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There’s a reason I call this the Best Chocolate Cake Recipe: it’s so good restaurants have asked me to start making it for them! This moist and fluffy chocolate cake is going to be your go-to recipe once you try it.
The Best Homemade Chocolate Cake
This is the kind of chocolate cake everyone should have in their recipe collection. An easy, one-bowl cake with the perfect crumb that’s covered with a simple homemade chocolate buttercream frosting. This moist cake is made completely from scratch and has incredible chocolate flavor.
I literally cannot stop eating this cake whenever I make it.
I made this cake for my niece’s birthday last year. When it was served, one of the moms asked my sister-in-law where she’d gotten the cake. She pointed at me and the mom came over to ask me about it. Turns out she has two restaurants in Atlanta and was curious if I’d be interested in making cakes for her restaurant.
Whaaaaaat?!?
Pretty neat, but I actually said no. However, this cake is THAT good! Make it and you just might be asked to bake for a restaurant. And whether you want to actually do that or not, don’t you want to be the one with a cake that’s so good you could bake for a restaurant? You know you do. 😉
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
After testing many chocolate cake recipes, this one is hands down the best. Here’s why:
- It’s easy to make. Only one bowl!
- Uses simple ingredients.
- Has a rich chocolate flavor with a moist, fluffy crumb.
- Is covered is an easy chocolate buttercream frosting.
- Is drizzled with chocolate ganache.
How is this Recipe Different?
If you’re familiar with my recipes, then you’ve probably seen several variations on chocolate cake. This is my original chocolate cake and is still my favorite to this day. It’s my go-to. That said, I definitely have more than one recipe! Here is how they differ:
- My Easy Moist Chocolate Cake Recipe was created after getting quite a few comments from people who were confused about the low baking temperature of this cake. So the newer version is baked at 350 degrees, eliminating the confusion. As a result of the changes made in that recipe, it’s not quite as tender as this original version. But it can be handy if you need a more sturdy cake for something you’re decorating. Both of these chocolate cakes use oil, which I think works really well in chocolate cake especially. It adds great moisture.
- My Chocolate Piñata Cake uses butter instead of oil simply because some readers prefer the taste of butter and I aim to please! Plus, as far as sturdiness goes, butter based cakes are generally much more sturdy. That’s why this version of chocolate cake holds up much better to having holes cut into it and being filled like a piñata. 🙂
So to recap, the main difference between this recipe and my others is that this one is the most tender and moist, it uses oil instead of butter and it is baked at a lower temperature (which means it also takes a little longer to bake).
What You’ll Need
You won’t need any fancy ingredients to make this easy chocolate cake. Here’s a quick overview of what you’ll need. Be sure to scroll down to the recipe card for specific amounts.
Chocolate Cake
- All purpose flour
- Sugar
- Natural unsweetened cocoa powder – I often make this cake with dark chocolate cocoa. It gives the cake an even more rich chocolate flavor. That said, regular cocoa works too and is also wonderful.
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Eggs
- Buttermilk
- Vegetable oil – This cake is made with oil, instead of butter. It makes SUCH a moist cake!
- Vanilla
- Hot Water
Frosting
- Butter – At room temperature
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- Water or milk
Ganache & Decorations
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Heavy whipping cream
- Sprinkles – Optional
How to Make Chocolate Cake
One thing to note is that this cake has a very thin batter. And no, it’s not a typo – it’s a slow-bake cake that bakes at 300 degrees.
So, here’s how you make it:
Make the Cake
- Prepare your pan & preheat the oven. Prepare three 8 inch cake pans with parchment paper circles in the bottom, and grease the sides. Preheat oven to 300°F (148°C).
- Mix the dry ingredients. Add all dry ingredients to a large bowl and whisk together.
- Add the wet ingredients. Add eggs, buttermilk and vegetable oil to the dry ingredients and mix well. Add vanilla to boiling water and add to mixture. Mix well.
- Bake. Divide batter evenly between cakes pans and bake for 30-33 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs.
- Cool. Remove cakes from oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes, then remove to cooling racks to cool completely.
Make the Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
I usually make the chocolate frosting while the cakes cool. Here’s how:
- Beat the butter in a stand mixer until smooth.
- Add the sugar. Slowly add 4 cups (460g) of powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
- Add vanilla and half of the water or milk and mix until smooth.
- More sugar. Add another 5 cups (575g) of powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
- Mix in the cocoa powder. Add cocoa and mix until smooth.
