This is the Ultimate Devils Food Cake recipe. It’s a light, fluffy, moist chocolate cake that any chocolate lover will adore! The creamy chocolate ganache frosting is the perfect finish for this beautiful cake!
Tried and True Devils Food Cake
This is is one of my all-time favorite cakes and I’ve been making this recipe for years. I love how moist and tender it is and this frosting is just luscious!
Why This Recipe Works
- The superfine sugar dissolves quickly into the cake batter and helps keep the cake moist.
- The brown sugar gives a richer taste and results in a moister, soft cake.
- The coffee intensifies the chocolate taste.
- The combination of melted butter and vegetable oil results in a lighter, moist cake without losing the buttery flavor.
How to Make Devils Food Cake
In a mixing bowl whisk together the cocoa powder, instant coffee, and hot water. Set aside.
In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda together.
Add the melted butter, oil, and vanilla extract, eggs, and coffee.
Beat until smooth.
Divide the batter evenly between the two greased 8-inch round pans.
To get rid of air bubbles in the batter, run a knife through the batter in a zig-zag pattern.
bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Take the pans out and put them on a wire rack for 5 to 10 minutes.
Turn the cakes out to cool completely while you prepare the frosting.
For the frosting, heat the cream over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Add the simmering cream and leave to sit for 5 minutes or until the chocolate softens enough to whisk.
Whisk until smooth and glossy.
Let it stand for about 1 hour, whisking now and again occasionally to keep it from becoming too stiff. Once it reaches your desired consistency, it’s ready to use.
To speed things along you can put the ganache in the fridge, but be sure to stir often!
Frost the cooled cakes starting with the filling. Place the second layer on top and add the frosting to the top and work your way down.
Use the remaining frosting to frost the rest of the cake. If the frosting is quite soft once you’ve iced the cake, you can place it in the refrigerator until its set.
Serve and enjoy!
Fun Fact
Devils food cake gets its red color from the chemical reaction that takes place between the baking soda and cocoa powder.
Tips For Perfect Cake
- Use room temperature ingredients. This helps them blend easier and rise higher when baking
- Grease the pan with shortening instead of butter. Unlike butter, shortening does not contain water which could cause the cake to stick to the pan.
- Always sift cocoa powder to remove lumps.
- To keep the cake fresh after slicing, cover the exposed cake with plastic wrap before placing it under a cake dome.
More Frosting Options
Devil’s Food Cake is a variety of chocolate cake that uses cocoa powder instead of melted chocolate which is found in many chocolate cake recipes.
Devil’s food cake is a chocolate cake with a reddish tone. Red velvet cake is made similarly but is made with food coloring to give it a deep red color.
Store before frosting in an airtight container for up to three days or frosted in the refrigerator. Take the cake out of the fridge 30 minutes before serving.
Freeze unfrosted wrapped well in plastic wrap for up to three months.
Did you make this?
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Let’s Make Devil’s Food Cake
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1½ teaspoon instant coffee
- 1½ cup hot water
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1⅓ cup superfine sugar
- ¾ cup brown sugar packed
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- 12 tablespoons butter (1½ sticks/¾ cup/168g), melted
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 eggs
For the frosting:
- 1 cup cream
- 8 ounces semisweet chocolate chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/180 C.
- In a mixing bowl whisk together the cocoa powder, instant coffee, and hot water. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda together.
- Add the butter, oil and the vanilla extract, eggs and coffee mixture and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes or until smooth.
- Divide the batter evenly between the two greased 8-inch/20cm round pans and bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.
- Take the pans out and put them on a wire rack for 5 to 10 minutes, before turning the cakes out to cool.
For the frosting:
- Heat the cream over medium heat and bring to a simmer.
- Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Add the simmering cream and leave to sit for 5 minutes or until the chocolate softens enough to whisk and then whisk until smooth and glossy.
- Let it stand for about 1 hour, whisking now and again occasionally to keep it from becoming too stiff. Once it reaches your desired consistency, it’s ready to use.
- Frost the cooled cakes starting with topping one with a half a cup of icing and placing the other on top (bottom side up). Use the remaining frosting to frost the rest of the cake. If the frosting is quite soft once you’ve iced the cake, you can place it in the refrigerator until its set.
Tips + Notes
Nutrition Information:
Update Notes: This post was originally published on January 17, 2014, but was republished with a step by step photos and instructions and tips in April of 2018.
Laura A Dean says
Do you just use regular cream or heavy whipping cream?
Erren Hart says
Hi Laura, heavy whipping cream.