With just a few secret ingredients, a boxed cake mix becomes the best chocolate cake recipe you have ever tasted. This will become your go to recipe chocolate cake.
Yesterday was Hannah’s birthday. I told Hannah I would make her a birthday cake to celebrate. When I asked her what flavor cake she wanted, she didn’t hesitate, the answer was chocolate! Probably because I have the best chocolate cake recipe ever!
Hannah has been our next door neighbor for over 25 years. She is like my third daughter. She and my oldest daughter have been best friends since they were 4. We invited some of the other neighbors over to help celebrate Hannah’s birthday and eat all the cake. You can always tell how good this cake is by all the oohing and aahing that comes from the guests as they eat this chocolate cake!
I don’t often make chocolate cake for myself. If I am going to choose the flavor of cake it usually ends up being lemon. But I have to say that even I can appreciate how good this chocolate cake is. This is the best chocolate cake recipe I have ever tried!
Easy Chocolate Cake
The best part is that this recipe starts with a Devil Food’s cake mix! So easy! It is then doctored up with some chocolate pudding and sour cream. And did I mention it also has chocolate chips in it?!n Just for good measure!
Then I cover all that chocolate goodness with some yummy, fluffy buttercream frosting and no one can resist this cake! My neighbor turned this cake recipe into cupcakes and entered them into a dessert contest at work and won! This recipe is definitely prize worthy.
And just to top it off with some sprinkles! Perfection!
Some of my other favorite cakes include:
Some of the kitchen tools I use to make the BEST CHOCOLATE CAKE:
6 PIECE MEASURING CUP SET – Everyone needs at least one set of measuring cups, I have 4 sets!
MAGNETIC MEASURING SPOONS – I love these things. They are magnetic so they stay together in the drawer!
9 INCH CAKE PAN – Works great for cakes but I also like putting dinner rolls in it.
For all of my other favorite kitchen products and tools visit my Amazon Store.
The Best Chocolate Cake Recipe
The BEST Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
- 1 box devil’s food cake mix
- 1 small pkg Jello instant chocolate pudding mix
- 1 C sour cream
- 1 C canola oil
- 4 eggs beaten
- 1/2 C milk
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 C semisweet chocolate chips
Buttercream Frosting
- 1 C butter
- 4 C powdered sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 C heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large bow mix together all the ingredients except for the chocolate chips
- Stir in the chocolate chips
- Pour batter into a buttered and floured cake pan
- I used two 9-inch cake pans
- For cooking time, use the cooking times on the back of the cake box as a guide and add about 10 minutes to that. Check for doneness using a tooth pick.)
Buttercream Frosting
- In a mixer cream butter until fluffy
- Add sugar and continue creaming until well blended
- Add salt, vanilla, and whipping cream
- Blend on low speed until moistened. and then beat at high speed until frosting is fluffy
Nutrition
Get my Weekly Menu Plan for FREE!
Receive my FREE "What's for Dinner?" Meal Planning Course, a copy of my FREE ebook that includes my most popular recipes and my FREE weekly Meal Plan.
Can you do this as cupcakes as well?
Absolutely, it works great!
I give this cake 5 stars. I have made this cake twice and told it’s very good. If making cupcakes; what is the baking time and how much batter do you fill the cupcake liners?
Perfect as is! My new favorite cake recipe.
You did not really use 2 9 inch PIE pans, did you?
Thanks for catching the typo – should be cake pans
I can’t wait to try it!
Wow! Looks REALLY good! I have my go-to recipe that I have been using for years but I think I will give this one a try. Thanks!
I’ll definitely try this recipe! I have a couple of questions – What is the trick to getting sprinkles on the sides of a two layer cake? I always end up making a huge mess. Also – I love your plates – the white ones with the raised dots in the photos. Where did you get them?
Ruthie, It can definitely be a struggle. I just use my hand and pat them into the side of the cake. it is messy job but it works. My plates are from World Market. Thanks!
Hi Leigh Anne!
As always…HUGE fan of yours and I have to try this cake! I am actually making cupcakes for my daughters 1st birthday and was wondering if this recipe would work well as a cupcake or if you suggest keeping it as a cake recipe! Either way I am going to make it…I just bought all of the ingredients!
Thank you 🙂
My neighbor made this recipe into cupcakes and won first place at her office cupcake contest – so definitely, yes. Makes great cupcakes!!
I was making the cake for my parent’s 50 & 60th Birthday’s. I didn’t want to chance it so I used full fat. Thanks so much for the recipe it got RAVE reviews. It was my very first two layer cake and one of my first attempts at homemade icing and it turned out great. Everyone loved it!!
I only use the real stuff so I’m not sure but it’s definitely worth a try!
Let me know how it works out.
Do you think this recipe be ok with low fat sour cream?
I have not made it chocolate but I am sure it would be great – just add cocoa powdered in to taste. Enjoy!
I was wondering if you have ever made this buttercream frosting chocolate? If not, do you think you could and how? I am going to try a 12 layer chocolate cake and wanted the frosting to be chocolate as well and love this frosting. Thx for you help.
