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Chocolate Cake Recipe (Hershey's Perfectly Chocolate Recipe)
5 from 228 votes

Chocolate Cake Recipe (Hershey's Perfectly Chocolate Recipe)

This Chocolate Cake Recipe from Hershey's uses a blend of unsweetened cocoa and boiling water to create a thin, smooth batter resulting in a moist, deeply chocolate layered cake. The accompanying buttercream frosting combines butter, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla for a creamy, spreadable topping that complements the cake's texture. The recipe provides versatile pan options and includes baking temperature and time details.

Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
Total Time
45 mins
Servings: 12 serves
Calories: 514 kcal
Course: Dessert, Cake
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

CHOCOLATE CAKE
  • 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour or plain flour
  • ¾ cup cocoa powder or regular Hershey's cocoa powder, unsweetened
  • 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda or bi-carb soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups granulated sugar white
  • 2 large egg
  • 1 cup milk
  • ½ cup vegetable oil
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract pure
  • 1 cup water boiling
CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM FROSTING
  • 4 oz butter
  • ⅔ cup cocoa powder or regular HERSHEY'S (2.4 oz | 65 g, unsweetened
  • 3 cups powdered sugar confectioners or icing sugar
  • ⅓ cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract pure

Instructions

CHOCOLATE CAKE
    Cup of Yum
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C) standard or 320°F (160°C) fan/convection.
  2. Lightly grease 2x 9-inch (22cm) round cake pans with butter. Line base with parchment paper.
  3. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a large bowl. Whisk in sugar, then add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Whisk well to combine until lump free, about 30 seconds.
  4. Pour boiling water into batter, mixing well. Cake batter is thin in consistency.
  5. Pour batter into cake pans and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
  6. Let cool for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely before frosting.
CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM FROSTING
  1. Melt butter, then whisk in cocoa powder. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency (add a small amount of additional milk, if needed). Stir in vanilla.

Notes

  • Use a mix of Dutch-processed and regular cocoa powder to deepen chocolate flavor.
  • Dissolving instant coffee in boiling water before adding to batter can enhance chocolate richness without a coffee taste.
  • Line cake pans with parchment and grease well to facilitate release; for springform pans, use additional parchment and a baking sheet to catch leaks.
  • Adjust baking times and pan sizes according to the recommended variations for one-pan, layered, bundt, or cupcake versions.

Nutrition Information

Calories 514kcal (26%) Carbohydrates 85g (28%) Protein 6g (12%) Fat 20g (31%) Saturated Fat 8g (40%) Polyunsaturated Fat 6g (35%) Monounsaturated Fat 5g (25%) Trans Fat 0.4g (20%) Cholesterol 55mg (18%) Sodium 471mg (20%) Potassium 231mg (5%) Fiber 4g (16%) Sugar 64g (128%) Vitamin A 325IU (7%) Calcium 87mg (9%) Iron 2mg (11%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 12 serves

Amount Per Serving

Calories 514

% Daily Value*

Calories 514kcal 26%
Carbohydrates 85g 28%
Protein 6g 12%
Fat 20g 31%
Saturated Fat 8g 40%
Polyunsaturated Fat 6g 35%
Monounsaturated Fat 5g 25%
Trans Fat 0.4g 20%
Cholesterol 55mg 18%
Sodium 471mg 20%
Potassium 231mg 5%
Fiber 4g 16%
Sugar 64g 128%
Vitamin A 325IU 7%
Calcium 87mg 9%
Iron 2mg 11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.