This dense yet soft and rich devil's food cake with sour cream chocolate frosting is decadent, rich, and covered with a tad tangy sour cream chocolate frosting. It is a must-try for all you chocolate lovers out there.
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If you're into a milder chocolate cake with a vanilla undertone, have a look at my red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting. It's delicious!
Let's get on with today's recipe, shall we?
Chocolate Cake With Loads Of Chocolate
Devil's food cake is supposedly to be the opposite of Angel's food cake.
So this devil's food cake for the obvious reason is supposed to be naughty. Which explains the rich and decadent nature of it.
This cake has a huge amount of chocolate in it. Chocolate cooking bars were used back then but now it's more common to see that cocoa powder is being used.
Not only it's convenient but cocoa powder has a stronger and intense chocolate taste.
As I said earlier, if you're a chocolate lover.. you just have got to try this.
I'm making a 3 layers cake using my 6 inch pans. I love using smaller sized pans when making more than 2 layers cake because then the final result wouldn't look too gigantic.
How To Get Flat Top Cakes
Talking about layered cakes.
I don't know about you but I hate domey cakes when I want to stack them on top of each other.
When you make layered cakes it means you want them to look elegant, right? Otherwise, why bother?
And you want those perfect straight lines of cakes layered with perfect lines of filling or frosting. Right?
For me, ever since I start using cake strips like these, I get flat top cakes all the time.
The strips help the outer side of the cake not to cook and set before the center of the cake is fully cooked. This is because the moist strip acts as an insulator around the cake or in other words they help to make the outer side of the cakes not as hot.
In shorter version, the strips make the cakes bake evenly and thus producing flat tops.
For this recipe, though the cakes came out all flat I did slice the tops off a bit. It's because I wanted to remove the crusty top part and the cakes look better layered like that.
It's optional, you don't need to do that.
What You Need To Know About Sour Cream Chocolate Frosting
I do try my best to reduce sugar in my bakings whenever I can. That includes if I can avoid buttercream, icing sugar or meringue type of frostings, I would.
Having that in mind and instead of the typical chocolate ganache, I choose to make sour cream chocolate frosting instead.
It's SUPER easy to make! But that's not what I want to talk about.
I want to talk about the taste, texture and how to work with this delicious frosting.
Taste
Since it's a sour cream not heavy or whipping cream so expect a tad of tanginess in the taste. It's not bad at all, in fact for me it even compliments the whole cake.
The tanginess cuts down the rich and decadent taste of this devil's food cake.
Texture
The texture is soft and creamy when you finish mixing the sour cream and the chocolate.
In time, the frosting will start to get thicker like chocolate ganache that has fully set.
How To Work With It
Since this frosting thickens as time goes by, you need to work kind of fast.
You can't frost a cake when the frosting is too soft. So wait until it gets to your desired consistency and then do your magic.
Don't take a call or go watch a movie in between because when the frosting gets thick, it's going to be difficult to frost your cakes.
How To Soften The Frosting Back
If, for some unavoidable reason, you simply have to leave in the middle of frosting your cakes (the new Survivor episode is on), it's not the end of the world.
Slowly heat your frosting in the microwave to soften it back to your desired consistency to frost.
Easy.
I hope you'll give this devil a try!
In Summary
This devil's food cake is:
- soft, rich, decadent, and delicious chocolate cake
- The sour cream chocolate frosting has a tad tangy taste that compliments the richness of this cake
- is perfect for celebrations or special occasions (weekends included)
- With a rustic, elegant look that's so easy to do
- is a MUST for chocolate lovers!
More Cake Recipes
- No-bake chocolate cheesecake
- Lemon almond cake
- Chocolate banana bread
- No-bake chocolate and peanut butter cheesecake
- Fudgy brownies
Video
📖 Recipe
Devil's Food Cake
Video
Ingredients
The Chocolate Cake
- 2 cup all purpose flour (260 gr)
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (90 gr)
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup softened butter (113 gr)
- 1 cup sugar (200 gr)
- 1 cup brown sugar (160 gr)
- 3 eggs , room temperature
- ¼ cup sunflower oil (60 ml)
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cup milk (310 ml), room temperature
The Sour Cream Chocolate Frosting
- ¼ cup butter (60 gr)
- 14 oz chocolate 55% cocoa (400 gr)
- 1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
- ½ teaspoon hot water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cup sour cream (360 gr), room temperature
Instructions
The Chocolate Cake
- Prepare 3 pans of 6 inch (15 cm) diameter. Butter, line and flour them. Place cake strips around the pans and set aside.
- Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt into a bowl. Set aside.
- Add butter and both sugars into a bowl. Using a hand mixer, whisk everything until creamy. Then add in eggs 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Add in sunflower oil, vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Now we will add the sifted flour mixture alternating with milk in 2 additions, mixing just to combine. Don't over mix.
- Divide the batter evenly into prepared pans. Use a kitchen scale to be more precise. In my case each pan with raw batter weighs 16 oz (445 gr). Using the back of a spoon, spread the batter evenly.
- Bake in a preheated oven at 350ºF (175ºC) for 35 minutes (if the cakes are baked individually) or until fully cooked. Bake for a slightly longer time if you bake them all together.
- Cool for 10 minutes, remove from the pans and leave to cool completely on a rack.
- NOTE: if you plan to frost the cakes the next day, wrap the cooled cakes tightly with cling films to avoid them getting dry.
The Sour Cream Chocolate Frosting
- Chop chocolate into small pieces and add into a bowl together with butter and salt. Mix instant coffee with hot water until coffee is dissolved and add it into the bowl also.
- Melt everything together using double boiler method. Use a spatula and mix now and then to avoid chocolate getting burnt. Once everything melted, remove from the heat and leave to cool for 5 minutes.
- Add in sour cream and mix until well combined.
- NOTE: this sour cream frosting will be soft at first (not the consistency to frost cakes) but it will harden as time passes. So leave until it gets to your desired consistency, mix now and then. I left it around 10-15 minutes.
- Put frosting in a piping bag to make it easier.
Assembling
- Optional: I slice off the top of the cakes a bit to discard the crusty part. You don't need to do this if you don't want to.
- Spread some frosting on a cake stand to help make the cake stay put. Place 1 cake on top. Pipe frosting on top. Repeat with the rest of the cakes, finishing with the last cake unfrosted on top.
- Insert a wooden skewer on top in the middle of the cake and press until the bottom. The skewer helps to prevent the cakes to slide while we frost them.
- Starting from the bottom, pipe the frosting all around the cake until you cover all the sides. Remove the skewer and continue frosting the top.
- Take a long spatula (it's what I have) or a scrapper and run it along the sides, making the frosting even. Do the same for the top.
- Using an offset spatula, make random half swirls all over the frosting to create that rustic look.
- NOTE: I place my cake stand on a rotatable wooden pizza board and rotate it as I frost the cakes 😀
How To Serve
- This cake is rich and decadent. A small slice is more than enough. I love to serve it the next day as I feel it taste better.
How To Work With Sour Cream Chocolate Frosting
- This frosting has the same manners as chocolate ganache that hardens in time. Read my post above on tips and how to work with it.
How To Keep
- Keep in an airtight container at room temperature to avoid cake getting dry.
- Since I'm using a high cake stand, no containers can fit it all 😀 So what I do is wait a bit until the frosting fully sets. Then I loosely cover the whole cake with cake stand (yes, I know) with cling films. I cover it loosely so that I don't mess with the decoration but I do make sure the cling films are overlapping so no air gets in.
- Keep it up to 3 days at room temperature.
Nutrition Facts
The nutrition facts provided are an estimate per serving. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
razan says
can i use yogurt instead of sour cream ?
Bea says
I haven't tried it so let me know how it goes if you do.
Reshna Parayil says
This cake is such a hit. Whole family like this cake and the sour cream frosting is such a great combination with sweet cake because it balance the sweetness of the cake and chocolate. I made this cake as a base for my son's birthday cake and everyone loved it.
Thank you for this wonderful recipe ❤️❤️❤️
Bea says
I'm glad that you and your whole family liked it Reshna! Happy belated to your son and thank you for your feedback! 😍
Gee says
Hi.
If I wanted to bake this in 2x 20cm round tins, would the recipe stay the same?
Thanks
Prarthana dhore says
I made the cake yesterday !! I really liked it lot !!
Bea says
Awesome! Thank you for your feedback!
Sandra says
Hola Bea! Este pastel tiene super buena pinta!!
