One of my all time favorites, this is my moist, fudgy, and completely from-scratch best chocolate cake recipe. It comes together in one bowl and pairs well with any frosting! Recipe includes a how-to video!
Why This is THE Chocolate Cake Recipe You Need:
- Ridiculously moist, even days later: Most cakes dry out by day two… not mine! Thanks to a strategic combo of buttermilk, oil, butter, and an extra egg yolk you’ll get a moist, tender crumb that stays soft, fudgy and rich, even straight out of the fridge!
- Bold chocolate flavor. No flat cocoa flavor here. By blooming the cocoa with hot coffee we unlock its full intensity. While the cake doesn’t actually taste like coffee, it has a deeper, more complex chocolate flavor in every bite.
- No mixer, no fuss, no fail! Made in one bowl with no special equipment required, this cake comes together so easily (though of course feel free to use your stand or hand mixer, if you feel so inclined!).
- This is the chocolate cake recipe you’ll come back to. This is the one I make for birthdays, holidays, or any time I need a guaranteed crowd-pleaser. It’s reliable, richly chocolatey, and just plain better than the rest (if I do say so myself). If you don’t believe me, here’s a recent 5-star review:
“Perfect as is no changes needed! This cake yields a tender, moist crumb packed with flavor. I used the hot coffee as suggested and it really helps the flavor pop. I topped it with the oreo icing and and even our picky eaters came back for seconds. Thank You!“
– Elayna
What You Need
Each ingredient in this chocolate cake recipe was carefully chosen to make for a moist and flavorful chocolate cake. Let’s go over the key players:
Note: This ingredient photo does not include ingredients for the frosting, as you can use your favorite (suggestions below!).
- Buttermilk gives my chocolate cake recipe intense depth of flavor and keeps it soft and moist. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can use my easy buttermilk substitute in a pinch–but real buttermilk is best!
- Oil and butter give us a moist cake with great flavor. This combination is especially important if you need to refrigerate your chocolate cake (which could dry out your cake). I originally used canola or vegetable oil in this recipe, but have learned avocado oil works just as well and this is my current go-to.
- An extra egg yolk contributes to the tender, fudgy, melt-in-your-mouth crumb. If you don’t want to waste your leftover egg white, save it to make some candied almonds.
- Cocoa powder. I recommend using natural cocoa powder for best results.
- Hot water/coffee will “bloom” your cocoa powder, fully developing its flavor. Note that using coffee won’t make your chocolate cake taste like coffee, but it will enhance the chocolate taste even more than plain hot water would (which is why I prefer it to water). On the other hand, if you really like coffee and want a coffee flavor, you can always frost this cake with my coffee frosting (I actually like to use the variation in that recipe to make a mocha frosting with this cake)!
Remember, this is just an overview of some of the key ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
SAM’S TIP: The best way to keep this chocolate cake recipe (or, any cake) moist is to not over-bake it. Make sure that your oven temperature isn’t running hotter than it is leading you to believe (I keep two thermometers in my oven to make sure the temperature is accurate), as an oven that’s too hot will over-bake your cake in your hurry.
How to Make The Best Chocolate Cake
Step 1: Reverse creaming (sort of!)
We are essentially using a modified version of the reverse creaming method (previously shown in my caramel cake!) for a super moist crumb. This means we first combine the dry ingredients (and the sugar, which is technically a wet ingredient) and then add oil and melted butter. The mixture will be thick and crumbly, but stir until all of the dry ingredients are completely moistened. An electric mixer makes this a bit easier, though I’ve done it by hand before with just a spatula.
Step 2: Add the rest of the wet ingredients
Eggs, an extra yolk, and a healthy pour of vanilla extract go in first. Make sure the eggs are room temperature, or they can make it difficult for the batter to combine, resulting in a wonky, uneven cake. Next stir in the buttermilk, the batter will thin a bit here, but it really becomes thin once you add the (hot!) coffee.
