A good chocolate cake recipe is so hard to come by, just like a good brownie recipe. There are always high hopes and promises of what you’re looking for, but the delivery can be opposite and sometimes less than what you’re craving.
While I’ve tried so many chocolate cakes over the years, and failed following so many different recipes, it was time to take matters into my own hands and come up with the best chocolate cake we’ve ever had. That’s a HUGE call to make, I know. As a result…this one takes the cake.
Chocolate Cake RECIPE
Just the same as these Best Fudgy Cocoa Brownies, I wanted FUDGY, but being a cake, I wanted FLUFFY — and MOST OF ALL I wanted uncomplicated steps. No melted butter combined with an abundance of chocolate; melted on the stove in a pot, then a dry mix combined in one bowl and a wet mix combined in another bowl, and a headache plus 2 pain killers and a bottle of vino later…..a cake is born.
This one is different. One bowl. No beaters or kitchen aids and zero sifters or pans. Just a humble bowl and a wooden spoon. No pain killers or wine needed.
This fudgy chocolate cake took many MANY batches to perfect the right balance of flour, oil, cocoa powder and baking powder.
Finally I did it. Look at THAT! ⬇ SUPER fudgy and MOIST! We almost loved this fudgy chocolate cake as much as (or the same as) those brownies. I said, almost.
GANACHE
The most perfect ganache using ONLY a small saucepan to make it. No separate bowls or metal bowls, or whatever. So uncomplicated, you won’t believe it until you try it. It’s a matter of heating cream > adding in the chocolate chips > waiting for it to melt > stir > done. Even the laziest person could pull this cake off.
Me, being the laziest person.
I know this is an all out decadent recipe, BUT this cake uses only half the amount of oil usually found in chocolate cakes, less flour, no butter, while keeping a maximum rich chocolate flavour. Also, a sugar substitute can be used such as a natural granulated sweetener that measures 1:1 with sugar to reduce calorie count.
HOW TO MAKE A CHOCOLATE CAKE
The easiest, MOST amazing, and BEST chocolate cake, using simple ingredients and little time and effort to pull together. The batter is watery when you first mix it together, but it’s meant to be that way. That’s where the fudge-like texture comes in!
Some Tips:
I use a dark, unsweetened cocoa powder for maximum chocolate richness. You can use Hershey’s Unsweetened Cocoa powder if you wish. Remember: the darker the cocoa powder, the richer and darker the cake.
Do not substitute the oil for melted butter.
You can use full fat milk, reduced fat milk, 2% or skim.
The coffee in this recipe CAN NOT be tasted, but allows a rich chocolate taste to shine right through.
Please try not to over bake it as that will dry out this cake. Check it after 30 minutes with a toothpick inserted into the centre. If too much batter sticks to the toothpick, continue baking for another 10 minutes and check again. Our cake baked at exactly 45 minutes, and the toothpick was a little dirty when it came out. THIS is the result you will be looking for if you’re wanting a moist texture.
Make the chocolate ganache as soon as the cake comes out of the oven. It will be ready and firm enough to spread by the time the cake has cooled down completely.
The most amazing, ONE BOWL, Best Fudgy Chocolate Cake is rich and decadent, with the perfect balance of fluffy and fudgy! An ORIGINAL Cafe Delites RECIPE!
1 ½cupswhite granulated sugaror a natural granulated baking sweetener measuring 1:1 with sugar
½cupunsweetened cocoa powder
1 ½teaspoonsbaking powder
½teaspoonsalt
⅓cupvegetable oil
1largeegg
1tablespoonpure vanilla extract(20 ml)
¾cupmilk(190 ml)
2teaspoonsinstant coffeemixed with ¾ cup (190 ml) Boiling water
CHOCOLATE GANACHE:
1cupheavy cream or thickened cream
8ozsemi sweet chocolate chipsor dark chocolate chips
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Lightly grease an 8-inch round cake pan (or 9-inch) with non stick cooking oil spraying. Line base with parchment paper. *SEE NOTES*
CHOCOLATE CAKE:
Combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Whisk thoroughly to combine well.
