I should have known that Ina Garten had the best chocolate cake recipe all along; she is, after all, a goddess. There have been a few times in the past when I thought I had found The Perfect chocolate cake recipe, but every time I thought I had found my go-to, I started to get consistently bad results. Weird textures and sunken tops and what-not. I was a little skeptical when I read all of the glowing reviews surrounding this cake; everyone, and I mean everyone, said it was The Best Chocolate Cake Ever. And that it was easy to boot! Can one recipe really deliver all that? It turns out that the answer is a resounding Yes! Ina really does have the best chocolate cake recipe: it is a snap to make (no whipping, no careful folding, no fancy ingredients, just mix-mix-pour) and it produces a cake that is moist and rich and perfectly springy. My dad gave it perhaps the best compliment a cake can receive when, with eyes as wide as saucers, he stared at me quite dumb-founded and said, “What?! You made this from scratch?!” High praise indeed.
I have a favorite chocolate frosting recipe that I use for everything, and it worked beautifully with this cake. I highly recommend it! I chose not to make the chocolate buttercream included in the recipe from The Barefoot Contessa because it contains a raw egg and that grossed me out!
*I almost forgot my asterisk! We don’t drink coffee, but adding coffee to chocolate cake deepens the chocolate flavor and really makes it sing, so I don’t like skipping that or adding water instead (blah!). So I use Pero, which is just an instant beverage powder that is made from malted barley and chicory and smells vaguely coffee-esque. It can be found near the teas, coffees, and hot cocoas at the grocery store.
can this be made in microwave?
This recipe (along with the best chocolate frosting) is awesome! I made it for a coworker’s birthday and will be making it again for my mother’s 90th birthday! Super special cake for a super special lady’s milestone birthday!
Julie, I’m so glad you love it! We do too. Congrats to your mom on her 90th birthday!!
Can I double the reciepe
Can I double the reciepe for a larger one layer cake
Hi Linda. You should be able to make this recipe in a 9×13″ pan for a single layer cake without having to double it. The baking time will have to be adjusted, but otherwise it should work just fine. And yes, I would think you could make it ahead and keep it tightly covered at room temperature. Alternately, you could refrigerate it and let it come to room temperature either before frosting or before serving. Best of luck!
And can I make it 2 days ahead. Cover tightly keep at room temperature
Thanks for such a nice recipe for the Chocolate cake. It’s really nice and great in taste. Really amazing.I have properly remembered this recipe for my birthday party. http://cake-delivery.in/noida
It is a delicious cake! I’m so glad you’ve had success with it.
Ina Garten does such a great job with her recipes! Love her!
I made this with the frosting last night. Fantastic cake. Thanks.
I have made this before and it’s delicious!
Can you please advise what temperature and how long to bake if converting this to cupcakes?
Thanks!
Hi Alexia! A quick note: I don’t think this recipe translates well to cupcakes. They taste great, but they don’t look very pretty. I think this recipe for cupcakes is much better, and this is the one I use: https://luluthebaker.com/2016/04/best-chocolate-cupcakes/. But if you still want to use the other recipe, I would bake the cupcakes at the same temperature as the cake for 18-23 minutes. Good luck!
This recipe looks intriguing except for the coffee. Can the coffee flavor be tasted because I want a chocolate cake absent coffee flavor.
Hi Christine! There’s absolutely no coffee flavor whatsoever in the cake. It just tastes nice and chocolatey.
Would I be able to use a Hazelnut flavoured instant coffee for the coffee option? Funny question – how do I know it’s “strong” ?
Hi! I think you could totally use Hazelnut instant coffee. It would give the finished cake a hint of hazelnut flavor! And I think you just brew a regular cup of coffee and call it good. Just not watery!