You can use hot coffee or hot water for this step, but the most important thing is that it’s, well, hot! The heat from the warm liquid “blooms” the cocoa, as mentioned in the “Ingredients” section above (see that section again if you’re curious about why I prefer coffee to water, too!).
Be sure to scrape the sides and bottom of your bowl here so the batter is smooth and uniform. And it will seem thin! This is absolutely normal!
Step 3: Bake & cool (then decorate!)
Divide the batter into 8″ round baking pans and bake. I recommend using circles of cut out parchment paper on the bottom of my pans (in addition to greasing/flouring them) to ensure there will be no sticking when it’s time to remove the cakes from the pans (makes things so much easier and less stressful!). Once they’ve finished baking, let them cool in the pans for a few minutes before inverting onto a cooling rack to cool completely before decorating.
If needed/desired you can level your cake layers (this is the inexpensive cake leveler (affiliate) I like to use) and then decorate with your favorite frosting. I have a post on how to decorate a cake if you need help with this step (but you can see I kept things pretty simple here).
SAM’S TIP: A crumb coating is always a good idea! To do this, apply a thin, even layer of frosting to catch all of your crumbs and then place the cake in the freezer for 15 minutes. Remove and finish frosting for a crumb-free finish!
Frequently Asked Questions
The secret to a truly moist, fudgy chocolate cake recipe comes down to a few key ingredients and techniques. Buttermilk (full-fat, and better if it’s the real deal and not a substitute) gives the crumb a soft, tender texture while a combo of oil and butter gives you the bet of both worlds — lasting moisture and rich flavor. An extra egg yolk adds a luxurious fudgy bite, and most importantly don’t overbake it! Pull the cake out of the oven when there are a few moist crumbs on your toothpick (but no wet batter), that’s when the magic happens.
Final tip: I recommend if you haven’t already, learn how to use a kitchen scale to consistently have best results with all of your baked goods.
I typically use chocolate buttercream or my favorite chocolate frosting; however my chocolate fudge frosting works just as well (and that’s what I used in the photos here!). The fudge frosting is thicker, richer and, well, fudgier, while the “favorite” frosting is lighter, sweeter, and more buttercream-esque.
Chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream, coffee frosting, brown butter frosting, peanut butter frosting, caramel frosting, or even Oreo frosting would also be good as decadent options, or lighten things up with fresh fruit and try my strawberry frosting, raspberry buttercream or even my blueberry frosting!
Yes, you can use my chocolate cake recipe for cupcakes, but my recommendation is to make my easy chocolate cupcake recipe instead; it yields a light, springy texture that suits the cupcake form so well.
However, if you want to make this cake as cupcakes, know you’ll get approximately 24 cupcakes. Fill your liners ⅔ of the way full and bake for 16-18 minutes.
Perfect Frosting Pairings:
This chocolate cake recipe has already earned hundreds of 5-star ratings, but I’d love to hear what you think of it! Leave me a comment and a rating once you try it (please!).
Enjoy!
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The BEST Chocolate Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ⅔ cup (208 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (200 g) light brown sugar firmly packed
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- ¾ cup (75 g) natural cocoa powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter melted
- ½ cup (118 ml) neutral cooking oil (use avocado, canola, or vegetable oil)
- 2 large eggs + 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup (236 ml) buttermilk
- ½ cup (118 ml) hot coffee or hot water
- 1 batch chocolate frosting see note
Recommended Equipment
- Kitchen Scale recommended
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and prepare two 8" round cake pans by lining the bottoms with parchment paper and lightly greasing and flouring the sides. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment) stir together flour, sugars, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.1 ⅔ cup (208 g) all-purpose flour, 1 cup (200 g) light brown sugar, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, ¾ cup (75 g) natural cocoa powder, 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda, ¾ teaspoon salt
- Add melted butter and oil, stir well. Batter may be thick, this is fine, just stir until all of the dry ingredients are moistened.½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, ½ cup (118 ml) neutral cooking oil
- Add eggs, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and stir until well combined. Pause occasionally to scrape sides and bottom of bowl.2 large eggs + 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Gradually add buttermilk and stir well.1 cup (236 ml) buttermilk
- Add hot coffee or water, stirring carefully until ingredients are well-combined (be sure to scrape sides and bottom of bowl to ensure batter is uniform).½ cup (118 ml) hot coffee or hot water
- Evenly divide batter between prepared pans. Transfer to center rack of 350F (175C) and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or with moist crumbs.
