Decadent layers of hazelnuts, poppyseed, and cherry cake with creamy dulce de leche frosting. This Russian Royal cake recipe is the ultimate holiday cake!
You may also enjoy more Russian cakes like my Spartak or Royal poppyseed honey cake as well.
How To Make Russian Royal Cake
This 3 layer cake is quite the show stopper. The decadent layers of hazelnuts, poppyseed, and cherry in the cake are sure to impress your guests. Before you make the assumption of thinking this is a complicated cake, let me stop you. All those cake layers were mixed into one mixer bowl. There’s no need to bake the same batter 3 separate times. I make one big batch and split it amongst 3 baking pans. The cream in this cake is what makes it so delicious. Cooked sweetened condensed milk (dulce de leche) is the key flavor and sweetener. Give this cake a try for this years Christmas or New Year party. It will definitely be the talk of the table.Â
Instructions for the cake layers:
1. Add flour to the cherries and chopped hazelnuts. Mix the flour just to incorporate.Â
2. Using a sifter, Sift the flour, baking soda, and baking powder, then set aside.Â
3. Beat the eggs in a stand mixer until light and fluffy, and add in the sugar as the mixer continues to mix on high speed. Then add in the sour cream and oil.Â
4. Gently fold the flour mixture into the egg mixture using a whisk or spatula.Â
5. Prepare 3 (10-inch) baking pans by lining them with parchment paper and spraying them with nonstick spray.
6. Evenly divide the batter amongst 3 separate bowls. Then add the hazelnuts to one bowl, cherries to another, and poppyseeds to the third bowl. Mix to incorporate.Â
7. Pour the hazelnut batter, cherry batter, and poppyseed batter into the 3 separate baking pans.
8. Bake each cake.
Tip: since your typical oven won’t fit all 3 baking pans at once, bake the hazelnut and cherry cakes first since the ingredients are heavier. The sooner you bake them the less time the cherries and hazelnuts have to fall to the bottom of the pan.Â
9. Once all the cakes are baked, let them cool on a cooling rack.
Instructions for the cake filling
10. As the cakes cool, begin making the cream. Beat the softened butter and cooked sweetened condensed milk in a stand mixer.
11. Add the sour cream and continue to mix until well incorporated.
12. In a separate bowl, beat the heavy cream until stiff peaks form.Â
13. Add the whipped heavy cream and vanilla to the butter mixture. Mix until well combined.
14. Assemble the cake in this order: hazelnut cake, cream, poppyseed cake, cream, cherry cake, cream. At this point, it can be left bare or decorated as shown with berries and cream filled wafers.
Can I make Russian royal cake ahead of time?
Yes, you can make this cake up to 2 days in advance. Just bake the cake, then let it cool completely. Cover in an airtight container and place it in the refrigerator. It will last for about two days.
Other Russian Cake Recipes
Here are some more of my favorite Russian cake recipes:
Full Recipe Instructions
Russian Royal Cake (Korolevsky Cake)
Ingredients
- Ingredients for the cake:
- 3/4 cup poppyseed
- 3/4 cup dry cherries roughly chopped
- 3/4 cup toasted chopped hazelnuts
- 1 3/4 cup flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 8 eggs
- 1 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 cup sour cream
- 3 tbsp light tasting oil
- Ingredients for the cream:
- 1 can cooked sweetened condensed milk
- 1 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Add 1 tbsp flour to the cherries and 1 tbsp of flour to the chopped hazelnuts. Mix the flour just to incorporate.
- Sift the flour, baking soda, and baking powder, then set aside.
- Beat the eggs in a stand mixer until light and fluffy, and add in the sugar as the mixer continues to mix on high speed. Then add in the sour cream and oil.
- Gently fold the flour mixture into the egg mixture using a whisk or spatula.
- Prepare 3 (10 inch) baking pans by lining them with parchment paper and spraying them with non stick spray.
- Evenly divide the batter amongst 3 separate bowls. Then add the hazelnuts to one bowl, cherries to another, and poppyseeds to the third bowl. Mix to incorporate.
- Pour the hazelnut batter, cherry batter, and poppyseed batter into the 3 separate baking pans.
- Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 to 18 minutes each. Tip: since your typical oven won't fit all 3 baking pans at once, bake the hazelnut and cherry cakes first since the ingredients are heavier. The sooner you bake them the less time the cherries and hazelnuts have to fall to the bottom of the pan.
- Once all the cakes are baked, let them cool on a cooling rack.
- As the cakes cool, begin making the cream. Beat the softened butter and cooked sweetened condensed milk in a stand mixer.
- Add the sour cream and continue to mix until well incorporated.
- In a separate bowl, beat the heavy cream until stiff peaks form.
- Add the whipped heavy cream and vanilla to the butter mixture. Mix until well combined.
- Assemble the cake in this order: hazelnut cake, cream, poppyseed cake, cream, cherry cake, cream. At this point it can be left bare or decorated as shown with berries and cream filled wafers.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted on December 1, 2016, we’ve tweaked it a bit since then.Â
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Carol Weber says
Can you explain “cooked sweetened condensed milk”?
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Carol, this is pretty much the same thing as dulce de leche 🙂
Lana says
Can I use fresh sour cherries for this cake?
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Lana, unfortunately, I don’t think that fresh cherries will work for this royal cake because the cherries can give off more moisture. However, I have never tried making this cake with fresh cherries.
Emma says
Beautiful cake! What would be the best substitute for the cherries?
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Emma, you can substitute the cherries with dried cranberries 🙂
Erica says
Beautiful cake! Could you swap out the cherries for something else?
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Erica, you can easily substitute the dried cherries for any other dried fruit. Cranberries work well.
Vika says
What a beautiful cake!