With a super moist crumb and fudgy, yet light texture, this chocolate cake recipe will soon be your favorite too. Top with chocolate buttercream and chocolate chips for 3x the chocolate flavor. You can also prepare this chocolate layer cake as a sheet cake, too. See recipe note.
Originally published in 2013 and now with more in-depth descriptions, a helpful video tutorial, clearer instructions, and different ways to use this classic chocolate cake recipe. I hope you enjoy all the new features in this recipe post!
Devil’s Food Chocolate Cake… But Better
This pictured cake is a combination of chocolate buttercream and mock-devil’s food cake. You know the Devil’s Food chocolate cake you get at a restaurant or even from a box mix? This is that exact cake, only completely homemade. Notice the reddish tint? That’s where the name Devil’s Food comes from. The baking soda in this recipe reacts with the natural cocoa powder, which results in the reddish color. More on the science behind using dutch-process vs. natural cocoa powder here, if you’re interested.
This is, without a doubt, the best chocolate cake I’ve ever had. And judging by your feedback in the reviews, I’m confident you’d say the same thing!
This Chocolate Cake Is:
- Extra moist
- 2 layers, but can be made as 3 layers or as a sheet cake
- Soft with a velvety crumb
- Deeply flavorful
- Unapologetically rich, just like my flourless chocolate cake
- Covered with creamy chocolate buttercream
One reader, Greta, commented: “This is, hands down, the best chocolate cake I have ever baked. And I’m not the only one who thinks so… because I have baked and shared this cake with many people… it’s simply the best! Thank you for sharing this recipe with us. ★★★★★“
Another reader, Melanie, commented: “This has become my go-to chocolate cake! My family loves it. The directions are very clear and easy to follow. Before now, I did not consider myself a baker. I had only baked box cakes. Now, this recipe has catapulted me into a from-scratch cake baker. So glad I found this recipe and many others from this site. ★★★★★”
Another reader, Todd, commented: “Outstanding! One of the best cakes I have ever made. Moist, chocolatey, beyond delicious! ★★★★★“
Key Chocolate Cake Ingredients & Why
Each ingredient serves an important role. For best results, do not make substitutions.
- All-Purpose Flour: The structure of the cake. Unlike confetti cake where you can use either, do not use cake flour here—when combined with ultra-light cocoa powder, cake flour is too fine for this cake.
- Unsweetened Natural Cocoa Powder: Do not use dutch-process cocoa powder. Save it for another recipe, like these homemade brownies. If you’re interested, see dutch-process vs natural cocoa powder for an in-depth explanation.
- Baking Soda & Baking Powder: Remember the differences in baking soda vs baking powder? We use both here for lift.
- Salt: Salt balances the flavor.
- Espresso Powder: Espresso powder is optional, but I recommend its addition because it enhances the chocolate flavor. The chocolate cake will not taste like coffee, I promise. I use espresso powder in my chocolate zucchini cake, Guinness cake, chocolate raspberry cake, and marble loaf cake too!
You can find it in the coffee aisle at the grocery store or online. - Oil: Don’t use butter in this cake batter. Cocoa powder is a particularly drying ingredient, so this cake needs oil for suitable moisture. Same goes for my chocolate cake roll recipe, too.
- Eggs: Use 2 room temperature eggs. To speed up the gently warming, place refrigerated eggs in a cup of warm water for 10 minutes. Did you know what the temperature of your ingredients has a direct correlation to the success of your recipes? Unless otherwise noted, use room temperature ingredients.
- Buttermilk: This chocolate cake requires the moisture and acidity from buttermilk. Lately I’ve been using a mix of sour cream and buttermilk, as well as reducing the hot liquid. You can read more about this next and see my dark chocolate mousse cake, tuxedo cake, black forest cake, German chocolate cake, and chocolate peanut butter cake recipes.
- Vanilla Extract: Vanilla extract adds flavor.
- Hot Coffee or Hot Water: Hot liquid enhances the cocoa powder’s flavor. It also encourages it to bloom and dissolve appropriately. You’ll notice I don’t use hot liquid in my chocolate cupcakes recipe. That’s because there isn’t the same volume of dry ingredients. With this amount of cake batter, we need a hot liquid to break up the cocoa powder lumps resting in all that flour. If you don’t drink coffee, you can use hot water. For deeper and darker flavor, though, use coffee. (Decaf coffee works!) You use it in this black velvet cupcakes recipe, too.
What an Easy Cake!