Add oil, egg, vanilla and milk to the flour mixture and beat well to combine, about 30 seconds. Pour in the boiling water (with the coffee), and mix until glossy. (Cake batter is thin in consistency.)
Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre of the chocolate cake comes out semi-clean with small amount of cake (not runny batter) on it due to the fudgy texture.
Remove from oven and allow to cool for 20 minutes. Transfer cake from the pan to a wire rack and cool completely before frosting.
CHOCOLATE GANACHE:
Pour the cream into a small saucepan and heat over low heat for a few minutes. Watch that it doesn’t boil or simmer it. Once the cream is hot, turn stove off and take the saucepan off the heat.
Add in the chocolate chips; cover saucepan with a lid and let sit for a good 5 minutes to soften and melt the chocolate.
Uncover, and stir slowly first, with a spatula or wooden spoon, gradually mixing faster until ganache is smooth, creamy and glossy. Refrigerate for one hour or hour and a half until thick enough to spread (similar consistency to Nutella).
Spread evenly over the cake.
Notes
BAKING POWDER: This cake is meant to be super moist and fudgy. If you like a fluffier cake, use 2 teaspoons baking powder. Any more than that and your cake will rise too much and crack through the middle. Baking soda is not needed in this recipe.SPRINGFORM PAN (PLEASE NOTE)Springform pans are NOT 100% leakproof. Very thin cake batters such as this one will leak through the base. To combat this issue, line the base with parchment paper coming up where the sides meets the base to create a ‘cover’. Place a baking sheet on the shelf below the cake pan (or the bottom of the oven) to catch any stray drips (don’t put cake pans directly on the pan).
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Black Bettysays
There’s no reason for this cake to be this good!!! My diabetic husband wanted a dense fudgy chocolate cake. He was in mourning so I went on and made it. OMG, it is soooo good. I baked it in two round pans so I could ice it like a layer cake. Absolute chocolaty goodness,
This recipe is soo good. Thank you. I made the cake for my granddaughters birthday because she requested chocolate cake and it was a major succes. Now I wonder if I would substitute the cacao powder for more flour and replace de coffee for more milk if it would turn out as a vanilla cake as good and moist as the chocolate one. Any advice on this is welcome before I waste good ingredients.
Love this recipe. Made cupcakes, and baked for 25 minutes. I did reduce the sugar though, as I found it a bit sweet.
Now I just need to find vanilla cake and caramel cake recipes that are just as easy. Any recommendations? 😁
This recipe was really easy to follow and if followed step by step turned out exactly how it should and tasted incredible. I put it in the 8inch tin and used thread to cut it in the middle I made a white chocolate cream cheese frosting and added it to the cake in the centre and melted milk chocolate drops and poured some over slightly sprinkled with icing sugar to turn this into a restaurant worthy dessert. I got a good 8 fat slices which were cut quite generously. Thanks for sharing was absolutely delicious.
Yes yes yes to this recipe. I have nothing major to contribute except that this will now be my go-to chocolate cake, something I have been on the hunt for for a while. Super simple, everything is probably already in your pantry. The only recommendation I have is to eat it the day after. Mine came out almost dry the first day but boy did it come into its own the next day. It was a world of difference. Or maybe that’s what everyone does anyway and I have no patience! . It’s decadently chocolatey and so satisfying.
I didn’t make the icing, just the cake.
This recipe is a winner and will now be my ‘go to’ chocolate cake recipe. I’ve made it three times this month and everyone loves it. It keeps well in the fridge if you can manage to ration yourself over a period of four or five days! I didn’t use all of the ganache, but saved the leftover amount in the freezer for the next cake. And thanks for supplying metric measurements; it saved me time having to do conversions. Overall a fantastic cake!
