Moist Chocolate Coffee Cake (One Bowl)

If you are a chocolate cake lover and coffee dessert lover, you are going to love this cake! It is exactly that in cake form.

The combination of cocoa powder and brewed coffee creates a deep, intense flavor that pairs perfectly with the tender cake texture.

Topped with a smooth chocolate coffee buttercream, this cake is sure to satisfy any chocolate lover's cravings.

For more coffee recipes, check out my coffee cookies, and sweet cream cold foam.

Before you start to make this coffee chocolate cake recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.

Full measurements are in the recipe card below.

Flour– we used all-purpose flour for this recipe, self-rising flour, and cake flour will work great as well.

Dutch cocoa powder– we like to use Dutch-process cocoa powder for our chocolate cake because we like the deep and rich chocolate taste, but the natural cocoa powder will work great as well!

Baking powder and baking soda – to help the cake rise.

Granulated sugar– we like to use granulated sugar, also the most common sugar used in baking. Caster sugar will work great as well.

Vegetable oil – we used vegetable oil for this recipe. canola oil will work great for this recipe.

Eggs- To give the cake a good structure. Make sure you’re using room-temperature eggs.

Buttermilk- gives the cake extra moisture. You can make your own buttermilk if you don’t have one on hand. Simply mix a cup of milk with a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice and let it sit for at least 10 minutes.

Hot coffee- make a strong hot coffee, you can use espresso or instant coffee, both will work.

Vanilla extract- Vanilla extract Is an essential ingredient for chocolate cake.

Salt- We used kosher salt for this recipe. Salt doesn’t give the cake a salty taste, it helps to enhance the chocolate flavor.

For the frosting

Chocolate- use the best quality semisweet or dark chocolate bars for the best flavor. using the best quality dark chocolate is very important in this Matilda's chocolate cake recipe.

Butter- we used unsalted butter for the frosting but you can use salted butter and skip the salt.

Powder sugar- you will need powdered sugar for this recipe. you don’t have to buy powdered sugar, you can simply make it at home by blending granulated sugar in a blender or food processor.

Preheat the oven to 180 (350f) and prep two 8-inch baking pans with cooking spray and parchment paper.

Into a large mixing bowl, add the flour, sift the cocoa powder, add the baking powder, baking soda, kosher salt, and granulated sugar, and mix with a whisk.

Divide the mixture into two 8-inch baking pans, I suggest using cake strips for even baking. (weight the batter for better results) and bake in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. (You can also use a 9-inch cake pan)

Let the cake cool completely before frosting so the frosting won't melt off the cake.

Make the chocolate coffee frosting: In a medium mixing bowl, add the powdered sugar, and room temperature butter, sift the cocoa powder, add the vanilla extract and salt, and whip with an electric hand mixer for 1-2 minutes.

Then, add the cold coffee, and melted and cooled dark chocolate. Mix on high until the frosting is whipped and smooth.

Pipe a small dollop of the frosting on the surface that you will frost on. Lay the first cake layer over the frosting dot.

Brush the cake layer with cold brewed coffee, and let it sit for 1-2 minutes.

Top the cake with ½ of the frosting on top of the cake layer and spread an even layer.

Freeze this cake after it cooled completely in an airtight freezer-friendly container for up to 3 months.

My tip is not to freeze it decorated or covered with frosting, because it can ruin the decorating of the cake, I suggest freezing the cake and decorating it when you defrost it.

If you’re not looking to impress anyone with your decorating skills, it’s absolutely okay to freeze the cake with the frosting on. You can freeze the whole cake or slice it into slices and then freeze it.

You can make this cake ahead by freezing the cake layers ahead of time. Wrap each cake layer with a few layers of plastic wrap and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature for 1-2 hours or in the fridge overnight.

When you are ready to frost and assemble the cake, make the frosting, and assemble the cake as written in the instructions!

Dairy-free- to make this cake dairy-free, replace the buttermilk with almond milk. Also, replace the heavy cream with coconut cream, and butter with vegan butter.

Egg-free- to make this cake egg-free, replace the eggs with ⅔ cup of applesauce.

Gluten-free - if you want to make this recipe gluten-free, simply replace the flour with gluten-free flour.

Zest- lots of people like the orange and chocolate combinations. If you do, add 1 tablespoon of orange zest to this cake to add a zesty orange flavor.

Frosting- Use your favorite chocolate frosting like dark chocolate frosting, chocolate whipped cream frosting, stabilized chocolate whipped cream frosting, chocolate cream cheese frosting, etc.

Or, use coffee buttercream frosting!

Chocolate Ganache Cake- This chocolate ganache cake is made with moist and rich chocolate cake, filled with chocolate ganache, frosted with whipped chocolate ganache, and topped with a chocolate drip.

Matilda's Chocolate Cake- This Matilda's chocolate cake is made with moist one bowl chocolate cake layers that are topped and filled with the most luscious and glossy chocolate fudge frosting that is swirled onto the cake beautifully.

Triple Chocolate Cake- This triple chocolate cake is made with three layers of a moist chocolate cake, frosted with decadent chocolate buttercream, topped with chocolate ganache drip, and chocolate whipped cream.

If you tried this recipe, don’t forget to leave a rating and a comment below. We love hearing from you.