This brown butter peach layer cake has three layers of light, brown butter cake topped with a nutty, brown butter butter cream, and is filled with spiced peaches! It's the perfect cake for that summer to fall transition.
I like making layer cakes over the course of 2 days for the best results! So day 1 I'll make the brown butter, peach filling, and cake layers! Then day 2 I'll make the brown butter buttercream and assemble/decorate the cake!
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Ingredient Notes
You just need a few simple ingredients to make this spiced peach layer cake with brown butter buttercream!
Peaches - I always use fresh peaches if I can find them, but you can also use frozen peaches in the filling if that's all you have.
Cake Flour - I always use cake flour in my cakes because it makes them super soft and tender, but all purpose flour also works great!
Almond Flour - I like to use a combination of almond flour and cake flour (or all-purpose flour) in this cake recipe because it makes it super light and tender!! It also gives just the slightest almond flavor which is delicious! However, you can easily just swap it out for cake flour/all-purpose flour if that's all you have.
Brown Butter - My favorite ingredient of all time is brown butter!! Brown butter is just unsalted butter that has been melted and gently cooked to bring out a toasty, nutty flavor. If you've never made brown butter before, you can check out this post with all my tips for how to make brown butter!
I recommend making the brown butter the night before you make the cake, so that it has time to fully cool to room temperature!
Since both the cake and the frosting call for brown butter, I find it easier to just make one large batch and then weigh out the difference using a kitchen scale (½ cup of butter weighs about 113 grams).
However, if you don't have a scale you can just make two separate batches of brown butter!
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
Spiced Peach Filling
I also recommend making the peach filling the night before and letting it chill in the fridge overnight.
Thinly slice the peaches ( and peel if desired) and add to a small pot. Add in the brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and cornstarch.
Cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes until the peaches soften and the sauce thickens.
Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.
How to Make Peach Layer Cake
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Whisk the flour, almond flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a large bowl.
In a separate bowl, whisk the brown butter, eggs, sugar, brown sugar, and, vanilla together until combined.
Stir in about half of the flour mixture. Then stir in the milk and the remaining flour mixture and mix until fully combined.
Evenly spray each cake pan with an oil based pan spray (I don't recommend butter as the butter solids can cause the cake to stick to the pan).
Pour ⅓ of the batter into each cake pan (they will only be about half full).
Bake at 350°F for 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Place a cooling rack on top of each cake pan and invert. The pan should slide cleanly away.
Let the cakes cool completely to room temperature before trimming.
Once the cakes are fully cooled. Using a sharp bread knife, trim the cakes until the layers are even. Wrap each layer tightly in plastic wrap and place in the freezer overnight.
Note: trimming is not always necessary! These cake layers cook up very evenly, so you may not need to trim at all!
Remove cake layers from the freezer. Place the bottom layer of cake on your cake stand and spread a small amount of buttercream on top. Then pipe a buttercream border about 1 inch thick.
Spoon about half of the peach filling into the center. Then top with the next layer and repeat. Place the final cake layer upside down so that the top of your cake is as even as possible.
Smooth the rest of the buttercream on the top and sides of your cake as desired.
Refrigerate your cake for 2-3 hours before slicing and serving.
Top with fresh peach slices! (I recommend tossing the peach slices in lemon juice before adding to the cake so that they don't brown).
How to Get Perfect Cake Layers
There are a few tricks that will help you get perfect, even layers for your peach cake!
First, you need good nonstick cake pans and pan spray. I use three 6×2 inch Fat Daddio’s layer cake pans and I love them!! It's super important to get actual layer cake pans because the sides are perfectly straight! It's a little annoying because this means you can't stack them, but your layers will have perfect sides! With just a tiny bit of pan spray, the cakes just slide right out and never stick! For pan spray, I love both Everbake Pan Spray and Baker's Joy!
Next, is trimming your cake. This can be a little tricky, but it's super easy once you do it a couple times. Let the cakes cool completely to room temperature, then take a large bread knife and very carefully slice off the very top of the cake so that you have a perfectly even layer. I like using a big bread knife because it's sharp, serrated, and long enough to go through the entire layer at one time.
And of course freezing the layers! So after you've let the cake layers cool completely and trimmed them. Wrap each layer tightly in plastic wrap in place in the freezer overnight. Don't take them out until right before you start assembling the cake! This allows the frosting to slide on smoothly and prevents any crumbs from getting in the frosting.
Tips for the Best Baked Goods
Use room temperature ingredients! Always make sure ingredients like butter, eggs, milk, yogurt, etc. are at room temperature before baking (unless the recipe indicates otherwise)! This ensures they'll incorporate into the batter more easily and leads to overall better texture. Remove all ingredients from the fridge 30 minutes to an hour before baking for best results.
