Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe (One Bowl)
This is hands down the best Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe! Moist, rich, chocolate cake is topped with a luscious chocolate buttercream frosting that will have you swooning. It’s easy to make, too. You just need one bowl! If you’re a chocolate lover, this is sure to become your favorite cake!
For more Amazing Cake Recipes, be sure to check out my Coconut Cake, Simple Carrot Cake, and Strawberry Crunch Cake.
I’m being 100% serious when I tell you this Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe is the only one you will ever need. Yep, it’s that good, y’all.
It’s truly the perfect cake and I’ve been making it for years. It’s the number one requested cake for birthdays in my family, and I love making it for holidays like Valentine’s Day, too.
Why You’ll Love this Chocolate Cake Recipe:
- Easy to make with simple ingredients you probably already have on hand.
- You only need one large bowl to prepare it! Less dishes = winning.
- It’s a SUPER moist and fluffy cake that’s brimming with rich chocolate flavor. No dry cake here!
- The frosting is so creamy and chocolatey. You’ll want to eat it with a spoon!
- It’s 100x better than a boxed cake mix. Once you try it, you’ll see why I call it the best chocolate cake ever!
Ingredients for Easy Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- Dry ingredients – you will need all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt for baking your chocolate cake.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder – I like to use dutch process cocoa for a rich and smooth chocolate flavor. If you don’t have dutch process cocoa on hand though, regular cocoa powder will work fine.
- Sugar – you will need granulated white sugar for the cake batter and powdered sugar for the frosting.
- Vanilla extract – gives depth of flavor to your chocolate cake. You can also use vanilla bean paste instead.
- Eggs – you will need 2 large eggs for your cake. Allow your eggs to come to room temperature first, as they will blend into your wet ingredients much more smoothly.
- Buttermilk – If you don’t have any buttermilk on hand, you can easily make some from regular milk and vinegar. Simply add 1 Tablespoon of white vinegar to a liquid measuring cup and add enough milk to reach the 1 cup line. Stir, then allow the mixture to sit undisturbed for 5 minutes before adding to the recipe.
- Vegetable oil – you will need 1 cup vegetable oil for your cake. You could also use canola oil, but I don’t recommend replacing this with butter or any other oils.
- Hot water – is used to thin out the batter.
- Butter – I recommend using unsalted butter. You will need one stick softened to room temperature.
- Milk – is used for making the chocolate buttercream frosting. I like to use whole milk or 2%. You could also use half and half or heavy cream.
A full list of ingredients, measurements, and instructions are located in the recipe card below.
How to make this Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe – Step by Step
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two 8-inch round cake pans with cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Mix well.
Add in the vanilla, eggs, buttermilk, and vegetable oil mixing until smooth.
Pour in the hot water and mix well. Batter will be very thin.
Pour the cake batter evenly into the prepared pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center of the cakes comes out clean. Allow the cake layers to cool completely on a wire rack.
While the cakes are cooling, prepare the frosting. Combine the softened butter, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, and milk in a large mixing bowl. Beat over medium speed with an electric mixer until frosting is nice and creamy. Add more milk or powdered sugar until desired consistency is reached.
Invert one cake layer onto a serving plate or cake stand. Spread a small amount of frosting evenly over the top of the cake then top with the second layer. Spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake. Slice and enjoy!
Tips and Notes
- Use room temperature ingredients. Using room temperature eggs and buttermilk will help your ingredients to incorporate smoothly. If you haven’t had time to let your eggs come to room temperature, simply place them in a bowl of warm water for five minutes before adding to the chocolate cake batter.
- This can also be made in a 9×13 inch pan. Prepare as directed then bake in the preheated oven for 32-36 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- To make this recipe into cupcakes, you can use my Buttermilk Chocolate Cupcakes recipe. The frosting for those is an insanely delicious whipped chocolate ganache that is so good!