- Allow to cool for 15 minutes before inverting onto cooling rack to cool completely before frosting with your favorite frosting (I recommend the one linked in the recipe above, or one of my favorites linked in the notes below!).1 batch chocolate frosting
Notes
- Two 9″ pans: Cakes will need to bake for less time, start checking at 27-30 minutes. Please keep in mind that if your pans are dark-colored the cake may need less time to bake.
- Three 8″ pans: Bake approximately 23-26 minutes.
- Three 9″ pans. Cake layers will be quite thin. Bake approximately 20-23 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Recipe originally published 02/27/2017. I’ve updated the post to have new photos, a new video, and more helpful information, but the recipe has been extensively tested and was not in need of improvement, so it remains the same!
Gloria
Hello, I made this chocolate cake recipe for my grandson’s birthday and everyone loooooved it, especially my grandson. I used vegetable oil like you said we could substitute. I also used your vanilla buttercream recipe for the frosting. Wish I could share the pics. I love the addition of the hot coffee, I used a coffee alternative though. It is a delicious recipe, this will be our staple recipe for all the birthdays we’ll celebrate in our family, oh and the best birthday cake recipe as well, I’ve made that one too, thank you 😊.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that your family enjoyed the cake and I hope that your grandson had a nice birthday, Gloria! Thanks for using my recipe. 🙂
Summer Nickerson
I want to make this cake, but I only have a springform pan. Can I adjust bake time and oven temperature to make this work?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Summer! I have never caked this cake in a springform pan, but I think that it will work fine. Having not tried it myself, I am not certain of the bake time so I reccomend keeping an eye on it. Please also keep in mind that the cake will rise you you only want to fill the pan 3/4 of the way full. If you have a 9″ x 13″ baking pan this fits nicely in that. Keep me posted on how it turns out. 🙂
Michelle
What temperature do I set it at if I am at 4,000 ft altitude?
Do I have to use parchment paper?
Thanks
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Michelle! I am sorry but I do not have experience with baking at high altitude so I can not provide you with any recommendations. I am hoping that someone else who has used this recipe under the same conditions will chime in. Again, I am sorry that I can not be of more help to you. As far as the parchment paper goes, you do not need it, however, it helps when removing the cakes from the pans that they don’t stick and also makes clean-up a breeze. 🙂
Melissa Williams
I am planning on making this cake today, I will be using a 13×9 pan. My question is will I need more batter and when should I begin checking the cook time?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Melissa! This recipe will fit nicely in a 9″ x 13″ baking pan. The only adjustment needed is the bake time. I recommend keeping an eye on it. Enjoy! 🙂
Laura
This is now my go to chocolate cake!
Sugar Spun Run
Hooray! I am so glad that you have now found a new favorite, Laura! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Gloria
Hi,
I’m using 9in pans and trying to make a three layer cake. Can you give me the measurements for a cake like that?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Gloria! This recipe fills (2) 8″ pans. If you wish to make a 3 layered cake using 9″ pans, I would recommend that you make one batch + 1/2 of a second. I hope that it turns out perfect for you! 🙂
littlebee
Hi, I don’t have whole milk at home for the frosting.. are there any substitute I can use? Thanks!!
Sugar Spun Run
Hi! The chocolate frosting that is shown uses 2 Tablespoons heavy cream. In the notes section, I also provide a list of other frostings that you could try. Which frosting are you trying to make?
Sam
Hi, can I bake 1 tin at a time & let other wait outside? I have a small oven. cannot stack them. Can only do 1 at a time.