No mixer required for the batter, simply whisk the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients (or vice versa, it doesn’t make any difference), add the hot coffee, then whisk everything together. The cake batter is thin. Divide between 2 9-inch cake pans. You can easily stretch it to 3 or 4 8-inch or 9-inch cakes if needed. Or make a quarter sheet cake using a 9×13-inch cake pan. See my recipe notes for details.
Need a 1 layer cake? Use this mint chocolate cake recipe for 1 9-inch round cake.
Need cupcakes? Use either my super moist chocolate cupcakes, chocolate cupcakes with vanilla frosting, or cream-filled chocolate cupcakes recipe.
Lately I’ve Been Using Sour Cream
As mentioned above and in the video tutorial, there are two ways to prepare this cake batter and the slight difference involves the wet ingredients. You can follow the recipe as written using buttermilk and hot coffee/water. Or you can add sour cream. Whichever way you make it, the process is the same. (Just reduce the liquids and add sour cream!)
- Original Version (pictured and written below): The original recipe produces a very thin batter. The cake is extra soft with a deliciously spongey texture.
- Sour Cream Version (written in recipe notes and shown in video tutorial): By replacing some of the buttermilk and hot coffee with sour cream, the cake batter is slightly thicker and produces a slightly denser cake with more structure. I love using sour cream in my vanilla cake, too!
Both cakes are equally moist and chocolatey with the same flavor and ease of preparation. It just depends if you want a spongier cake or not. 🙂
Silky Chocolate Buttercream
Like my yellow cake, I use my favorite chocolate buttercream. I slightly increase the amount of each ingredient to produce extra frosting. If you prefer a thinner layer of frosting, use the chocolate buttercream recipe. But if you crave extra buttercream, follow the frosting measurements below. You need 6 ingredients total:
- Unsalted Butter
- Confectioners’ Sugar
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- Heavy Cream or Milk
- Vanilla Extract
- Salt
Because there is no leavening occurring, you can use either dutch-process or natural cocoa powder in the buttercream. Heavy cream provides an extra creamy frosting, but milk can be substituted if needed.
While I love chocolate frosting here the most, this cake is also wonderful with vanilla buttercream or strawberry buttercream frosting instead!
So, why do I call it triple chocolate layer cake when it only has 2 layers? Well, chocolate is used three times: chocolate cake, chocolate frosting, chocolate chips. Press a handful on top like we do with warm chocolate chip cookies, or go with “the more the better” motto like we did. Let’s eat!
Print
Deliciously Moist Chocolate Layer Cake
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours
- Yield: serves 12-16
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This is my favorite homemade chocolate cake recipe. With a super moist crumb and fudgy, yet light texture, this chocolate cake recipe will be your favorite too. Top with chocolate buttercream and chocolate chips for 3x the chocolate flavor. You can also prepare this chocolate layer cake as a sheet cake. See recipe Note.
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 and 3/4 cups (219g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 3/4 cup (62g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 1 and 3/4 cups (350g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons espresso powder (optional)
- 1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil (or canola oil or melted coconut oil)
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1 cup (240ml) freshly brewed strong hot coffee (regular or decaf)
Chocolate Buttercream
- 1 and 1/4 cups (282g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 and 1/2 cups (420g) confectioners’ sugar
- 3/4 cup (62g) unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or dutch process)
- 3–5 Tablespoons (45-75ml) heavy cream (or half-and-half or milk), at room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- optional for decoration: semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease two 9-inch cake pans, line with parchment paper rounds, then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans. (If it’s helpful, see this parchment paper rounds for cakes video & post.)
- Make the cake: Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder (if using) together in a large bowl. Set aside. Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or you can use a whisk) mix the oil, eggs, and vanilla together on medium-high speed until combined. Add the buttermilk and mix until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, add the hot water/coffee, and whisk or beat on low speed until the batter is completely combined. Batter is thin.
- Divide batter evenly between pans. Bake for 23-26 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours. The cakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (Note: Even if they’re completely done, the cooled cakes may *slightly* sink in the center. Cocoa powder is simply not as structurally strong as all-purpose flour and can’t hold up to all the moisture necessary to make a moist tasting chocolate cake. It’s normal!)
- Remove the cakes from the oven and set on a wire rack. Allow to cool completely in the pan.
- Make the buttercream: With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy—about 2 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar, cocoa powder, 3 Tablespoons heavy cream, salt, and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for 1 full minute. Do not over-whip. Add 1/4 cup more confectioners’ sugar or cocoa powder if frosting is too thin or 1-2 more Tablespoons of cream if frosting is too thick. (I usually add 1 more.) Taste. Add another pinch of salt if desired.
