This is the cake for chocolate lovers! A moist and chocolaty one-bowl cake recipe topped with fudgy frosting. No special occasion needed, this is the perfect chocolate snack cake.
Recipe Snapshot
TASTE: Chocolate! This cake is flavored with cocoa powder and chocolate chips and topped with fudgy frosting. Not a fan of chocolate? This recipe probably isn’t for you. Try this cake instead.
TEXTURE: This cake is moist and soft with a creamy frosting.
ONE BOWL: This recipe is made in one bowl with an electric mixer.
FRESH FOR DAYS: This cake stays soft and moist for days! It’s the perfect cake to set out on the counter for nibbling.
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How to make chocolate loaf cake
Prepare the cake:
- Step 1: In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Step 2: Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Add oil, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla. Beat until combined.
- Step 3: While mixing, slowly add in hot coffee.
- Step 4: Stir in chocolate chips.
- Step 5: Remove and add to serving plate
Prepare the frosting and assemble:
- Step 1: Melt chocolate chips, honey, and milk. Beat in cocoa powder followed by butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla.
- Step 2: Spread the frosting over the top of the cooled cake.
Behind the recipe testing
When creating this recipe my main criteria where:
- A cake with a moist texture
- Tons of chocolate flavor
- An easy one-bowl recipe
Here’s how I did it:
Oil and sour cream in the cake batter, for long lasting moisture.
A combination of cocoa powder and chocolate chips in both the cake and the frosting.
Coffee to enhance the chocolate flavor (you won’t actually taste the coffee).
An easy assembly method that only requires one-bowl and an electric mixer.
Serving and storage
This cake is best served at room temperature. If you’d like to skip the frosting, the cake can be served on its own.
Store this cake at room temperature for up to 3 days or refrigerated for up to 5 days. Bring to room temp before serving.
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Recipe
Chocolate Loaf Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1⅓ cups (167g) all purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1⅓ cups (266g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (45g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (104g) neutral flavored oil, such as canola or vegetable oil
- ½ cup (120g) sour cream, not nonfat
- 2 large eggs
- 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup (72g) hot brewed coffee
- ½ cup (90g) mini chocolate chips, optional but recommended
Fudge frosting:
- ⅔ cup (117g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
- ¼ cup (85g) honey
- 2 tablespoons milk
- ¼ cup (23g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, softened
- ⅔ cup (80g) powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- flaky sea salt and/or chocolate shavings, optional garnish
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F with a rack in the center of the oven.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add oil, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla and beat with an electric mixer until just combined. Occasionally scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. While the mixer is running slowly add in the hot coffee and beat until the batter comes together. Stir in the mini chocolate chips.
- Grease a 9×5 metal loaf pan and pour the batter into the pan. Tap the pan on the countertop a few times to release air bubbles.
- Bake for 40 minutes, then loosely tent the top with foil and continue baking another 10-15 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with some moist fudgy crumbs on it (no raw batter). Place the pan on a wire rack to cool to room temperature.
Fudge frosting:
- Place the chocolate chips, honey, and milk in a large microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 15 second increments, stirring well in between, until fully melted and combined. Whisk in cocoa powder and set aside to cool to room temperature (this took about 5 minutes).
- Cut the softened butter into several pieces and add it to the melted chocolate along with the powdered sugar and vanilla. Note: if your powdered sugar is lumpy you can sift it into the bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat until smooth and combined, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. At this point the frosting will be on the thinner side, I think that works well for frosting the top of the cake. If you want it a little more firm you can pop it in the refrigerator for 10 minutes or you can mix in a little more powdered sugar.
- Use an offset spatula to spread a thick layer of frosting on top of the cake. Top with flaky sea salt or chocolate shavings (if desired). You can place the frosted cake in the fridge for 10 minutes to help the frosting firm up or it will slowly thicken on its own at room temperature.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.
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