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
Keywords: cake, chocolate cake
This is THE chocolate cake recipe. Ultra moist without excess oil. The coffee gives it a bold chocolate flavor without tasting like coffee.
I am NOT a baker and this came out absolutely excellent. Sally writes great recipes.
★★★★★
Hiya! Is it possible if I can use a 8inch cake tin instead of a 9?
Hi Morayo, you can use this recipe as written to make a 2-layer 8-inch cake. The layers will be slightly thicker and may take a bit longer in the oven, so keep an eye on them. The cakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Hello! Do you think greek yogurt can be used instead of sour cream and still make a sturdy enough cake to put fondant on? Thanks in advanced.
Yes, absolutely. You can make that swap.
Amazing! Thanks again 🙂
This is basically the best chocolate cake I’ve ever made and I have tried quite a few recipes. The flavor of just delicious – rich, chocolately, moist…it hits all of the points. It is NOT a fluffy cake. Honestly, I only make 2 layers and they are still pretty flat but you are just going to cover it up with frosting or ganache or whatever so I really don’t care. This is absolutely my go to.
I want to make this tomorrow for my granddaughters birthday, but do not want to put coffee or expresso in it. Can you substitute something for the coffee and expresso? Thank you
Hi Heather! See recipe notes for details: 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.
This is an amazing cake! So delicious!! I made this for dessert last night for neighbors who were coming over for dinner . They loved it ! I sent them home with some ! I didn’t do the chocolate chips on top but the cake was so moist and the frosting was wonderful! Not too sweet but creamy ! I had some leftover frosting that I saved as I could just eat that! I made the recipe with half cup coffee and half cup buttermilk and 3/4 cup
Sour cream! I didn’t have expresso powder so didn’t do that . It’s now my favorite recipe for chocolate cake! Thank you !
★★★★★
Can I use this recipe for cupcakes? Looks amazing!
Hi Annie, if you’re just looking for a small batch of cupcakes, these chocolate cupcakes have the same great taste!
I made this for my wife’s birthday, OMG, this is the best chocolate cake ever!
★★★★★
I made this for our 30th wedding anniversary as a surprise for hubby and sons. It was a change from normally making your red velvet cake for special occasions and it was a complete hit!! The chocolate buttercream frosting is yummy. My younger son is going to the PRIDE parade tomorrow and I’m going to bake him a cake to celebrate him as the amazing human being he is. I haven’t decided yet if it will be your red velvet cake or this triple chocolate cake but know either one will be a lovely surprise for him. I am very grateful I found your site in this past year, you have helped to make special occasions that bit more special for the whole family. Apologies this post wasn’t all about the actual baking process but wanted to express my thanks to you Sally and your crew for the hard work and dedication put into your site.
★★★★★
I agree, she isn’t thanked enough
I absolutely LOVE this recipie, I’m wanting to use if for a 6 inch cake, would dividing it in to 3, 6 inch cake tins be okay? Thank you!
★★★★★
Hi,
Baking is my passion and you are my “go to” for recipes. I am going to make this cake as a 2 layer 10 x 15 sheet cake. I will double the recipe. Will that be o.k.? I read somewhere that doubling a recipe does not work, sometimes.
Hi Kathee! It is generally better to make separate batches instead of multiplying cake recipes because it is very easy to over or under-mix larger quantities of batter. Plus, it’s easier to make measuring mistakes when multiplying ingredients. We usually recommend making multiple batches for these reasons. Here is everything you need to know about converting recipes to different Cake Pan Sizes as well!
I made this exactly as written and it was amazing! I made your strawberry buttercream for the middle layer and covered the cake in the chocolate buttercream. Rave reviews across the board.
Is it possible to make the frosting but leave out the chocolate? I’ve been asked to make a chocolate cake but with white frosting. Do you have a different frosting you would reccommend?
Hi Betsy, you can use our vanilla buttercream instead. Enjoy!
The pictures of your cake look so delicious I’m going to try the recipe this weekend can I substitute espresso powder with instant espresso coffee?
Hi Mia! Yes, absolutely.
I am making a 2 tier stacked cake for a birthday. Would you use the sour cream version for that?
