This best simple chocolate cake is light and airy, moist and tender, rich and chocolate-y. The secret ingredient ensures the perfect chocolate cake every time!
Table of Contents
I believe every baker should have an amazing vanilla cake and chocolate cake recipe under their belt!
This chocolate cake recipe is my go-to base for many of my chocolate cakes, including this snickers cake.
Why you’ll love this recipe:
So many reasons to love this chocolate cake recipe!!
- Texture: sturdy, yet super moist and tender, and not fudgy.
- Taste: rich chocolate flavor!
- Ease: straight-forward and simple method – no creaming butter and sugar, no whipping the eggs.
- Versatility: a perfect canvas for many different cake flavors. Pair it with different frostings and fillings, and you’ll never get bored with this chocolate cake!
My simple chocolate cake recipe doesn’t use buttermilk. And that’s not by accident! Although buttermilk makes cakes incredibly moist, it also mellows the chocolate flavor significantly. And we want all the rich chocolate flavors in our cake! And milk produced perfectly tender crumbs that you’ll absolutely love!
Key Ingredients:
- Flour – All-purpose flour works great for this recipe.
- Cocoa powder – You can use either unsweetened natural or dutch-processed cocoa powder in this chocolate cake recipe.
- Instant espresso powder is optional, but highly recommended. It enhanced the chocolate flavor without adding coffee flavor.
- Milk – You can use absolutely any kind of milk: whole, skim and even almond milk.
- Oil makes this cake nice and moist. Use neutral oil, like vegetable or canola oil. I don’t recommend olive oil.
- Butter adds a great flavor. I choose unsalted butter. If you’re using salted butter, omit the salt in the dry ingredients.
- Vinegar is the secret ingredient. It reacts with baking soda and creates light and airy crumbs! Either white or apple cider vinegar will work fine.
Tip
Be sure to bring eggs and milk to room temperature, so that everything combines quickly and easily.
Simply let them stand at room temperature for 30 minutes or so.
Natural vs Dutch-processed Cocoa Powder:
There’re 2 types of cocoa powder:
- Natural cocoa powder is a regular cocoa powder, like Hershey’s, which is naturally acidic. It has slightly bitter and rich taste.
- Dutch-processed cocoa powder is basically an alkalized (neutralized) cocoa powder, which produces darker color and has a milder flavor.
In most cases, these 2 cocoa powders aren’t interchangeable, because each cocoa powder react differently in different ingredients.
However, in this chocolate cake recipe, baking soda reacts with vinegar and leavens the cake without help of cocoa powder. Therefore, either natural and Dutch-processed cocoa powders works in this recipe.
How to make this chocolate cake:
It’s really easy to make this cake!
1. Make the batter
Simply whisk the dry ingredients. Then add the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined and batter is ready!
Tip
To avoid over-mixing the batter, whip the batter in a mixer until just about combined, and then finish mixing with a rubber spatula, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl, until the batter is mostly smooth.
2. Bake
Divide the batter into the lightly greased cake pans lined with parchment paper.
Bake the cakes at 350°F until the inserted tooth pick comes out clean.
Tip
For flat cake layers, use these cake pan strips around the cake pans.
Bake times for different pan sizes:
The bake time varies depending on the size and number of cake pans.
- Two 7-inch cake pans yield 2 tall cake layers that you can easily cut into 2 layers each. Bake time: about 35 minutes.
- Three 7-inch cake pans yield 3 cake layers for a perfect 3-layer cake. Bake time: about 20 minutes.
- Two 8 or 9-inch cake pans yield 2 thin cake layers, perfect for simple 2-layer cake. Bake time: about 25 minutes.
- Three 6-inch cake pans yield 3 thick layers that can be sliced horizontally for an extra tall 6-layer cake. Bake time: about 25 minutes.
2 ways to check the cake for doneness:
Start checking the cake for doneness 1-2 minutes before the recipe directions, because every oven is slightly different.
- Method 1: Insert a toothpick in the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean (or with just couple crumbs), the cake is done!
- Method 2: Carefully press down on the cake. If it doesn’t leave a dent, your cake is done!! Bake a minute or two longer, if you see a dent left behind.
Tips for Moist Cakes:
How do I make a moist cake? What makes the cake moist and fluffy? And how to keep the cake moist?
These are the common questions home bakers ask when baking a cake at home. And it’s totally understandable. There’s nothing worse than biting into a dry, dense cake, right?
Follow these simple tips and you won’t have to worry about serving a dry, dense cake ever!
- Measure the flour correctly! I highly recommend using a scale to measure the dry ingredients, especially flour. It’s really easy to over-measure flour by volume, which will lead to dense and heavy cake that no one wants to eat. If you don’t have a scale, instead of scooping the flour with a measuring cup, spoon the flour into measuring cup and then level the top off with the back of a knife. This is called “spoon and level” method. Don’t be tempted to shake the measuring cup or pack the flour down!
- Don’t skip vegetable oil – I’m using both vegetable oil and melted butter in this chocolate cake recipe. Butter adds nice flavor, but vegetable oil keeps this cake moist! If anything, substitute oil for butter, and not other way around!
- Don’t over-mix the batter – It’s really important not to over-mix the batter when you combine wet and dry ingredients. Mix it just until the ingredients combined.
