I’m not quite sure how this chocolate sour cream cake got made. My Mom had asked if I’d be willing to make a birthday cake for my sister for us all to enjoy while my family was in town last week. I gladly agreed, though I wasn’t sure how I’d manage it with my darling, but demanding, two month old.
The secret to my success probably lies in the fact that this is actually a simple layer cake to make. Neither the cake or the icing require a stand mixer and both are a cinch to put together. Intrigued? You should be.
This is my new favorite chocolate cake recipe. It’s got all the great qualities of a boxed cake mix, but without all of the chemicals and processing. It’s light, moist, and very tender. Most importantly, it’s deeply chocolaty. And every girl deserves an ultra chocolate cake for her birthday.
Would you believe that there is no butter in this icing? Made mostly of melted chocolate and sour cream, it is the silkiest icing I’ve ever used. It glides onto the cake like a dream, I had the whole thing frosted in a matter of minutes. And look how pretty it is! If layer cakes intimidate you, you need to make this cake. You’ll be so glad you did.
Chocolate sour cream cake with chocolate sour cream icing. Bakers of all levels can bake it. And chocolate lovers will absolutely love it.
Incredibly rich and moist chocolate cake. The secret ingredient in both the cake and the icing is sour cream!
Ingredients
- 1 cup (110 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 1/2 cup (330 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 teaspoon (5 grams) salt
- 2 1/2 teaspoon (11 grams) baking soda
- 2 cups (400 grams) sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 1/4 cups (282 grams) sour cream
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons (267 milliliters) vegetable oil
- 15 ounces (425 grams) semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 1/4 teaspoon instant espresso (optional)
- 2 cups (450 grams) sour cream, at room temperature
- 1/4-1/2 cup (59-118 milliliters) light corn syrup
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the cake: 1 1/4 cup (295 milliliters) hot coffee
For the icing:
Instructions
- To make the cake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour 2 8-inch or 9-inch cake pans and line bottoms with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, whisk together the coffee and cocoa powder until no lumps remain. Set aside. In another bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda.
- In a large bowl, beat the sugar and eggs together until smooth and pale yellow in color. Stir in the sour cream, followed by the vegetable oil. Add the flour mixture all at once and stir until combined. Stir in the cocoa mixture and mix until smooth.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25-35 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove and place on a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the icing, melt the chocolate and instant espresso (if using) in a bowl placed over a pan of simmering water. Remove from heat and let cool for about 10 minutes. In another bowl, combine the sour cream, vanilla extract, and corn syrup. Add the chocolate mixture and stir until smooth. Taste for flavor and add additional corn syrup a tablespoon at a time to reach the desired sweetness. 1/4 cup was just the right amount for me. The icing will have a thin consistency. Refrigerating it for about 10-15 minutes will help it firm up a bit.
- To frost the cake, place one cake layer on a cake stand or plate and cover the top with about 2/3 cup of the icing. Place the other cake layer on top and frost the entire cake. Store the cake in the fridge until ready to serve, along with any leftovers.
From www.completelydelicious.com
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21 Responses to Chocolate Sour Cream Cake
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Hi, I'm Annalise and I love to bake. Welcome to my blog! Follow along as I try new recipes, share baking tips and tricks, and overindulge my sweet tooth.Current Favorites
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Looks absolutely delicious! I would so love to try some. I reckon I would polish the lot off in 5 minutes flat!
Incredible cake, simply makes me drool..
Looks very glossy and smooth. ‘Pweety ‘pweety I say. Thanks for posting
You forgot to mention how beautiful this cake is. Your sister is one lucky gal, it’s stunning, Annalise. I love a good chocolate cake and this looks like it would be the perfect accompaniment to a cold glass of milk and a good gossip magazine!
Oh man, this post is reminding me that I haven’t had chocolate cake in ages!
I’m always on the lookout for a good chocolate cake recipe – I have to try this one. It sure looks gorgeous!
I made this cake yesterday and took it into work for a friend’s birthday. It is ridiculous how delicious this cake is! It is by far the best cake I have ever made… and I make a lot of cake. {I love cake}. It is heavenly and chocolately… are those the same thing? Plus it is super easy to make and I already had all the ingredients.
Thank you for this recipe! I am making a small cake for my wedding to cut at the reception (we are having a cupcake tower for the main event). I will be using your recipe!
Thanks so much for coming back to tell me how much you like this cake. You made my day!
wow so fabulous! Can’t wait to see you next week!
I haven’t made this yet but I want to. Can you taste the coffee in it? Bad as I hate to say it the taste of coffee just turning my tummy and makes me sick as a dog. What could be substituted for the coffee?
You absolutely can’t taste the coffee, it just helps to bring out the chocolate flavor. I hope you’ll try it with the coffee, but water could be substituted.
Can u tell me how much of the ingredients in the frosting and the cake?
I want to make it as quick as possible…
Wait… Never mind….. Thanks soooo much!!! Ur awesome!
I made this cake and it’s simply wonderful. I also made a modified version for a Super Bowl party, using a 13 x 9 pan with a cream cheese frosting. Everyone raved about it…very moist and delicious.
“Chocolate Sour Cream Cake | Completely Delicious” was
in fact a good post and I personally was in fact very
content to discover it. Thanks for the post,Jenifer
Did you double your recipe with your cake coz mine was way too thin compared to yours. Thanks.
This cake was delicious! Moist, fluffy, and chocolaty. I’ve never made a cake from scratch, and it was surprisingly easy. I made it with the peanut butter cream frosting, and it was enjoyed by all!
Yay! So glad you enjoyed it!
Very delicios cake! We are just enjoying it for my birthday
Do you think baking powder can be used in place of the baking soda I did not dare to try…
Usually frosting that is NOT cream cheese based is just glops of sugary Crisco, and is utterly oily disgusting. I always wipe it off. How does the sour cream frosting compare to cream cheese frosting?
Well, it’s definitely not cream cheese buttercream and isn’t at all like your typical buttercream since there’s not sugar in the recipe. It’s super chocolaty and the sour cream gives it a smooth texture and tangy flavor. I absolutely love it. Give it a try!