the best chocolate cake I've ever made
a chocolate lover's dream 🍫
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When it comes to chocolate, I don’t mess around. Earlier this year, I was on the quest to discover the perfect chocolate cake, and I knew I had to deliver. I’m a bit persnickety when it comes to desserts - I generally avoid things that are too sweet or guaranteed to cause a sugar crash. We’ve all had the chocolate cake that made us want to take a nap after three bites. This cake is rich, moist, and has the perfect amount of chocolate flavor without coating your mouth with too much sticky sweetness. It’s light enough to make you want to go back for more, but still decadent enough to really satisfy that deep chocolate craving.
Getting here was a bit tricky – I ended up making a few cakes before getting it right. My first was so dry, dense, and acidic that I gave David permission to throw the entire thing off our deck and into the creek. He loves cake more than anyone else I know, so it was clear that my first cake was truly awful 😂
Recipe adapted from Hershey’s Deep Dark Chocolate Cake.
Ingredients
For the Cake:
2 cups granulated sugar
1 3⁄4 cups all-purpose flour
3⁄4 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder
1½ teaspoons baking powder
1½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
½ cup vegetable oil or melted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ teaspoon espresso powder
1 cup boiling water
For the Frosting:
12 tablespoons salted butter, room temperature
2 pounds (32 oz) powdered sugar
1 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder
2⁄3 cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
Cake:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease two 9 inch round cake pans, and put a pot or kettle on to boil water.
In a stand mixer or large bowl, mix together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, espresso powder, and salt. Beat in eggs, vegetable oil or butter, and vanilla until well combined, about 2 minutes.
Gently pour in boiling water and continue to mix until well incorporated. Then, evenly distribute your batter into your cake pans.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean.
Allow cakes to cool completely before adding frosting.
Frosting
With an electric mixer, cream the butter. Pour in vanilla and slowly add powdered sugar a cup at a time, mixing until there are no lumps. Then, alternate small amounts of cocoa and milk until all ingredients are incorporated. Be sure to regularly scrape down the sides of the bowl while mixing.
Once cakes are cooled, frost the cake layers generously. Any additional frosting freezes well in an airtight container.
Enjoy!
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