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You have to make this chocolate Spartak layer cake for the holidays! This cake is a close relative of the wildly popular original Spartak cake I posted last year. I made the chocolate Spartak cake on Sunday and took it over to my parent’s house for dinner. It was my first time baking the chocolate Spartak which is now a family favorite and extended family favorite. No crumb was left behind (I was half hoping to take a slice of heaven home with me).
The room was buzzing with happy cake eaters – and my family is open and honest; they level with me if something needs to be scrapped.
This cake takes some effort, but it’s oh-so worth it! Big Thank you to Laura, one of my readers who shared her suggestions on rolling out the dough and using parchment paper. I love learning from you all!
What you will need for Chocolate Spartak Cake:
2 large sheets of parchment paper
round plate or the base of a 9″ springform pan
Ingredients for Chocolate Spartak Cake:
1 egg
1 cup sugar
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup warm milk
1 tsp baking soda
2 cups minus 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour *measured correctly
1 1/2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
Ingredients for Chocolate Spartak Cream:
2 sticks (16 Tbsp) butter, softened at room temp
14 oz can sweetened condensed milk (raw/un-cooked)
8 oz package cream cheese, soft at room temp
3/4 cup of very cold heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 Tbsp powdered sugar
Watch How To Make Chocolate Spartak Cake:
How to Make Chocolate Spartak Cake Layers:
Preheat the Oven to 350 ° F at step 5 while your dough is standing 20 min.
1. Sift together 2 cups minus 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour with 1 1/2 tbsp cocoa.
2. Beat together 1 egg and 1 cup sugar with a whisk attachment of your stand mixer (medium speed, 6 min).
3. Add 4 Tbsp softened butter, warm milk, and baking soda. Mix on medium/high speed 3 min, until smooth (or mostly smooth).
4. Bring a medium/large pot of water to a boil. Place mixture in a glass bowl or medium sauce pan over the steam (not immersed in the water) for 10 min, stirring frequently.
5. Remove from heat and immediately stir in sifted flour & cocoa and mix well. (Add flour right away or you will ruin the dough and it may crack when you roll it out).Let stand 20 minutes; until dough is just warm; it thickens as it cools:
Note: It’s easier to roll out the dough while it’s still warm.
Preheat the Oven to 350 °F.
6. Place a heaping Tbsp over a large sheet of parchment paper. Sprinkle flour over the dough (so it doesn’t stick to your rolling pin) and roll it out to a very thin 9″ circle. Place your round dish over the dough and use a pizza slicer to cut out the circle. Pull the scraps away from the circle or they will bake into it. I was able to get two circles on one large sheet of parchment paper and baked them together. Bake the parchment paper with dough directly on the middle oven rack at 350˚F for 4-5 minutes until the edges barely start to brown (no need for a baking sheet). Don’t touch the top of the cake layer while it’s hot, or you’ll leave finger indents.
7. Place the baked scraps to a separate bowl; you’ll need them for the top. Transfer cake layers to a clean, dry surface. They can be stacked once they are cooled to room temp. You can also make the layers several days in advance and store them in plastic wrap until ready to frost. I’m frugal so I re-used each sheet of parchment paper a couple times and then kept it for a temporary cake decorating surface.
How to Make the cream/frosting:
1. Using the whisk attachment on your stand mixer, beat together 2 packages softened butter and 1 can sweetened condensed milk on medium speed 7 min, scraping down the bowl as needed. Goodness this by itself might make a luscious cupcake frosting!!
2. Mix in the softened cream cheese a little bit at a time until smooth (2-3 min). It’s important that the cream cheese is really soft or you might get small chunks of cream cheese in the frosting. Scrape down the bowl as needed.
3. In a separate bowl, beat very cold heavy whipping cream and 1 1/2 Tbsp powdered sugar on high speed (about 2 min) or until stiff peaks form. Fold whipped cream into the rest of the frosting until well blended.