- Assemble and frost: If cooled cakes are domed on top, use a large serrated knife to slice a thin layer off the tops to create a flat surface. This is called “leveling” the cakes. Discard or crumble over finished cake. Place 1 cake layer on your cake stand or serving plate. Evenly cover the top with frosting. Top with 2nd layer and spread remaining frosting all over the top and sides. I always use an icing spatula and bench scraper for the frosting. Garnish with chocolate chips, if desired.
- Refrigerate uncovered cake for at least 30-60 minutes before slicing to help set the shape. After that, you can serve the cake or continue refrigerating for up to 4–6 hours before serving. Cake can be served at room temperature or chilled.
- Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for 5 days. I like using a cake carrier for storing and transporting.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Prepare cake through step 4. Wrap the individual baked and cooled cake layers tightly and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze up to 3 months. Bring to room temperature then continue with step 5. You can prepare the chocolate buttercream 2-3 days in advance. Cover and refrigerate, then bring to room temperature before spreading onto/assembling the cake. Frosted cake freezes well, up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature or serve cold.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9-inch Round Cake Pans | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand Mixer) | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Cooling Rack | Cake Stand, Serving Plate, or Cake Turntable | Icing Spatula | Bench Scraper | Cake Carrier (for storing)
- 3 Layer Cake: You can also prepare this cake as a 3 layer cake. Divide batter between three 8-inch or 9-inch cake pans in step 1 and bake for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. This frosting will be enough for 3 layers. If desired, use the frosting recipe from my Piñata Cake if you want extra frosting.
- Cocoa Powder: Use natural cocoa powder in the cake, not dutch-process. (See dutch-process vs natural cocoa powder for more information.) Since there is no leavening occurring in frosting, you can use either natural or dutch-process in the chocolate buttercream.
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk is required for this recipe. You can make your own DIY buttermilk substitute if needed. Add 2 teaspoons of white vinegar or lemon juice to a liquid measuring cup. Then add enough room temperature whole milk to the same measuring cup until it reaches 1 cup. (In a pinch, lower fat or nondairy milks work for this soured milk, but the cake won’t taste as moist or rich.) Stir it around and let sit for 5 minutes. The homemade “buttermilk” will be somewhat curdled and ready to use in the recipe.
- Sour Cream Version: Lately I’ve been using a mix of sour cream and buttermilk, as well as reducing the hot coffee. Reduce the buttermilk and hot coffee to 1/2 cup (120ml) each. Add 3/4 cup (180g) of room temperature full-fat sour cream with the wet ingredients. You can see this described above, in the video tutorial, and in my dark chocolate mousse cake. That cake and this cake are both fantastically moist, but the sour cream version has a slightly sturdier crumb.
- FAQ: The sour cream version (note above) makes a sturdy enough cake that will hold under fondant.
- Amount of Cake Batter: This recipe (and the sour cream version) yields about 6 cups of batter, which is helpful if you need it for different Cake Pan Sizes & Conversions.
- Room Temperature Ingredients: All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. Read more about why room temperature ingredients are important.
- Espresso Powder/Coffee: Espresso powder and coffee will not make the cake taste like coffee. Instead, they deepen the chocolate flavor. I highly recommend them both. You can find espresso powder in the coffee aisle at the grocery store or online. You can use the same amount of instant coffee (the powder) instead of espresso powder if desired. If coffee isn’t your thing, you can leave out the espresso powder and use extra hot water or hot chai tea.
- Bundt Pan: I recommend my chocolate cream cheese Bundt cake but without the cream cheese filling. Reduce buttermilk in that recipe to 1/4 cup and increase sour cream to 1 cup.
- 9×13-inch Pan: You can bake this cake in a 9×13-inch baking pan. Same oven temperature, about 35-40 minutes bake time.
- Chocolate Cupcakes: Here is my favorite chocolate cupcakes recipe. Same unbelievable texture as this cake! (You’ll notice I don’t use hot liquid in that recipe. That’s because there isn’t the same volume of dry ingredients to break up. If you need more than 1 dozen chocolate cupcakes, use this chocolate cake recipe for 2-3 dozen. Same baking instructions as my chocolate cupcakes.
Recipe adapted from Ina Garten and originally from Hershey’s
Reader Comments and Reviews
Is there a way to incorporate chocolate ganache instead of the buttercream, either in the middle or on the top?
