Chocolate Cake from Scratch

Let’s make a homemade Chocolate Cake from Scratch! This is the best easy recipe to make moist and light cake with perfect crumb and rich chocolate flavor, covered with incredibly delicious whipped chocolate ganache!

If you’ve never tried to make a chocolate cake from scratch, you need to try this recipe! It’s super easy to make, even if you are a beginner baker. You will have a super moist and light cake, layered with delicious whipped chocolate ganache. It’s so much better than store bought!

And if you love chocolate desserts as much as I do, you should try my Chocolate Mousse Pie, French Chocolate Mousse Recipe, Kahlua Cupcakes, and Caramel Filled Cupcakes.

Why you will love it

• Easy to make. Even if you are a beginner baker, you will easily make this recipe! Plus, you only need 2 mixing bowls and a whisk.
• Moist. Very often chocolate cakes come out dry and hard. This recipe will help you to make this cake super moist and fluffy!
• Flavorful. Because we add a cup of coffee to the batter, it helps to enrich the deep chocolate flavor.
• The best icing. This cake is covered with delicious whipped chocolate ganache, that is rich, chocolaty, with a mousse-like consistency.

How to make Chocolate Cake from Scratch

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease 2 9-inch cake pans and line with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, sift together 2 cups all-purpose flour, ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 teaspoons baking soda, and 1 teaspoon baking powder. Add 1 teaspoon salt and 1 ½ cup granulated sugar and whisk. Set aside.

In another bowl, whisk ½ cup vegetable oil and 2 large eggs.

Add 1 cup buttermilk and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract and whisk again.

Pour wet ingredients into dry ones. Whisk until combined. Pour in 1 cup hot coffee and whisk again. The batter should be thin.

Divide the batter evenly between 2 pre-greased cake pans lined with parchment paper. Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

When done, take the cakes out of the oven and let cool off for 5-10 minutes. Then transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool off completely.

How to make Whipped Chocolate Ganache

Add 18 ounces chocolate chips in a bowl.

Pour 1 ½ cup heavy cream in a sauce pan and heat up until starts to simmer. Then pour it over the chocolate chips.

Allow it to sit for about 5 minutes, then whisk until smooth. Let it cool off completely, then refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.

When ready, whip the ganache with a stand or a hand mixer until stiff peaks, but don’t overmix.

How to assemble

When the cake is completely cooled off and chocolate ganache is whipped, we can start to assemble.

Place the 1^st cake layer on a platter with the top down. Evenly cover the top with ⅓ of whipped ganache. Place the second layer top down. Use the rest of the ganache to evenly cover the cake on the top and the sides.

Tips for Best Results

• Sifting. I prefer to sift flour and cocoa powder for this recipe, so it will be light and without any clumps.
• Cocoa Powder. Do not use Dutch-process cocoa powder in this recipe but unsweetened natural cocoa powder.
• Coffee. For hot coffee, you can use regular or decaf coffee. It won’t taste like coffee but will helps to enrich the chocolate flavor. If you don’t have coffee, you can just use hot water.
• Buttermilk. If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make it at home yourself. Just add 2 teaspoons of lemon juice or white vinegar to 1 cup of milk, stir and let it sit for about 5 minutes. The mixture should curdle a bit when ready.
• Cake Pan. Make sure you use a leak proof cake pan for this recipe. Because the batter is very thin, it may leak out.
• Parchment Paper. It’s important to use parchment paper on the bottom of the pan, so it will be easier to take the cake out of the form. If you skip this step, most likely your cake will stick to the bottom of the pan.
• Chocolate Ganache. When you whip the ganache, make sure you DON’T over whip it! Otherwise, it will become more like a butter texture and will be too thick to spread over the cake.

How to store a cake

How to store unfrosted cake layers

To start, we need to cool off the layers completely. If you start wrapping it up while warm, it will release the condensation and will get soggy and will stick to the wrap.

After the layers are completely cooled off, you can wrap them tightly with a plastic wrap. Don’t leave any areas uncovered as it will result in dried out cake. Here are 3 options to store it:

• On the counter top. It’s absolutely safe to leave it on the counter and it will stay fresh for 3-4 days.
• Refrigerate. You can refrigerate the covered layers for one week.
• Freeze. If you want to freeze it, you will need to wrap it with foil after covering with plastic wrap. This way it won’t get freezer-burnt. You can freeze it for up to a month. To thaw, just leave it in the fridge overnight or on the counter for a few hours.

How to store frosted cake

Before wrapping the frosted cake, I like to refrigerate it for 15-20 minutes to harden the icing. Then it will be easier to wrap the cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to a week. Take it out of the fridge 30 minutes to 1 hour before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Hungry for more desserts?

• Classic Apple Pie Recipe
• Marble Cheesecake Brownies
• Strawberry Swiss Roll
• Old Fashioned Peach Cobbler
• Italian Tiramisu Recipe
• One Bowl Banana Bread
• Classic Creme Brulee Recipe
• Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies