With a super moist crumb and fudgy, yet light texture, this chocolate cake recipe will soon be your favorite too. Top with chocolate buttercream and chocolate chips for 3x the chocolate flavor. You can also prepare this chocolate layer cake as a sheet cake, too. See recipe note.
Originally published in 2013 and now with more in-depth descriptions, a helpful video tutorial, clearer instructions, and different ways to use this classic chocolate cake recipe. I hope you enjoy all the new features in this recipe post!
Devil’s Food Chocolate Cake… But Better
This pictured cake is a combination of chocolate buttercream and mock-devil’s food cake. You know the Devil’s Food chocolate cake you get at a restaurant or even from a box mix? This is that exact cake, only completely homemade. Notice the reddish tint? That’s where the name Devil’s Food comes from. The baking soda in this recipe reacts with the natural cocoa powder, which results in the reddish color. More on the science behind using dutch-process vs. natural cocoa powder here, if you’re interested.
This is, without a doubt, the best chocolate cake I’ve ever had. And judging by your feedback in the reviews, I’m confident you’d say the same thing!
This Chocolate Cake Is:
- Extra moist
- 2 layers, but can be made as 3 layers or as a sheet cake
- Soft with a velvety crumb
- Deeply flavorful
- Unapologetically rich, just like my flourless chocolate cake
- Covered with creamy chocolate buttercream
Key Chocolate Cake Ingredients & Why
Each ingredient serves an important role. For best results, do not make substitutions.
- All-Purpose Flour: The structure of the cake. Unlike confetti cake where you can use either, do not use cake flour here—when combined with ultra-light cocoa powder, cake flour is too fine for this cake.
- Unsweetened Natural Cocoa Powder: Do not use dutch-process cocoa powder. If you’re interested, see dutch-process vs natural cocoa powder for an in-depth explanation.
- Baking Soda & Baking Powder: Remember the differences in baking soda vs baking powder? We use both here for lift.
- Salt: Salt balances the flavor.
- Espresso Powder: Espresso powder is optional, but I recommend its addition because it enhances the chocolate flavor. The chocolate cake will not taste like coffee, I promise. I use espresso powder in my chocolate zucchini cake, Guinness cake, chocolate raspberry cake, and marble loaf cake too!
- Oil: Don’t use butter in this cake batter. Cocoa powder is a particularly drying ingredient, so this cake needs oil for suitable moisture.
- Eggs: Use 2 room temperature eggs. To speed up the gently warming, place refrigerated eggs in a cup of warm water for 10 minutes. Did you know what the temperature of your ingredients has a direct correlation to the success of your recipes? Unless otherwise noted, use room temperature ingredients.
- Buttermilk: This chocolate cake requires the moisture and acidity from buttermilk. Lately I’ve been using a mix of sour cream and buttermilk, as well as reducing the hot liquid. You can read more about this next and see my dark chocolate mousse cake, tuxedo cake, black forest cake, German chocolate cake, and chocolate peanut butter cake recipes.
- Vanilla Extract: Vanilla extract adds flavor.
- Hot Coffee or Hot Water: Hot liquid enhances the cocoa powder’s flavor. It also encourages it to bloom and dissolve appropriately. You’ll notice I don’t use hot liquid in my chocolate cupcakes recipe. That’s because there isn’t the same volume of dry ingredients. With this amount of cake batter, we need a hot liquid to break up the cocoa powder lumps resting in all that flour. If you don’t drink coffee, you can use hot water. For deeper and darker flavor, though, use coffee. (Decaf coffee works!)
What an Easy Cake!
No mixer required for the batter, simply whisk the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients (or vice versa, it doesn’t make any difference), add the hot coffee, then whisk everything together. The cake batter is thin. Divide between 2 9-inch cake pans. You can easily stretch it to 3 or 4 8-inch or 9-inch cakes if needed. Or make a quarter sheet cake using a 9×13-inch cake pan. See my recipe notes for details.
Need a 1 layer cake? Use this mint chocolate cake recipe for 1 9-inch round cake.
Need cupcakes? Use either my super moist chocolate cupcakes or cream-filled chocolate cupcakes recipe.
Lately I’ve Been Using Sour Cream
As mentioned above and in the video tutorial, there are two ways to prepare this cake batter and the slight difference involves the wet ingredients. You can follow the recipe as written using buttermilk and hot coffee/water. Or you can add sour cream. Whichever way you make it, the process is the same. (Just reduce the liquids and add sour cream!)
- Original Version (pictured and written below): The original recipe produces a very thin batter. The cake is extra soft with a deliciously spongey texture.
- Sour Cream Version (written in recipe notes and shown in video tutorial): By replacing some of the buttermilk and hot coffee with sour cream, the cake batter is slightly thicker and produces a slightly denser cake with more structure. I love using sour cream in my vanilla cake, too!
Both cakes are equally moist and chocolatey with the same flavor and ease of preparation. It just depends if you want a spongier cake or not. 🙂
Silky Chocolate Buttercream
Like my yellow cake, I use my favorite chocolate buttercream. I slightly increase the amount of each ingredient to produce extra frosting. If you prefer a thinner layer of frosting, use the chocolate buttercream recipe. But if you crave extra buttercream, follow the frosting measurements below. You need 6 ingredients total:
- Unsalted Butter
- Confectioners’ Sugar
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- Heavy Cream or Milk
- Vanilla Extract
- Salt
Because there is no leavening occurring, you can use either dutch-process or natural cocoa powder in the buttercream. Heavy cream provides an extra creamy frosting, but milk can be substituted if needed.
While I love chocolate frosting here the most, this cake is also wonderful with vanilla buttercream or strawberry buttercream frosting instead!
So, why do I call it triple chocolate layer cake when it only has 2 layers? Well, chocolate is used three times: chocolate cake, chocolate frosting, chocolate chips. Press a handful on top like we do with warm chocolate chip cookies, or go with “the more the better” motto like we did. Let’s eat!
PrintDeliciously Moist Chocolate Layer Cake
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours
- Yield: serves 12-16
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This is my favorite homemade chocolate cake recipe. With a super moist crumb and fudgy, yet light texture, this chocolate cake recipe will be your favorite too. Top with chocolate buttercream and chocolate chips for 3x the chocolate flavor. You can also prepare this chocolate layer cake as a sheet cake. See recipe Note.
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 and 3/4 cups (219g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 3/4 cup (62g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 1 and 3/4 cups (350g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons espresso powder (optional)
- 1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil (or canola oil or melted coconut oil)
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1 cup (240ml) freshly brewed strong hot coffee (regular or decaf)
Chocolate Buttercream
- 1 and 1/4 cups (282g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 and 1/2 cups (420g) confectioners’ sugar
- 3/4 cup (65g) unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or dutch process)
- 3–5 Tablespoons (45-75ml) heavy cream (or half-and-half or milk), at room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- optional for decoration: semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease two 9-inch cake pans, line with parchment paper rounds, then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans. (If it’s helpful, see this parchment paper rounds for cakes video & post.)
- Make the cake: Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder (if using) together in a large bowl. Set aside. Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or you can use a whisk) mix the oil, eggs, and vanilla together on medium-high speed until combined. Add the buttermilk and mix until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, add the hot water/coffee, and whisk or beat on low speed until the batter is completely combined. Batter is thin.
- Divide batter evenly between pans. Bake for 23-26 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours. The cakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (Note: Even if they’re completely done, the cooled cakes may *slightly* sink in the center. Cocoa powder is simply not as structurally strong as all-purpose flour and can’t hold up to all the moisture necessary to make a moist tasting chocolate cake. It’s normal!)
- Remove the cakes from the oven and set on a wire rack. Allow to cool completely in the pan.
- Make the buttercream: With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy—about 2 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar, cocoa powder, 3 Tablespoons heavy cream, salt, and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for 1 full minute. Do not over-whip. Add 1/4 cup more confectioners’ sugar or cocoa powder if frosting is too thin or 1-2 more Tablespoons of cream if frosting is too thick. (I usually add 1 more.) Taste. Add another pinch of salt if desired.
- Assemble and frost: If cooled cakes are domed on top, use a large serrated knife to slice a thin layer off the tops to create a flat surface. This is called “leveling” the cakes. Discard or crumble over finished cake. Place 1 cake layer on your cake stand or serving plate. Evenly cover the top with frosting. Top with 2nd layer and spread remaining frosting all over the top and sides. I always use an icing spatula and bench scraper for the frosting. Garnish with chocolate chips, if desired.