- For a lightened up chocolate cake recipe, try my Skinny Chocolate Cake made with a cake mix and Greek yogurt. And if you’re in need of a gluten free option, try this Gluten-free Chocolate Cake recipe.
- Store any leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days.
Why use buttermilk when making chocolate cake?
Buttermilk is a wonderful choice for baking, especially in cakes. It lends a rich depth of flavor, and also creates a soft and fluffy texture. This happens because of a chemical reaction between the acid in the buttermilk and the gluten in the flour. Bottom line: if you like a soft cake with exceptional flavor, choose buttermilk! And if you don’t have any buttermilk on hand, it’s super easy to make with ingredients that you likely already do have!
What if I don’t have buttermilk on hand?
Homemade buttermilk is really simple and quick to make if you don’t have any. All you need is plain white vinegar and regular milk, preferably whole or 2%. Simply add 1 Tablespoon of white vinegar to a liquid measuring cup and add enough milk to reach the 1 cup line. Stir, then allow the mixture to sit undisturbed for 5 minutes before adding to your recipe. That makes 1 cup of buttermilk, which is how much you need for this recipe.
More Delicious Chocolate Recipes
If you try this recipe, please leave a comment and rating below. I love to hear from you and always appreciate your feedback!
Recipe: Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk, *see notes
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup hot water
Chocolate Buttercream Icing:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two 8-inch round cake pans with cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Mix well.
- Add in the vanilla, eggs, buttermilk, and vegetable oil mixing until smooth. Pour in the hot water and mix well. Batter will be very thin.
- Pour the cake batter evenly into the prepared pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center of the cakes comes out clean. Allow the cake layers to cool completely on a wire rack.
- While the cakes are cooling, prepare the frosting. Combine the softened butter, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, and milk in a large mixing bowl. Beat over medium speed with an electric mixer until frosting is nice and creamy. Add more milk or powdered sugar until desired consistency is reached.
- Invert one cake layer onto a serving plate or cake stand. Spread a small amount of frosting evenly over the top of the cake then top with the second layer. Spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake. Slice and enjoy!
Notes
- Use room temperature ingredients. Using room temperature eggs and buttermilk will help your ingredients to incorporate smoothly. If you haven’t had time to let your eggs come to room temperature, simply place them in a bowl of warm water for five minutes before adding to the chocolate cake batter.
- This can also be made in a 9×13 inch pan. Prepare as directed then bake in the preheated oven for 32-36 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- To make this recipe into cupcakes, you can use my Buttermilk Chocolate Cupcakes recipe. The frosting for those is an insanely delicious whipped chocolate ganache that is so good!
- For a lightened up chocolate cake recipe, try my Skinny Chocolate Cake made with a cake mix and Greek yogurt. And if you’re in need of a gluten free option, try this Gluten-free Chocolate Cake recipe.
- Store any leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days.
Best chocolate cake ever! Substitute hot coffee for the hot water-you won’t regret it.
This was absolutely DELICIOUS!!! Thank YOU for this easy recipe!!!
I’ve never attempted making chocolate cake from scratch before so I was a little nervous but this turned out PERFECT! Nice and moist, rich chocolate flavor, sweet but not overly sweet. I would not change a thing!
This is one of the best cakes I’ve ever made. It’s so moist it almost seems wet! That frosting is perfect, too.
Has anyone made this in a round 9 in cake? I want to make a smaller cake for a party this weekend?
Hi! This cake is divine!!!! However it sunk in the middle for me, what did I do wrong?
This cake was so good!
Great recipe this my 7th time making it
I love to hear that!
This recipe was so easy to follow and was absolutely delicious! I made it for a friend’s birthday party, and it was SUCH a HIT – everyone loved it! This is now my go-to recipe for homemade chocolate cake + icing.
Thank you! 🙂
It truly lives up to the hype! The cake itself is incredibly moist and has such a deep, rich chocolate flavor.
OMG this looks absolutely heavenly. It’s been a while since I’ve made a chocolate cake so I think I’m going to give this a try!