Make a spooky yet festive Halloween Birthday Cake perfect for birthday celebrations or any monster mash. Rich chocolate layers, bright orange buttercream, and glossy black ganache come together to create a hauntingly delicious showstopper.

A Halloween birthday cake topped with orange candles in front of a dark backdrop.

Halloween Birthday Cake Is Great For Any Monster Mash

Are you or a loved one lucky enough to have a Halloween birthday? What a fun holiday to share a birthday with!

This spooky Halloween Cake would be perfect for a Halloween-themed party, whether it’s for a birthday or just any type of haunted gathering. Pair it with some savory nibbles from our very popular Halloween Snacks post, and you’re ready to do the monster mash!

We’re using a little help from the store for this TREAT, in the form a TRICK that is just a of box cake mix to make things just a *little* easier on ourselves (more time to get our costumes together)! But this dessert doesn’t compromise on being festive enough to be the centerpiece of your celebration.

Why You’ll Love This Halloween Chocolate Cake

  • This cake embraces the spirit of the holiday with bold, bright Halloween colors.
  • While the theme may be spooky, the flavors are universally appealing, making this cake a hit with ghosts and goblins of all ages.
  • Two deep chocolate cake layers that are moist but sturdy enough for dramatic stacking.
  • Zesty orange buttercream that balances sweet with citrus, and looks like a festive pumpkin glow.
  • Black ganache drip brings dramatic flair without any hassle.
  • Makes 16 servings, ideal for both birthdays and seasonal get-togethers.
Ingredients on a dark surface, including baking mix, chocolate, and eggs, orange and butter.

Halloween Themed Birthday Cake Ingredients

A full recipe card, including exact ingredient amounts, appears at the bottom of this post.

  • cake mix – yep, let’s make it easy on ourselves! A box of dark chocolate fudge cake mix is the rich, chocolatey base for this cake.
  • eggs and egg yolks – contribute to a moist, tender crumb. The extra yolks increase the richness.
  • milk – adds moisture to the cake batter.
  • unsalted butter – used for the cake batter and the buttercream frosting.
  • powdered sugar – sweetens the frosting.
  • heavy cream – adjusts the frosting’s consistency to be perfectly spreadable and gives the ganache a pourable texture.
  • orange zest – an optional addition to the frosting to add a fresh, citrusy flavor. We like the flavor pairing of chocolate and orange, but if you don’t, feel free to leave the orange zest out. We’ve tested this recipe without the zest and it’s still great.
  • vanilla extract – enhances the flavor of the frosting.
  • orange food coloring – gives the frosting a vibrant orange hue.
  • semi-sweet chocolate – for making the ganache. We like to buy a bar of baking chocolate and chop it up, but semisweet chocolate chips will also work.
  • corn syrup – an optional addition to the ganache, making it nice and shiny.
  • black food coloring – an optional addition to the ganache, making it a deep, spooky black color for this Halloween-themed cake.

How To Make The Perfect Halloween Theme Birthday Cake

Before and after photos showing a chocolate baking mix being whisk together in a glass bowl.
  1. CAKE BATTER. Grease two 9‑inch round pans. Combine cake mix, eggs and yolks, milk, and melted butter in a mixer (or bowl and hand mixer), and beat until fluffy.
Before and after photos showing chocolate cake layers before and after baking.
  1. BAKE. Divide batter between pans and bake, rotating halfway. Cakes should spring back and pass the toothpick test. Cool 5 minutes in pans, then invert to cool completely.
Before and after photos showing orange frosting being mixed in a glass bowl.
  1. FROSTING. Beat the powdered sugar and butter on low until just blended, then switch to medium and beat until silky. Add orange zest (if using) and vanilla, beat another minute. Tint with orange food coloring. Add heavy cream, one tablespoon at a time, until the frosting is spreadable, not too stiff, not too soft.
A serrated knife cutting a chocolate cake into two layers.
  1. CUT. Use a knife or leveler to trim domes off cake layers. Slice each layer horizontally to make four even layers.
A flat icing knife spreading orange frosting over a cake.
  1. FROST BETWEEN LAYERS. Stack with about ½‑inch of frosting between each. Chill for 30 minutes.
Before and after photos showing a chocolate cake being coated in orange frosting.
  1. CRUMB COAT AND FINISH FROSTING. Apply a thin crumb coat all over, chill another 30 minutes, then finish with a final layer of buttercream. Chill until you’re ready for the ganache.
Three process photos showing chocolate ganache being made in a glass bowl.
  1. MAKE GANACHE. Heat heavy cream (and corn syrup if using) just until it simmers. Pour over chopped chocolate and stir until smooth and glossy. Add black coloring for drama.
A spatula spreading chocolate ganache over an orange cake on a dark plate.
  1. POUR. Drip ganache over the top and edges, then let it set before slicing.
A themed Halloween birthday cake on a platter with plastic spiders.

