I’m about to give you the absolute easiest from scratch chocolate cake recipe you will ever use. This is my go to recipe when I need chocolate cake. It’s almost easier than a box mix! And it’s so fool proof your toddler can help and it will still turn out like it came from a bakery with professional bakers. Okay maybe that’s a bit of a stretch but it’s pretty forgiving even with vigorous toddler mixing!
I used this recipe for E’s first birthday and his second. We did a “Wild One” theme for his first birthday and I made a bear cake. Actually I made 2, one as a smash cake and one for us to eat. For his second birthday we did “Two Much Dirt” as the theme. So I did a chocolate cake with construction vehicles.
I let E help make the cake for his second birthday. He mixed the life out of that thing and got flour/sugar/cocoa powder EVERYWHERE. Do you know how hard it is to clean up that combination of ingredients? I think there is still some of it stuck under the kitchen island, just don’t tell my husband.
Anyways the cake turned out wonderful. Moist and chocolatey. I really wanted to sub coffee for the hot water but since this was a cake for a toddler I decided not to. I also only used 1 of the 2 cakes because it’s pretty much just E and I eating it (C isn’t eating a lot of sweets right now). So I froze the second cake and we will eat it another day!
I will note that I also cut back on the sugar. There is a lot of sugar in cake and then you top it with more sugar and it’s just overkill. But if you want to see the original recipe, it came from “Lil’ Luna’s” blog! And I will include the chocolate buttercream icing that goes with it. Although you can do almost any variation of icing, even a whipped topping would be good!
This cake is great for birthday parties, special nights or just whenever you need a sweet treat! It appeared for my one-year-old’s birthday too (This Ain’t My First Rodeo). We all love it and I hope you will too!
Easy Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/3 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup oil
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup boiling water (you can also substitute 1 cup hot coffee)
Instructions
- Line two 9” round pans with parchment paper. If using 8” you will need to increase your bake time. Preheat oven to 350F.
- Whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large mixing bowl.
- Whisk in the milk, eggs and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the boiling water and continue to mix until smooth.
- Divide batter between the two pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes (35-40 if using 8” pans) or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
- Cool for 10 minutes in the pan and then invert on to a cooling rack. Cool completely before icing.
Cupcakes
Make as directed and divide evenly into 24 greased or lined muffin tins. Bake at 350°F for 16-19 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Chocolate Frosting
- 1/2 cup butter (softened)
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 6-8 TBSP milk
Beat all ingredients together until smooth. Add milk until you have a spreadable consistency. This will make enough frosting for a double layer cake.
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