Measure your flour correctly! It's most accurate to use a kitchen scale, but if you're measuring by volume you want to spoon and level! Fluff up the flour a bit with a spoon, and then spoon flour into the measuring cup. Once it's overflowing, use the back of a knife to level it off. Don't ever pack flour into the measuring cup or you'll end up with way too much! Improperly measured flour can lead to dry, dense baked goods. [Measure cocoa powder the same way!]
Use an oven thermometer! Just because your oven says it's 350, doesn't mean it is! If you oven hasn't been calibrated recently, it can be as much as 30 degrees off, which will negatively affect all baked goods from cakes to macarons! An oven thermometer is the easiest/cheapest way to ensure your oven is always at the proper temperature.
Make sure you baking powder is fresh! Baking powder is important for helping baked goods rise properly, but it has a relatively short shelf life once opened, so it's one of the few items I never buy in bulk! To test if your baking powder is still fresh, add a small amount to boiling water. If it bubbles it's still good to use, but if not it's time to toss it!
Cake Decorating Tips
I absolutely love my rotating cake stand! I hesitated buying one for a long time, but it really does make getting nice, even frosting so much easier!
My must have tools for frosting cakes are an offset spatula and an icing smoother. Both are super helpful in achieving that perfect, smooth outside frosting.
I use a 6 inch cake board to transfer my cakes from the turning caking stand, to the stand I like to photograph with.
The best thing about this brown butter peach layer cake is that the sliced peaches are all you need to make this cake look stunning!
Recipe FAQ's
Yes!! The cake layers can be made and frozen up to a month in advance! Wrap the layers indivuvally with plastic wrap, and then seal in a freezer safe bag for the best results.
Of course not! You can absolutely substitute regular unsalted butter. I just love the flavor that brown butter adds.
This recipe is designed for 3 six inch cake pans. It will also work with 2 eight inch cake pans.
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
More Peach Recipes
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Recipe Card
Brown Butter Peach Layer Cake
Special Equipment
Ingredients
Spiced Peaches
- 3 cups fresh or frozen peaches, about 5 peaches
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Brown Butter Cake
- 2 cups cake flour, substitute all purpose flour
- ½ cup almond flour, substitute all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup unsalted brown butter, melted
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¾ cup whole milk
Brown Butter Buttercream
- 1 ½ cups unsalted brown butter, room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon whole milk, or heavy cream
Instructions
Spiced Peaches
- Thinly slice the peaches ( and peel if desired) and add to a small pot.
- Add in the brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and cornstarch.
- Cook for 10-15 minutes until the peaches soften and the sauce thickens.
- Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.
Brown Butter Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly spray three 6 inch layer cake pans with pan spray.
- Whisk the cake flour, almond flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a large bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the brown butter, sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and, vanilla together until combined.
- Stir in about half of the flour mixture. Then stir in the milk and the rest of the flour mixture and mix until fully combined. The batter will be thick.
- Pour ⅓ of the batter into each cake pan (they will only be about half full). Bake at 350°F for 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
- Place a cooling rack on top of each cake pan and invert. The pan should slide cleanly away.
- Let the cakes cool completely to room temperature before trimming.
- Once the cakes are fully cooled. Using a sharp bread knife, trim the cakes until the layers are even. Wrap each layer tightly in plastic wrap and place in the freezer overnight (minimum of 2 hours).
Brown Butter Buttercream
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the room temperature brown butter and powdered sugar until smooth.
- Add in vanilla, salt, and milk until fully combined.
- Beat the frosting on high for 4-5 minutes until lightly and fluffy.
Assemble the Cake
- Remove cake layers from the freezer. Place the bottom layer of cake on your cake stand and spread a small amount of buttercream on top. Then pipe a buttercream border about 1 inch thick.
- Spoon about half of the peach filling into the center. Then top with the next layer and repeat. Place the final cake layer upside down so that the top of your cake is as even as possible.
- Smooth the rest of the buttercream on the top and sides of your cake as desired.
- Refrigerate your cake for 2-3 hours before slicing and serving.
- Top with fresh peach slices! (I recommend tossing the peach slices in lemon juice before adding to the cake so that they don't brown).
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Briana says
This recipe looks amazing and stands out with the addition of the brown butter! Do you have any advice for converting it for a two layer quarter sheet sized cake? Thanks!
Kyleigh Sage says
It depends on how thick you want the layers to be. For a roughly 1 inch thick quarter sheet pan, the batter should yield 2 layers! For a 1 inch layer the baking time will be similar, 20-30 minutes.
But if you want thicker layers and plan to use a deeper 9x13 pan, the batter will yield 1 layer. So I'd recommend doubling it for 2 thicker layers. For baking time you'll need to increase to 30-40 minutes. However the peach filling should be just enough but you could increase it by 1.5x's instead of fully doubling it if you want more filling. The buttercream I would probably also double for the thicker cake if you want it to be fully frosted, but as written it's probably enough for the thinner cake (but also you can never have too much frosting so no harm in doubling it regardless)!
Karen says
Amazingly delicious! And I’m already using the recipe again!