- Refrigerate uncovered cake for at least 30-60 minutes before slicing to help set the shape. After that, you can serve the cake or continue refrigerating for up to 4–6 hours before serving. Cake can be served at room temperature or chilled.
- Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for 5 days. I like using a cake carrier for storing and transporting.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Prepare cake through step 4. Wrap the individual baked and cooled cake layers tightly and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze up to 3 months. Bring to room temperature then continue with step 5. You can prepare the chocolate buttercream 2-3 days in advance. Cover and refrigerate, then bring to room temperature before spreading onto/assembling the cake. Frosted cake freezes well, up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature or serve cold.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9-inch Round Cake Pans | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand Mixer) | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Cooling Rack | Cake Stand, Serving Plate, or Cake Turntable | Icing Spatula | Bench Scraper | Cake Carrier (for storing)
- 3 Layer Cake: You can also prepare this cake as a 3 layer cake. Divide batter between three 8-inch or 9-inch cake pans in step 1 and bake for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. This frosting will be enough for 3 layers. If desired, use the frosting recipe from my Piñata Cake if you want extra frosting.
- Cocoa Powder: Use natural cocoa powder in the cake, not dutch-process. (See dutch-process vs natural cocoa powder for more information.) Since there is no leavening occurring in frosting, you can use either natural or dutch-process in the chocolate buttercream.
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk is required for this recipe. You can make your own DIY version of buttermilk if needed. Add 2 teaspoons of white vinegar or lemon juice to a liquid measuring cup. Then add enough room temperature whole milk to the same measuring cup until it reaches 1 cup. (In a pinch, lower fat or nondairy milks work for this soured milk, but the cake won’t taste as moist or rich.) Stir it around and let sit for 5 minutes. The homemade “buttermilk” will be somewhat curdled and ready to use in the recipe.
- Sour Cream Version: Lately I’ve been using a mix of sour cream and buttermilk, as well as reducing the hot coffee. Reduce the buttermilk and hot coffee to 1/2 cup (120ml) each. Add 3/4 cup (180g) of room temperature full-fat sour cream with the wet ingredients. You can see this described above, in the video tutorial, and in my dark chocolate mousse cake. That cake and this cake are both fantastically moist, but the sour cream version has a slightly sturdier crumb.
- FAQ: The sour cream version (note above) makes a sturdy enough cake that will hold under fondant.
- Amount of Cake Batter: This recipe (and the sour cream version) yields about 6 cups of batter, which is helpful if you need it for different Cake Pan Sizes & Conversions.
- Room Temperature Ingredients: All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. Read more about why room temperature ingredients are important.
- Espresso Powder/Coffee: Espresso powder and coffee will not make the cake taste like coffee. Instead, they deepen the chocolate flavor. I highly recommend them both. You can use the same amount of instant coffee (the powder) instead of espresso powder if desired. If coffee isn’t your thing, you can leave out the espresso powder and use extra hot water or hot chai tea.
- Bundt Pan: I recommend my chocolate cream cheese Bundt cake but without the cream cheese filling. Reduce buttermilk in that recipe to 1/4 cup and increase sour cream to 1 cup.
- 9×13 Inch Pan: You can bake this cake in a 9×13-inch baking pan. Same oven temperature, about 35-40 minutes bake time.
- Chocolate Cupcakes: Here is my favorite chocolate cupcakes recipe. Same unbelievable texture as this cake! (You’ll notice I don’t use hot liquid in that recipe. That’s because there isn’t the same volume of dry ingredients to break up. If you need more than 1 dozen chocolate cupcakes, use this chocolate cake recipe for 2-3 dozen. Same baking instructions as my chocolate cupcakes.
Recipe adapted from Ina Garten and originally from Hershey’s
Hi Sally, I’ve made this cake so many times and every time it turns out amazing! I wanted to make a baileys Irish cream version and was wondering if I could replace the water/coffee with baileys Irish cream. Do you think that would work? Thanks!!
Hi Emily, we haven’t tried adding Baileys to this cake so it would take a bit of recipe testing to guarantee results. However, you could try brushing your layers with Baileys or even topping it with the buttercream from these Baileys and Coffee Cupcakes. Let us know if you give anything a try!
