30 Valentine's Day Cake and Cupcake Recipes That Make For the Sweetest Celebration
The phrase "made with love" takes on a whole new meaning when it comes to cooking on Valentine's Day. Making something sweet for your significant other takes time, creativity, and a certain level of skill, especially when it comes to baking a cake or batch of cupcakes. While you might have breakfast in bed and a three-course dinner all figured out, picking what to serve as the late-night Valentine's Day treat takes a little more effort. Luckily, this curated list of V-Day-inspired goodies was selected with care. Ranging from a blood-orange pound cake to a vegan chocolate cake with creamy chocolate almond-butter buttercream, everything on this list will make your honey and their taste buds swoon with delight.
Make this Valentine's Day as sweet as ever when you serve the best dessert of all. Whether you want to impress your loved one with something new and exciting or you're looking for a tried-and-true classic, these recipes are sure to make them fall in love with you (and your baking skills) all over again. Check out the sweetest cake and cupcake recipes ahead.
Chocolate Maraschino Layer Cake
Perfect for Valentine's Day, this boozy cake is the sweet treat you've been searching for. You'll get to enjoy two thick layers of dark-chocolate cake with a chocolate cherry buttercream filling topped off with pink buttercream and ruby-red maraschino cherries. We told you it was perfect.
Get the recipe: chocolate maraschino layer cake
Sprinkle-Filled Cupcakes With Marshmallow Buttercream
Warning: these moist white cupcakes are topped with a mound of buttercream and filled with sprinkles — and wow, are they good. They're sweet, cute, and perfect for a Galentine's Day celebration, so we suggest making more than one batch of these, because they're just that good.
Get the recipe: sprinkle-filled cupcakes with marshmallow buttercream
Fresh Strawberry Cake
A timeless staple, strawberry cake is a tried-and-true classic. This recipe will introduce you to a fluffy vanilla cake that's stuffed with fresh strawberries and topped with a rich cream cheese whipped cream. Let's just say that if you make this, Valentine's Day will be complete.
Get the recipe: fresh strawberry cake
Small-Batch Red Velvet Cupcakes
Want to make something sweet for your honey? These small-batch cupcakes are the way to go. With a rich red velvet center and a sweet cream cheese frosting, you'll wish this recipe made more than just six.
Get the recipe: small-batch red velvet cupcakes
Strawberry Coconut Carrot Cake With Mascarpone Buttercream
Bright, beautiful, and bursting with flavor, this delightful cake tastes like a sweet spring day. In every bite, you'll get to taste flavors of strawberry, coconut, and carrot that work together with a rich mascarpone buttercream that's enough to make anyone's heart skip a beat. Top it off with seasonal flowers, and your work here is done.
Get the recipe: strawberry coconut carrot cake with mascarpone buttercream
Strawberry Champagne Cupcakes
Two words: "strawberries" and "Champagne." These intoxicating cupcakes feature a sweet strawberry base topped with a dollop of Champagne buttercream and a shimmery dot of fondant. Your SO will fall in love with you all over again when they see these — trust us!
Get the recipe: strawberry Champagne cupcakes
Romantic Rose and Lemon Cake
If you're looking for a sweet treat to surprise your valentine with, this cake will do the trick. It's nice and light, making the perfect postdinner snack. Top it off with fresh flowers or dried rose petals to make it worthy of praise.
Get the recipe: romantic rose and lemon cake
Blood-Orange Pound Cake
Pretty in pink, this cute cake was made with love. With a citrus twist, every bite of this dessert will make your taste buds perk up. It's topped off with an elegant glaze, and anyone who sees it will instantly fall in love.
Get the recipe: blood-orange pound cake
Vegan Chocolate Cake With Creamy Chocolate Almond-Butter Buttercream
Moist, creamy, and ultrachocolaty, this layered vegan cake is what dreams are made of. Complete with creamy buttercream and silky-smooth ganache, let's just say your valentine will swoon with every bite.
Get the recipe: vegan chocolate cake with creamy chocolate almond-butter buttercream
Sno Ball Cake
Cupid was here! This alluring chocolate cake is layered with fluffy marshmallow frosting and coated in pink coconut flakes, making it a Valentine's Day must have.
Get the recipe: Sno Ball cake
Blackberry Lavender Naked Cake With White-Chocolate Buttercream
Take your V-Day celebration to the next level when you make this blackberry lavender masterpiece. It's complete with four layers of cake, white-chocolate buttercream, and homemade blackberry lavender jam, and your partner will crown you the best baker of all.
Get the recipe: blackberry lavender naked cake with white-chocolate buttercream
Hazelnut Cappuccino Cupcakes
If you've never been in love, these cupcakes will change that. Bold, flavorful, and sinfully delicious, these sweet treats have notes of hazelnut and coffee that'll capture your heart. Complete with heart-shaped sprinkles, there's nothing not to love.
Get the recipe: hazelnut cappuccino cupcakes
Better Together Chocolate Vanilla Cake
Get the best of both worlds when you make this delicious cake. You'll get forkfuls of vanilla cake that's sandwiched between two layers of chocolate cake and topped with both chocolate and vanilla buttercream. Need we say more?