- Add remaining water or milk until the frosting is the right consistency.
Frost Your Cake
Once cakes are cool, remove cake domes from top with a large serrated knife. See my tips on how to level a cake and how to stack a cake.
- Frost the first layer. Place first layer of cake on cake plate. Spread about 1 cup of frosting on top in an even layer.
- Frost the second layer. Add second layer of cake and add another cup of frosting on top in an even layer.
- Add more frosting. Frost the outside of the entire cake to finish things up. Feel free to use my tutorial for frosting a smooth cake.
Make the Chocolate Ganache & Add More Frosting
Technically you could just stop right here. By this point, you’ll have an amazing cake with chocolate buttercream frosting! But if you want to go a bit fancy, this chocolate ganache is an easy way to do it.
To make the chocolate ganache:
- Add the chocolate chips to a medium-sized bowl (see my tips on making chocolate ganache).
- Heat the heavy whipping cream just until it begins to boil, then pour it over the chocolate chips. Allow it to sit for 2-3 minutes, then whisk until smooth.
That’s it. Just two steps! Then you add the ganache to your cake:
- Drizzle the chocolate ganache around the edge of the cake, then pour the remainder of the ganache on top of the cake and spread evenly. I like to use a squeeze bottle for drizzling around the edges. See my tips on making a chocolate drip cake.
- Allow the ganache to firm up a bit
- Pipe the remainder of the frosting around the top edge of the cake and pipe a border around the bottom. I used Ateco tip 844.
Add Sprinkles and Serve!
Add a few sprinkles to the cake, if desired, then serve. Sprinkles are totally optional of course, but why not?
How to Store a Frosted Cake
This cake can be stored for 3-4 days on the counter. It should be well covered under a cake dome if possible.
You can also store it in the fridge to extend its shelf life to 4-5 days, but the frosting will harden. When I store a frosted cake in the fridge I usually place the cake in the fridge uncovered until the frosting hardens (about 2 hours). Then I cover it with saran wrap.
When you are ready to have some cake, simply cut a slice and warm it in the microwave (if desired) for about 15-30 seconds. The frosting will soften right up and you’ll have warm chocolate cake to enjoy.
Recipes That Use This Cake as a Starting Point
This recipe is so simple and easy to make, in addition to being delicious, that it has actually become the base for many other flavor combinations I’ve made and it’s always a hit!
- Nutella Chocolate Cake
- Baileys Chocolate Poke Cake
- Mint Chocolate Chip Layer Cake
- Turtle Chocolate Layer Cake
- Red Wine Chocolate Cake
- Chocolate Oreo Cake
Watch How To Make It
Print
The Best Chocolate Cake Recipe
- Prep Time: 40 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 12-14 slices
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
This is the Best Chocolate Cake recipe! Moist homemade chocolate cake made completely from scratch. This is the kind of chocolate cake everyone should have in their recipe collection!
Ingredients
CHOCOLATE CAKE
- 2 cups (260g) all-purpose flour (measured correctly)
- 2 cups (414g) sugar
- 3/4 cup (85g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup (240ml) buttermilk
- 1 cup (240ml) vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup (240ml) hot water
CHOCOLATE FROSTING
- 2 1/2 cups (560g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 9 cups (1035g) powdered sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup (114g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4–5 tbsp (60-75ml) water/milk
- Pinch of salt
CHOCOLATE GANACHE
- 6 oz (1 cup | 169g) semi sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- Sprinkles
Instructions
Make the Cakes
- Prepare three 8 inch cake pans with parchment paper circles in the bottom, and grease the sides.
- Preheat oven to 300°F (148°C).
- Add all dry ingredients to a large bowl and whisk together.
- Add eggs, buttermilk and vegetable oil to the dry ingredients and mix well.
- Add vanilla to hot water and add to mixture. Mix well.
- Divide batter evenly between cakes pans and bake for 30-33 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs.
- Remove cakes from oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes, then remove to cooling racks to cool completely.
Make the Frosting
- Make frosting while cakes cool. Beat the butter in a large mixing bowl until smooth.
- Slowly add 4 cups (460g) of powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
- Add vanilla and half of the water or milk and mix until smooth.
- Add another 5 cups (575g) of powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
- Add cocoa and mix until smooth.
- Add remaining water or milk until the frosting is the right consistency.
Assemble the Cake
- Once cakes are cool, remove cake domes from top with a large serrated knife. See my tips on how to level a cake and how to stack a cake.