I am not a coffee drinker. Therefore, I have no coffee. Will hot water work just as well? Also, I may make this cake for a friend’s birthday. She likes vanilla buttercream icing. Can I use that? I noticed you don’t use cake flour. My mother always used cake flour when she baked a cake.
Hi Wendy, yes, the same amount of hot water will work just as well here (see recipe notes for details). The cake would be delicious with vanilla buttercream! Because this cake uses cocoa powder, a very fine ingredient, we use all-purpose flour to help give the cake structure and sturdiness. Cake flour is too fine here. It’s still a wonderfully soft crumb, though!
Hi Sally, this is the best chocolate cake recipe ever that I’ve tried after trying so many moist chocolate cake recipes. I was a bit hesitant at first as I go through the recipe to bake my sons favourite cake on his birthday 8th Oct. But thank you so much for sharing your recipe, my 4 boys and my husband loved it and I had to bake another 1 the day after and the following weekend. Since then it’s a thing now for the weekends for my family to look forward to. Thank you once again for sharing and look forward to trying your other recipes, God Bless and stay safe.
We’re thrilled to hear this cake was a hit with your family, Winona!
I have made this cake twice. It is delicious but my cake sinks in the middle during baking. I am using a 13×9 pan and baking 30-40 minutes. It is not under cooked. Can I add a bit more batter to prevent this from happening?
Hi Kitty, a sinking middle is usually the result of a slightly under-baked cake. For next time, it’s okay to add an extra minute or two onto the bake time to ensure the middle is fully baked. If you find the edges are browning too quickly, you can tent them with foil so the middle can continue baking without over-baking the edges. We wouldn’t recommend adding more batter, as that will increase the bake time and make it more difficult to bake evenly.
Can I use this batter for two 8 inch pans and what would be the baking time? Any quick response is appreciated.
Hi Lisa, You can use this recipe as written to make an 8 inch cake. The layers will be slightly thicker and may take an extra minute in the oven, so keep an eye on them. The cakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Wondering if I can half this recipe? I’ve made it twice before and it’s been delicious both times. Love your website!
Hi Emma! You can halve this recipe for one 9-inch cake if desired. Same bake time and temperature. We also have a small one layer 6 inch chocolate cake if you’re interested. Same great flavor!
Sally, the cake looks delicious! I will be making this cake, but I will be using 12″ cake pans. I will be making a 3 layer cake. I don’t want to make a mistake on the amount of ingredients for the cake pan size. Any suggestions?
Hi Sandy! Here is everything you need to know about converting recipes to different Cake Pan Sizes.
Hey! How hot is the watedr supposed to be? Boiling hot? Or just hot to touch?
Hi Bree, hot to touch is fine – no need to boil the water.
Hi Sally, can I add your salted carmel as a filling with this cake?
Thanks.
Hi Debbie, the salted caramel is stable or study enough to use as a layer in the cake.
I don’t review recipes. At all. But this one deserves every shout out it gets. It’s frudgy, moist, and chocolatey. Thanks!
Hi Sally, could this recipe be used to make a baileys chocolate cake? If so, how many cups of baileys should one use?
Hi Sarah, we haven’t tried adding Baileys to this cake so it would take a bit of recipe testing to guarantee results. However, you could try brushing your layers with Baileys or even topping it with the buttercream from these Baileys and Coffee Cupcakes. Let us know if you give anything a try!
This was my first chocolate cake and it turned out perfectly.
I tried this recipe. I made it without eggs. The cake came up very moist and delicious.loved it.perfect for Black Forest cake. Thank you Sally :))
Not a good recipe. My cake collapsed, i followed the recipe to the T
Hi Ayesha, so sorry you had trouble with this cake. Did the layers break, or did the cake itself sink? If the cake sunk, it was most likely under-baked. As far as breaking cake layers, this is a delicate cake, so handle the layers with care and make sure to let them cool completely before handling. You can also try the sturdier sour cream version detailed in the recipe notes if you would like to give it another try.
In Notes #11 you write, “9×13 Inch Pan: You can bake this cake in a 9×13 inch baking pan. Same oven temperature, about 35-40 minutes bake time.” Does this refer to putting all 6 cups of butter into a single 9×13 inch baking pan or would the 6 cups be divided into two baking pans of those dimensions?
Hi Dyl, you can use the batter for just one 9×13 inch pan. Enjoy!
