10+ Gorgeous Cakes for Mother's Day

Updated May 06, 2020
Credit: Antonis Achilleos; Food Styling: Torie Cox; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke

To make mom feel really special this Mother's Day, celebrate her with a cake in her favorite flavor, from chocolate to red velvet. For extra credit points, get the kids involved in the kitchen too—many of the recipes featured here start with a boxed cake mix that simplifies prep. No matter which cake you choose, the extra time and care spent making a homemade dessert are the secret ingredients that mom will really love. 

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Mother's Day Cupcakes

Credit: Becky Luigart-Stayner; Styling: Jan Gautro

Mother's Day Cupcakes Recipe

Try your hand at this recipe for "Mother's Day Cupcakes," a traditional offering at Dreamcakes Bakery in Birmingham, Ala. It features classic white cupcakes topped with homemade strawberry icing and decorated with made-from-scratch vanilla bean frosting, edible pearls, and edible glitter. What you write is up to you: Try swapping "Mama" for "Mom," or even "Gigi" or "Grand" for the much-loved grandmother in your life.

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Lemonade Layer Cake

Credit: Becky Luigart-Stayner; Melanie J. Clarke

Lemonade Layer Cake Recipe

Thawed lemonade concentrate adds bold, fun flavor to this tart layer cake—one of our most-pinned cake recipes. The brightly flavored lemon cake, paired with a lemon-cream cheese frosting, is the perfect way to celebrate mom in springtime.

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Strawberry Tallcake

Credit: Annabelle Breakey; Styling: Karen Shinto

Strawberry Tallcake Recipe

This jaw-dropping take on traditional strawberry shortcake calls for spreading homemade whipped cream, sweetened strawberries, and strawberry jam between layers of delicious butter cake. To save time, use boxed butter cake instead.

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Chocolate Shortbread Cake

Credit: Iain Bagwell; Styling: Buffy Hargett Miller

Chocolate Shortbread Cake Recipe

Satisfy mom's craving for chocolate on her special day with these single-serving cakes. (Don't worry, the recipe makes enough for six people.) Mix coarsely chopped butter cookies with bourbon-spiked melted chocolate and heavy cream, then pour into molds (or muffin tins) and let chill for up to 24 hours. Before serving, pour our simple homemade ganache over the cakes and pop back in the fridge for another hour to set fully.

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Coconut Cake

Coconut Cake Recipe

This classic coconut cake features a homemade frosting made from sugar, lemon juice, egg whites, vanilla extract, and shredded coconut.

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Double-Caramel Turtle Cake

Credit: Cooking Light

Double-Caramel Turtle Cake Recipe

One of our most popular cakes, this light chocolate cake has two layers of tender chocolate cake with a low-fat caramel frosting and an easy topping made with store-bought caramel-apple dip and chopped pecans.

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Basic White Cupcakes

Credit: Beth Dreiling; Styling: Buffy Hargett

Basic White Cupcakes Recipe

Enhance a white cake mix with buttermilk, butter and flavoring extracts for this basic white cupcake.  Then add whatever frosting and topping you are in in the mood for. We went for Coconut Buttercream and flaked coconut for these stunning Coconut Cupcakes.

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Watercolor Cake

Credit: Time Inc. Video Studio

Watercolor Cake Recipe

This stunning watercolor effect is a surprisingly simple cake decorating technique that makes for an incredibly special dessert. 

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Margarita Cake

Credit: Time Inc. Video Studio

Margarita Cake Recipe

Mother's Day arrives hot on the trail of Cinco de Mayo, and mom may still be craving her favorite cocktail. With tart lime curd and tequila syrup, this festive show-stopper cake does justice to the flavors of an authentic margarita. Plus, it's a great way to use up any leftover tequila and margarita mix.

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Better Than Sex Cake

Credit: Beth Branch

Better Than Sex Cake Recipe

We'll leave those judgements up to mom, but one thing's for sure—this uber-easy cake is the ultimate in dessert decadence. Simply bake your favorite boxed chocolate cake mix according to package directions, let cool, then poke holes in the cake. Pour condensed sweetened condensed milk over the entire surface, making sure to let some of the milk seep into the holes. Follow with caramel sauce, homemade whipped cream, and Heath candy pieces.

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Red Velvet Cake Balls

Credit: Gooseberry Patch

Red Velvet Cake Balls Recipe

These three-ingredient cake balls are an elegant way to get kids involved in the kitchen. Help them whip up a red velvet cake from boxed mix, crumble, and combine with cream cheese in a bowl and form balls. Chill overnight, then dip in melted white chocolate and let cool for irresistible bite-sized treats.

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Easy Vanilla Cake

Credit: Antonis Achilleos; Food Styling: Torie Cox; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke

Easy Vanilla Cake Recipe

Turn a basic yellow cake with vanilla frosting into something special by decorating with edible flowers, such as Carnations, English daisies, freesia, pansies, peonies, and more. For best results, pair a mix of smaller flowers with one large flower, such as a peony or rose.

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