How to Make a Simple Chocolate Cake

Co-authored by Jessica Gibson Reviewed by Maria Short

Last Updated: October 23, 2024 Approved

Everyone likes chocolate cake! If you like simple recipes or are short of time, why not make a simple chocolate cake? It's delicious, easy to make, and takes less than an hour from start to finish.

Ingredients

Simple Chocolate Cake

2 tablespoons cocoa
2 eggs
1 cup (110g) self-rising flour
1 cup (200g) sugar
1/2 stick (60g) melted butter
1/2 cup (125g) milk

Plain Chocolate Cake

1 cup oil
1 cup caster/superfine/powdered sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose (plain) flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
4 eggs

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Simple Chocolate Cake

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Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
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3
Beat with an electric beater until the mixture is smooth.
- Beat for around three minutes. This is a fairly wet mixture and the beating is important.
- Beat through enough to make a smooth batter but not too much that the air is taken out.
5
Bake for approximately 40 minutes at 325°F (160°C) or until cooked when tested. Test by inserting a clean metal skewer into the center of the cake and when the skewer is pulled out, it should be clean. If there is a sign of batter on the skewer, the cake is not fully cooked.
- If the cake is still wet and/or moist when tested place it back in the oven for another 5-10 minutes.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Plain Chocolate Cake

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The sugar will soak up the oil and won't mix completely.
Stir to combine.
Add the flour mixture. Mix to combine.
Pour the batter into the pan. Place in the preheated oven to bake.
Allow to cool on a wire cooling rack before serving.

Expert Q&A

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Question

How can I make a plain chocolate cake taste good?

Maria Short
Baker
Maria Short is a Baker and the Owner of Short N Sweet Bakery & Cafe in Hilo, Hawaii. With over 24 years of experience, she specializes in specialty desserts and wedding cakes. She graduated from L’Academie de Cuisine’s Pastry Arts Program with honors and studied at Baltimore International Culinary College. In 2019, Maria competed in the 6th season of the Food Network’s Holiday Baking Championship. In 2010, she had a cake named one of “America’s Most Beautiful Cakes” by Brides magazine.

Maria Short

Baker

Expert Answer

You can make your simple chocolate cake recipe quite tasty by using quality ingredients. Use the top branded chocolate or cocoa powder since the better the ingredients, the more flavored your cake is going to be!

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What will happen if I add too much oil?

Lanie Beare

Community Answer

Your cake will become too greasy and taste disgusting. To avoid this, put the oil in first, and if you pour too much, just dump some of it back into the bottle using a funnel.

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When you say oil, which oil are you talking about?

Community Answer

Vegetable oil and canola oil are both common options for baking because of their neutral flavor. Be careful with more flavorful oils like coconut oil, olive oil, or sunflower oil, because they can overpower the other flavors in your recipe.

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Tips

If you add too much flour then you can add a little milk or an egg. If it is too wet then add some more flour.

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The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.

To keep the cake from sticking, grease the pan then coat it with flour and pour the excess out.
Make sure to measure everything correctly, because it's very important for baking.

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