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This is the best chocolate cake recipe ever! It is rich, chocolatey and moist with a perfect crumb! Topped with chocolate buttercream frosting it’s the ultimate chocolate birthday cake. Check out the step-by-step photos and watch the video to learn how to make this easy chocolate cake recipe and ditch boxed cake mixes once and for all!

Of birthdays in a given year. I used to use a chocolate cake recipe that called for a boxed cake mix and instant pudding, and I just didn’t love the idea of using a highly processed ingredients for all of our (many) birthday celebrations.

So I created this chocolate cake recipe. I worked hard to make this taste exactly like our favorite chocolate cake, but completely from scratch. I tested and tried this easy chocolate cake recipe for

The Best Chocolate Cake Recipe {ever}

Worth of birthdays before I perfected it enough to share it with all of you. (Also try these homemade chocolate cupcakes or this recipe for the best yellow cake from scratch)!

Others that didn’t meet my expectations. Ingredients like boiling water, hot coffee, buttermilk etc. tend to lead to a chocolate cake that wasn’t moist or rich enough for our tastes. So you will find none of those ingredients in this easy chocolate cake recipe.

This moist chocolate cake is seriously the best, it’s dense and rich and never ever disappoints. Frosted with our favorite chocolate buttercream recipe, it’s a chocolate-lover’s dream come true.

Classic Chocolate Cake Recipe: How To Make It

People ask how to make a cake super moist. It’s all in the ingredients. I made sure to choose ingredients that would create a moist chocolate cake with a rich chocolate flavor that everyone raves about. So here are some notes about the ingredients and some possible substitutions.

This chocolate cake recipe makes two, 6″ round chocolate cakes – that I use to make the best chocolate birthday cake (frosting with this chocolate buttercream or vanilla frosting). With a 6″ cake, every member of my family of 8 enjoys two slices.

You can double the recipe to make two, 9″ round cakes, if desired. We’ll walk through how to make chocolate cake step-by-step, and don’t forget to watch the video.

Chocolate Cake Recipe Moist

Line two 6” round cake pans with parchment paper and grease well, then set them aside. I like to line them by tracing the bottom of the cake pans onto parchment paper and then drawing “handles” out of opposite sides (see below). This makes it very easy to lift the cake out after baking.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, sea salt and espresso powder. Set aside to use later. This step is important to ensure the ingredients are evenly distributed and that there are no lumps.

Next, combine the wet ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together canola oil, eggs, sour cream, milk and vanilla until the mixture is smooth.

Thermomix Easy Chocolate Cake

Next, divide the batter evenly into the two prepared cake pans. You can either eyeball it or actually measure. I like to put 1 cup of batter at a time into each cake pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean or with a few crumbs.

Place cake pans on a wire cooling rack to cool to room temperature (takes about 30 minutes). Once cool, lift cakes out of the pans and remove parchment paper. Let cool completely on the wire cooling rack.

Moist Chocolate Cake Recipe

Once the cakes are completely cooled, frost or decorate them any way you wish. I either use this chocolate frosting or this vanilla frosting to make our chocolate birthday cakes! Don’t forget to do a crumb coat first – a thin base layer of frosting to keep crumbs from getting into your final design.

Bake this homemade chocolate cake recipe a few days before I need to frost it and store it in the freezer. Simply wrap each chocolate cake layer tightly with plastic wrap, put them in a ziplock bags and store in the freezer.

Even if you plan on frosting the homemade chocolate cake the same day you bake it, I still recommend freezing it before frosting. Frosting a a cake when it’s frozen reduces the number of crumbs that make their way into the frosting.

Easy Homemade Chocolate Cake (+video)

If you decorate the cake with a design (like rosettes, etc.) I recommend chilling it in the refrigerator until the frosting hardens and the design sets.

If you decorated the cake and chilled it in the refrigerator, remove it from the fridge 1-2 hours before serving so it can come to room temperature – because that’s how it tastes best! This is another reason why I typically bake the chocolate birthday cake in advance. Then I frost it the day before someone’s birthday so it has time to chill/set and then come to room temperature to eat!

We like eating cake with a side of ice cream, like this homemade vanilla ice cream or homemade chocolate ice cream. A dollop of homemade whipped cream also tastes amazing!

One Bowl Chocolate Cake Recipe

Yes! This recipe is easily doubled and baked in two, 9″ round cake pans. This is a great option if you will be making the cake for a large crowd. When I make this recipe as written for my family of 7, everyone usually eats three servings (slices) before the cake is gone. 

This recipe yields the best, moist chocolate cake ever. To ensure it turns out that way be careful not to over-bake, and measure all the ingredients properly and precisely. 

I use either this chocolate buttercream frosting or homemade vanilla frosting to decorate this easy chocolate cake recipe. I use the following tools to decorate (after my kids choose their design): 

Hershey's Chocolate Cake

Yes, you can freeze the entire cake or individual slices. I suggest flash-freezing the cake/slices, then wrapping them tightly in plastic wrap and storing them in an airtight contianer. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.

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This is the best chocolate cake recipe ever! It is rich, chocolatey and moist with a perfect crumb! Topped with chocolate buttercream frosting it's the ultimate chocolate birthday cake. Check out the step-by-step photos and watch the video to learn how to make this easy chocolate cake recipe and ditch boxed cake mixes once and for all!

Best Chocolate Cake Recipe

Serving: 1 slice | Calories: 217 kcal | Carbohydrates: 28 g | Protein: 3 g | Fat: 11 g | Saturated Fat: 3 g | Cholesterol: 26 mg | Sodium: 133 mg | Potassium: 74 mg | Fiber: 1 g | Sugar: 20 g | Vitamin A: 99 IU | Vitamin C: 1 mg | Calcium: 36 mg | Iron: 1 mgWith 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!

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

Homemade Chocolate Cake With Chocolate Frosting

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!

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.

Double Chocolate Layer Cake

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!)

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. 🙂

Like my yellow cake, I use my

Perfect Chocolate Sponge Cake