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
Beautiful..I don’t have 2 pans..only 1 25cm cake pan. Can I bake as a single cake and then cut into 2 layers?
Thanks
This recipe will not fit into that pan. Instead, try the cake recipe form this chocolate cake pops recipe– only skip assembling into cake pops. That cake will fit into your pan very nicely.
I made this the other day as a test run for my son’s birthday. It was absolutely fantastic. The cake is super moist and very flavorful. My family all said it was the best chocolate cake they’ve ever had. Thank you for your baking addiction as it is spurring my own. I’ve made numerous recipes from your site and they have all been a success.
Delicious and makes a big impression! The cake is moist and packs a lot of chocolate flavor. I do wish I had added a fifth tablespoon of heavy cream to the frosting—it set-up while we were still frosting, so it wasn’t as pretty as I hoped. Only I cared about the way it looked!
I loved this cake. Could I use this batter for cupcakes? I tried the super moist chocolate cupcake recipe you have in your notes but it did not compare to this batter. Why can’t I just use this batter for cupcakes?
Hi Kristina! You can make cupcakes with this batter – it yields a large amount which is why we usually recommend our chocolate cupcakes instead. This cake batter will make 2-3 dozen cupcakes with the same baking instructions as the chocolate cupcakes.
This cake is a family favorite! My go to chocolate cake!
Do you think either version (buttermilk or sour cream) is sturdy enough to double & do 4 8” layers for a tall wedding cake tier?
Hi Errign! We don’t recommend this cake for the bottom or middle of a tiered cake (it’s not sturdy enough). 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 is my absolute favourite chocolate cake recipe. I made this recipe yesterday for my Mom’s birthday and it was a hit in the fam! I could hardly find sour cream here in the Philippines so I replaced it with plain yoghurt instead. This triple chocolate is really really good! Thank you, Sally! Happy Baking to all! <3
My cake batter came a little light then usual what do I recommend
Hi Sally could I substitute half of the granulated sugar for brown sugar and use chopped walnuts in place of chocolate chips?
Hi Joan! Neither of those should be an issue – happy baking!
Thank u love your recipes!
This is the best chocolate cake I’ve ever had!! However, I didn’t use the frosting recipe. I made a 3-layer cake (used coconut oil) and filled it with white chocolate mousse. I’m not a big fan of buttercream frosting so I used my ermine frosting recipe. This was a huge hit at our family gathering! I’m not a chocoholic, but I loved, loved, loved this very moist cake. Thank you Sally!
Delicious cake! However, next time I make it I will reduce the sugar in both the cake and the frosting, I found it to be far too sweet.
Hi! Instead of making chocolate buttercream, can I make vanilla buttercream? I would like to make an ice cream drip chocolate lake in pastel colors with this recipe. Thanks!
Hi Deeps, absolutely! Vanilla buttercream would be delicious with this cake.
Would doubling this recipe make sense to make a tiered cake?
3 6″ layers and 3 8″ layer?
Hi Emma! We don’t recommend this cake for the bottom of a tiered cake (it’s not sturdy enough). 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!
Hello! Are there any adjustments you’d recommend for baking at a higher altitude? I’m at 4,500 ft. I’d like to make this for a birthday cake this week. TIA
Hi Courtney, I wish we could help, but have no experience baking at high altitude. Some readers have found this chart helpful: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/high-altitude-baking.html
Omg this was a super good chocolate cake you definitely weren’t lying!!! My family absolutely LOVED IT one said it was the best chocolate cake he had! I halved it and reduced the sugar too 100 grams and it was perfect will definitely make this again, btw peeps you can make it in the air fryer the times are 170 Celsius for twenty mins it may not look as nice but it’s still absolutely amazing
Hi,
Would this chocolate cake recipe work for a bundt cake?
Hi Melissa! We recommend following our Chocolate Cream Cheese Bundt Cake recipe, but you can leave out the cream cheese swirl. It has the same great taste as this cake but is a little sturdier to hold up to a bundt pan.
Hello Sally,
I am looking for a chocolate cake to be the base in a chocoflan my husband wants. I have used many of your recipes and absolutely love them. Would either version (sour cream or original) work well with a flan mixture on top?
Thanks
Hi Kayla! We haven’t tested this cake recipe as the base of a chocoflan so can’t offer much advice – let us know if you give it a try!
