My Dad’s mom, Grams, made this double chocolate cake every time we visited for my entire childhood. This cake is my Dad’s favorite cake in the world and the birthday cake that he chooses every year! This beauty has two moist and rich layers of chocolate heaven that are wrapped up in perfect velvety chocolate icing.
The secret? It’s the Hershey’s! Disclaimer- this is Hershey’s Cocoa cake, with some minor adjustments. This cocoa adds such a rich flavor to the cake and frosting, and is really so much better than any other brand of cocoa- it’s worth it to use the good stuff for this.
The batter for this cake will be runny. Mix up your ingredients as usual, but adding a cup of hot coffee creates the thin batter as well as enhances the rich chocolately flavor and makes it soooo much better.
This frosting is a simple chocolate buttercream, but adding instant coffee really takes it to the next level. This easily makes enough to frost a two-layer 9″cake.
I prefer to make 6″ cakes, so this cake will make enough for 3 6″ layers. I also had to double the frosting recipe to ensure there was enough for between the layers.
If desired, you can add a chocolate ganache on top of the cake for a dramatic topping and make it triple chocolate. Ganache is easy to make, but you have to do it in the right way for the best results.
Chop your chocolate into small chunks and set them aside in a bowl. Add your heavy cream to a small saucepan and simmer it until it is just starting to boil and immediately pour it over the chopped chocolate. Let this sit for at least 15 minutes without stirring it or messing with it in any way. Once the time has passed, you can stir the chocolate and heavy cream together, getting a smooth ganache.
Do not microwave your heavy cream, it heats unevenly and will not melt the chocolate evenly. If you stir the chocolate and heavy cream right away you will create a grainy ganache. Let the ganache cool completely before you pour it over the cake or it will be too runny to control.
Gram’s Double Chocolate Cake
Equipment
- two 9" round cake pans
- hand mixer or stand mixer
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 1 3/4 c flour
- 2 c sugar
- 3/4 c Hershey's cocoa
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 c milk
- 1/2 c vegetable oil
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 c boiling coffee or water You can also do 1/2 C of each, but only use 1 C total
Chocolate Icing
- 1/2 c butter
- 3/4 c Hershey's cocoa
- 3 c powdered sugar
- 1/3 c milk the higher the fat content the better
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp instant coffee
Chocolate Ganache
- 4 oz chocolate bar be sure to not use chocolate chips- they will effect the consistency of the ganache and it won't be as smooth
- 4 oz heavy cream
Instructions
Chocolate Cake
- Preheat oven to 350
- In a large bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and set aside
- In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla. Add the dry ingredient mixture and mix well
- Add only ONE CUP of either boiling water or coffee and mix well. This batter will be very watery
- Using nonstick spray or butter, coat both of the cake pans and then thinly coat with cocoa powder
- Divide the batter evenly into the cake pans and bake for 30-35 minutes
- Allow cake layers to cool completely before icing
Chocolate Icing
- Using either a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat the butter until it is creamy and smooth
- Add the cocoa powder, powdered sugar, instant coffee, and vanilla. Slowly add milk and continue to beat until the icing is smooth. Adjust thickness of the icing by adding more milk or powdered sugar until it is at a desired consistency
- Frost cooled cake layers
Chocolate Ganache
- Chop chocolate bar into small chunks and set them aside in a bowl
- Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan, stirring it every few minutes, until it is just boiling and remove it from the heat immediately
- Pour the heavy cream over the chopped chocolate and leave it untouched for at least 15 minutes before stirring it to prevent a grainy texture. Once ready, stir until the ganache is completely smooth
- Once the ganache has cooled completely, pour it onto the cake in the center and using a spoon, smooth it out towards the edge of the cake until it drips down and the top is evenly covered
Notes
Save leftovers of this in a sealed container at room temp or in the fridge for up to a week. As if they make it that long…
My other favorite dessert is my salted caramel apple crisp!
