Let me show you a new to me recipe for the best Dark Chocolate Cake With Whipped Cream Frosting. Birthdays will never be the same around here!
I come from a long line of pie lovers… which means you won’t find cake at most of our family gatherings, even birthdays. We snub our noses at store bought cakes and are proud to be on TEAM PIE… So it’s no surprise to me that I only have a handful of cake recipes here on Lovely Little Kitchen. But this Dark Chocolate Cake With Whipped Cream Frosting is a game changer for me! I made it for my husband’s birthday recently after he specifically requested a cake (WHAT?) and I’m so glad he did.
It’s so easy to make, requiring one bowl, regular all-purpose flour, and a hand mixer. Nothing fancy, and nothing I can’t handle even though cake is something I probably make once a year. And it’s so delicious!!! Super moist and fudgy, with a rich chocolate flavor without being too sweet.
The frosting I paired with it is my homemade whipped cream with some dark chocolate cocoa powder added to it. It keeps beautifully in the fridge so you can make it even a couple days ahead of time.
Since I’m not too fancy with my cakes, I kept the decorations simple by smoothing out the sides, dragging a spoon in a spiral shape on top, and tossing on a few sprinkles. We can do this! I even piped a few dots of extra frosting around the bottom edge to cover up a slight gap. Frosting covers a multitude of sins, my friends.
The recipe for this Dark Chocolate Cake came from my neighbor, who found it on the side of the Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder container. I adapted it just slightly, and didn’t use the frosting recipe as written because I wanted something lighter than a traditional buttercream.
If you have something special coming up to celebrate, this is your cake! I tried to list some cake making tips and tricks that were helpful to me in the recipe below, but I’d love to hear what works for you all too. Happy Baking!
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Dark Chocolate Cake With Whipped Cream Frosting
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 35 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 mins
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
This super moist and decadent Dark Chocolate Cake With Whipped Cream Frosting made a cake lover out of me! Try it and you’ll see!
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cups dark chocolate cocoa powder (unsweetened)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup oil (I used avocado oil)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon coffee extract
- 1 cup boiling water
For the Chocolate Whipped Cream Frosting
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder
- 2 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and spray two nine-inch baking pans with baking spray. Cut four 1 inch by 12 inch strips of parchment paper and arrange them in an “X” across each of the baking pans. This will give you “tabs” to remove the cakes from the pans after they are baked.
- In a large bowl, mix sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add eggs, milk, oil, and extracts. Beat the ingredients together with a hand mixer on low speed, and then gradually increase to medium speed for about 2 minutes.
- Slowly stir in the boiling water by hand. The batter will be very thin. Don’t worry!
- Evenly divide the batter between the two baking pans and bake for 33-35 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out mostly clean, or with a few crumbs attached.
- Let the pans cool on a cooling rack for 10 minutes, and then place into the freezer for 1 hour.
For the Chocolate Whipped Cream Frosting
- Over a large bowl, sift powdered sugar and cocoa powder together. Add heavy cream and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed (carefully at first) and gradually increase the speed to high as the mixture thickens. After about 3-4 minutes, you will have stiff peaks in the cream and it will be ready to use for frosting.
To Assemble
- Place a few more strips of parchment or wax paper around the edge of your cake plate or pan. This will keep the surface clean while you are frosting. Place the first cake (domed side down) onto the center of the plate.
- Remove the cakes from the freezer, and use the tabs to lift them out.
- Scoop about 2 cups of frosting on top of the cake and spread to the edges in an even layer.
- Place the second cake (domed side up) on top of the frosting layer. Add more frosting to the top of the cake, and spread to the edges and down the sides. Keep adding more frosting until the cake is completely covered.
- Use a knife or offset spatula to smooth the edges. I like to drag a spoon around the top of the cake to make a spiral design. If desired, reserve 1 cup of frosting to pipe around the bottom edge of the cake to cover any gap after you remove the parchment paper strips. Add chocolate sprinkles.
- Cover (if possible) and refrigerate until ready to serve. I think this cake tastes best served cold on the day after it is made, which is nice because you can make it ahead and have it all ready to go.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Piece
- Calories: 553
- Sugar: 49g
- Sodium: 430mg
- Fat: 29g
- Saturated Fat: 13g
- Unsaturated Fat: 13.3g
- Trans Fat: 0.6g
- Carbohydrates: 68g
- Fiber: 1.8g
- Protein: 6.3g
- Cholesterol: 89mg
Molly Smith says
This cake is absolutely delicious! So easy to make! I love the whipped cream frosting as it makes it lighter and much less sweet. The cake is soft and so chocolatey. 10/10!
Mary says
This has become our favorite chocolate cake recipe by far. Great chocolate flavor without being overpowering, fluffy light icing, and above all, INCREDIBLY moist cake. I have also made cupcakes using this recipe and just shortening the baking time and they turned out great as well. Highly recommend!
Barbara says
Can I use salted butter instead of oil? My veg oil smells bad. I also have olive oil.
Barbara says
Total disaster. Cake was soup. Wasted a lot of money
Nikki says
Mine is about the same spilled out the top of both 9inch cake pans I used. If anyone makes this make sure you have DEEP 9in cake pans or you’ll spend the rest of the day cleaning out your oven and the house smelling like burnt charcoal chocolate smell.
Nikki says
Spilled out the top of both 9inch cake pans I used. If anyone makes this make sure you have DEEP 9in cake pans or you’ll spend the rest of the day cleaning out your oven and the house smelling like burnt charcoal.
Paula says
Mine was too loose too. It collapsed into a sunken mess.
Leah says
Can you make this cake a day ahead of time?
Jaylyn says
What can I use instead of coffee extract?
LC says
I love this recipe. Instead of coffee extract and hot water, I use a cup of hot espresso. I also use half butter and half coconut oil for the oil. If it is a little runny I add a little more flour. It always turns out great!