Know of a huge durian fan who could use a 3 tier durian cake for his/her birthday? Look no further from this recipe, in which I will be sharing with you how you can make this. Alongside, I am also excited to share with you how to make my luscious and bold durian cream cheese frosting!

I’ve yet to make many full blown cake recipes before given that they require quite a bit of effort, but I thought to start sharing such recipes to equip you in baking for special occasions!

Here are my tips for the two components of this 3 tier durian cake to set you up for success! I hope this is of help.

Vanilla Sponge Cake

  • Make sure to use room temperature ingredients. This applies especially to the softened butter, eggs and milk, as doing so allows smooth mixing. However, fret not the batter ends up clumping, in which the final stage of mixing in flour will bind the batter together. A result of this is that the cake may have a denser finish.
  • A little favour goes a long way. I suggest adding minimally vanilla, and perhaps even lemon zest, to flavour the cake. These neutral and fragrant flavours will really help in complementing the richness of the durian, and absorbing some of these flavours!
  • Measure, measure, measure! I recommend the use of a weighing scale to portion the 3 layers of the cake (or perhaps even 2). This allows even layers across the cake, which is very visually appealing!

Cream Cheese Durian Frosting

  • Durian puree. Use the real thing instead of durian flavourings for the best flavour output. To make the durian puree from scratch, simply mash up the durian in the blender with a small teaspoon of durian as needed. Otherwise, most baking supplies stores sell ready to bake durian puree. I am using D24 here!
  • Adjust to preference. Do adjust the amount of durian puree to your preference, though too much i.e. 2 x of the cream cheese frosting will start resulting in frosting that spreads too much and difficult to work with. Do not omit the icing sugar as well, as it really does help in stabilising the cream cheese durian frosting.

Without further ado, the video guide and the recipe!

3 Tier Durian Cake Recipe
by Javier Tan August-13-2025

A durian lover’s must have guide to make an impressive, elegant and flavourful 3 tier durian cake! Fair warning, a slice will not be enough.

Ingredients (Cream Cheese Durian Frosting)

  • 1 and 1/4 Cup or 300g of Softened Cream Cheese
  • 1 Tbsp or 15ml of Whipping Cream
  • Approx 1/2 Cup or 50g of Icing Sugar
  • Approx 1 and 1/2 Cup or 400g – 500g Durian Puree (suggest to weigh, and adjust to preference)

Ingredients (Vanilla Cake)

  • 1/2 Cup + 1 Tbsp or 135g of Softened Butter at room temp
  • 3/4 Cup + 2 Tbsp or 180g of White Sugar
  • 3 Large Eggs, 60g ea weigh inclusive of shell
  • 1 Tbsp or 15ml of Vanilla
  • 2 Tbsp or 30ml of Vegetable Oil (Flavourless, such as Canola)
  • 1 Cup + 2 Tbsp or 270ml Milk (Room temp)
  • 2 and 1/2 Cup or 300g of Plain Flour
  • 3 Tsp or 12g of Baking Powder

Instructions

  1. Firstly, cream together softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy, approx 2 mins.
  2. Then, whisk in the eggs, followed by the vanilla and vegetable oil.
  3. Whisk in the milk in two halves.
  4. Fold in the flour and baking powder, sift if clumpy. Divide the batter into 3 x 6 or 7 inch tray and bake at 180C for 24 – 27 minutes each. Leave to cool.
  5. While waiting, whip up the frosting by mixing all the ingredients except durian at medium speeed until its thick but spreadable. Then, whisk in the durian until it is creamy.
  6. Cut the desired cake shape and place a dollop of frosting on the cake base to hold it in place. Then, assemble the cake alternating with a ring of durian frosting and a centre of durian.
  7. Frost and decorate as preferred. I top the final layer off with an additional layer of durian puree.
  8. Serve and enjoy! I recommend for you to leave the cake in the fridge for at least overnight for full durian flavour infusion!

Details

  • Prep time: 2 hours
  • Cook time: 1 hour 30 mins
  • Total time: 3 hours 30 mins
  • Yield: 1 3 Tier Durian Cake, perfect for any occasion!

Notes:

  1. If you would like to be updated for more recipes which I strive to create to perfection for sharing and for free, do check out my Instagram, Facebook Page, or YouTube 🙂 Thank you so much for all of your support! Feel free to tag me or link back here!
  2. Stores well in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, and stable at room temperature if taken out for 3 hours.
  3. Please do not copy and paste the recipe without my permission, but feel free to link back here!

Enjoy!
– Bakeomaniac, Javier Tan