With all these wonderful recipes you offer, just how do you stay so slim?
This is the same recipe I made for my daughter’s wedding cake in March of 2005!
I made this cake for a dessert function at work and it was such a hit! After 1 hour of the event, I went down to check on how it was going and whether anyone had tried my cake only to find an empty plate with nothing but a few crumbs on it! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
Do you find if you substitute a lower fat product, such as 5% our cream or creamed cheese or 1% milk, in baking, it makes a significant difference? I try to cut back where I can. I see this one has sour cream. I’m not sure I’d do the no-fat substitutions but lower fat?
When serving this cake, ALWAYS have extra copies of the recipe made. People always ask for it!
I have made the same recipe (or at least similar) in a crockpot. Minus the frosting and using mini chocolate chips. It is good and may be in need of making sometime soon. I LOVE chocolate!!
I get rave reviews about this cake every time I make it. It is delicious!
Red Velvet Cake:
2 1/2 cups (250 grams) sifted cake flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons (15 grams) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups (300 grams) granulated white sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk
2 tablespoons liquid red food coloring
1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
1 teaspoon baking soda
Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 1/2 (360 ml) cups heavy whipping cream
1 – 8 ounce (227 grams) cream cheese, room temperature
1 – 8 ounce (227 grams) tub of Mascarpone cheese, room temperature
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup (115 grams) confectioners’ (icing or powdered) sugar, sifted
Red Velvet Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter two – 9 inch (23 cm) round cake pans and line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl sift together the flour, salt, and cocoa powder. Set aside.
In bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until soft (about 1-2 minutes). Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla extract and beat until combined.
In a measuring cup whisk the buttermilk with the red food coloring. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the butter mixture, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour.
In a small cup combine the vinegar and baking soda. Allow the mixture to fizz and then quickly fold into the cake batter.
Working quickly, divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans and smooth the tops with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 25 – 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean. Cool the cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Place a wire rack on top of the cake pan and invert, lifting off the pan. Once the cakes have completely cooled, wrap in plastic and place the cake layers in the freezer for at least an hour. (This is done to make filling and frosting the cakes easier.)
Cream Cheese Frosting: In your food processor, or with a hand mixer, process the cream cheese and mascarpone cheese until smooth. Add the vanilla and confectioners sugar and process until smooth. Transfer this mixture to a large mixing bowl.
Then, in the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, whip the cream until stiff peaks form. With a large spatula, gently but quickly fold a little of the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture to lighten it. Then fold in the remaining whipped cream, in two stages. If the frosting is not thick enough to spread, cover and place in the refrigerator for an hour, or until it is firm enough to spread.
Assemble: With a serrated knife, cut each cake layer in half, horizontally. You will now have four cake layers. Place one of the cake layers, top of the cake facing down, onto your serving platter. Spread the cake layer with a layer of frosting. Place another layer of cake on top of the frosting and continue to frost and stack the cake layers. Frost the top and sides of the cake. Can garnish the cake with sweetened or unsweetened coconut
Makes one – 9 inch (23 cm) four layer cake.
ENJOY!!
our standard b-day cake is skor cake
1 devils food cake mix prepare and bake , then poke holes in the top with a straw. pour caramel ice cream topping over the holes ( i use the whole jar). cover in whip cream and top with crushed skor, or heath bar!
That’s my favorite cake recipe!! Infact it’s the only cake my husband has ever asked me to make, normally he wants cheesecake instead! We usually just sprinkle powder sugar on top, but I’m definately going to do that buttercream recipe next time!
This cake did me in! So so good.
You are amazing Leigh Anne!!
🙂
Is there something creepy about the fact that we have baked nearly the same thing without talking to each other more than once?! I was going to add it to your “Eat Cake” post but never mind. 😉
I got the same recipe from kevinandamanda.com and made it yesterday. I didn’t make her accompanying frosting recipe and wanted something lighter than buttercream so here’s some yummy frosting I made by taking the best ingredients from two different recipes:
1 8 oz cream cheese
1/2 stick butter
2/3 C powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 C heavy whipping cream
Blend first 4 ingredients together. Slowly add whipping cream while whisking with wire whip attachment (Kitchen Aid) until peaks form but be careful so it doesn’t go to next phase which is curdling – ewwww – then it’s not frosting.
Not as heavy as cream cheese frosting, not as sugary as buttercream and not as light as sweetened whipped cream!
I did split the two round cakes so I had 4 layers and put a thin layer between each and still had plenty of frosting to frost the whole cake. YUM!
Like we often say – Great Minds!! We are in sync even when we don’t know it!!
Mmmmm! This is definitely a good one! My roommate in college introduced me to this recipe and it is delicious, I can attest!
Here’s another incredible chocolate cake recipe (very rich, but not quite as sweet- but so so good!)- http://twopeasandapot.blogspot.com/2009/08/chocolate-chocolate-chip-cream-cake.html (no pictures taken as of yet, but here’s another link to another post where I made the cake!) http://janaandjoe.blogspot.com/2009/04/surprise.html
YUMMMYYY! I just printed this post off! Thanks for sharing!!