My older son is a chocolate lover and this easy chocolate cake is his favorite cake, ever! It's fluffy, chocolatey, and perfectly moist. I've made it a little fancier by making it into a layer cake. The batter bakes beautifully as cupcakes and is perfect with cream cheese frosting. It's so versatile and is a great base recipe to use with your favorite frosting. I've topped my cake with chocolate ganache. What I love about this recipe is that it is a no-fuss-easy-pantry-ingredients type cake. Every ingredient is easy to find at your local grocer. There's also no creaming of butter and sugar, all you need is a whisk and spatula to bring it all together.
I've tried many chocolate cake recipes, many great tasting, but I keep coming back to the Hershey's chocolate cake recipe on the back of their cocoa powder container. That recipe is an American classic. It's a great go-to recipe when you just want a great chocolate cake. I've altered the recipe slightly by adding instant espresso powder. This small change brings out a sharp chocolate flavor without making the cake taste like coffee.
This is a perfect anytime celebration cake, but I usually make it when my son says he wants mom's chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream :).
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Place all dry ingredients in a large bowl, mix with a whisk. Mix wet ingredients, then pour into dry. Batter will be thin, don't be alarmed, this is normal.
Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes. My oven baked it perfectly at 35 minutes.
I'm using semi-sweet chocolate chips here. Use any brand you like. Heat heavy cream just until scalded then pour over chocolate chips. Let it stand 5 minutes then whisk to make a smooth topping.
Alternative ingredients
This cake is very forgiving. You can easily swap out ingredients for a healthier option or even make it dairy-free to suit your diet.
- Use coconut oil, grapeseed oil, or applesauce (measure for measure) in place of vegetable oil
- Try almond milk, coconut milk, or lactose free milk in place of whole milk
- Use dairy-free chocolate morsels and coconut milk to make the ganache
- Egg substitute- I recommend either ¼ cup applesauce for each egg OR 1 teaspoon baking soda mixed with 1 tablespoon vinegar. This recipe already calls for baking soda so use the one teaspoon already listed in the recipe and mix with vinegar then add to the wet mixture
Tips
- Taste is best after a few hours or the next day
- Use cocoa powder in place of flour to butter and "flour" your pan. You wont get those white streaks on the outside of the cake after baking 🙂
- Batter will also fit in two 9-inch pans to make a layer cake
- If baking in a glass 9x13 dish, reduce baking time to 325 degrees F
Easy chocolate cake
Ingredients
Dry
Wet
Ganache
Instructions
Make ganache
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