Chocolate Cake (Printable version)
Rich, moist chocolate cake with tender layers and creamy chocolate frosting, ready in under an hour.
# What You’ll Need:
→ Dry Ingredients
01 - 1 ¾ cups (220 g) all-purpose flour
02 - ¾ cup (75 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
03 - 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
04 - 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
05 - 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
06 - ½ teaspoon salt
→ Wet Ingredients
07 - 2 large eggs, at room temperature
08 - 1 cup (240 ml) whole milk
09 - ½ cup (120 ml) vegetable oil
10 - 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
11 - 1 cup (240 ml) boiling water
→ Chocolate Frosting
12 - ½ cup (115 g) unsalted butter, softened
13 - 1 ¾ cups (220 g) powdered sugar
14 - ½ cup (45 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
15 - ¼ cup (60 ml) milk
16 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
# How to Make It:
01 - Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans.
02 - In a large bowl, sift together the all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly blended.
03 - Add the room-temperature eggs, whole milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract to the dry mixture. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes until the batter is smooth and well combined.
04 - Pour in the boiling water and stir until fully incorporated. The batter will appear thin — this is normal.
05 - Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean.
06 - Allow the cakes to cool in their pans for 10 minutes, then turn them out onto wire racks to cool completely before frosting.
07 - Beat the softened butter until creamy. Sift in the powdered sugar and cocoa powder, then add the milk and vanilla extract. Beat until light and fluffy.
08 - Spread an even layer of frosting between the two cake layers, then cover the top and sides with the remaining frosting. Smooth with an offset spatula.
# Expert tips:
01 -
- The batter looks impossibly thin but bakes into the most tender crumb you will ever cut into, and that surprise never gets old.
- You probably have every single ingredient sitting in your pantry right now, which means no emergency grocery store runs.
02 -
- If you rush the cooling step and frost warm cakes, the frosting will melt and slide right off in a heartbreaking puddle.
- Swapping the boiling water for hot brewed coffee deepens the chocolate flavor so dramatically that even people who hate coffee will not taste it but will ask what your secret is.
03 -
- Line the bottom of your pans with parchment paper rounds for guaranteed release every single time without holding your breath.
- Dusting the greased pans with cocoa powder instead of flour keeps the edges dark and avoids that pale dusty look on the outside of your cake layers.