Dreamy Dark Chocolate Cake

5 (1)

Nothing beats a great tasting Chocolate Cake. Many desserts have tried, but at the end of the day the mighty Chocolate Cake really is the undefeated champion of desserts! Well, we’re super pleased to share with you all the amazing Dreamy Dark Chocolate Cake recipe, which comes courtesy of our friends at Mealtime Joy. They do some amazing recipes on their blog, so we urge you all to check them out!

The recipe for this Dreamy Dark Chocolate Cake can be made in either a sheet pan, or as we’ve opted for, in a cake pan. It is a super simple recipe to whip up and tastes beautiful. I’ve always been a fan of Chocolate Cakes that lean more towards the richer side of flavor, and this recipe serves up decadence in droves! Rich, dark chocolate paired with a beautiful chocolate glaze

 This is a super moist cake that has quite a bit of body to it. You know you’re eating a couple of calories with this cake and that’s just the way we like it! It is such a Moorish cake that you’ll find is impossible to just take one bite. In fact, the slice we took for the photos in this recipe disappeared pretty much immediately after the photos were taken! Who really can resist a delicious slice of Dreamy Dark Chocolate Cake anyway?

A Few Unique Ingredients Really Make This Cake Special

We had so much fun making this recipe and loved using some ingredients that are a little bit more unique and less common in a Chocolate Cake. We were amazed at how effective these ingredients were in the cake. They really do add to the overall uniqueness to the cake, both in terms of flavor and texture

Espresso Powder

Espresso Powder is a great pairing with Chocolate as it helps to enhance the overall chocolate taste. It is a great addition to the cake. Don’t worry if you’re not a big coffee fan, you don’t taste the coffee in the cake. It just makes the Chocolate taste its best. This is an optional addition, but we highly recommend it!

Sour Cream (or Yoghurt!)

Remember how we mentioned how beautiful and moist this cake is? Well right here is the reason why! The creaminess of the Sour Cream / Yoghurt adds a beautiful texture to the cake. It is not that common of an ingredient to be included in cakes; however we were amazed at how effective it is. We opted for Sour Cream for our recipe. If you are using Yoghurt, try to avoid Greek Yoghurt and stick to Plain Whole Milk Yoghurt

Frosting for this Dreamy Dark Chocolate Cake Recipe

This recipe produces a beautiful, smooth frosting for the Dark Chocolate Cake. Our recipe has half the frosting recipe portions as can be found at the Mealtime Joy website, as we made a single layer cake in a cake pan, not in the sheet pan. If you are making this cake in a sheet pan or want to make a 2-layer cake, then simply double the Frosting Ingredients. Or you could just double the ingredients anyway and just eat the frosting out of the bowl! (highly recommended)

The key to the consistency in the frosting is in the quantity of Milk you add. For a thinner, mirror glaze style of frosting you’ll require more milk. If you prefer a thicker finish, then add less Milk. It’s totally customizable to your preferred consistency, just add the Milk slowly when you are preparing the frosting so you can control the consistency

Dreamy Dark Chocolate Cake Recipe

Ingredients

For the Cake

• 9.8 oz. All-Purpose Flour
• 6 oz. Unsalted Butter, room temperature cut into 1 inch squares
• 6 oz. Brown Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 5 oz. Sour Cream (Plain Whole Milk Yoghurt can be used as a substitute)
• 3 oz. Cocoa Powder
• 1 ½ oz. Dark Chocolate, finely chopped
• 2 tsp. Baking Powder
• ¼ tsp. Baking Soda
• 1 tbsp. Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1 ½ cups Boiling Water
• ¾ tsp. Salt
• 1 tbsp. Espresso Powder (optional)
  
  

For the Frosting

• 2 oz. Cocoa Powder
• 2 cups Powdered Sugar, sifted
• 4 oz. Unsalted Butter, room temperature
• ¼ tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract
• A pinch of Salt
• 6 oz. Whole Milk
• ½ tsp Espresso Powder (optional)
  
  

Equipment Needed: Stand Mixer with Paddle Attachment

Instructions

To Make the Cake

1. Combine the Dark Chocolate, Cocoa Powder, Espresso Powder, and half the Salt in a bowl. Pour the Boiling Water over the mixture and whisk well to combine the ingredients until smooth. Set aside and allow the mixture to cool, whisking occasionally
2. In your Stand Mixer, combine the Flour, Brown Sugar, Baking Soda, Baking Powder, and the remaining Salt. Mix the ingredients together on a low setting for 30 seconds. Add the pieces of Butter gradually while continuing to mix on low until all the butter has been added and the mixture represents a dough. Approximately 3-5 minutes
3. Slowly pour in the Chocolate mixture while continuing to mix on the low setting. Once combined, increase the speed to medium for a further 1 ½ minutes to thoroughly combine. Ensure you scrape the sides and bottom of the mixture once, midway through the mix to ensure everything combines evenly
4. In a separate bowl whisk together the Eggs, Vanilla Extract, and Sour Cream then slowly pour into the Stand Mixer batter on a low speed for 30 seconds. Turn the speed up to medium and mix for a further 30 seconds then you’re all done!
5. Pour the batter into a lightly greased Cake Pan then place into the Oven Pre-heated to 350 degrees. Bake for 35 – 40 minutes until fully cooked. You can tell when the cake is cooked by inserting a toothpick and it comes out with crumbs attached. If the toothpick is still covered with the batter, continue to cook and check again in a few minutes
   
   

To Make the Frosting

6. Whisk together the Cocoa Powder, Powdered Sugar, and Espresso Powder in a bowl then set aside
7. Melt the Butter in a medium sized Saucepan over low heat. Once melted, whisk the butter into the Cocoa Powder mixture until combined. Add the Vanilla Extract then slowly start to combine the Milk while Whisking. The quantity of Milk will determine the thickness of your Frosting. If you want a thinner frosting that drips down the side of the cake like a glaze, add more Milk. For a thicker frosting, add less
8. Spread the frosting liberally over the top and sides of the cake with a spatula. Finish with some fun decorations such as berries, or as we’ve done – sprinkles!
   
   

As always its best to eat the cake the day it has been made. This cake will keep well for 3-4 days. Just cover it well and grab yourself a piece when you’re feeling a little hungry. The challenge we’ve found is, every time I walk past the kitchen, and I see the cake – I want another piece!

This is a beautiful delicious, Dreamy Dark Chocolate Cake recipe that is the perfect ending to a lovely meal. We’d recommend trying this dish with some of our amazing Dinner recipes, such as our Reverse Seared Ribeye Steak, or the Perfect Roast Chicken Dinner

Thank you again to our friends at Mealtime Joy for this great recipe. Please check out their website as they have some amazing recipes!

Happy Cooking!