The Best Chocolate Fudge Cake

Recipe Development

I began the development of this recipe months ago, playing around with the blooming chocolate, and using boiling water, and I just could not get it right.

That's when it hit me - turn a brownie into a cake. So I continued experimenting with my cocoa chocolate brownie, biscoff brownie, and red velvet brownie, taking elements from my chocolate tray cake and throwing it together.

Honestly, my first two attempts (at a half batch) were delicious, but a bit sweet and the baking temperature was off. I dropped the sugar, but not by too much, and baked it at a lower temperature. And the best chocolate fudge cake was born.

I decided to top this moist chocolate cake with a chocolate ganache frosting.

Because this is a fairly rich cake, I decided that a single-layer cake would be perfect.

Ingredients

Here are notes on the ingredients used, please refer to the recipe card for full quantities.

Butter adds flavor, softness, and moisture to this easy chocolate fudge cake recipe. I use New Zealand butter in my recipes, which has approximately 82% butterfat and can be very yellow (similar to European or Irish butter).

A 50% dark chocolate (bittersweet chocolate) is used to add a nice flavor to this fudgy chocolate cake. I really encourage using good chocolate. I always use Whittakers.

Cocoa powder adds that delicious chocolate flavor. I recommend using a Dutch process cocoa powder for general homemaking. I use Cadbury Bournville cocoa powder, or Nestle Baker's Choice cocoa powder.

Eggs - I use a New Zealand size 6 egg, which is around the same size as Australian and South African Large Eggs, but closer to a US/Europe Medium sized egg.

Milk adds some moisture to this cake. I used whole milk, but I'm certain a lower fat-content milk will work just fine.

Coffee granules or instant coffee (an optional extra) help bring out the flavor of the coffee in the cake. I use instant coffee, such as Nescafe, but an espresso powder can also be used.

Plain flour (all-purpose flour/standard grade flour) refers to wheat flour that has a protein content of approximately 9.5-12%.

White sugar (granulated or caster sugar) and brown sugar add sweetness, and moisture, and are crucial for the fudginess of this cake.

Baking powder adds a bit of lift to the cake. Make sure your baking powder is fresh by testing half a teaspoon. Place it into a cup and pour boiling water on it, if it bubbles and fizzes with vigor it is fresh.

Vanilla extract enhances the flavors of the other ingredients in this recipe.

Cream - a heavy cream or whipping cream, has approximately 35-37% milk fat used to make the chocolate ganache.

Room Temperature Ingredients

Use room-temperature eggs and milk for this recipe. This generally means allowing the eggs and milk to stand at room temperature for 30 to 60 minutes. This is also a great time to add the coffee granules to the milk, allowing them to dissolve before adding to the cake batter.

Weighing and Measuring Ingredients

Weighing ingredients with a kitchen scale is more accurate than using measuring cups. All my recipes are developed and tested using grams only.

However, I have activated the metric-to-cup conversions. Simply click on "USA/Cups" or "metric" for your preferred measurements. For these conversions, cups are equal to 240mL/8 fl oz, tablespoons are 15mL and teaspoons are 5mL.

Reduced-Sugar Variation

This cake does contain a fair amount of sugar - but sugar plays a crucial role in the fudginess and overall texture. So I would not decrease the sugar in the cake recipe.

However, this cake also tastes pretty good without the ganache. So you can skip the ganache altogether or decorate with a sprinkling of powdered sugar.

Small-Batch

If you only want a small cake to satiate that sweet tooth, I would half the recipe by clicking on the "0.5x" button and baking in a greased and lined loaf pan for 25-35 minutes.

Step-By-Step Instructions

Step 1 - Preheat the oven to 160°C/320°F. Grease and line a 9-inch or 22-cm springform pan or round cake pan with parchment paper or baking paper. I like to place baking paper in the bottom of my pan, and liberally spray the sides with a baking spray. If using coffee granules, add them to the milk to dissolve.

Step 2 - Chop the dark chocolate into chunks and place into a large mixing bowl. Add in the butter, and then melt in the microwave. Stir the butter and chocolate every 30 seconds to make sure the chocolate does not burn. This can be melted in a small saucepan over medium heat before adding to a large bowl.

Step 3 - Add the white and brown sugar to the melted butter mixture. Whisk together until well combined. Allow the mixture to cool for a few minutes.

Step 4 - Add in the eggs and vanilla, and whisk vigorously for 2-3 minutes.

Step 5 - Sift in the cocoa powder, and whisk together until well combined.

Step 6 - Add in the milk, and whisk in to combine.

Step 7 - Sift in the rest of the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt). Whisk to combine. A few lumps in the cake batter are fine.

Step 8 - Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan. Tap on the counter several times to bring the air bubbles to the surface. Then spin the cake pan a few times to allow the batter to "climb" up the sides of the wall and result in an even layer. Place in the oven and bake for 40-50 minutes, or until a cake tester/toothpick comes out mostly clean from the center. My cake was done baking at 45 minutes.

Step 9 - Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool completely in the cake pan.

Step 10 - To make the chocolate ganache, heat the cream up over medium heat in a small saucepan or in a heatproof bowl in the microwave. Once the cream is hot and bubbling a bit around the edges, add in the chopped chocolate. Allow the cream and chocolate to sit for 5 minutes, then whisk together until smooth. Allow the ganache to cool either at room temperature or in the fridge. Stir/whisk the ganache every 15 minutes to see how much the ganache is set. It is ready when it is thick yet still spreadable.

Step 11 - Remove the cake from the pan and place on a serving plate. Dollop the ganache over the top of the cake. Spread to the edges, and then swirl using the back of a spoon or an offset spatula.

Step 12 - Allow the ganache to set before slicing. For perfect clean slices run a sharp knife under warm water. Dry and then slice. Repeat between slices.

Expert Tips for This Recipe

• Allow the eggs and milk to come to room temperature before starting with this recipe.
• Make sure the oven is at 160°/320°F for preheating. This is slightly lower than the normal 180°/350°F. If using a fan-forced, assisted, or air-fryer, drop this temperature by a further 20 degrees.
• The top of the cake may crack, but this is perfectly fine!
• Make this cake the day before a special occasion. I find it tastes even better the next day!
• See how far the cake has baked at about 35-40 minutes. You don't want to overbake this cake.
• If you want a thicker layer of frosting, increase the chocolate and heavy cream to 250 grams, that is 8.8 ounces of chocolate and 1 cup of cream.

Ovens and Air-Fryers

The temperatures stated are for conventional ovens. For convection, fan-forced, fan-assisted, or air-fryers, the temperature must be reduced by 20°C/25°F.

For baking, make sure the oven is fully preheated, and that the rack is in the middle of the oven. Open the oven as little as possible. For best baking results use an oven thermometer.

Remember that all ovens work slightly differently and bake times may need to be adjusted for your specific oven.

Storage and Freezing

This cake can be stored for 2 days at room temperature in an airtight container and then refrigerated for an additional 3 or 4 days.

Slices of cake can be frozen and stored in an airtight container for up to a month. Defrost and bring to room temperature before serving. Alternatively, unfrosted slices or the whole cake can be frozen for up to 3 months.

Chocolate Fudge Cake FAQ

Other Chocolate Recipes You May Like