We Made an Andes Candies Chocolate-Mint Whipped Cream Cake from 1968

This pretty dessert is for all the chocolate mint lovers out there, the ones who clamor for mint chip ice cream and can’t wait for the Girl Scouts to deliver Thin Mints. The people who, like me, steal all of the after-dinner Andes mints that arrive with the Olive Garden bill!

Here’s a decadent Chocolate-Mint Whipped Cream Cake that was just made for us. This vintage recipe originally appeared in a 1968 issue of The American Home, a popular magazine that was published until the late ’70s.

What’s in This Layer Cake?

The filling in this Andes mint cake is a green, lightly minty whipped cream. It gets sandwiched between rich, chocolate cake layers before the whole thing is covered in fluffy chocolate frosting. To make the cake even more candy-like, I added chopped Andes chocolates between the layers and on the top!

I did change the chocolate frosting from the original recipe. In the original recipe, the frosting ingredients include a whole egg. This may have been acceptable in the ’60s, but these days I’d rather not risk having raw egg in my frosting! Instead, I went with this easy Rich Chocolate Frosting, cutting the recipe in half. It made plenty to frost this cake.

How to Make Andes Mint Cake

1968 Chocolate Andes Mint Cake

There are three elements here: chocolate cake layers, mint whipped cream and chocolate frosting. The cake needs to chill for an hour before it’s frosted, so allow for that extra time. This gorgeous three-layer cake serves 8.

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup hot water

Editor’s Tip: Forgot to set your butter out? Here are several quick ways to soften butter.

Whipped Cream Filling:

2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
Green food coloring
28 Andes Creme de Menthe Thins candies

Chocolate Frosting:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
1-1/4 cups cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
1 to 1-1/4 cups whole milk

Tools You’ll Need

Directions

Step 1: Make the cake batter

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour three 8-inch round cake pans. Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder into a medium bowl and set aside. (Here’s what do if you don’t have a sifter.) Use a stand mixer to beat together the 1/2 cup of softened butter and granulated sugar for three minutes.

Add in the eggs and beat for five minutes more until the mixture is very light.

Stir the 1/2 cup of cocoa powder into the hot water until it’s dissolved. Add the flour mixture to the butter and eggs, alternating with the cocoa water, running the mixer on low speed. Scrape the bowl once or twice, and only mix until the ingredients are just combined.

Step 2: Bake the cakes

Divide the batter between the three prepared pans. Pop them in the oven and bake for about 25 minutes, until the cake springs back when lightly touched. Cool the cakes in the pans for 10 minutes, then carefully remove them from the pans to finish cooling on a wire rack.

Step 3: Make the whipped cream

Pour the heavy cream into a mixing bowl. Whip the cream at high speed until it just starts to thicken. Add in the 1/4 cup of confectioners’ sugar, 1-1/2 teaspoons of peppermint extract and a few drops of green food coloring. Whip the cream until stiff peaks form. (Add another drop or two of food coloring if necessary to get the right shade of green.) Hold the finished whipped cream in the fridge.

Step 4: Prepare the Andes candies

Set aside five of the Andes thin mint candies. Unwrap the rest, place them on a cutting board, and use a sharp knife to chop them into small pieces. Divide the chopped candies into three portions.

Step 5: Assemble the cake layers

Place one of the cooled cake rounds onto a cake plate. Scoop 1 cup of the whipped cream filling into a small dish (to save for a finishing touch) and put it back in the fridge. Spread half of the remaining filling evenly over the cake. Sprinkle one of the portions of chopped candies over the cream. Carefully place a cake round on the filling. Spread the rest of the filling over the cake, and sprinkle another portion of chopped candies over it. Finally, place the last cake round on the top. Put the cake into the fridge to chill for one hour.

Step 6: Make the chocolate frosting

Beat 1 cup softened butter in a large bowl with a mixer on high speed, until it’s smooth and creamy. Sift in the 4 cups of confectioner’s sugar and 1-1/4 cups cocoa powder. Add in the 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract and 1/4 teaspoon of peppermint extract. Run the mixer on low speed to bring everything together. Gradually add in the milk while mixing until the frosting reaches a good spreading consistency. Then, beat the frosting on high speed for 5 minutes until it’s light and fluffy.

Step 7: Frost and decorate the cake

When the cake is chilled, run a knife around the outside to make sure the cream filling is even with the cake layers. Use an offset spatula to frost the top and sides of the cake with the chocolate frosting. Pour the remaining portion of chopped Andes candies into a mound in the top center of the cake.

Take the 1 cup of reserved whipped cream and make five dollops around the top of the cake. (You can do this with a piping bag and large tip, or just use a spoon.) Finally, unwrap the 5 reserved Andes mints and stick one into each of the dollops of whipped cream. Hold the finished cake in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.

Here’s What I Thought

Slice Of Chocolate Andes Mint Cake

I love chocolate mint, so naturally I loved this Andes mint cake! The cake layers were thin, but they worked well with the amount of whipped cream that gets layered between them. And having a bite of Andes mints with every forkful of cake was dee-lightful. The chocolate frosting has the perfect amount of sweetness and creaminess to bring the whole cake together, and everyone who tried this cake especially loved that frosting.

As much as I enjoy mint I did have to cut back on the mint extract in the whipped cream. The original recipe called for three teaspoons, an amount that made the cream taste bitter. Cutting the extract back to 1-1/2 teaspoons was a better level of peppermint.

This Andes mint cake is a lovely dessert that comes together easily and would be fun to make for birthdays or holiday gatherings. Store this cake covered in the fridge for up to five days. The slices taste just as delicious when cold!

Vintage Cakes Like Grandma Used to Make

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A pleasingly moist cake, this treat is the one I requested that my mom make each year for my birthday. It's dotted with sweet carrots and a hint of cinnamon. The fluffy buttery frosting is scrumptious with chopped walnuts stirred in. One piece of this homemade carrot cake is never enough—better than all the other carrot cakes recipes I've tried!—Kim Orr, West Grove, Pennsylvania

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