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Sam! That should be fine. Keep me posted on how it turns out. 🙂
Mary M
Can this be baked as one layer in a 13×9 pan?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Mary! Yes, it can! Please keep in mind that the bake time will be different than what is listed so I reccomend keeping an eye on it. Enjoy! 🙂
Princess
Hi! Thanks for the recipe. I’m a beginner baker so I wanted to know, can I use this recipe and half it to bake on 4.5 inch cake pans? I have a small oven so that’s the size that fits for me. I wonder if that’ll negatively affect the result of my cake.
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Princess! You can most certainly reduce the amount of batter to accommodate your size pan, however, I want to be certain that we cup it enough and you don’t have too much batter left over. This recipe yields two 8″ cakes for a 2 layered cake. How deep are your 4.5 inch cake pans? Are you planning to bake two to create a 2-layer? What type of small oven are you planning to bake in?
Princess
Thanks so much for your reply! The cake pan is 2 inches deep. If possible, I would like to try baking two cakes and layer them. I live in Japan so I have a Japanese convection oven. The chamber is pretty small that’s why I only use small pans. I would truly appreciate your help!
Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for clarifying, Princess. I am not familiar with baking in a convection oven so you will want to keep an eye on it while it bakes. Since you are using smaller pans, it will take a lot less time than what is indicated in the directions. To create two cakes, I think that halving the recipe will work fine. Keep me posted on how it turns out. 🙂
Debby
This cake is awesome! I printed out this recipe for my 12 year old daughter and the instructions were so detailed she was able to make it almost without any extra guidance. We did have to tweek it to make it vegan because of food allergies but the cake is so delicious. The buttercream frosting worked amazingly well even though we live at a high altitude. If you are looking for the perfect cake then you have found it. Thank you Sam Merritt for this awesome recipe!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that the directions were easy to follow and your cake turned out delicious, Debby. Thank you for trying my recipe, I hope that your daughter had fun making it. 🙂
Sally
Could this be baked using a 9×13 pan?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Sally! Yes, you can! Please keep in mind that the bake time will be different. I hope that you enjoy the chocolate cake. 🙂
Susan
Hi Sam. After having great success with your vanilla cake which is now my staple for my baking business (IG: @suzyqscupcakes), I had to try your chocolate recipe as well. I have been using the cake recipe on the back of the Hershey’s Cocoa container for YEARS , which is delicious, but I was finding it hard to stack and decorate my buttercream cakes because it was so moist and crumb-y. I also live in Australia and it is an hour drive each way to the Costco to buy Hershey’s cocoa – too far. SO….I tried your recipe and it is PHENOMENAL! The cake is somewhere in between a chocolate cake and chocolate mud cake – moist. rich, chocolaty but not too sweet. I was concerned it might be too sweet with the brown sugar in it but luckily it wasn’t. (By the way, I hate brown sugar because it always gets hard so you can use 1 cup white sugar with 2 tbsp liquid molasses to make brown sugar). Anyway, another winner and I am glad I can use cocoa from my local grocery store to make this. I am so happy to have found your baking blog and look forward to trying more recipes.
Sugar Spun Run
What an amazing comment to wake up to, thank you, Susan! Coming from a fellow baker, I am so glad that you have enjoyed both my cake recipes. I am happy that you found this chocolate cake delicious and that it saves you the 1 hour trip to the store. Thanks for the feedback, I can’t wait to hear what recipe you try next! I post recipes daily on social media so feel free to join me on Instagram (@sugarspun_sam) or on Facebook. 🙂
Heather
HI,
I have made this cake for the third time now. its fool proof! My only question is my buttercream looks darker than yours
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you have enjoyed the chocolate cake recipe, Heather! As far as coloring of the buttercream it could just be the lighting used. It should be rich in color. Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Heidi
I plan on making a 3 layered cake (using 6 inch pans) with this recipe. Do you think the recipe will yield the correct amount, or should I double it? 🙂
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Heidi! I haven’t tried it myself, but I think that you will be fine. The layers might be on the thinner side. 🙂