The Best Chocolate Fudge Cake Recipe
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Your search for the best chocolate fudge cake ends here. This easy, from-scratch recipe is proof that basic pantry ingredients can make a rich, moist, and out-of-this-world delicious chocolate dessert. Get ready for some serious chocolatey goodness with this decadent cake – it’s the kind that you will wake up in the middle of the night for!
I come from a family of chocolate lovers. When I’m baking in the kitchen, more often than not, there’s some chocolate involved. We love all sorts of desserts, from classic chocolate chip cookies and hot chocolate cookies to chocolate sage ice cream.
Our most favorite? Chocolate fudge cake! If you enjoyed fudge in your childhood, this one is a richer, more decadent version in cake form. I perfected this recipe and then sent it over to a friend who just had a baby girl. Her whole family raved about the dessert and said it was such a nice treat.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Easy, no-fuss recipe: Prep for 10 minutes and bake for 25, and you’ll have a delicious chocolate dessert to serve and enjoy.
- Basic ingredients: This recipe calls for easy-to-find ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry.
- Classic comfort dessert: A classic dessert that tastes fancy but brings nostalgic, homey vibes.
- The ultimate chocolate fix: Moist, fluffy cake is topped with a rich and creamy chocolate ganache. It’s a chocolate lover’s dream come true!
- Customizable: Pair it with your favorite frosting, fillings, or toppings to make it uniquely yours.
- Perfect for all occasions: This cake is easy enough to enjoy as an after-meal dessert at home, but delicious enough to serve at casual gatherings, special occasions, or holiday celebrations.
How to Make Chocolate Fudge Cake
Can you believe that the best chocolate fudge cake you will ever taste will only take you 35 minutes to make from start to finish? It does call for more than a few ingredients, but all of them are simple and easy to find.
This recipe is foolproof and delivers bakery-quality results every time. The secret ingredient? A touch of coffee! Make it and see how it all comes together.
Scroll to the bottom of this post for a printable recipe card with a full list of ingredients, measurements, and step-by-step instructions.
Ingredients You Need
For the cake:
- All-purpose flour
- Cocoa powder: Deepens the chocolate flavor and contributes to the overall richness of the cake. Use Dutch-processed cocoa for a richer taste, or natural cocoa powder for a lighter chocolate flavor.
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt: Often overlooked, but salt is great at balancing the sweetness and rounding out the flavors of the fudge.
- Sugar
- Egg: Adds richness while binding the ingredients together.
- Sour cream: Adds moisture, richness, and a slight tang, making the cake ultra-moist.
- Butter: Adds flavor, moisture, and richness. I use unsalted butter since we will be adding salt separately.
- Vanilla extract: Enhances the flavor of the cookies by adding a subtle sweetness that complements the cocoa. It will make your kitchen smell amazing while baking, too!
- Hot coffee: Deepens the chocolate flavor and helps the cocoa powder bloom for a more intense taste. Adding coffee will not make the cake taste like coffee, but the cake will still be enjoyable and deliciously chocolatey without it. Use hot water as an alternative.
For the Ganache:
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips: The rich chocolatey base for the ganache.
- Heavy cream: Creates the creamy, glossy texture of the ganache.
Step-By-Step Instructions
Chocolate on chocolate? Yes please! Soft and fluffy cake covered in smooth and silky ganache is just divine. This chocolate fudge cake is so simple to make yet so good that you may wonder why you only ever had the store-bought kind before.
Simply make the batter by mixing the dry and wet ingredients, bake, and make the ganache while the cake is in the oven. Once the cake is cooled and the ganache is chilled, frost the cake, decorate, and serve.
Step 1: Mix the dry ingredients
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 9×9-inch baking dish with parchment paper.
Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar.
Step 2: Mix the wet ingredients
Mix the egg, sour cream, butter, and vanilla extract in a second bowl.
Step 3: Make the batter
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry bowl and combine until the ingredients are evenly incorporated. I use an electric mixer for a minute or two. Expect the batter to be a little thick.
Add the hot coffee or water while mixing and combine until smooth.
Step 4: Bake
Pour the batter into the prepared dish and bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
When the cake finishes baking, cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before removing from the pan and leaving to cool completely. Resting the cake in the pan allows for the residual heat to continue cooking it a little longer. The perfect texture is soft and fudgy, not under or over cooked. This resting time is the key to getting it right.
Step 5: Make the ganache
Make the ganache while waiting for the cake to cool by warming the chocolate chips and cream together in a double boiler over medium heat. Continue until the chocolate is fully melted while stirring frequently.
Set this aside to thicken in the refrigerator for an hour or so until it is spreadable like peanut butter before slathering it over the top of the cooled cake. There is enough ganache for a thick top layer or the tops and sides. Usually, ganache is too soft to frost on the sides, but chilling it first makes it workable for the vertical wall.
Step 6: Frost the cake
Once your cake has cooled completely, spread a generous layer of ganache over the top and sides using an offset spatula or a butter knife. Make sure to cover the entire surface for a smooth, glossy finish. You can add decorative touches like chocolate shavings or sprinkles if desired.