Hi! Can the baking powder and baking soda be substituted for self raising four? TIA x
Hi Abbie, we don’t recommend using self rising flour in this recipe. It would take additional recipe testing to ensure accurate results
Hello Sally I want to make this Into a 10 inch 3 layer cake. Which version would work best? Only buttermilk or should I add the sour cream? Thank you so much!
Hi Ana! We would use the sour cream version detailed in the recipe notes. Here is everything you need to know about converting recipes to different Cake Pan Sizes.
Made this a few times in a matter of weeks and its come out absolutely perfect. I did unrefined coconut oil for the oil, skipped espresso powder. I made a cinnamon buttercream with it. So good.
Which version did you use? The buttermilk version only or with sour cream? I want to make a 3 layer 10inch cake but I’m unsure which would be best.
Hello, the cake turned out amazing but I’m struggling with the frosting! It’s really grainy. Do you any advice on how to fix it? Thank you so much
Hi Andre! Usually grainy frosting is from the powdered sugar – the consistency can vary by brand. We recommend sifting it next time!
Hello! I am making this for Thanksgiving and wanted to try out a chocolate Swiss buttercream instead of American. Would you recommend this? And if so, can I keep the same frosting ingredients but just add the meringue?
Thank you so much! I LOVE all your recipes. They have all been a hit. ❤️
Hi Ainsley, this cake would be delicious with a chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream. We recommend following our Swiss meringue buttercream recipe instead (see FAQ section — “Can I add flavors?” for details on a chocolate version). Enjoy!
Hi, thank you for the recipe. How can i make the cake taste a little bit more like coffee? Like a a
String hint of coffee? Thanks again!
Hi Andre! Additional espresso powder or instant coffee would do the trick – let us know how it goes!
1 teaspoon of salt is huge. A pinch will do it. The cake ended up salty af after that teaspoon…. everything else was good…but couldn’t eat ot as you could only taste the salt lol. Such a shame
Hi Sally,
Thank you for this amazing recipe! I live in the UK and am used to measuring by weight, never cups. I thought I’d try cup measurements when making my son’s birthday cake and was pleasantly surprised at how beautifully it turned out. A couple of family members asked where I had bought the cake! Will certainly be trying some more of your recipes. Thank you!
Can you replace the 3 TB of heavy cream in the frosting for 3 TB of sour cream?
Hi Dawn, we don’t recommend swapping it with sour cream, but regular milk will work in a pinch!
Absolutely delicious! I did 1.5 of the recipe to make two 7×11 cakes (plus 9 cupcakes with the leftovers). It has such a deep flavor and the frosting is amazing. I also made the regular vanilla buttercream for some decoration as it was for a birthday cake. Definitely my new chocolate cake recipe!
Hi! Will this cake go well with the chocolate mousse filling of the previous recipe? Would you recommend covering this with that recipe’s ganache our would you alter anything? I’ve done that last year and it was great but was looking to switch it up a bit. Thank you 🙂
Hi Carolina, You can absolutely fill this cake with chocolate mousse and top with ganache. Enjoy!
Cake is great! Rich, moist and dense. The frosting is unfortunately garbage. Waste of butter and sugar, I should have just bought a jar in the store. It was very disappointing.
This frosting is the best , I do not use store bought it has no flavor and taste like salt ! This frosting is the best !!
Is it possible to 1.5 this recipe?
Hi Sean, yes, you can 1.5x this recipe for a three layer cake. Happy baking!
How would I 1/2 an egg?
Hi Sean, Our general rule for halving an egg is to crack it open, beat the yolk and white together with a fork, measure the volume (should be a few Tbsp), then use half.
I added heavy cream by mistake instead of butter milk since I didn’t have it on hand. I’m hoping the cake is still good. Will it make a huge difference? Is the cake still edible?
Absolutely wonderful! I’ve been baking for 25 years and LOVE cake. I tried this recipe when asked on short notice to make cake for 200 for a funeral and the cake and frosting are both wonderful. Thank you!
Hello,
Can i use three 6″ pans instead of the 8″ or 9″ pans?
Thanks
Hi Surayya, 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!
I am writing you from Spain, love your blog!
Will for sure bake this cake for my next birthday party, but just one question: espresso powder is NOT instant coffee powder right? Can I use the same coffee powder I use in my espresso machine I guess?
Thanks in advance!!!
Hi Almudena, If your coffee powder is instant, it would work okay. You can use the same amount of instant coffee (the powder) instead of espresso powder if desired.