I made this cake and it was excellent! I cut down the sugar to just a cup because I found the ganache I made was already too sweet. I added some nuts to the frosting in the middle and it was a hit! People thought I bought the cake. You know the cake from Matilda? This is it. Willy Wonka would love this cake.
Best Fudgy Chocolate Cake! Very aptly named. My only criticism is that the recipe states it serves 16. 16 what?! 16 not very hungry ants! Beautiful cake, very easy to make and turned out perfectly. Thankyou x
I used this recipe to make 2 cakes for an 8 number cake and it turned out amazing! So moist and tasty, and it was a huge success. Thanks for a clear recipe and easy to follow instructions.
Black Betty says
There’s no reason for this cake to be this good!!! My diabetic husband wanted a dense fudgy chocolate cake. He was in mourning so I went on and made it. OMG, it is soooo good. I baked it in two round pans so I could ice it like a layer cake. Absolute chocolaty goodness,
Ingrid says
This recipe is soo good. Thank you. I made the cake for my granddaughters birthday because she requested chocolate cake and it was a major succes. Now I wonder if I would substitute the cacao powder for more flour and replace de coffee for more milk if it would turn out as a vanilla cake as good and moist as the chocolate one. Any advice on this is welcome before I waste good ingredients.
Deb says
Love this recipe. Made cupcakes, and baked for 25 minutes. I did reduce the sugar though, as I found it a bit sweet.
Now I just need to find vanilla cake and caramel cake recipes that are just as easy. Any recommendations? 😁
Sadia says
This recipe was really easy to follow and if followed step by step turned out exactly how it should and tasted incredible. I put it in the 8inch tin and used thread to cut it in the middle I made a white chocolate cream cheese frosting and added it to the cake in the centre and melted milk chocolate drops and poured some over slightly sprinkled with icing sugar to turn this into a restaurant worthy dessert. I got a good 8 fat slices which were cut quite generously. Thanks for sharing was absolutely delicious.
Tati says
I tried and I loved how it turned out! Delicious!
Candice says
Yes yes yes to this recipe. I have nothing major to contribute except that this will now be my go-to chocolate cake, something I have been on the hunt for for a while. Super simple, everything is probably already in your pantry. The only recommendation I have is to eat it the day after. Mine came out almost dry the first day but boy did it come into its own the next day. It was a world of difference. Or maybe that’s what everyone does anyway and I have no patience! . It’s decadently chocolatey and so satisfying.
I didn’t make the icing, just the cake.
Sally Gibson says
This recipe is a winner and will now be my ‘go to’ chocolate cake recipe. I’ve made it three times this month and everyone loves it. It keeps well in the fridge if you can manage to ration yourself over a period of four or five days! I didn’t use all of the ganache, but saved the leftover amount in the freezer for the next cake. And thanks for supplying metric measurements; it saved me time having to do conversions. Overall a fantastic cake!
Aika says
I made this cake and it was excellent! I cut down the sugar to just a cup because I found the ganache I made was already too sweet. I added some nuts to the frosting in the middle and it was a hit! People thought I bought the cake. You know the cake from Matilda? This is it. Willy Wonka would love this cake.
Sarah says
Best Fudgy Chocolate Cake! Very aptly named. My only criticism is that the recipe states it serves 16. 16 what?! 16 not very hungry ants! Beautiful cake, very easy to make and turned out perfectly. Thankyou x
Carol Anne says
😂🍰I agree. We need some nice sized slices. I would say this might feed 10 but sometimes we still like bigger slices than even that.
Jennie says
Hi just made this cake, I split the mix and it only took about 15 mins to cook, still waiting to taste but smells delicious
Jef says
Tried baking a cake for the first time and it was amazing! Your recipe is super easy, thanks !
Supreena says
I used this recipe to make 2 cakes for an 8 number cake and it turned out amazing! So moist and tasty, and it was a huge success. Thanks for a clear recipe and easy to follow instructions.