- Place first layer of cake on cake plate. Spread about 1 cup of frosting on top in an even layer.
- Add second layer of cake and add another cup of frosting on top in an even layer.
- Add final layer of cake on top and frost the outside of the cake. Feel free to use my tutorial for frosting a smooth cake.
Make the Chocolate Ganache
- To make the chocolate ganache, add the chocolate chips to a medium sized bowl (see my tips on making chocolate ganache).
- Heat the heavy whipping cream just until it begins to boil, then pour it over the chocolate chips. Allow it to sit for 2-3 minutes, then whisk until smooth.
Finish Cake
- Drizzle the chocolate ganache around the edge of the cake, then pour the remainder of the ganache on top of the cake and spread evenly. I like to use a squeeze bottle for drizzling around the edges. See my tips on making a chocolate drip cake.
- Allow the ganache to firm up a bit, then pipe the remainder of the frosting around the top edge of the cake and pipe a border around the bottom. I used Ateco tip 844.
- Add a few sprinkles to the cake, if desired, then serve. Cake is best when well covered for 3-4 days.
Notes
This recipe calls for hot water. You don’t have to use hot water – the cake will still bake fine – but the hot water allows the cocoa to “bloom”, which brings out a richer chocolate flavor in the cake.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 941
- Sugar: 101 g
- Sodium: 496.6 mg
- Fat: 49.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 127.7 g
- Protein: 7 g
- Cholesterol: 38.1 mg
Enjoy!
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I have to say I was a skeptic, not on the taste but the cooking time. 30 minutes at 300 degrees, no way! But YES!! It totally cooked in that timeframe and perfectly. However I didnt have 3, 8″ pans only 2 so I split between the two and made mini cupcakes. If I split between 3 pans I would have had very thins cakes. They rose but then shrunk after cooling. The cake is extremely soft, moist, perfect texture and it taste good, it wasnt the best cake for me.
Are you sure you used baking SODA and not baking powder?
What brand of cocoa do you use?
Hersheys
Hiya, I’m making this cake, but 30 minutes in and it is super liquidy in the middle still. Do I just keep adding time?
That seems strange, but I’d guess more time would be needed.
HI! This recipe was delicious and moist, however, when I made it, the layers turned out extremely thin, about half of what it was supposed to be. Just curious about what happened. We live in the Dominican Republic, so it is very humid here. Could that have been the problem? Thanks!
Humidity could possibly have something to do with it. I’d also check that you used baking soda and not baking powder.
Thank you for this recipe. I baked this cake exactly as you directed for my son’s birthday, and we three who ate it agree it’s the BEST chocolate cake ever – moist, flavorful, and perfect in texture. I used your easy vanilla buttercream frosting instead of the chocolate buttercream icing, and I had just enough coverage for this cake, plus enough for the middle layers. You helped bring extra joy to my son’s birthday weekend – thanks again! I am putting this recipe in circulation in my personal cookbook as my only go-to chocolate cake recipe, even above and beyond those I’ve used for years from Martha and Betty.
So glad to hear that!
I finally did it! First and most importantly, this truly was the best chocolate cake I have ever tasted, and the chocolate buttercream frosting was heavenly. This is coming from someone who is not a fan of any frosting so I normally scrape it off. But THIS frosting…i couldn’t help but eat right along with the cake. Not only was it delicious, but it was the perfect complement to such a moist cake.
For the recipe, just a few things I learned the hard way in hopes that it will help someone else. First, I agree with the others who commented that it took longer to bake (closer to 45-50 minutes at 300). But that was not big deal, I just kept checking it with the toothpicks until it was done.
Second, this cake is SUPER MOIST like Lindsay says, so it’s a total pain to frost. I managed to get there eventually, but just trying to do the crumb coat made me want to throw the cake at the wall several times. Use a LOT of frosting and a light hand with the spatula when spreading. It mike look like a mess but you can always cover it with the next layer. Take your time and be patient.
Third, the Wilton #789 tip that Lindsay recommends for frosting the sides of the cake is an absolute MUST. I thought I could get away with using the angled spatula and turntable and boy was I wrong. Thankfully I had made two cakes (longer story involving the oven temp on the first cake), so I experimented with frosting the first cake (which I gave to my neighbors), saw the error of my ways, and ran out to purchase the suggested icing tip for frosting the second cake, which was for my husbands birthday. It was still a chore, because the cake is so moist, but without this frosting tip it was not only impossible, but horribly unattractive!