Assembling Chocolate Spartak Cake:
1. Place your first layer over one of the sheets of parchment paper and spread enough frosting to cover the entire surface. Place the next layer on top and press it down with your hand so you don’t end up with air gaps. Repeat step one with all the layers. Finish by frosting the sides.
3. Use a rolling pin to crush the baked cake scraps you set aside (again, another good way to re-use that parchment paper!).
4. Generously sprinkle the crumbs over the top and sides. The sides are tough to put crumbs on. At one point I got frustrated and started throwing crumbs at the cake. Then I learned you can kind of toss the crumbs at the base up onto the cake by flicking the sides of the parchment paper; just do the best you can. Refrigerate overnight (it takes about 10 hours for the layers to soften).
It cleans up nice! 🙂
P.S. Do you know this cake as Spartak or Napoleon? It seems there are some differing opinions out there.
Chocolate Spartak Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Ingredients for Cake Layers:
- 1 egg
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 1/3 cup warm milk
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 cups minus 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
Ingredients for Spartak Cream
- 2 sticks, 16 Tbsp butter, softened at room temp
- 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk, (397 grams) raw/un-cooked
- 8 oz package cream cheese, soft at room temp
- 3/4 cup of very cold heavy whipping cream
- 1 1/2 Tbsp powdered sugar
Instructions
How to Make Spartak Cake Layers: Preheat the Oven to 350˚ F at step 5 while dough is cooling.
- Sift together 2 cups minus 1 tbsp flour with 1 1/2 Tbsp cocoa. Set aside.
- Beat together 1 egg and 1 cup sugar with whisk attachment on medium speed for 6 min.
- Add 4 Tbsp softened butter, warm milk, and baking soda. Mix on medium/high speed 3 min, until smooth.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Place mixture in a glass bowl or medium sauce pan over the steam for 10 min, stirring frequently.
- Remove from heat and immediately add sifted flour and cocoa mixture.Stir until even consistency. (Add flour right away or you will ruin the dough). Let stand at room temp 20 min; until just warm. It thickens as it cools. It's easier to roll out dough if it's still warm. Preheat the Oven to 350˚ F.
- Place a heaping tbsp of dough over a large sheet of parchment paper. Sprinkle flour over the dough (so it doesn't stick to your rolling pin) and roll it out to a very thin 9" circle. Place your round dish over the dough and use a pizza slicer to cut out the circle. Push the scraps away from the circle or they will bake into it. I was able to get two circles on one large sheet of parchment paper and baked them together. Bake the parchment paper with dough directly on the middle oven rack at 350 for 4-5 min until edges just start to brown. Don't touch the tops of the layers while hot; it will indent. Reserve the baked scraps.
- Transfer layers to a clean, dry surface. They can be stacked once cooled to room temp. You can also make the layers several days in advance and store them in plastic wrap until ready to frost. You can re-use the parchment papers to roll out and bake all the layers.
How to Make the cream/frosting:
- With the whisk attachment, beat together 2 packages softened butter and 1 can sweetened condensed milk on medium speed for 7 min, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Mix in the softened cream cheese a little bit at a time until smooth (2-3 min). It's important that the cream cheese is really soft or you might get small chunks of cream cheese in the frosting. Scrape down the bowl as needed.
- In a separate bowl, beat very cold heavy whipping cream and 1 1/2 tbsp powdered sugar on high speed (about 2 min) or until stiff peaks form. Fold whipped cream into the rest of the frosting until well blended.
Assembling the Cake:
- Place your first layer over one of the re-used sheets of parchment paper and spread enough frosting to cover the entire surface. Place the next layer on top and press it down with your hand so you don't have air gaps. Repeat step one with all the layers. Finish by frosting the sides.
- Over the second re-used sheet of parchment paper, use a rolling pin to crush the baked cake scraps.
- Generously sprinkle the crumbs over the top and sides. Refrigerate overnight (it takes about 10 hours for the layers to soften).
I have tried to make this cake twice and both times the dough mixture is too sticky for me to roll. I end up having to put tons of flour on to roll a few times and then it sticks again. Any idea what I’m doing wrong?
