If you’re looking for a rich, moist chocolate cake recipe that’s going to satisfy your sweet cravings, then this cake IS IT! The velvety soft chocolate cake layers are packed with chocolate flavor, and paired with an indulgent chocolate fudge frosting. I would go so far as to say that this is the best chocolate cake recipe I’ve ever had!
Why You’ll Love This Chocolate Cake
There is SO MUCH to love about this chocolate cake, but here are a few notable mentions:
Rich in flavor: When it comes to chocolate cake, it should taste like chocolate, but in cake form! When developing this recipe, I really wanted to pack in as much rich chocolate flavor as possible. To do this, I decided to use a ‘mud cake’ style chocolate cake recipe that uses actual chocolate in the cake batter (not just cocoa powder). I find that using good quality semi-sweet chocolate in the cake batter really takes the flavor to another level.
Moist: Not only is this cake packed with chocolate flavor, it’s also soft and has a wonderfully moist crumb. This recipe uses both butter and oil to provide wonderful moisture to the cake. Oil in particularly is a fat that is liquid at room temperature, so it provides unmatched moisture when it comes to cakes. This is the main reason I use it in most of my cake recipes 🙂
Easy: This recipe doesn’t require any hand or stand mixer to make, and comes together really easily! If you have a few bowls and a whisk, you’re good to go!
The best frosting ever: The base chocolate cake layers are paired with an incredibly delicious chocolate fudge frosting, that takes this chocolate cake recipe as a whole to another level! The chocolate frosting is so decadent and has the most wonderful velvety texture. Just be careful though, you may end up eating too much of it with a spoon before you even get to frosting the cake! This frosting is a softer frosting and not ideal if you’re doing a lot of piping, in which case you may want to try my chocolate buttercream frosting with a twist (it’s a cream cheese frosting and tastes incredible!) or a firm chocolate ganache.
Loved by my ‘chocolate cake hating’ husband: Now here is how I REALLY knew this cake was good. My husband is not a huge cake person, and in particular despises chocolate cakes 😂. So when I gave him this cake to try, to my surprise he asked for seconds, and the next day he basically finished most of the cake! My husband is also super honest (sometimes a bit too honest – ha ha!), so when he said this cake was good, I knew it was next level good!
Updated Recipe
I’ve recently updated this recipe (April 2024), as some readers were having issues with the cake layers sinking in. I experimented with different ways to add a little more structure to the cake layers to help prevent this issue, and finally settled on an updated recipe that had additional structure, but still had the same great flavor and texture to the original.
The main changes to the original recipe include an additional egg and additional flour – both of which add more structure to the cake layers.
I know there are many of you who LOVE the original version, so I have kept the original quantities in the notes section of the recipe card (towards the bottom of the blog post). I want to assure you though, that the updated version (in my opinion) is even better than the original, so don’t be afraid to give it a go 😀
How to make chocolate cake
This cake comes together really easily, which is another reason why I love it so much!
Begin by preheating your oven to 180 °C (350°F) conventional (lower the temperature to 160C/320F if using a convection oven with a fan) and grease two 8-inch round cake pans. You also want to line the bottoms with parchment paper. This chocolate cake is fudgy and delicate, so you need to line the bottom of the cake tins with parchment paper just to make sure they come out in one piece!
In a bowl, sift together all purpose flour, unsweetened cocoa powder (use dutch process cocoa if you can), baking soda, baking powder and salt. Using a whisk, mix together until well combined. Set aside.
In a large bowl (make sure it’s microwave safe), add in butter and dark chocolate. I use 50% dark chocolate, but a good quality semi-sweet chocolate will work well. Melt in the microwave for 30 second bursts at a time, mixing in between each burst until fully melted.
Pour in cold milk and using a whisk, mix until well combined. This will help cool down your mixture.
Next add in sugar, coffee powder, vegetable oil, vanilla extract/essence and eggs. Using a whisk, mix until well combined.
Add in your pre-sifted dry ingredients to your wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
Lastly, add in your hot water and mix until just combined. Do not overmix the batter.
Evenly distribute the batter into your prepared pans and bake for 38-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. 
Allow the cakes to cool in the cake tins for 30 minutes, before turning them out onto a wire rack to completely cool.