- Don’t over-bake the cake – This is the most common mistake when it comes to dry cakes. Over-baking dries out delicate cakes and there’s no fix for it!! Keep reading to my tips on checking for doneness.
Storing Tips:
You can bake this chocolate cake in advance. I actually prefer to bake them a day or two in advance, since chilled cakes are much sturdier and easier to handle.
- Cool the cake completely on wire rack.
- Wrap each layer separately in a plastic wrap.
- Refrigerate for up to 2 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
CHOCOLATE CAKE FROSTING IDEAS:
- Indulgent Mocha Frosting – my personal favorite to pair with chocolate cake
- Cream Cheese Frosting – my all-time favorite frosting
- Sturdy Strawberry Whipped Cream – a great fruity combination for a chocolate cake
- Chocolate Mousse Frosting – always a winning combo
FAQ:
If you want to make chocolate cupcakes, you can simply divide the batter into muffin pans and bake for about 20 minutes.
If you try this chocolate cake recipe, please leave a review in the comments below and share on social media with #sweetandsavorybyshinee. Thank you!!
The Best Simple Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups (300g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (60g) unsweetened cocoa powder Note 1
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder Note 2
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons (280ml) milk at room temperature Note 3
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- ¼ cup (60ml) vegetable oil
- 4 tablespoons (56g) unsalted butter melted
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar or apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Line two 7-inch cake pans with a parchment paper and spray with cooking spray.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
- In a mixing bowl with paddle attachment, combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds, or until everything is well combined.
- Add milk, eggs, oil and butter. Mix the batter just until smooth, about 15 seconds.
- Stir in vinegar and mix for another 10 seconds.
- Divide the batter into the prepared baking pans. Bake for 35 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Let cakes cool completely in the pans set on wire rack. Then carefully run a knife around the edges and invert.
- Wrap each cake in a plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use, preferably overnight and up to 2 days. Chilled cakes are sturdier and slice much easier, but you can definitely frost the cake as soon as they cooled completely.
Tips & Notes
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published on May 11, 2020.
HI, I was wondering why you don’t add Vanilla extract. I thought that was used almost all the time when making a chocolate cake. Is there some ingredient that might not react well with the Vanilla? Thank you
Hi, William. You can surely add vanilla extract, it won’t make any negative effect. I just don’t see the point of it much, as chocolate will overpower vanilla flavor anyway.
Hi Shinee
I would like to use this recipe and make mini layer cakes similar to your mini layer carrot cakes with candied pecans. I made for NYE they were a big hit. With this amount of batter what size tray/ cooking time would you recommend?
Hi, Desiree. So happy you enjoyed the mini carrot cakes. I’m pretty sure you can use this recipe for the same 17x11in (43x28cm) deep baking sheet as carrot cake recipe uses. And I’d bake for 15-18 minutes. Let me know how it turns out.
Can I just say, WOW! This recipe is so simple and the cake rose so well, I kept thinking its going to sink any moment when it was in the oven. But it didn’t. Thank you so much for such clear instructions on how to go about it. I came across your recipe when I went looking for images of cakes that are airy and rise well and this recipe produces exactly that. Thank you so much! Will definitely be trying out your other recipes soon. Again, so grateful!
Yay, I’m SO happy you tried and loved this recipe, Rosemary! Thank you so much for your feedback.
Hello. I would like to bake this cake but I only have dutch processed coco powder. Will the recipe still work? I wouldn’t want to waste ingredients if it doesn’t.
Thank you.
Hi, Bashir. Thanks for checking in before substituting. I don’t recommend substituting dutch processed cocoa powder, as it’ll affect the rise of the cake.
This cake was amazing but i used salted butter instead of unsalted is that okay
So happy you tried and loved the recipe. Thanks for your feedback, Maryam!!
Hi.
I want to make your recipe now. And I only have one pan . Can I bake it at once then cut it into layers?
Hi, Alaa. I haven’t tested it, but I think you can bake it in one 9-inch cake pan. Let me know how it turns out if you try it.
I’ve tried this recipe a day ago and that is truly THE best chocolate cake that you’ll ever bake! It is so simple that you will only need one bowl to mix everything together (I’m a fan of one bowl or one pot recipes). I’ve used Almond milk instead of whole milk, and it came out super moist, fluffy and rich in flavor. Absolutely a must try, you won’t regret! I’ll be back to this one often from now on! Thank you for sharing this gem!
Today early in the moti baked this wonderful tastyful chocolate cake, it was amazing nicely came out, fuffy and looks so very beautiful , i never baked something like that,
Thanks
Yay!!! So happy you loved it, Kumari!! Thank you so much for trying and sharing your feedback! I saw your photo you e-mailed me, and your cake looked delicious!!!
The recipe looks wonderful. Love how you break down the entire process. Thank you so much. I will definitely be trying this recipe. Thanks for sharing and great techniques.
Yay, so happy that it’s helpful. Please let me know if you try this recipe, Shari!
Hi looks great but i have only 8 and 9 inch pans What do i need to change?
Hi, Kimberly. You don’t need to change anything. Both 8 or 9-inch pans would work just fine. Just bake it for about 25 minutes.
I am not a huge fan of chocolate desserts but this recipe sounds so good! I am passing it along to my daughter who has been baking constantly these days. Your tips and research are very helpful too!
So glad you found this helpful, Mila. Thank you for your feedback!!