Hello , sorry for all the different questions.if I was to double the recipe (using th sour cream version) and use four 9 inch cake pans ,would the cake hold well ? Filled with chocolate ganache and then covered in fondant.Thank you for your help
Hi Aneta, We recommend making this batter twice (do not double) for a total of 4 layers. This will prevent over or under mixing a large quantity of batter. Using the sour cream version of the recipe (like your mentioned) will yield a slightly sturdier crumb that will be better for a 4 layer cake. It should do well under fondant. We hope it’s a hit!
Hello , would this cake be strong enough to stack as a two tier cake ?( filled with your chocolate mousse recipe ) thank you
Hi Aneta, Unfortunately, we haven’t tested a chocolate tiered cake yet that has a sturdy enough bottom layer. We do list some tiered layer flavor suggestions in this post. Perhaps you could do another flavor on the bottom and a chocolate tier on top? We’d love to know what you try!
I just bought all the ingredients and was excited to try this as a 9 inch cake but realized that I want larger slices and will want to serve about 24 adult Size pieces so I’m wondering if I can make this as a 10 inch cake and how I should adjust the recipe or do you have another recipe for a tiered 10 inch cake? I am baking it for next weekend so I need to come up with a solution, Preferring to stay with round
Hi Jill, our cake pan sizes and conversions guide will be helpful for scaling this cake for your needs.
Hi sorry if this has been asked already, but could we use cake flour instead of all purpose flour? Would it make any noticeable difference? Also would the flour measurement change if one were to use cake flour instead? Thanks!
Hi Kenz, It’s best to use all-purpose flour. Since the cake also calls for cocoa powder, which is a very light and fine dry ingredient, cake flour is simply too light. The cake would fall apart.
I have made this cake twice now and given pieces to neighbors… It is a very good chocolate cake recipes.
This cake was a big hit for my grandsons birthday. It was so moist and chocolatey. My daughter in law always wanted my carrot cake but she told me this was her new favorite cake.
Hi Sally! Can I make this recipe as a 2 tiered cake using dowels/thick straws? I am to make my brothers 40th birthday cake and really am in need of a great chocolate cake recipe that will hold up.
I have made this recipe several times and everyone raves at how amazingly moist it is!
Thanks!
Hi Chanice! Unfortunately, we haven’t tested a chocolate tiered cake yet that has a sturdy enough bottom layer. We do list some tiered layer flavor suggestions in this post. Perhaps you could do another flavor on the bottom and a chocolate tier on top? We’d love to know what you try!
This was my first attempt at baking a layer cake from scratch. Followed recipe exactly and it turned out perfectly!!!! Very moist and full of flavour. Exactly the right amount of frosting.
Can this be made with three 6 inch pans?
Hi Hailey, for a three layer 6 inch chocolate cake, we recommend using the batter from our chocolate cupcakes instead – it’s the perfect amount of batter! You can read more about baking 6 inch cakes here. Happy baking!
Hi, will this cake be good for fondant covering?
Thanks
Hi Sharon, using the sour cream method/version from the notes, this cake should be just find under fondant. Hope it’s a hit!
Can i use three 7 inch pan?
Hi Ruthie, 7 inch pans would be a bit too small for all the batter. You can fill your three pans half way, then use any leftover batter for a few cupcakes.
This recipe was excellent! The taste and moisture was perfect. I’m sure I’ll be making this again. Thank you very much for sharing!!
Wow this cake was amazing! I made it for my daughter’s birthday and it has now replaced my previous recipe I would use! The sour cream made the cake perfectly moist and the frosting was absolutely silky!
Hi Sally!
I have made this delicious cake a number of times, always in 2 springform pans, and each time I have found that the baking time is closer to 50 mins than 26. The batter is still semi-liquid at 30 mins.
Otherwise, a lovely recipe, thank you!
Marius
Can I frost the cake with chocolate whipping cream instead of buttercream?
Absolutely!
Would it be possible to cut back on the sugar a little in this recipe?
Hi Camilla, You can try reducing the sugar in this cake batter but the results will be different. We recommend reducing by only a little. Sugar not only sweetens the cake, but adds volume and tenderness. For a less sweet frosting option, you could certainly try chocolate ganache (or even whipped ganache – see the “Whipped Ganache” header in the post) or Swiss meringue buttercream. Let us know what you try.
What are the nutrition facts on this cake per serving
Hi Doris, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076