Hi Erica, you can absolutely use chocolate ganache instead of the buttercream.
This is an EXCELLENT cake. I made it for my mothers birthday and everyone loved it. My daughter wants a chocolate cake for her birthday but of course it will have colorful frosting. I want to use the cake recipe above. Is there a white frosting you think would go best with this that I can color to decorate with?
Hi Nikki, we’re so glad this is a favorite! It’s also fantastic with vanilla buttercream.
I’m making this cake recipe which goes as bottom tier (12”) of three tier cake, this has been always my go to but I’m worried about the weight on top. Do you think this will hold 8”, 10” tier weight with proper doweling?
Thanks in advance
Hi Pree, Unfortunately this cake recipe isn’t sturdy enough to function as the bottom or middle of a tiered cake.
One of my darling grandbabies is allergic to eggs so I made this cake with blood (don’t worry, it wasn’t mine 🙂 ) instead of eggs and it turned out wonderfully! It took longer to bake and the blood seemed to make bubbles in the cake but it was tasty and still looked great after I leveled and frosted it. They couldn’t get enough!
This is the BEST chocolate cake! My family loves it! Thank you for sharing all your recipes!
This is the BEST chocolate cake recipe! My entire family loved it. Super moist and super delicious.
It says to store leftover cake in the refrigerator for up to 5 days – is this just because of the buttercream? Can I safely store the cake at room temp if not iced?
Hi Emily! Storing leftover cake is different than making a cake ahead of time. Cake decorated with buttercream can usually be kept for 1 day at room temperature, we would refrigerate after that. Unfrosted cakes can be made 1 day ahead of time and stored at room temperature as well. Unfrosted cake will dry out if stored for longer – instead we would freeze the cakes to make-ahead.
Do you think the cake could work with gf flour? Our son, who can’t eat gluten, has asked for a chocolate cake for his birthday. Thank you!
Hi Nikki, We haven’t tested this recipe with gluten free flour but let us know if you give it a try!
Very good it the cooking time is way way off. Still at 40 minutes it’s not cooked inside. I know what I’m doing with baking so it’s surprising. Maybe 1/2 cup coffee would be more appropriate?
Hi David! This is a wet batter, but always bakes up beautifully. Are you using two 9 inch round cake pans? Any other size pans will require different baking times.
Hi- can I use any coffee flavor or does it have to be instant coffee?
Hi Lisa! We always use instant espresso/coffee here, but a pinch of coffee extract could work as well, the flavor will come through more. We recommend sticking with espresso powder for best flavor!
Hi Terri, the frosting is already quite dark with the cocoa powder, but you could try adding some red gel food coloring to deepen it a bit. You’ll have better luck using vanilla buttercream instead if you’re looking for a vibrant red.
Can I bake this recipe in a 6 inch pan?
Hi Livenya, instead, you can use the batter from these chocolate cupcakes. It yields the perfect amount for a 3 layer, 6 inch cake. You can follow the baking times and directions for 6 inch cake recipes. Hope you enjoy it!
How long should you bake it for if you make it as cupcakes?
Hi Karen, if using this batter for cupcakes, you can use the baking times and directions from our chocolate cupcakes as a guide.
I need to make a half sheet pan with this triple chocolate cake. Can you help me with tripling this recipe?
Here is everything you need to know about converting recipes to different Cake Pan Sizes.
I made this cake for my husband’s birthday. I was exhausted from a long work week. I had never made a double layer cake like this before. I didn’t read to use HOT coffee….it was cold, but strong. Still. It was superb. My husband said it was the best cake he has had since the forbidden cake when he was a kid. Haha. Really moist and not too sweet chocolately flavor. Really phenomenal. Just wonderinf, why the HOT coffee?
Hi Rebekah, I’m glad this cake was enjoyed so much! I recommend hot coffee so it can help bloom the cocoa powder, which helps bring out its flavor a bit more.
I’m a home-based baker, and this is one of my favorite cakes! It’s especially delicious with your raspberry buttercream. I need to make a chocolate sheet cake to feed 35-40 people. Would I be able to double this recipe and bake it in a half-sheet pan? Alternatively, could I make two 9×13 cakes and layer them together? If I do 2 layers, do you recommend the sour cream version? Which would hold up best under layers of frosting, and maybe a few small pieces of fondant? Thanks so much for your help!