Substitutions
You’re free to use ingredients that you prefer or have on hand for this chocolate fudge cake recipe. Here are my suggested ingredient substitutions:
- All-purpose flour: If you prefer a lighter, soft-crumbed cake texture, use cake flour. You can also substitute with the same amount of gluten-free flour blend.
- Sour cream: Use plain Greek yogurt or buttermilk as a substitute.
- Butter: I use and recommend unsalted butter because it gives me control over the amount of salt I put in the recipe. If unavailable, use the same amount of salted butter, but omit the added salt.
- Vanilla extract: No vanilla extract on hand? Vanilla bean paste will work, too. Just make sure to stir it in well. Almond extract could also work in a pinch.
- Hot coffee: If you don’t want to use coffee, substitute with hot water, as mentioned. You can also use hot milk.
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips: Use dark chocolate chocolate chips if that’s what’s available. If you don’t have chocolate chips, substitute with chopped chocolate of your choice.
- Heavy cream: If not available, regular whipping cream can be used instead.
Expert Tips
- Use high-quality cocoa powder: Opt for a high-quality cocoa powder for the richest flavor in the cake.
- Use room temperature ingredients: For a smooth batter, make sure your eggs, sour cream, and butter are at room temperature before mixing them into the dry ingredients.
- Don’t over-mix: Overmixing can make the cake thick and dense. Combining the wet and dry ingredients until they are just barely incorporated to make a very light and fluffy crumb texture.
- Get the right ganache consistency: If you accidentally leave the ganache in the fridge too long, just microwave it for 10 seconds or warm it up again quickly over the stove. If it’s too thin, allow it to cool a bit longer to thicken to the right spreadable consistency.
- Frost it right: For an even and smooth frosting, use a cake turntable and an offset spatula and spread the ganache in a back-and-forth motion.
- Decorate with style: After frosting the cake, get creative by adding chocolate shavings, sprinkles, or fresh berries for a beautiful finishing touch.
How to Store This Recipe
Transfer made-ahead or leftover chocolate fudge cake into an airtight container and keep in a cool, dry place for 3 to 5 days. You can also store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
What to Serve with Chocolate Fudge Cake
Whether you’re celebrating a birthday, hosting a dinner party, or simply indulging in a quiet moment of sweetness, this cake will never fail you. Its rich, fudgy layers paired with creamy frosting make it the perfect centerpiece for any special occasion.
And let’s be honest, who really needs a reason to enjoy chocolate? Serve it up at holidays, potlucks, or even as an after-dinner treat to make any day feel extraordinary. Once you try it, you’ll wonder how you ever celebrated without it!
Chocolate fudge cake makes a great stand-alone dessert, but you can toppings and add-ins are welcome for extra indulgence. Top it with fresh berries, nuts, or whipped cream or serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
Enjoy a slice with your favorite hot or cold coffee or tea. It’s delicious with coffee with peppermint mocha creamer, a warm cup of matcha tea, or some chocolate chai latte for the ultimate chocolate indulgence!
More Easy Dessert Recipes To Try
If you make this chocolate fudge cake, please leave a review. I really appreciate each and every 5-star rating and review comment!
Easy Chocolate Fudge Cake Recipe
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup white sugar
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup butter melted
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup hot coffee or water
For the Ganache:
- 8 ounces chocolate chips semi-sweet
- 1 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Line a 9×9-inch baking dish with parchment paper.
- Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar.
- Mix the egg, sour cream, butter, and vanilla extract in a second bowl.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry bowl and combine until the ingredients are evenly incorporated. I use an electric mixer for a minute or two. Expect the batter to be a little thick.
- Add the hot coffee or water while mixing and combine until smooth.
- Pour the batter into the prepared dish and bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before removing from the pan and leaving to cool completely.
- Make the ganache while waiting for the cake to cool by warming the chocolate chips and cream together in a double boiler over medium heat. Continue until the chocolate is fully melted while stirring frequently.
- Set this aside to thicken in the refrigerator for an hour or so until it is spreadable like peanut butter before slathering it over the top of the cooled cake.
- Once your cake has cooled completely, spread a generous layer of ganache over the top and sides using an offset spatula or a butter knife. Make sure to cover the entire surface for a smooth, glossy finish. Decorate or add toppings if desired.
Video
Notes
- Opt for a high-quality cocoa powder for the richest flavor in the cake.
- For a smooth batter, make sure your eggs, sour cream, and butter are at room temperature before mixing them into the dry ingredients.
- Overmixing can make the cake thick and dense. Combining the wet and dry ingredients until they are just barely incorporated to make a very light and fluffy crumb texture.
- If you accidentally leave the ganache in the fridge too long, just microwave it for 10 seconds or warm it up again quickly over the stove. If it’s too thin, allow it to cool a bit longer to thicken to the right spreadable consistency.
- For an even and smooth frosting, use a cake turntable and an offset spatula and spread the ganache in a back-and-forth motion.
- After frosting the cake, get creative by adding chocolate shavings, sprinkles, or fresh berries for a beautiful finishing touch.