Devil’s food cake is always a great go-to recipe for weddings, birthdays and special occasions. It appeals to both adults and children alike and can be dressed up or dressed down with simple fillings like vanilla frosting to more decadent chocolate ganache, espresso buttercream or berry fillings. (See our Frostings & Fillings page here.)
This is a super moist chocolate cake recipe with a dense fudge-y consistency that is true to it’s name: devil’s food cake!
There are two sets of devil’s food cake recipes below. The first set makes two x 2″ deep cakes for each tier, while the second set is for two x 3″ deep cakes for each tier, depending on how tall you want your cake to be.
(Note: We would highly recommend using baking strips on your cake pans when going into the oven also. This prevents your cake from “doming” in the middle which has to be cut off before filling and frosting your cakes leading to a lot of wastage and your cake tiers being flatter as a result. They are well worth the investment but if you are in a pinch you can use old towels soaked in water and wrapped around your cake pans before putting them in the oven.
(Note: one stick of butter = half a cup. Also, canola oil can be substituted with vegetable oil in this recipe.)
Devil’s Food Cake Wedding Cake Recipe/Chocolate Fudge Cake Recipes for Different Pan Sizes (2 x 2″ deep pans)
| Cups | 6" | 7" | 8" | 9" | 10" | 11" | 12" | 13" | 14" |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dark Chocolate (Melted) | 2/3 | 1 | 1 1/4 | 1 2/3 | 2 | 2 1/2 | 3 | 3 1/2 | 4 |
| Cocoa | 5/8 | 7/8 | 1 1/8 | 1 1/2 | 1 3/4 | 2 1/8 | 2 5/8 | 3 | 3 1/2 |
| Hot Coffee | 3/4 | 1 | 11/4 | 1 5/8 | 2 | 2 1/2 | 3 | 3 1/2 | 4 |
| Eggs | 3/8 | 1/2 | 5/8 | 7/8 | 1 | 1 1/4 | 1 1/2 | 1 3/4 | 2 |
| Sour Cream | 1/8 | 1/4 | 3/8 | 1/2 | 1/2 | 5/8 | 3/4 | 7/8 | 1 |
| Cake Flour | 1 5/8 | 2 1/4 | 2 7/8 | 3 3/4 | 4 5/8 | 5 58 | 6 3/4 | 7 7/8 | 9 |
| Light Brown Sugar | 1 | 1 1/2 | 2 | 2 1/2 | 3 | 3 3/4 | 4 1/2 | 5 1/4 | 6 |
| Baking Soda (tsp) | 3/4 | 1 | 1 1/2 | 1 1/2 | 2 | 2 1/2 | 3 | 3 1/2 | 4 |
| Salt (tsp) | 1/2 | 1/2 | 1/2 | 3/4 | 1 | 1 1/4 | 1 1/2 | 1 3/4 | 2 |
| Unsalted Butter | 3/8 | 1/2 | 5/8 | 7/8 | 1 | 1 1/4 | 1 1/2 | 1 3/4 | 2 |
| Canola Oil | 3/8 | 1/2 | 5/8 | 7/8 | 1 | 1 1/4 | 1 1/2 | 1 3/4 | 2 |
| Temp. | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F |
| Baking Times (mins) | 30-35 | 30-35 | 35-40 | 35-40 | 40-50 | 40-50 | 45-55 | 50-60 | 50-60 |
Devil’s Food Cake Wedding Cake Recipe/Chocolate Fudge Cake Recipes for Different Pan Sizes (2 x 3″ deep pans)
| Cups | 6" | 7" | 8" | 9" | 10" | 11" | 12" | 13" | 14" |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cocoa | 1 | 1 1/4 | 1 3/4 | 2 1/8 | 3 | 3 3/4 | 4 1/2 | 5 1/4 | 6 |
| Hot Coffee | 1 1/8 | 1 1/2 | 2 | 2 1/2 | 2 3/4 | 3 1/4 | 4 | 4 5/8 | 5 3/8 |
| Eggs | 1/2 | 3/4 | 1 | 1 1/4 | 3 1/8 | 3 3/4 | 4 1/2 | 5 1/4 | 6 1/8 |
| Sour Cream | 1/4 | 3/8 | 1/2 | 5/8 | 1 1/2 | 1 7/8 | 2 1/4 | 2 5/8 | 3 |
| Cake Flour | 2 1/2 | 3 3/8 | 4 1/2 | 5 5/8 | 3/4 | 1 | 1 1/8 | 1 3/8 | 1 1/2 |
| Light Brown Sugar | 1 3/4 | 2 1/4 | 3 | 3 3/4 | 7 | 8 3/8 | 10 | 11 7/8 | 13 3/4 |
| Baking Soda (tsp) | 1 | 1 1/2 | 2 | 2 1/2 | 4 3/4 | 5 1/2 | 6 3/4 | 8 | 9 1/8 |
| Salt (tsp) | 1/2 | 1/2 | 1 | 1 1/2 | 3 | 3 3/4 | 4 1/2 | 5 1/4 | 6 |
| Unsalted Butter | 1/2 | 3/4 | 1 | 1 1/4 | 1 1/2 | 2 | 2 1/2 | 2 1/2 | 3 |
| Canola Oil | 1/2 | 3/4 | 1 | 1 1/4 | 1 1/2 | 2 | 2 1/4 | 2 3/4 | 3 |
| Temp. | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F | 300F |
| Baking Time | 35-40 | 35-40 | 40-45 | 40-45 | 45-50 | 45-50 | 50-55 | 55-65 | 55-65 |
Devil’s Food Cake/Chocolate Fudge Cake: Method
- Melt the chocolate by placing it in a heat-proof bowl resting over a pan of simmering water (not boiling). Once melted mix together with the hot coffee and butter until smooth. Set aside to cool before moving on the rest of the cake.
- In the meantime, prepare your cake pans by rubbing butter around the base and rims, then line with parchment paper.
- Once the chocolate mixture is cooled, pre-heat your oven to 300F/150C.
- In another bowl, mix the eggs, oil and sour cream until combined.
- Into the bowl of your stand mixer, sift the flour, baking soda and cocoa. Add the sugar and mix until just combined. Add the chocolate mixture on low speed until just combined.
- Next add the egg mixture in two additions and mix on medium speed for just under a minute.
- Pour into the prepared cake pans and smooth the top with the back of a tablespoon.
- Oven temperatures/baking vary considerably so check the cakes five minutes before they due to be finished in the oven. If they are baked, a cocktail stick inserted into the center of the cake should come out clean, i.e. without any cake batter attached to it other than a few baked crumbs.
- Let the cakes cool for 30 minutes in the pans then run a knife along the edge of the pan. Place a wire cooling wrack on top of the cake pan, then flip over quickly to release the cake.
- Ensure the cakes are completely cooled for a few hours before filling/frosting.
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