Don’t be afraid of making a chocolate cake. It’s very simple if you have a step-by-step method to follow.

How to make a chocolate cake from scratch

You’ll need these ingredients:

  • 2 cup sugar
  • 1 3/4 cup plain flour
  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 2 egg
  • 1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/3 cup canola oil
  • 1 cup milk
  • 2 tsp vanilla essence
  • 1 tbs instant coffee powder
  • 1 cup boiling water

Ingredients for chocolate cake frosting

  • 100 g dark chocolate
  • 125 g butter
  • 1 1/2 cup icing sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 1 egg yolks

How to make the cake

  1. Using electric beaters, mix together all ingredients except the coffee and boiling water.
  2. Mix the coffee with the boiling water and gradually add and beat until smooth. Mixture will be runny.
  3. Pour cake batter into a lined 25 cm round or square cake tin.

How to bake a chocolate cake

You need to bake the cake for at least an hour. After pouring it into the cake tin, bake at 180C for 1 hour or until skewer inserted comes out clean.

Allow to cool before you start icing chocolate ganache or frosting.

How to decorate a chocolate cake

To make the frosting, melt chocolate and cool slightly.

Cream butter, icing sugar and vanilla together. Add egg yolk and melted chocolate, and beat until fluffy.

Baking tips

We suggest you use Dutch pressed cocoa. It has a richer colour than regular cocoa.