Best Chocolate Cake
The ultimate chocolate cake. Once you make this recipe, you’ll never need another chocolate cake recipe again. I have been making this cake for over a decade for family, friends and clients. I have had clients taste this cake and then never ordered another flavor from me, because they loved this chocolate cake so much. It’s Incredibly moist, super chocolatey, and a beautiful rich dark color. It is a 10/10.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- This recipe makes three 8” cakes. I love that I can double it for an extra tall six layer cake!
- This recipe is simple and difficult to mess up, and always comes out very tender.
- It isn’t overly sweet, the chocolate is the star of this cake.
Equipment Notes
A standing mixer with a paddle is preferred.
Ingredient Notes
- All-purpose flour: I typically recommend cake flour for cake baking, but this recipe is so moist and tender, it works perfectly with all purpose. In fact, using cake flour would make it even more delicate and could be an issue if you’re stacking and decorating your cake.
- Buttermilk: full fat is best, but reduced fat also works. If you don’t have buttermilk, I often use whole milk and add 1 Tablespoon of vinegar. It works just as well.
- Oil: I recommend using a neutral oil. I use avocado oil, but any neutral oil would work. Grapeseed and vegetable oil works too.
- Cocoa Powder: For this recipe use natural cocoa powder. Not dutch-processed. Natural cocoa has a higher acidity and will help balance all the baking soda in this recipe.
- Hot Water: The extra liquid in this recipe makes it very moist. I use water, but hot coffee or even hot cocoa would work great.
Chef Anne’s Pro Tip
Mix your cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda and salt together. This gets all the clumps out of your cocoa powder without having to sift it.
The Food Science Behind This Cake
The natural cocoa is key in this recipe. I like to use the darkest, highest quality natural cocoa I can find. Hershey’s, or Ghirardelli are great! Dutch-processed cocoa is treated with an alkalized solution which neutralizes the cocoa. It is less acidic than natural cocoa powder. This recipe has A LOT of baking soda and you need the more acidic natural cocoa powder. It calls for a full tablespoon of baking soda. It is not a mistake. The baking soda reacts with the acid in the cocoa powder, as well as the acid in the buttermilk, to help your cake rise beautifully. The acid in the cake will also neutralize the baking soda so your cake won’t taste off or soapy.
How to Make the Best Chocolate Cake
Step 1: Whisk together sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until no clumps remain.
Step 2: In your main mixing bowl mix together egg, buttermilk, and oil.
Chef Anne’s Pro Tip
Mixing your liquid ingredients in your main mixing bowl first will help ensure that you don’t have any dry streaks hiding at the bottom of your bowl.
Step 3: Add your cocoa powder mixture to your liquids until it is well mixed and homogeneous.
Step 4: Sift in some of your flour. I like to work in thirds.
Chef Anne’s Pro Tip
You don’t have to sift your flour, but I find on days that are more humid it’s a good idea. You can also whisk it a bit instead to break up any loose clumps. But sifting is a sure fire way to make your batter lump free.
Step 5: After sifting in some of your flour, slowly mix your batter together for a few seconds stop when it’s partially mixed and some dry streaks still remain.
Step 6: Add 1/3 of your water and continue to mix. Then repeat. Add more flour, then more water and mix. Until no more water or flour remain. Your batter should be super smooth and somewhat runny when ready.
Step 5: Grease and line a cake pan with parchment. I love these pre-cut parchment rounds.
Step 6: Bake cake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20-25 mins.
Chef Anne’s Pro Tip
I bake my cakes until the center kind of springs back when you press it, or a toothpick comes out clean. Or you can use an instant read thermometer and bake to 200-205 degrees Fahrenheit.
Best Chocolate Cake Variations
If you want to make a sheet cake or cupcakes, this recipe works great. You’ll get about a 18 cupcakes and 1 9×13 sheet cake. I bake my cupcakes at 350 for 15-18 mins, and my sheet cake for 25-28 mins.
I love this cake best filled with a dark chocolate ganache, and my chocolate swiss meringue buttercream. But you can, of course, fill this however you like!
Some cake flavors I have made with this cake are…
- Turtle Cake: Caramel sauce and chocolate ganache with toasted pecans
- German Chocolate cake
- Chocolate cake with Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- Oreo cake
How to Store the Chocolate Cake
Once baked, these will keep for 2-3 days on the counter. They layers also freeze beautifully and will be good in the freezer for up to 2 months.
I always wrap my layers in plastic wrap after they’ve cooled a bit, but while they are still warm. Then I put them directly into the freezer to freeze overnight. I always decorate my cake layers frozen. It is much easier to decorate this way. A room temperature cake is really just a nightmare to frost. For the best results always frost with a frozen or partially frozen cake.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did my cake not rise?
You may have not added enough baking soda, or it is possible that you used dutch processed cocoa, which is alkalized and could inhibit the cake from rising. You need the more acidic natural cocoa powder. It is also possible that it needed more time in the oven, or your oven wasn’t hot enough.
My batter is clumpy, what can I do?
Run your batter through a fine mesh sieve. This will not dramatically effect the quality of your cake, it will still be tender and delicious, and you can get rid of any flour or cocoa lumps that way.
What can I use instead of buttermilk?
You can use regular milk (whole if you have it, but 2% works). Measure your milk so that it’s just shy of 1 cup, then add a 1 Tablespoon of vinegar to your milk. This works just as well.
What kind of oil should I use?
I love avocado oil, but vegetable oil, canola oil, or even grape seed oil are all great choices.
Best Chocolate Cake
Equipment
- 1 Standing mixer with paddle attachment
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder (2 oz, 57 grams) natural, not dutch-processed
- 1 3/4 cup granulated sugar (13 oz, 367 grams)
- 1 Tbsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 1 cup buttermilk (8 fl oz)
- 2/3 cup neutral oil (5.3 fl oz)
- 2 cups all purpose flour (10 oz, 269 grams)
- 1 cup hot water (8 fl oz)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350℉
- Whisk your 1/2 cup cocoa powder (2 oz, 57 grams), 1 3/4 cup granulated sugar (13 oz, 367 grams), 1 Tbsp baking soda, and 1 tsp salt together to work all the clumps out.
- In the bowl of your standing mixer mix 1 egg, 1 cup buttermilk (8 fl oz), and 2/3 cup neutral oil (5.3 fl oz).
- Add cocoa powder mixture to your buttermilk mixture until completely homogeneous.
- Sift 1/3 of your 2 cups all purpose flour (10 oz, 269 grams) into your batter and mix slowly for just a few seconds.
- Add 1/3 of your 1 cup hot water (8 fl oz) and mix it a bit. Then add another 1/3 of your flour and then another 1/3 of your water. Continue going back and forth until no more dry streaks remain and you're left with a smooth cake batter.
- Grease an 8" cake pans and line with parchment paper. Fill your pans about 1/2 of the way up.
- Bake cake layers for 20-25 minutes or until they spring back when you press the center.