This is the chocolate cake of my childhood, but using a more nuanced technique.
Mechanic
About 1:3.6 cocoa to flour by weight (75 g to 270 g). The fat combination (butter for flavour, oil for lasting moisture) outperforms either alone. One-bowl method: wet into dry. The batter is intentionally thin. Bake to touch, not skewer.
Ingredients
- 270 g (2¼ cups) all-purpose flour
- 75 g (¾ cup) Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 300 g (1½ cups) granulated sugar
- 75 g (⅓ cup packed) light brown sugar
- 1½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- 85 g (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 60 g (¼ cup) vegetable oil
- 240 ml (1 cup) warm brewed coffee or water
- 120 ml (½ cup) whole milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Method
Heat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Grease two 23 cm (9 in) round pans and line the bases with parchment.
Whisk all dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
In a measuring jug, combine butter, oil, eggs, coffee, milk, and vanilla. Whisk briefly to break up the eggs.
Pour the wet mixture into the dry. Whisk until smooth, about 30 seconds. The batter will be thin. This is correct.
Divide evenly between the prepared pans. Bake until the top springs back when pressed and the edges have pulled slightly from the sides, 28–32 minutes.
Cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then turn out and cool completely on a rack before frosting.
To serve
Frosted as a layer cake, or dusted with cocoa and eaten with whipped cream.
Variations
Buttermilk
Replace the whole milk with 120 ml buttermilk (1:1 swap) and reduce the baking soda to 1¼ teaspoons. Adds tang and tightens the crumb slightly. If you want the full buttermilk effect, replace both the milk and the coffee with 360 ml buttermilk total and reduce the baking soda to 1 teaspoon. No buttermilk on hand? Mix ½ cup evaporated milk and ½ cup water (or 1 cup whole milk) with 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice, and let it sit for 5 minutes.
Sheet cake
Pour all the batter into a single 23 × 33 cm (9 × 13 in) pan. Bake 34–38 minutes.
Notes
- Coffee in the wet mix deepens the cocoa without adding coffee flavour at this proportion. Water works but coffee is better.
- Dutch-process cocoa is strongly preferred. Natural cocoa gives a lighter result and needs the baking soda increased by ¼ teaspoon.
- Keeps 2 days at room temperature, tightly wrapped. Improves slightly on day 2.
- Synthesized from King Arthur Baking, Smitten Kitchen, and Mel’s Kitchen Cafe.