Hi Irene, while the sour cream version is a bit sturdier, it’s still a bit too light to serve as the bottom tier of a 2 tier cake. You could, however, use it for the top tier. Hope this helps!
Thanks, do you have a chocolate cake you would suggest?
Hi Irene, at this time we don’t have a sturdy enough chocolate cake for the bottom tier.
Absolutely amazing! Best cake I’ve ever made. Sally never lets us down.
★★★★★
I made this for a 50th birthday, and heard sooo many compliments! Very moist cake and the buttercream is to die for.
★★★★★
I’m making it again! I didn’t have enough regular cocoa powder so about 2/3 of the cocoa is black cocoa. I left out the espresso powder. Holy moly. It’s amazing.
★★★★★
I needed some chocolate cake layers (making a giant ding dong cake lol) and these came out truly perfect. I followed the recipe to a T using a scale and I mean its bakery quality. Also came together super fast. Mine baked for 26 minutes and haven’t really sank in the middle or anything. 10/10 will be my go to chocolate cake recipe. To anyone curious, no, it doesn’t taste anything like coffee, but the chocolate flavor is so oh so rich and deep.
★★★★★
I loved this recipe so much!
Hello trying this for the first time for my grandmothers birthday. She is not a fan of coffee taste is the coffee super strong in this recipe? I am going to leave the espresso out and just use the hot coffee. But don’t want it to taste like a coffee cake. Can I use less coffee or will that change the consistency?
Hi Alexis! The coffee taste is not strong, it just deepens the chocolate flavor. Let us know how it goes!
It turned out amazing!! She couldn’t taste the coffee at all and we all enjoyed it! Perfect precise recipe. Will be my go to for chocolate cake from now on!
Hi Sally. Love your recipes. Making this cake for my daughter’s birthday. I noticed the recipe says to let the cakes cool in the pan. Wondering why we do this. I’ve always been taught to remove them after about 10 minutes. I’m always eager to learn when it comes to baking!
Hi Lori! We like to let them fully cool in the pan because warm cakes have a tendency to break when removing from the pans – especially with a very moist and delicate cake like this one. Thank you so much for making our recipes!
I can’t find regular buttermilk only low-fat, but I found Kemps Buttermilk Blend with Whole Milk. Will that work for the buttermilk option? Thank you 🙂
Hi Nora! Low fat buttermilk works just fine here. Happy baking!
just baked this. NOTE THAT BAKING TIMES MAY VARY CONSIDERABLY. MY CAKES TOOK 45 MINUTES TO BE BAKED. USE THE TOOTHPICK!! DONT RELY ON THE TIMES. also, the icing is LUSH it tastes so good omg. i used double cream but be careful not to overwhip it only a minute or so is enough. i needed 4.5 tablespoons of cream. also takes a WHOLE box of icing sugar lol. and loads of butter. but again, this tastes SOOOO good better than betty crocker for sure. seems hard to make, but it isnt. just expensive.
Can you make this into a 3 tiered cake?
Hi Morgan! This cake recipe isn’t sturdy enough to function as the bottom or middle of a tiered cake.
I’ve never left a review before but I had to for this! Instead of espresso powder I used hazelnut medium roast instant coffee and then I also used that same coffee for the cup of hot coffee and OMG the hazelnut flavor with the chocolate was amazing. I made it with 7-minute frosting and the family loved it so much!! Thank you for the recipe! Will be making this again soon!
So glad it was a hit with your family, Maddie!
Does this cake get hard in the refrigerator . Is it recommended to use sugar syrup on top ?
Hi Eti, it does not get hard in the refrigerator. We don’t use a soaking syrup on top, but you certainly can if you’d like.
Do you have an equally moist white/yellow/vanilla cake recipe?
Hi Jennifer, here are our favorite white cake and yellow cake recipes. Both wonderfully soft and moist!
I made this recipe vegan for some friends that were visiting. I substituted chia seeds for the eggs, cashew yogurt for the buttermilk, vegan butter and almond milk for the heavy cream and the reviews were raves. It was so moist and delicious and even the non-vegans loved it!!
my cake fell in the middle. I followed the instructions the only thing different i put it in a metal pan 9×13 size
★★★★★