How to make chocolate fudge frosting
This chocolate fudge frosting is so easy to put together! It’s basically a double batch of my original fudge frosting recipe.
Place a saucepan or pot over a medium heat and add in whipping/heavy cream. Heat until you start to see little bubbles forming around the edges of the pan. The cream shouldn’t be boiling.
Turn the heat down to low and add in the remaining ingredients and continue to gently stir until all the solid ingredients are melted and you have a very smooth mixture.
Strain the mixture into a heat proof bowl to get rid of any lumps, and then cover the top with plastic wrap so that the cling wrap is directly touching the top of the frosting. This will prevent a skin from forming as it cools down.
Place the frosting into the refrigerator for 2 hours to allow it to set.
Decorating Chocolate Cake
Once your cake layers are cool and your frosting is at a spreadable consistency, you can decorate your cake however you like! I placed layers of frosting in between my cake layers, and then covered the outside in a thick layer of frosting too.
I then finished off by piping some frosting on the top of the cake using a 1M star piping tip.
Commonly Asked Questions:
How to store chocolate cake?
This chocolate cake can be left at room temperature in an airtight container for 2-3 days, after which it should be placed into the fridge.
Can I use this recipe to make chocolate cupcakes?
You can totally use this recipe to make chocolate cupcakes, though I do have another chocolate cupcake recipe that is equally as delicious!
Rich Chocolate Cake Recipe
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 1¾ cups (210 g) flour - regular all purpose
- ½ cup (50 g) cocoa powder - unsweetened, dutch process preferred
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter
- 1¼ cups (200 g) dark chocolate - I use 50% dark but any good quality semi-sweet chocolate will work
- ⅓ cup (80 g) milk - cold
- 1½ cups (300 g) white granulated sugar
- 1½ tbsp instant coffee powder
- ⅓ cup (70 g) unflavoured vegetable oil - I use canola oil
- 2 tsp vanilla essence/extract
- 3 large eggs - room temperature
- ½ cup (110 g) hot water
Chocolate Fudge Frosting
- 1 cup (226 g) whipping/heavy cream
- 4 tsp cocoa powder - unsweetened, dutch process preferred
- 2½ cups (400 g) dark chocolate - I use 50% dark but any good quality semi-sweet chocolate will work
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter
- 1⅓ cups (170 g) powdered sugar - also known as icing/confectioners sugar
- ½ tsp instant coffee powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tsp vanilla essence/extract
Instructions
Chocolate Cake
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F conventional (see note 1 if using a convection oven with a fan) and grease the bottom and sides of two 8 inch cake tins (mine are 3 inch deep), and also line the bottom of the pans with parchment paper (see note 2).
- In a bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Using a whisk, mix together until well combined. Set aside.
- In a large microwave safe bowl, add in butter and dark chocolate. Melt in the microwave for 30 second bursts at a time, mixing in between each burst until fully melted.
- Add in cold milk and using a whisk, mix until well combined. This will help cool down your mixture.
- Next add in sugar, instant coffee powder, vegetable oil, vanilla and eggs. Using a whisk, mix until well combined.
- Add in your pre-sifted dry ingredients and mix with a whisk until combined. Avoid over-mixing.
- Lastly, add in your hot water and mix until well combined. Avoid overmixing the batter.
- Evenly distribute the batter into the prepared cake tins and bake for 38-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. IMPORTANT: Do not open the oven door too early to check the cakes otherwise this can cause the cakes to sink in the middle.
- Allow the cakes to cool in the cake tins for 20 minutes, before turning them out onto a wire rack to completely cool (see note 3).
Chocolate fudge frosting
- Place a saucepan or pot over a medium heat and add in heavy cream. Heat until you start to see little bubbles forming around the edges of the pan. The cream shouldn't be boiling.
- Turn the heat down to low and add in the remaining ingredients and continue to gently stir until all the solid ingredients are melted and you have a very smooth mixture.
- Strain the mixture into a heat proof bowl to get rid of any lumps, and then cover the top with cling wrap so that the cling wrap is directly touching the top of the frosting. This will prevent a skin from forming as it cools down.
- Place the frosting into the fridge for 2 hours to allow it to set (see note 4).
