Chocolate Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

Jul 11

Chocolate cake is a much-loved classic for a reason. Rich and decadent, a good chocolate cake recipe is so versatile and goes with so many different kinds of fillings and frostings. If you’ve never considered pairing creamy and tangy cream cheese frosting with a luxurious chocolate cake, then let us introduce you to this rich and delicious pairing.

Whether you’re a long-term chocolate cake lover or you’re looking for the right recipe to convert you, you have to try this chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting recipe. No matter if you’re baking for a birthday celebration, an anniversary, or a dinner party, this recipe will ensure that your dessert is the star of the show.

Why You’ll Love This Chocolate Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

There are plenty of chocolate cake recipes out there that just aren’t all that great. Maybe the cake turns out too dry or too sweet, maybe the chocolate flavor feels a bit muted or doesn’t shine through, or maybe the cake isn’t sweet enough. This recipe, however, is moist and decadent with deep chocolate flavor. You won’t be able to help but fall in love with it.

And when paired with silky, tangy cream cheese frosting? It’s a match made in heaven.

Chocolate Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

For the Cake:

678g all-purpose flour
220g cocoa powder
15g salt
15g baking powder
22g baking soda
988g sugar
248g large eggs
594g milk
272g vegetable oil
6g vanilla extract
584g HOT water (or hot coffee) - it's the perfect secret ingredient!

For the Italian Buttercream Base:

620g granulated sugar
158g water
300g egg whites
908g unsalted butter (at room temperature)
20g vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
2g salt

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

720g Italian buttercream (from above)
600g cream cheese

Instructions

Make the Chocolate Cake:

Preheat the oven and prepare the pans: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour two 2-inch deep round cake pans and line them with parchment paper. Set the pans aside.
Combine the dry ingredients: Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a large mixing bowl.
Mix the sugar and eggs: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the sugar and eggs until the mixture is smooth and fluffy.
Weigh the wet ingredients: Scale the milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract in one bowl.
Mix the batter: Alternatively add the dry and wet ingredients to the sugar and egg mixture, mixing gently between each addition.
Add the hot water: Make sure the water is hot. Slowly whisk the water into the batter mixture.
Bake the cake: Transfer the chocolate cake batter to the prepared pans. Smooth the batter with an offset spatula. Bake in the preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Rotate the pans after 15 minutes of baking. Let cool on a wire rack until the cake layers are cool, then remove them from the pans.

Make the Italian Meringue Buttercream:

Heat the sugar syrup: Place the water and sugar in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat until the syrup hits 240 degrees F on a candy thermometer (soft ball stage).
Beat the egg whites: In a mixer bowl for a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, combine the egg whites, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat on speed 2 until the egg whites are foamy.
Add the syrup to the egg whites: When the sugar syrup reaches 240 degrees F, remove it from the heat and gently pour it in a slow, steady stream into the egg whites (make sure the mixer is running). Increase the mixer speed to speed 3 and continue beating for about 10 minutes until the meringue mixture is cool and glossy.
Add the butter: With the mixer still running on speed 3, add the softened butter, a little at a time, beating well in between each addition, until the butter is fully incorporated and the buttercream is silky and smooth.
Mix: Lower the speed to speed 2 and mix for 1 more minute. Transfer the buttercream to an airtight container. Don’t wash the bowl or whisk attachment.

Make the Cream Cheese Frosting:

Mix the cream cheese: In the same large bowl from the mixer (but this time fitted with the paddle attachment), add the cream cheese and beat until smooth. You don’t have to soften the cream cheese before mixing it.
Add the buttercream: Add the buttercream in small amounts and mix well to combine.
Mix the cream cheese frosting: Stop the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl and the bottom of the bowl, and mix the frosting for 1 more minute for a silky smooth consistency.

The Best Parts about This Chocolate Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

It’s moist: Between the hot water and vegetable oil, this cake stays so moist, even when baked.
It’s fluffy: The light and fluffy texture is just what you want in a cake. It's the best chocolate cake.
It’s not too sweet: The cream cheese frosting cuts the sweetness of the rest of the recipe, making each bite perfectly balanced.
It’s versatile: It’s a great recipe to keep on hand for birthday parties, celebrations, anniversaries, retirement parties, weddings, and more.

Our Best Tips for Chocolate Cake Perfection

Make sure you rotate the chocolate cake layers while they bake. They’ll bake more evenly that way.
The buttercream won’t come together correctly if you’re not using room temperature butter. It’s worth the wait!
Cold cream cheese is just fine. No need to let it sit out first before making your frosting.

FAQs

Regular cream cheese is totally fine. There’s no need for anything fancy! Use your favorite brand, but make it’s full fat. Low-fat cream cheese is often a bit more watery, which won’t work quite as well.
It sure can! Bake the cake layers, then wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and store in the fridge or freezer. Make the frosting and transfer to an airtight container to chill it. You can frost the cake fresh the day before you serve it or thaw the cake layers overnight and frost and assemble your cake. Store it in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
It’s a good idea to buy one if you’re going to bake regularly. A candy thermometer will give you the most precise results for all kinds of confections. If you don’t have one and really don’t want to pick one up, you can test for the soft ball stage by dropping some of the sugar syrup into cold water. When it forms a soft ball, it’s there. Be careful: molten sugar is extremely hot.
Nope! I wouldn’t recommend it at all. The oil keeps the cake moist and tender so you get the best results.
You're better off using a flavorless oil like canola oil or vegetable oil instead of something with lots of rich flavor like olive oil.
Cream cheese frosting is so delicious with many different cakes. Try it with carrot cake, red velvet cake, lemon cake, strawberry cake, and more
When wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and stored in the fridge, it should stay fresh for about 4-5 days. If you want to make it last longer, freeze the cake and then thaw it gently in the fridge before enjoying.

If you’re looking for a rich and delicious chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting, you have to try this recipe. Moist, indulgent, and perfectly balanced, it’s the ideal recipe to have on hand.

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