Moist Amish Chocolate Cake
This Amish chocolate cake recipe makes the best fluffy and moist chocolate cake! It's a made-from-scratch chocolate cake that will have you coming back for another piece.
My son is not a huge fan of cake, and he prefers pie or a giant chocolate chip cookie for his birthday. So I was surprised when I caught him indulging in my homemade chocolate cake. But he informed me that he loves this cake because it's so delightfully light and fluffy.
Amish Cake Recipe
Shall we talk about cake for a minute? Some folks might think that cake is rather boring. They'd rather have a piece of pie, cheesecake, or some luxurious layered dessert.
I've been there. And if I'm at a party or gathering where there are several dessert choices, I'll probably choose a fancy dessert or a good-looking slice of pie over a piece of cake. Especially if it looks like a box cake mix type of cake that's slathered with a can of store-bought icing. I'd rather not put on extra calories with something that doesn't taste that great.
But let me tell you when I get ahold of a moist and fluffy homemade cake that's topped or layered with an out-of-the-ordinary frosting, you've got me hooked.
And I'm a sucker for chocolate. So I tend to lose self-control when a moist and fluffy homemade chocolate cake, with light chocolate buttercream on top, is set in front of me.
And this is one of those recipes for chocolate cake that is amazing! Especially when it's topped with my delicious fluffy chocolate buttercream.
But if chocolate on chocolate is not your thing, feel free to top this cake with your favorite frosting.
Dessert for Sunday Lunch
I grew up New Order Amish. We had church every other Sunday with a traditional church meal served afterward. Then we had Sunday School on the in-between Sunday.
And after the Sunday School service, the hosts usually invited a few of their close friends, the youth group, and any visitors, to stay for lunch. (This was usually a big full-course cooked meal.)
We had a lot of various dishes, desserts, etc. But homemade cake, cornstarch pudding, and strawberry danish dessert were the most common desserts that were served with Sunday lunch. These are easy-to-make and inexpensive dessert dishes that go together very well.
Butter or Oil for Amish Chocolate Cake?
A lot of recipes such as this Amish coffee cake recipe use butter. And butter adds a good flavor.
But this chocolate cake uses oil instead of butter. While butter provides a lot of flavor in recipes, oil gives cakes a lovely light and moist texture. And since we already have a rich chocolatey flavor, we don’t need the flavor of butter to compete with the chocolate.
Can I Make Layered Cake or Cupcakes with this Classic Chocolate Cake Recipe?
Yes, you can make this recipe into a double-layered cake using two greased 9-inch cake pans. (Cut a circle out of parchment paper to put on the bottoms of the pans for easier removal.) Although baking time will vary slightly since the cakes are smaller. Check the cakes for doneness after 30 minutes.
And you can also bake this batter into chocolate cupcakes! This recipe will make anywhere from 24 - 28 cupcakes, depending on how full you fill the tins. And the cupcakes only need to be baked for about 20 - 22 minutes.
Does Homemade Chocolate Cake Need to be Refrigerated?
Can you store your chocolate cake at room temperature or does it need to be refrigerated? The answer depends on how long you want to keep it and what kind of frosting you use.
Chocolate cake can be stored, tightly covered, at room temperature for up to four or five days (this can depend on temperature and humidity).
But to make it last longer, you can tightly wrap and refrigerate the cake for up to a week or even freeze it for a few months.
If you use cream cheese frosting, the cake must be stored in the refrigerator.
I prefer to eat room temperature cake. So even if I store my cake in the refrigerator, I bring it back to room temperature before eating it.
And remember, frosted cakes taste the best in the first two or three days. After that, the texture won’t be quite the same.
A mini spatula is perfect for serving cake. (Affiliate link)
Moist Amish Chocolate Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 c. flour
- 2 c. sugar
- 3/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder (sifted)
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 3/4 c. oil (canola or vegetable)
- 1 c. whole milk, room temperature
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1 c. hot coffee (strongly brewed)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°.
- Grease a 9x13" baking pan.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients. (Make sure to sift the cocoa powder if it's at all lumpy.)2 c. flour, 2 c. sugar, 3/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder (sifted), 2 tsp. baking powder, 1 tsp. baking soda, 1/2 tsp. salt
- Beat eggs. Add oil, milk, and vanilla. Beat well.2 eggs, room temperature, 3/4 c. oil (canola or vegetable), 1 tsp. vanilla, 1 c. whole milk, room temperature
- Add the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed and slowly pour the hot coffee into the mix. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix only until combined. The mixture will be very thin.1 c. hot coffee (strongly brewed)
- Pour into the greased pan and bake for 35 - 40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with only a couple of crumbs.
- Cool and top with your favorite frosting.
Angie
This is by far the best chocolate cake we've ever tasted!!! Incredibly moist and the coffee gives the chocolate a richer, bolder flavor. I copied the recipe and will now be my go-to chocolate cake recipe for now on.
Anna
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.
Baishakhi
It looks amazing. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Anna
My pleasure!