Hi Anna, assuming all of the ingredients are per the recipe, are you possibly using a different type of flour? For example, a Canadian flour will require varying amounts than US flour. Also, the dough needs ample time to rest so it is just warm when you use it since it firms up as it stands and becomes a little easier to roll. I hope that helps!
How far in advance do you think I can bake the layers? I’m wanting a head start for a party on SAT. Thank you
Hi Alla, you can even make them a week in advance and once they are at room temperature, stack and cover them loosely with a plastic bag then keep at room temp until ready to frost
This cake is really awesome! Love both versions – this chocolate and the original one. It’s very delicious and not too complicated to make. I found the easier way to make the dough circles – instead of using the bottom of a spring form and a pizza cutter, you can take a pan or pot lid and cut the circle but pressing it down on the dough and twisting a little but. Then just carefully lift it up and voila! And all of us have different sized lids in our kitchens 🙂 Thank you for the recipe, Natasha!
Hi Irina, thank you so much for sharing! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake. It’s my #1 favorite of all time (this one ties with my Mom’s vanilla version) 🙂
Do you think I could double the proportion and make a large cake for a party?
Hi Nadya, yes that would work. My Mom always doubles her original spartak cake when making it. You will need to keep the mixture over the steam/double boiler for double the amount of time called for since it will take substantially longer to heat with a double portion. I have that note in the original spartak recipe. I hope you love the cake! 🙂
Natasha,
How many layers do you get from this cake? I got 6 and I feel like I should have double the recipe because the cake looks a little flat…. or the frosting will add a good amount of height to it?
Hi Tonya, I was able to get 7 layers from this recipe, but even with 6 it should still work fine. The frosting does add height to the cake although it isn’t inteded to be a super tall cake as you can see in the photos. You can absolutely double it if you prefer but you will need to keep it on the stove over the hot water longer (20 minutes) for the mixture to form properly.
Hi Natashachka!
Thank you very much for blessing so many of us with your lovely recipies, my Aunt Mariya has always made the birthday cakes for my sweet children all their lives and now we are too far away for having that comfort. Thank you for your recipie because now I can make my favorite cake for my 3 year old daughter’s birthday. Continue to your hard work and may the Lord continue to bless you and your family.
C Bogam!
Olesya
You’re welcome! Thank you for following and God Bless! 🙂
Is it okay to add craisins into the layers and bake it?
Hi Irina, I’ve never tried that but the layers are so thin that I don’t think I would try that. I think it would be better to sprinkle the craisins over each frosted layer and let them soften as the cake layers soften from the frosting. 🙂
Hi Natasha, I have never thought myself to be much of a baker, but after discovering your blog, there’s hope for me too! 🙂 Your recipes and videos are so easy to follow, and the results are out of this world! Thank you so much, not only for the recipes, but also for the passion and love that you put into them…it definitely shows, and thus, you are truly a great inspiration!
may God continue to bless you!
Thank you so much Adina!! What a wonderful compliment! 🙂
Hi Natasha. What would cause large bubbles to form in the layers after baking? Mine didn’t turn out as flat as the pictures.
Hi Mike, I wouldn’t be concerned about the bubbles – after they are cooled to room temp and stacked, they will flatten out 🙂
Hi Natasha, I just wanted to let you know I love your recipes and your detailed instructions. This cake has always been a hit every time I make it. I even made it for my husbands work Christmas party and the Americans working at his job all said it was the best cake they have ever tried. Thanks so much for the awesome recipes!
So great to hear this Angela! Thank you for sharing 🙂
Do you think this cake can be frozen?
Hi Julie, I have not tried freezing it but I do think it could work well to freeze it after it has had a chance to soften overnight.
