Easy Chocolate Cake
Who doesn’t love a slice of rich, moist chocolate cake? Whether you’re celebrating a birthday, need a quick dessert for guests, or want to treat yourself (because why not?), This Easy Chocolate Cake recipe is a must-have in your repertoire. It’s simple, fuss-free, and delivers that decadent chocolatey goodness every time.
This is one of those recipes that you’ll want to keep secret. You know the type. It’s so simple, but you don’t want your friends to know that! It tastes like the most fantastic chocolate cake; you’d think it couldn’t possibly be easy. But it is. shhhh
What’s better than ONE chocolate cake?
Two, or course! I’ve written the recipes for this Chocolate cake with both Thermomix and Conventional methods. So get cracking and whip one up. Oh, by the way, for this massive cake (the one in the image below), I made up two full recipes and spread them over five cake tins. It does have five layers. It’s a lot of cake, and great for a special occasion (think birthday, etc).
Many recipes for chocolate cake simply take a vanilla cake and add cocoa powder, but this can lead to a mistake. If you add cocoa without reducing the amount of flour, the cake may turn out dry. Cocoa requires more liquid than flour, so it’s important to adjust the ingredients properly. While chocolate cakes made with high-quality chocolate can taste fantastic, they can also be quite expensive. This recipe, however, uses the right proportions of cocoa to ensure a delicious and moist cake.
I made this cake for my son’s birthday. He loves my chocolate tart, and always asks for that, so I decided to make him a cake as well.
Pro Tips
- Don’t Overmix: Stir until just combined for a tender crumb.
- Check Early: Ovens can vary, so check your cake at the 30-minute mark.
- Add-Ins: Fold in chocolate chips or chopped nuts for extra texture.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Swap the flour for a good-quality gluten-free blend.
Absolutely. Wrap slices well and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature.
Classic chocolate buttercream or a simple dusting of icing sugar both work beautifully.
Yes, just reduce the baking time to 18–20 minutes.
Easy Chocolate Cake
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becs-table.com.auEquipment
- 1 Thermomix or Stand Mixer
Ingredients
- 300 g plain flour (All-purpose)
- 300 g granulated sugar
- 100 g unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp flaked salt heaped We use Pink Murray Valley
- 3 large eggs
- 230 g sour cream
- 230 g water For conventional method warm water about 37°c
- 80 g olive oil
- 10 g vanilla extract
Instructions
For the Cake Conventional Method
- Preheat oven to 150°c fan (300°f fan). Prepare 2 x 9-inch cake pans with a disc of baking paper on the base. I used USA non stick pans. No need for anything else. If your cake tin isn't a good quality non-stick, you'll need to line and grease the sides too.
- Add all the dry ingredients to your stand mixer bowl and whisk on a low speed to sift and combine. Remove from the bowl and set aside
- Add all the wet ingredients (including the warm water) to your stand mixer and beat until everything is combined.
- Add the dry mix to the wet mix and beat till smooth.
- Divide batter among the pans
- Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool on wire racks for 15 minutes and then turn out the cakes onto the racks and allow to cool completely.
- Frost with your favorite frosting and enjoy!
For the Cake Thermomix Method
- Preheat oven to 150°c fan (300°f fan). Prepare 2 x 9inch round cake tins with a disc of baking paper on the base. No need for anything else. If your cake tin isn't a good quality non-stick, you'll need to line and grease the sides too.
- Weigh all the dry ingredients into the TM bowl and with the MC in place give them a sift for 5 seconds/speed 5, then remove from the bowl and set aside.
- Weigh all the wet ingredients into the TM bowl, add in the butterfly and with the MC in at the start, set for 3 mins /37°c / speed 4. You can remove the MC when the mix stops splashing.
- Add the dry ingredients back to the TM bowl and mix for 10 seconds/speed 3; remove the lid, scrape down the sides of the bowl and set to mix again for another 10 seconds/ speed 3.
- Divide batter among the pans
- Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Cool on wire racks for 15 minutes and then turn out the cakes onto the racks and allow to cool completely.
- Frost with your favourite frosting and enjoy!
Notes
Want to know more?
If you enjoyed baking this delicious cake, you might also be interested in Bake Club Online
Hi Bec – Am looking at making this cake using a USA pan which is 10″ x 2″. I want to make two layers but only have the one pan. Do I bake half of the mixture, cool the pan and then re-use it to bake the remaining mixture? Also, how do I scale the recipe to suit the pan size to make two layers? TIA 🙂
Hi Bernadette,
Because the recipe uses grams, it’s nice and easy to scale. I’d start by looking at ingredients that are tricky to divide—like the eggs. This recipe calls for 3 eggs, so if you divide everything by 3 and then multiply by 2, you’ll have a good amount of batter for one 10 x 2″ cake. What I would do is fill the cake tin to 1 cm from the top, then if there’s batter left over, make cupcakes or a tray bake. This cake freezes well.
I wouldn’t recommend making a full batch and leaving half to sit while the first cake bakes—the raising agent will start working straight away, and you’ll end up with layers that don’t rise quite the same.
Thanks Bec! That’s very helpful.
You’re welcome Bernadette
Hi Bec,
Can I put fondant on top of this chocolate cake? It’s my first time to work with fondant. Just want to make sure it’s the right cake. The cake sounds delicious.
Thank you.
Hi Christine, yes this cake will be fine to use fondant on. Just remember if you’re making it a tiered cake it’s always best to use supports. Otherwise it will be lovely I use this one a lot.
Hi Bec, I made the chocolate cake as cupcakes and they came out lovely and light. I am wondering if you can suggest an icing that I don’t need to refrigerate the cakes as they will lose their light fluffy texture once in fridge. Thanks Sue ☺️
Hi Sue! Just a quick tip: if you take this chocolate cake out of the fridge about 30 minutes before serving (for cupcakes) or 1 hour (for a full cake), it’ll be just right. Feel free to use any frosting you like! Just make sure though, store the cake in a sealed container, as the fridge atmosphere can dry it out.
Since this cake is made with oil instead of butter or coconut oil, it won’t firm up as much in the fridge as ones that do use fats that go hard when they’re cold.
Personally, I love pairing it with a ganache – it’s absolutely delicious! Enjoy!
Thank you Bec. They are absolutely delicious and so moist 😋
💖 You’re welcome Sue.
Can I make this as a cupcake? Can all cakes be cupcakes?
Hi Evelyn, yes you can make this chocolate cake as cupcakes. It will make a lot of cupcakes you may want to halve the recipe or because it calls for 3 eggs make a 1/3rd or 2/3rds. Most cakes can be made in cupcakes liners.