Hi Kathy, thank you for asking! Two 9×13-inch cakes stacked would make a very, very thick and tall layered cake. This is already a thick cake when baked in a 9×13-inch pan. The batter, as written will fit into a 12×17 inch pan. You could make two of those for 2 thin (but large) cakes and layer them. I would use the sour cream version for that. You could also try my recipe for chocolate sheet cake (and use another frosting), which is a little bit different.
Hello – I only have cake flour on hand. Will that work instead of ap?
Hi Haylee, cake flour is a bit too light to use together with a chocolate based cake like this. All-purpose flour is best here.
Can we make it as a smaller cake? There is only three of us in the family and would like to finish the cake in a day or two.
Hi AG, here’s everything you need to know about cake pan sizes and conversions. Or, you can make our 6-inch chocolate cake instead (see recipe Notes there for chocolate version). And we even have a recipe for a single 6-inch chocolate cake!
Every recipe I made from your site comes out fantastic! I made this cake with the frosting but instead of chocolate chips, I used your red wine chocolate ganache and raspberry sauce (actually used mixed berries tho) and topped with fresh berries. My dad requests it for every birthday and Father’s Day now. Sadly, I just moved to a new place where I don’t have an oven. Do you have any suggestions for baking with an air fryer?
Hi Sarah, we haven’t ever tried making a cake in an air fryer, so unfortunately we can’t offer much advice here. If you do give it a try, please do let us know how it goes! Thank you so much for making and trusting our recipes.
I still haven’t tried a cake, but I did make your drop sugar cookie recipe in the air fryer a few days ago; I’ll post on that recipe what I learned. Thank you for sharing all your delicious recipes! At this point I just know it’s gonna be good if it comes from this site.
Hey!
Can I double this recipe? Would that change the texture/flavor? I need to make one big round 3 layer cake, but I am wondering if I can double the recipe so i can get thicker layers. Would that work? Thanks!
Hi Sandy, for best results (and to prevent over or under mixing), we recommend making 2 separate batches rather than doubling.
I was disappointed in this cake, while it is very moist it is not very sweet and has a bitter edge to it. I used Valrhona Cocoa powder and expresso powder. Do you think if I used Hershey`s cocoa and omitted the expresso powder and the cup of strong coffee it would have tasted sweeter ?
Hi Denise, yes, with those changes, it would certainly taste a bit sweeter.
Valrhona cocoa is dutch-processed, which is likely the culprit here, as natural cocoa is specified. Hershey offers two types of cocoa, one of which is natural and would work here (I believe “Special Dark” is dutched). Hope that helps.
This recipe has been my go-to cake recipe for almost 6 years now. Thank you Sally.
There’s a weird taste idk how to describe im not sure if it’s because of the oil
It was absolutely the best and my new go to recipe
Would you recommend using this cake with your peanut butter frosting recipe?
Yes, absolutely! Or you may love our dark chocolate peanut butter cake.
Hello! I’d like to use this as the base for black forest dessert cups for a party I’m attending. Can I just bake this and then Crumble it into the cups, or do I need to make any changes first?
Hi Sarah, that should work just fine. Hope it’s a hit!
I added a cup of mini semi chocolate chips to the recipe, reserving 1tbsp. flour from the recipe in a bag. I then tossed them in the flour to coat them. I poured half the batter into the pan then added half the chocolate chips in top, then gave them a stir and repeated on each pan for the top. Yum. I also iced with your cream frosting, and added chopped walnuts on top.It was the best chocolate cake I’ve eaten since the Claim Jumper closed. I did two layers and it was plenty.
I do not bake cakes that often, but this was easy and the icing was outstanding. The taste did not disappoint. I used your second version with hot coffee, sour cream and butter milk.Excellent
Why are my cake layers so thin and the cake so dense?
Hi Nancy, are you using two 9-inch cake pans?
Are most of the comments for the Triple chocolate cake based on the new version with sour cream and combo or original version?
I would say half and half. I use the sour cream version most of the time!
My 14 year old granddaughter and I just made this cake this evening. I gave it five stars but we haven’t actually cut into it yet.
I had trouble getting one of the layers out of the pan even though I slid my straight icing spatula around the edge first plus greased and used a parchment round on the bottom of the pan. I am not sure if it was caused by allowing the cake to cool completely in the pan or by not using both grease and flour on the sides. Next time I will grease and flour to see if that helps. One of the rounds did sink a little but it was just barely and frosting covers that just fine.
My granddaughter chose to not bother putting any chocolate chips on it, which is fine by me. We made it because she wanted to learn, so in my mind it’s her cake to do with as she pleases. 🙂