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Yo's Ultimate Chocolate Cake

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This chocolate cake is my go-to recipe. It’s moist and delicious, and also sturdy enough to carve into novelty cakes like the ones you see on How To Cake It. I’ve been making this chocolate cake recipe for 15 years, with a few tweaks here and there, and it has never let me down, whether it’s smothered in buttercream, draped with fondant, or dripping with ganache. If you’re making one of the novelty cakes, use the pan sizes and baking times specified in the novelty cake recipe.

*Tips: Make sure your butter and eggs are at room temperature before you begin!*

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2 ¾ cups All Purpose Flour
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 ½ tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Table Salt
1 cup Dutch-processed Cocoa Powder
1 cup (2 sticks) Unsalted Butter, at Room Temperature
2 ½ cups Sugar
4 Large Eggs, at Room Temperature

YIELD

4 pounds of batter
Makes one 9 x 13-inch cake or two 8-inch round cakes

PREP TIME

30 minutes

BAKING TIME

45-55 minutes

Item Name:	Availability:
Mixing bowls
Sieve
Whisk
Measuring cups and spoons
Rubber spatula	Add to Cart -
Stand mixer with paddle attachment	Add to Cart - $109.99
2 x 8-inch cake rounds or a 9x13-inch cake pan
Parchment paper

Pre-Heat Oven & Prep Pan

Preheat oven to 350F. Line the bottom of each cake pan with parchment paper.

See How to Bake a Cake.

Sift Dry Ingredients

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and whisk together. Set aside.

Combine Water & Cocoa

Put the cocoa powder in a medium heatproof bowl. Bring 3 cups water to a boil, then carefully measure exactly 2 cups and pour over the cocoa powder and whisk until completely smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.

Cream Butter & Sugar

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar of medium speed until light and fluffy, about 8 minutes.

Add Eggs

Add the eggs, two at a time, beating until each addition is incorporated before adding the next. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula when necessary.

Alternatively Add Dry Ingredients & Cocoa Mixtures

Add the flour mixture in four parts, alternating with the warm cocoa mixture in three parts, beating just until each addition is incorporated before adding the next; do not overmix.

Bake Cake

Pour the batter into the prepared pan or pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes for the 9 x 13-inch pan or 55 minutes for the 8-inch pans, rotating the pan(s) halfway through.

Cool Your Cakes

Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely in the pan(s). Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Loosen the edges with a straight spatula, invert the pan(s) to remove the cake, and peel off the parchment.

Learn from Yolanda

In this FREE 4-week baking program, Yolanda will teach you the foundational cake and icing recipes you need to get started. Start HERE with your baking, and the sky is the limit for what you can create!