Home Chef Tips

  • If you have four cake pans, you can divide the batter among them and reduce the baking time to 10 to 15 minutes. This way, you won’t have to cut layers in half!
  • You can make a 2-layer cake recipe instead of a 4-layer one (so, you won’t be cutting the cake layers in half), but you won’t need as much frosting. Reduce the frosting ingredient amounts to: 6 cups powdered sugar, 2 cups unsalted butter, 1 to 2 tablespoons heavy cream, 1 teaspoon orange zest, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
  • We do not provide exact measurements for food colorings because there are so many different varieties available today (classic liquid food coloring, squeeze gel, gel in little tubs, oil-based dyes, etc.). Use enough dye to make the frosting nice and bright orange, and the ganache jet black, if you desire.
  • Too tall or uneven? Use a cake leveler, or just call it your “tower of terror” on purpose.
  • Buttercream too thick? Add a splash more cream for better spreadability.
  • Ganache too thin? Pop it in the fridge for a few minutes to thicken before pouring.
A slice of birthday Halloween chocolate cake on a spiderweb plate.

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Halloween Birthday Cake Decorations

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We love the subtly creepy effect of the jet-black ganache dripping over the orange-frosted cake, but feel free to add more decorations to your cake for a Halloween party, and of course, orange candles for a birthday!

Some ideas are:

  • Get a few different sizes of candy eyeballs and decorate the top with them. These are great to keep on hand for so many different Halloween desserts!
  • If it’s for a birthday, there are a lot of cool Halloween birthday cake toppers available.
A Halloween theme birthday cake decorated with plastic spiders.

Storing Leftover Halloween Chocolate Cake

If you have leftovers of this Halloween theme cake, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Allow slices to come back to room temperature before serving for the best flavor.

A slice of orange and black layered Halloween birthday cake on a spiderweb plate.

More Foxes Love Lemons Favorites

A Halloween Cake decorated with plastic spiders in front of a dark backdrop.

Halloween Birthday Cake

Author: Lori Yates
Yield: 16 servings
Prep: 1 hour
Cook: 20 minutes
Chilling Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total: 2 hours 50 minutes
Make a spooky yet festive Halloween Birthday Cake perfect for birthday celebrations or any monster mash. Rich chocolate layers, bright orange buttercream, and glossy black ganache come together to create a hauntingly delicious showstopper.
4.4 from 5 ratings
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Ingredients

For the Cake Layers:

  • Nonstick baking spray
  • 1 box dark chocolate fudge cake mix (15.25 ounces)
  • 3 large eggs + 2 large egg yolks
  • 1 cup milk
  • ½ cup unsalted butter melted

For the Buttercream Frosting:

  • 9 cups powdered sugar
  • 3 cups unsalted butter at room temperature (6 sticks)
  • 2 teaspoons grated orange zest (optional)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • Orange food coloring
  • 3 to 4 tablespoons heavy cream as needed

For the Chocolate Ganache:

  • 4 ounces semi-sweet baking chocolate chopped
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon corn syrup (optional)
  • Black food coloring (optional)

Instructions

  • Make the Cake Layers: Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spray two 9-inch round cake pans with baking spray. In bowl of stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, or large bowl with a hand mixer and beater attachments, combine the cake mix, eggs and yolks, milk and butter and beat 2 to 3 minutes or until well combined and fluffy.
  • Divide cake batter evenly between prepared cake pans.
  • Transfer pans to center rack of oven and bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean, rotating pans halfway through baking. Transfer pans to cooling rack; let cool 5 minutes before turning cakes out of pans onto rack. Let cakes cool completely before assembling cake.
  • Make the Buttercream Frosting: In bowl of stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, or large bowl with a hand mixer and beater attachments, beat powdered sugar and butter on low speed until blended. Increase speed to medium and beat 3 minutes. Add orange zest, if using, and vanilla; beat 1 minute or until smooth. Use orange food coloring to tint frosting to the desired shade of orange. Add cream a tablespoon at a time, beating between additions, until you have a spreadable frosting.
  • Assemble the Cake: Cut crowns off of each cake layer with a cake level or large serrated knife to make them level. Cut each cake in half horizontally so that you have 4 cake layers.
  • Place one cake layer on serving plate or cake stand. Use offset spatula to spread 1/2-inch layer of buttercream to edges of cake. Top with next cake layer and repeat, until all 4 cake layers have frosting between them. Chill 30 minutes. Spread thin layer of frosting around the entire cake to crumb coat it; refrigerate 30 minutes. Frost top and sides of cake with remaining buttercream; refrigerate until ready to coat with ganache.
  • Make the Chocolate Ganache: Place chocolate in medium bowl. In small saucepan, heat cream and corn syrup, if using, over medium-low heat until mixture reaches a bare simmer. Pour cream mixture over chocolate and stir until all chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. If desired, add a small amount of black food coloring to deepen the color of the ganache.
  • Finish the Cake: Pour ganache over cake and allow ganache to drip down sides of cake. Let ganache firm up at room temperature a bit before slicing.

Notes

Corn syrup is optional in the ganache, but using it lends a bit more shine and flexibility to the mixture. Feel free to omit it if desired. Add an additional 1 tablespoon warmed cream if needed. You’ll still have a pourable and delicious ganache.
Calories: 841kcal, Carbohydrates: 93g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 52g, Saturated Fat: 31g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 14g, Trans Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 162mg, Sodium: 256mg, Potassium: 192mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 81g, Vitamin A: 1481IU, Vitamin C: 0.4mg, Calcium: 90mg, Iron: 2mg
This website provides estimated nutrition information as a courtesy only. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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