Recipe Book

Best Chocolate Cake

Dessert
History (v1)Edit
Prep Time
20 min
Cook Time
35 min
Total Time
55 min
Servings
12

A rich, moist, and deeply chocolatey layer cake that's surprisingly easy to make. The secret is using hot coffee to bloom the cocoa and create an incredibly tender crumb.

Ingredients

  • 2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 cup granulated sugar
  • 0.75 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 whole large eggs (room temperature)
  • 1 cup buttermilk (room temperature)
  • 1 cup hot coffee (or hot water)
  • 0.5 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

  1. 1

    Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease two 9-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper.

  2. 2

    In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt until well combined.

  3. 3

    Add the eggs, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla to the dry ingredients. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed for about 2 minutes until smooth.

  4. 4

    Carefully stir in the hot coffee until fully incorporated. The batter will be quite thin—this is normal and what makes the cake so moist.

  5. 5

    Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans.

  6. 6

    Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.

  7. 7

    Let the cakes cool in their pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely before frosting.

  8. 8

    Frost with your favorite chocolate or vanilla buttercream between the layers, on top, and around the sides.