So I finished baking my layers I was so excited they turned out so perfect and fluffy but then I tried the scraps and they tasted like baking soda.I’m pretty sure I added only 1 teaspoon as the recipe calls for.don’t know why they tasted like baking soda may next time I’ll pull half a teaspoons of baking soda
Hi Inna, I’m not sure why that would be – in all the years we’ve made this, I’ve never tasted baking soda in this cake… unless 1 Tablespoon was added by mistake, I’m not sure why else it would taste like baking soda. You might try half but without testing it myself, I’m not sure how it would affect the recipe overall. If you try that, let me know how it goes! 🙂
I ALWAYS dissolve baking soda with apple cider vinegar. Even if the receipe doesn’t say to do it, my mom taught me ever since I started baking. It takes away the baking soda taste. I triple or quadruple the amount of vinegar to each amount of soda. So for 1 tsp b.soda, 3 or 4 tsp of apple cider vinegar. Use a tall glass for the fuzz that will occur! Also, I add it to the wet ingredients not dry like the receipe states.
Could I halve this recipe?
Thanks in advance.
Viktoria, I haven’t tried it but instructions probably have to change.
Meaning how?
The biggest things would be how long you cook it over the stove – it will probably be less than 10 minutes and you probably don’t have to wait as long for the dough to cool down afterwords. It’s a pretty detailed recipe and I wish I had time today to go through line by line what would be different but without remaking it and cutting it in half, I can’t give you precise instructions on that.
Bomb cake! 💣💥I make this cake very often from your blog and everyone loves it. It gets eaten in a jiffy!
Hi Natasha- The dough seemed to turn out a little too moist and runny this time around although I followed the recipe exactly? Any fixes or will it stiffen as it stands for a white?
Hi Inna, did you possibly use a different kind of flour or measure it differently? It does firm up but still should not be runny. Have you watched the video to see the right consistency? I would suggest adding a little more flour, but just enough so the dough isn’t sticking to the rolling pin.
I’ve just assembled the cake and I know it is going to turn out amazing. Such delicate layers! I don’t want to wait 10 hours!! I hope it is easy to cut without splitting everywhere because I’ve made it to be a slice to take into work tomorrow!
Hi Suzanne, it slices really easily once the layers have had a chance to absorb the cream but that waiting time is crucial for this cake, otherwise the layers won’t be as moist and will slide apart when slicing. By tomorrow is will be just right! 🙂
Hi Suzanne, it slices really easily once the layers have had a chance to absorb the cream but that waiting time is crucial for this cake, otherwise the layers won’t be as moist and will slide apart when slicing. By tomorrow is will be just right! 🙂
I made this cake for family for the 1st time and everyone loved it. The best comment I got was from my mom who said, this is not a cake but a fairytale 😀 thank you Natashas Kitchen for sharing this delicious fairytale 💖
Luba, I’m all smiles 😁. Thank you for such a nice review and you are welcome.
Hi Natasha! I am out of baking soda at this point. Do you think this recipe would work I used baking powder instead?
Nina, I have not tested it with baking powder, but my concern is that baking soda is three times stronger than baking powder which is alot of baking powder!! Since baking powder is so much a science, without testing it myself, I really can’t recommend that substitution.
I used it on accident, it worked out fine! ☺️
Hey Natasha 🙂
Can I refrigerate the korji or just keep them at room temperature? The party was rescheduled for next week,so I don’t know what to do now 😀 thank you!
Hi, you can stack the room temperature layers and place them in a plastic bag then store them in a cool dry place (the pantry) and they will be fine. They turn into crunchy cookies at room temperature and then when you assemble, the cream will soften them up and they will be perfect :). That’s one of the great things about this cake – the hard part (the layers) can be done in advance 🙂
Awesome! Thank you! Appreciate your help and of course LOVE your recipes! 🙂
I have to make this!
I know this cake as Napoleon. I lived in Ukraine for a few years and this is at least what it was called where I was.
We have always called it Spartak and called the one with puff pastry layers Napoleon but I have heard it both ways. 🙂 I hope you love it!
Natasha, do you think this dough recipe would work out for a single thicker buttom layer for a farmers cheese cake??? I have tried this dough recipe before and I absolutely love it but not sure if it’s going to hold up itself under cheese.
Hi Nina, yes I do think it would work. Also, have you tried my farmers cheese cake? I’d love to know how you make yours! I love the stuff 🙂