- Once your cake layers are cool and your frosting is at a spreadable consistency, frost your cake (you can see how I did mine in the recipe video or blog post pictures above). Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
310 Comments
Hello! Just bought everything to make this cake and realised I only have one 8 inch pan. Can I use either 6 or 9 inch for this?
Or could I take turns baking it? Can the batter rest for that long? Please reply ASAP as I am making this tomorrow!!
Hi Ellie! 🙂 I hope I was able to respond in time but you could use 9 inch pans, the cake layers will just be a little thinner and will likely bake up faster so just check them a few minutes earlier than the stated cooking time. Alternatively, you could 1/2 the recipe and use two 6 inch pans (1x the recipe will be too much batter for two 6 inch pans). I would recommend not letting the batter sit, but in a pickle it’s okay if the second cake is put in right after the first is done 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hi, Maryam 🙂
May I ask?
My oven isn’t big enough to fit 2 cake pans in it. Is it okay if I didn’t bake the two cake layers at the same time? I’m worried it would affect the texture if I didn’t bake them immediately since I’m planning to bake one cake layer at a time and bake the other layer after I finished baking the first layer.
Thank you so much
Hi Fidha! 🙂 So ideally you want to bake both of the cakes at the same time, but if they can’t fit then you can leave one to sit on the counter while the other bakes, just be sure to place the second cake in as soon as the first is finished 🙂
Alternatively, you could half the recipe and distribute the batter into two 6 inch cake tins and then you can bake the cakes at the same time (you may just need to reduce the cook time). Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe Fidha 😀
Hey MK, I’m gonna try this chocolate cake recipe soon and I had a quick question. I want to make the cake layers a few days in advance. So can I freeze them after cooling completely ? Also, do I need to add simple syrup on each layers? If yes, should I add them before freezing the cake layers or just before frosting ?
Hi Tammy! 🙂 I haven’t tried freezing these cake layers myself, but I think if wrapped well with cling wrap and placed into an airtight container before freezing it should be fine 🙂
You can add simple syrup if you wish (I don’t usually – though if freezing the cake it may be a good option), and I would add it on before freezing the cake layers 🙂
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hi! I’m wanting to try this as a cake and a second batch as cupcakes for my grandson’s birthday party. Do I need to adjust cooking times or temperature to accommodate the cupcakes?
Thank you!!
Hi Esther! 🙂 For cupcakes, keep the baking temp the same but just reduce the cook time to about the 18 min mark and then bake more if needed 🙂
Hope your grandson has a wonderful birthday!
I have to to 2 tiers chocolate cake … do u think is stable enough this recipe ?
Hi Sheryl! 🙂 Yes the cake layers will be stable enough, though the chocolate fudge frosting I would recommend to use as a filling only, with a more stable buttercream or ganache for the ouside 🙂
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Made the cakes,they were super moist but the top of the cakes were very crusty! Any idea why. I did bake them at the correct temperature
Hi Renz! So glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe 😀
Yes the tops of these cakes do have a slight crust (almost like a crinkle top brownie), due to the sugar dissolving in the batter 🙂 so totally normal! You can trim it off (which is what I usually do) when layering the cakes 🙂
Can I use milk chocolate instead of dark for the fudge frosting?
Hi Minz! 🙂 For this recipe I would recommend sticking to dark chocolate otherwise the frosting won’t be as firm. Milk chocolate may make the frosting a little too soft 🙂
Hi, I tried this recipe it was very yummy . Thanks for the recipe. Is it necessary to add chocolate ?
So so happy to hear you loved the recipe Rubini 😀
Yes for this recipe the chocolate is required as it adds additional flavor and sweetness to the cake 🙂
Hi there , is that ok if I use one deep 7 inch tin for this recipe
Hi Eram! 🙂 As with most of my double layer cakes, I do recommend dividing the batter into two tins (two 7 inch tins should be okay – you’ll just have slightly taller cakes as I use 8 inch tins), as my cakes are a little on the softer/delicate side so the batter may not rise as well in the oven if the batter is all in one tin. This could also cause the cake to collapse and sink in the middle. Hope that helps 🙂
I think there is a little mistake in the recipe. Recipe says:
Preheat oven to 180C/350F conventional
and in note 1 it says:
If your oven doesn’t have a fan option, then you will need to increase the baking temperature to 175°C (345°F)
Ohhh thank you so much for bringing this to my attention! Will change this now 🙂