganache spread over the top!
This is a WONDERFUL cake for special occasions!! Moist, delicious and no one else will be bringing this recipe. SO TASTY (and nostalgic for those of us who took them in our school lunches)!
I baked this cake for my family gathering. I love the hostess ding ding cakes and decided to make one. It is sooooo good, moist and delicious. This is my first time baking this cake and will not be the last. This cake was a hit. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Yes Susan, mine did the same thing! Next time I’ll use some parchment paper on the bottom of the pan! I love this recipe, but I remember having this issue last time I made it too!
Does this cake need to be refrigerated? I’m making a day ahead.
So far so good. The cake came out really good. Getting ready to make the cream
Not sure what I did wrong. The pan was generously sprayed and the cake was perfectly cooked but it came out with chunks stuck in both pans. I had to piecemeal it together before frosting. It tasted good, just wasn’t pretty. Fortunately, it was just for my husband and me, not going anywhere.
Possibly your baking spray was old?
Try greasing and flowering your pan.
Flouring. Should have proofread lol
I always line my cake pans with wax paper. You can use parchment paper as well. I cool the cake for 10 minutes , run a table knife around the edge of the cake, flip it over on a cooling rack and remove the wax paper. I flip it over and let it cool completely. Never have a problem getting it out of the pan.
Wax paper should not be used in baking.
I didn’t care for it, honestly. It was good not great. But I like trying new recipes so… Thank u
Sorry it wasn’t your cup of tea. Good thing I have 1500+ recipes to choose from! Hope you find something wonderful to bake soon.
This is probably the best thing I’ve ever made or tasted! I don’t understand the negative comments. Mine was perfect. The filling is actually amazing! How does it work with those ingredients! I’m going to make the Twinkie cake this weekend just because!
One of the best things I’ve ever made! I have made twice now. Followed directions exactlyyyy for cake and filling. Out of this world!!!! Not hard to make. And I got rave reviews both times. Thank you!
So happy to hear it!
The cake was tasty but the cream totally runny and really just tastes like sweet bechamel, not cream frosting. Overall a bit of a mess. Wouldn’t use this recipe again.
Hi Aimee,
Would you please help with the metric equivalent of 1 cup? I’m finding different conversions – some are 240g and others 120g. I’d love to make that cake for my daughter’s birthday tomorrow but would love to get it right from the first time:)
Thanks in advance!
Ellie
250 ml of milk would be 1 cup in a glass measure. Not sure, but 240g May be by weight.
I made the cake and followed the directions but the cream center came out runny (the flour/milk mixture was completely cooled) I have it in the freezer right now to help it thicken up and my ganache is completely runny. I may throw the cream part, whip up the chocolate ganache and put that in the center. Or make regular frosting for the center.
A great recipe with easy to follow instructions. We used gluten free floutr and it turned out great.
Could I sub cornstarch for the flour in cream filling?
Thanks
I haven’t tested it. If you try, let us know.
I made homemade Ding Dongs and Twinkies when they stopped making Twinkies. Mine were soooo much better! But instead of an ermine frosting, I simply added marshmallow creme to buttercream frosting, and it was delicious!!
Sure it’s great but I’m gluten free and would have to be g/f
I am gf too. I’ll try it with Bob mills gf flour.
I made the ganache with the ingredients listed and it came out like soup. I poured half of it out and added 8 more ounces of chocolate chips to get the right consistency.
I used can frosting and melted in microwave. Not to much or will be to running
The ganache is too thin. I forgot and made it again today with the same results. You need to add double chocolate chips to get the right consistency.
I’m not a pro baker. I tried this and it came out so wonderful. Thank you for sharing this.
How do you store left overs? Do you have to refrigerate the cake afterwards or can it be left on the counter in an airtight container?
Yes, refrigerate. It has milk in it.
I made this cake for each of my two daughters for their birthdays. The cake was the most decadent, delicious cakes I’ve ever had and was enjoyed by all! Thanks so much for sharing!
I first made the filling recipe about 40 years ago. The most important thing to remember is the flour/milk mixture must be absolutely COLD before mixing it with the other ingredients. Otherwise it will not set up. The cake is very moist and I made it the first time and it did break up. I remade the cake, but lined the pan with parchment paper, making sure the ends are long enough to be able to use them to remove the cake after baking. Let the cake cool before very carefully removing the parchment paper. Hope this helps.
I can’t understand these negative comments! I’ve made this cake at least three times and it comes out beautifully. It is my family’s most requested cake! The trick to the cream filling is to sift the flour and add it to cold milk until dissolved and then heat it. It turns out beautifully. The ganache recipe makes more than enough to frost so maybe cut the whipping cream back to one cup and use 10 oz of chocolate chips? We love this recipe.
Thank you 🙂
Totally agree, first time making it came out great!
Please don’t give up on that Ermine filling. I use it as a frosting for a lot of my best cakes (sometimes I even make it chocolate). One thing which may have been your problem could be that your butter was too soft. That happened to me once and to remedy it, i added a half cup of powered sugar because it wouldn’t set up. Hope this helps. Truly, Ermine is the best out there. Please give it another try,
I love your receipe but I’ve been making this since the 70’s. The filling I have is called
1,000.00 frosting and is the samething .
I have tried making ganoch wiyh no luvk so I’ll try yours.
Thanks