Get the recipe: better together chocolate vanilla cake
Cappuccino-Flavored Rose Cupcakes
Tell us, have you ever seen anything as sweet as these? The buttercream frosting is enough to make anyone drool, but add a rich cappuccino base, and all bets are off. Enjoy these with a cup of black coffee to really give 'em a kick.
Get the recipe: cappuccino-flavored rose cupcakes
Bursting Blueberry Lemon Layer Cake
Want to make something fruity, sweet, and impressive? This cake is it. Imagine: three layers of light lemon cake swirled with a mix of fresh blueberries and blueberry jam. Oh, yeah.
Get the recipe: bursting blueberry lemon layer cake
Cream Cheese Swirled Coconut Tres Leches Cake
Simple and not too sweet, this tres leches cake is as delicious as they come. Infused with coconut and cream cheese, every bite will fill your taste buds with creamy and dreamy flavors.
Get the recipe: cream cheese swirled coconut tres leches cake
Chocolate-Lovers Chocolate Cake
Calling all chocolate fans! This dreamy cake is as rich, moist, and chocolaty as it looks. With a creamy frosting and mouthwatering texture, good luck having just one piece.
Get the recipe: chocolate-lovers chocolate cake
Conversation-Heart Cake
We don't drop the L-word too often, but we'll fully admit that we're madly in love with this cute cake. Flavored with fresh or frozen strawberries and topped with a sweet saying, what's not to like?
Get the recipe: conversation-heart cake
Valentine Brownie Cupcakes With Peanut Butter Frosting
Imagine: rich fudge brownie cupcakes topped with a creamy peanut butter frosting. Yup. These are so good, they'll practically melt in your mouth, so be sure to have napkins nearby! Since this recipe yields 12 cupcakes, feel free to divide the ingredient list in half if you're only baking for two.
Get the recipe: valentine brownie cupcakes with peanut butter frosting
Morello Cherry Layer Cake
This morello cherry layer cake doubles as both a dessert and work of art. This magnificent multilayer cake is coated with cherry-flavored buttercream and finished with a watercolor frosting technique. Enjoy this sweet treat — if you can bear to bite into your masterpiece.
Get the recipe: Morello cherry layer cake
Conversation Cupcakes
If you thought conversation hearts were cute, just look at these cupcakes! These little cakes are filled with fluffy marshmallow cream, meaning they practically melt in your mouth. Need we say more?
Get the recipe: conversation cupcakes
Red Velvet Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes
It's a fact — Valentine's Day isn't complete without lava cake. This divine recipe gives you drool-worthy red velvet cake that's filled with a chocolate ganache center that you won't be able to get enough of. This recipe makes six cakes, so just cut the recipe in half, and you'll be able to enjoy a cake to yourself and then a little extra. Yum.
Get the recipe: red velvet molten chocolate lava cakes
Cherry Cordial Chocolate Cupcakes
Decadent and delicious, these cherry cordial cupcakes are perfectly festive and fun. With their sweet little cherry on top and a good heaping of frosting, your SO will love you forever after you make these. To adjust the recipe to the amount of servings you want to make, just toggle the scale in the "servings" section, and you can get bakin'!
Get the recipe: cherry cordial chocolate cupcakes
Yellow Sheet Cake With Strawberry Rose Buttercream
Classic, cute, and timeless, this moist cake features a hint of vanilla and lemon zest that'll entice anyone's taste buds. It's topped with a fluffy strawberry rose buttercream, so make this for your sweetheart to score extra points on Valentine's Day.
Get the recipe: yellow sheet cake with strawberry rose buttercream
Single Girls Wholesome Molten Chocolate Lava Cake
Ready to fall in love? This molten lava cake only takes 15 minutes to make! If you're cooking for your SO, just double this single-serving recipe so you have enough for two. This delicious recipe is super easy to make, so don't be alarmed if you find yourself making it every night of the week.
Get the recipe: single girls wholesome molten chocolate lava cake
Red Velvet Heart Surprise Cupcakes
Your partner is in for a treat when you serve these sweet cupcakes. They get to enjoy fluffy cream cheese frosting before uncovering a red velvet heart in the center of each cupcake. Yes, please.
Get the recipe: red velvet heart surprise cupcakes
Vegan Chocolate Heart-Shaped Bundt Cake
Made with love, this sweet cake will blow away your SO. It's easy to make and pairs well with strawberries, so get bakin'!
Get the recipe: vegan chocolate heart-shaped bundt cake
Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes
Light, fluffy, and filled with goodness, these shortcake treats will make you swoon. Enjoy these delicious vanilla cupcakes topped with a rich strawberry buttercream frosting and finished off with fresh strawberries. Who could resist?
Get the recipe: strawberry shortcake cupcakes
Red Velvet Marble Bundt Cake
If you're a red velvet fanatic, this marble bundt cake is the ideal treat for you. This showstopper dessert is beautifully tender and dense with lots of buttery flavor and a slight hint of cocoa.
Get the recipe: red velvet marble bundt cake
Molten Dulce de Leche Cakes
Make your Valentine's Day even more special by serving these molten cakes, a popular Brazilian dessert. The warm dulce de leche oozing out of the cake tastes like pure magic.
Get the recipe: molten dulce de leche cakes