Fourth, the other tool I could not have done this without was the Ateco Decorating Comb, which Lindsay also recommended (for frosting a smooth cake). Regardless of how smooth you want your frosting to be, without this tool, I think it would be extremely difficult to frost THIS moist of a cake using this type of frosting.
The last tool I wish I would have purchased was the cake lifter. I probably wouldn’t use it for all cakes, but for this one, again because it is SO moist, it would have made things so much easier. Thankfully, I did purchase some of the cardboard rounds, so I was able to improvise with those and only managed to crack one layer (not bad!)
Please keep in mind that I am a total beginner here. So the more seasoned bakers may know some other tricks to avoid needing all the tools, but I felt like they were a tremendous help.
Lindsay – I hope you don’t mind my tips for any other beginners. I don’t want them to get frustrated and give up because this cake is amazing and so delicious. I wish I could upload a photo because it looks like something from a magazine! It came out beautiful and delicious. I posted it on my FB and I had more comments about how beautiful the cake was than “tell your hubby happy birthday” LOL! And most importantly, he loved it! We’ve been together 23 years and this was the first cake I ever made for him from scratch. He said it was well worth the wait!
Your tips are great and it’s great to hear that my tips were helpful ultimately. So glad you enjoyed the cake!
Hi – I have 9 inch cake pans – can you make any recommendations for possible changes in bake time?
If you’re using two layers, the time is probably similar, actually. If doing three layers, it’d be less but I’m not sure by how much.
Baked this cake this afternoon and just had to comment! I used hot coffee instead of hot water but otherwise followed this recipe exactly and it is SO THICK, RICH AND MOIST. I used 6” cake pans that are about 3” deep and filled half full. I ended up having to almost double the cook time before they were cooked through to the centre but it was worth it. They are so dense and delicious – almost the texture of a flourless chocolate torte or a brownie. I will definitely be using this recipe again!
One last question Lindsay…. I made this cake today, but I got confused reading the beginning of the post when you said you had changed the temp to 350 (you were talking about your other chocolate cake!). I realized my mistake about 15 minutes into the baking time and turned the oven down to 300 to finish it out. My husband’s birthday is tomorrow so I have time to re-do if you think the consistency will be off. Should I re-do or leave it? They seem to have come out ok and right around the time you said 30 minutes (not all pans were done at the same time because I think one had more batter than the others…oops). Please advise?
Sorry, I got to your question too late. How did it turn out?
No worries! I decided since I had enough ingredients to give the first one to my neighbors and make a second one (at the right temp!) for my hubby’s birthday, just in case! I gave the details below in another post with some tips I learned as a beginner and trying this recipe BUT it ended up coming out amazing. First cake (temperature oops) was tasty but did not hold up well to handling or frosting! Second cake was a bit of a challenge to frost because it is so moist but came out beautiful (like magazine beautiful) and was the most delicious cake that I (or my family) has ever eaten!!!!!! Thank you so much for your responses and for sharing this recipe in the first place.
i have 9 inch cake pans – can i use them and perhaps it will be baked for a slightly shorter time?
Yes.
Great! Thanks so much for taking the time to respond.
Hi Lindsay,
I’m getting ready to attempt this recipe for my husbands birthday and I had one question. This may sound dumb, but I notice that you use a hand mixer for a lot of your videos. Is there a reason, like is it better to use the hand mixer or can I use my Kitchen Aid mixer? Thanks so much!
I use my kitchen aid when baking but often use the hand one in videos because it’s easier to show. Both work just fine.
I have made so many chocolate cake recipes and this is literally the best. It has a lovely chocolate flavour without being heavy or dense. I could probably eat the whole cake in one sitting, its dangerous!
I’ve made it repeatedly and have shared the recipe with my friends who also agree it is the best. So thank you for sharing!
BEST CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPE EVER! My mom who hates chocolate cakes is obsessed! Seriously so good and moist! I put caramel sauce as a filling between each layer and everyone loved it!
Truly appreciate the way you have made this delicious cake. I am not a baker but you described everything so nicely that really helped me to make it. Though it was not as beautiful as yours for my first try, i hope next time it would be better. Thanks for the lovely treat.
Also… what is shortening? I’m in UK. Thanks
I’m in the UK and I just use butter (so the weight of butter plus the weight of shortening as butter). I think you can use shortening if you live in a hotter climate to make it less likely to melt? Or something like that.