Classic and Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe

Easy Chocolate Cake
The Spruce
  • 45 mins
  • Prep: 15 mins,
  • Cook: 30 mins
  • Yield: 2 (9-inch) cakes (serves 12)
Ratings (447)

By Danilo Alfaro

Updated 05/16/18

Everyone loves chocolate cake, and this chocolate cake recipe is a true classic. It's hard to improve on perfection.

But perfection sometimes needs some help, so I'll give you a tip. If it's been more than six months since you bought the baking powder and baking soda in your pantry, you should replace them. They lose their potency quickly, and your cake won't rise properly if it's too old. Trust me on this. (See: Are My Baking Supplies Still Good? for more advice.)

Also, if you've ever wondered why some chocolate cake recipes (like this one) call for boiling water, it's because it helps bloom the cocoa powder, giving the cake a deeper chocolate flavor.

For a softer cake, you can substitute cake flour for the all-purpose flour. Just use 225 grams of cake flour, which will be about 2 1/3 cups.

What You'll Need

  • 1 3/4 cups/225 grams all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup water (boiling)

How to Make It

  1. Preheat your oven to 350 F.
  2. Butter and flour two 9-inch cake pans. It can help to line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper cut to fit the pan.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt, until everything is blended.
  4. In a separate mixing bowl, combine the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla, and whisk to combine. Then whisk in the boiling water.
  1. Now add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until combined. Then pour the batter into your prepared pans and transfer them to the oven.
  2. Bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, or with a crumb or two attached. You can start testing after 27 minutes because it's better to check too soon than to overbake.
  3. Cool the cakes for 10 minutes in the pans on a wire rack, then loosen the edges by running a knife along the sides, turn the cakes out onto the racks and cool for at least another hour, and frost with this chocolate frosting recipe.
Nutritional Guidelines (per serving)
Calories 356
Total Fat 14 g
Saturated Fat 3 g
Unsaturated Fat 8 g
Cholesterol 41 mg
Sodium 442 mg
Carbohydrates 54 g
Dietary Fiber 2 g
Protein 5 g
(The nutrition information on our recipes is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. Individual results may vary.)