Tengo muchas ganas de hacerlo y que salga bien. Así que prefiero preguntarte primero mis dudas: Crees que podría usar mantequilla sin sal? y usar solo azúcar moreno (nada de azúcar blanca)?
Muchas gracias!!
Saludos.
Bea says
Hola Sandra! Si, yo uso mantequilla sin sal. Y si, puedes usar solo azucar morena pero ten en cuenta que la textura y el sabor se cambiaran. Espero te sirva. Saludos!
Mary Madrid says
Recibe un respetuoso saludo, agradecida por tan apetecible receta. Quiero hacérsela a mi hermanita para sorprenderla en su cumple, en verdad estaba en la búsqueda frenética de una receta especial y encontré la tuya. Quería preguntarte si se puede utilizar la crema agria casera? En mi país no se consigue. Una vez más agradecida por compartir información tan completa y valiosa.
Bea says
Hola! Yo no he probado con crema agria casera, asi que no te puedo decir, lo siento. Pero si es la misma, no deberia haber ningun problema. Muchas gracias por tus palabras, un saludo grande!
Gugu M says
I made this cake today 5 may 2019, everyone enjoyed it to a point that they compared it to one from a cake shop in capetown, I had to alter the frosting recipe cos I only had 150g of dark chocolate and added half a cup of cocoa to make up for the missing 250g, and added quarter cup icing sugar, I wish I could add a pic as well
Bea says
Quick thinking Gugu! I'm happy that it turned out great and everybody loved it. You can tag me in your Instagram photo if you have, I'd love to see! Thank you!
AI says
Hi Bea!
I made this cake, but only had sweetened cocoa powder. It turned out very dry. Could the sugar in the cocoa powder have been the culprit? Every other ingredient and procedure was as you indicated. Thanks in advance for your reply.
Bea says
Hi Al! Sorry to hear that! I think it was overcooked, that's why it got so dry. Since every oven is different, perhaps yours needs lower temperature and longer baking time. Hope it helps!
Christos says
Hello Bea! Couple of questions please: can we replace softened butter with cream cheese cream? Same for sunflower oil can use coconut oil instead?
Also for the chocolate frosting can we meringue instead of cream? Many thanks!
Bea says
Hi Christos! Yes you can use any oil, no problem. As for the cream cheese cream and meringue, I can't really say because I haven't tried replacing butter and cream with them. Sorry!
Lizzette says
hola yo vivo en Cancún, México y el pastel se ve increíblemente bueno, sin embargo me surge la duda de si debo hacer algún ajuste a las cantidades de los ingredientes, puesto que vivo a nivel del mar. De antemano muchas gracias por esta increíble receta.
Aamna Babar says
Hey! I wanted to ask which chocolate brand did you use in the frosting? I'm asking this because as I am from Pakistan and wish to find a substitute chocolate for it.
Waiting for kind reply,
Regards.
JOSIANA MARIA says
Esse foi o bolo mais gostoso que provei na vidaaaa. PERFEITO.
Daniela says
Hola Bea, el pastel se ve delicioso así que me propuse hacerlo para el cumpleaños de una amiga! Pero creo que cometí un error al comprar el chocolate, compré el chocolate con leche y creo que es el semi amargo verdad?:( espero me puedas sacar de duda. Gracias por compartir tu receta♥
Bea says
Hola Daniela! Si, es el semi amargo. Espero que aún estés a tiempo de comprarlo. Ya me cuentas. Un saludo!
Sonali says
This cake was just a hit!!! My family really liked it and they are waiting me to bake more such delicious cakes... Waiting for your next recipe.
Bea says
Hi Sonali! I'm glad you and your family enjoyed it 🙂 Sit tight, there are more sweet recipes coming 😉
Akansha says
This cake is looking super delicious. I'll definiately going to try it on this weekend. Thank you so much for sharing moiuthwatering recipe with us.
Bea says
Yay! I hope you like it, thank you!
Sammy Fisher says
Your article really helped me to learn I also learn with your video. This cake was very delicious. I have not tasted sour cream icing before but I love it now. Thank you Bea.
Greetings from Australia 🙂
Bea says
Hi Sammy! I'm happy to know that you find the post helpful and that you loved the cake. I always try to put more tips and detailed info in the post. Thank you so much, happy weekend!