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!
Going to try it today I used a box cake will see how it turns out thx for sharing
If cake is made the day before, should it be refrigerated? Should left overs be refrigerated?
I dont have a 9 inch tin how long would i cook for in 8 inch tins. Thanks
Can you taste the coffee in it?
Nope not at all!
I’m planning to make this for my daughter’s birthday party. After it is assembled , is it best to store in the fridge? Or would it be OK to leave it out? How does the cream hold up over time? Any other storage tips from others who have already made it?
I keep it out, but I suppose it can also be refrigerated due to the filling? Your call 🙂
I’ve now made this cake twice in less than a week for birthdays. This is a very tasty, moist cake, great recipe! I had made that filling for some other cake in the past but it is very good paired with this particular cake. My only complaint is that the first time I made it I had way too much ganache (though I guess I could have just eaten it all right then and there or chilled it to make truffles). The second time I cut it by 1/4th the amount of chocolate chips and cream and still had too much. That’s not really much of a problem, but a bit wasteful.
Yes, replace with Namaste Gluten free flour 1-1
Does this cake have to be refrigerated #leftovers?
I want to make this on Friday and serve on Sunday. Does it have to in the fridge; or can it sit out in a cake saver?
Can this be made glutenfree
Yes
Is there any way to make this cake gluten free?
I think you could replace the all purpose with Namaste Gluten-free Flour mix…chocolate cake is super forgiving…it is a 1-1 ratio
I took this cake to a Super Bowl party tonight and everyone went nuts. I would recommend making the cake from scratch with the recipe provided. it is more work but it is worth it. The cream filling was perfect…not too sweet and with a great texture. The chocolate ganache was ridiculously easy and possibly my favorite part of this perfect cake. Thank you for sharing!
So glad you enjoyed the cake 🙂
This was the best chocolate cake I have ever tasted! Very moist and flavorful! The cream filling is like the recipe my mom used to make for the filling for Whoopie Pies! I will definitely make this again! Thank you!!
This cake is amazing. I work for a retirement community and they couldn’t get enough of it. I did use a box devil’s food cake with oil, egg. and added chocolate syrup. The filling and ganache were spot on. Thank you for this fantastic dessert.
Five stars!! This was by far one of my favorite cake recipes!! For anyone that says their filling didn’t set, if you have never made boiled milk frosting you have to whip it for at least 10 minutes on high. A stand mixer with the whisk attachment works best. Also make sure you whisk the milk and flour constantly until it’s think.
I just pored the ganache over the top and let it drizzle down the sides. It was beautiful and delicious!!!!
Cream does not work with butter must use crisco.
The cream filling never lost that curdled texture, tried twice, can’t figure out what went wrong. Is there any way to salvage this?
The ganache didn’t set up for me either. It was very runny. I had to add a ton of confectioner sugar to get it to be thick enough to actually spread on the cake.
Wow… EXCELLENT!! I added espresso powder to the filling and that topped the flavor. Lots of steps but we’ll worth it! It goes a long way and everyone loves it!
For anyone about to make this cake, do not just spray the pans the way it says, I knew better but did it anyways and sure enough my cakes would not come loose. They were delicious! But I was unable to assemble because cake fell apart trying to release. I would recommend crisco and flouring or spraying bottoms and putting parchment paper. I already had the cream made so now I will remake the cakes tomorrow.
Like others spraying the pan did NOT work. You need to grease and flour the pans. Plus I believe the liquid needs to be upped a little. Except, the cream needs to be decreased to 1 Cup. It looks terrible but I hope it tastes ok.
Oh my gosh, this looks amazing! Ding Dongs were one of my favorites when I was a kid, partly because they were wrapped in that silver foil. I definitely have to make this. And I used to make ermine frosting all the time, but I didn’t know it had a name – I called it “Whipped cream frosting”. The original recipe I used had you do the flour mixture in a small pan, then stick the pan in the freezer for a few minutes to cool it quickly….because I’m impatient. Works great. Oh….and use the “Miracle Cake Release” (found on Pinterest) for your pans – it’s awesome!