November 23, 2018
Chocolate Cake – Back to Basics
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A simple, easy and delicious chocolate cake with easy chocolate buttercream frosting!
The third instalment in my ‘back to basics’ series!
Back to basics!
So, recently (I say recently, it was like August time it started) I decided to start a ‘back to basics’ series on my blog because as much as I bake all these recipes, and usually, post two a week, they aren’t the most basic. Even down to the flavouring, they aren’t the most basic.
I’m not talking about dumbing down recipes or anything like that, as I like to make mine as easy to follow as possible for anyone of any skill level, but more like posting the recipes that most of my other recipes are based on. I’m not saying all my recipes ever are based on those from the ‘back to basics’ series, but more because I thought I would cover all bases to help you guys out!
Instalments so far
The first in my series of ‘back to basics’ was my no-bake vanilla cheesecake. I had over SIXTY cheesecake recipes on my blog by the time I posted a delicious, but basic, vanilla cheesecake. It was something that is technically in all of the recipes already on my blog, but the number of people that had been searching for one of my blog every day astounded me.
The second in my series of ‘back to basics’, was my triple chocolate brownies. Similarly to my cheesecakes, but not to the same quantity, I had basically used the same recipe quite a few times, but always put extras in such as Biscoff, or Terry’s chocolate orange. The reactions to both of these recipes were really quite astounding! I genuinely never thought they’d be so popular, but they still are now after months of posting!
So, for the third instalment in the series, I thought I would cover one of the most delicious treats that have ever existed, the chocolate cake. Some of you may think “but you already have a chocolate cake recipe”, and I do… with my chocolate fudge cake, but that’s more an American style recipe and its super gooey, and utterly scrumptious, but definitely requires more ingredients and effort.
Chocolate cake
This beauty is basically a chocolate Victoria sponge. The only difference to the recipe from a classic Victoria sponge is that you remove some quantity of flour, and replace that quantity with cocoa powder. It’s still based on the idea that you have equal quantities of flour, eggs, butter and sugar, which is the base of practically most cakes on this blog, but some of the dry becomes the chocolate.
Accuracy
If your oven is definitely at the correct temperature, which most ovens technically aren’t, and you mix the ingredients in the right way, to the correct quantities, there is no reason that this cake should ever fail. With ‘The Great British Bake Off’, they apparently test all of the contestant’s ovens every day, by baking a Victoria sponge, and theoretically, they should all come out identical if the ovens work.
There isn’t too much more to explain about the cake itself, but be accurate when weighing it out. Also, if your bakes never tend to work properly, no matter the recipe, invest in an oven thermometer as it may save it all. In my rented house that I lived in last year, it was FIFTY degrees out. FIFTY. We ended up having to buy a new oven and swap it whilst we lived there as the landlord didn’t understand the significance of this.
Buttercream
For the chocolate buttercream, it’s quite a simple one. You MUST use ACTUAL UNSALTED BUTTER. I mean the kind you find in foil, and that when its fridge cold, is solid. You can use a spread for the cake, but NOT for the buttercream. I might get a few smart arse comments about this as to ‘why not’ but if you want a stable buttercream, that will last no matter the heat outside, use actual unsalted butter.
If its peak summer, and there is a heatwave, you won’t need to add any liquid to the buttercream. Technically, you don’t have to at all if you really do beat your buttercream well enough, but I actually like mine a smidge softer so its easier to pipe, so I usually add between one and two tablespoons of boiling water to smooth it out. But, if the weather is so hot you don’t even want the oven on, this won’t be necessary.
Final note…
All in all, I have used this recipe technically loads of times on my blog, in my Oreo drip cake for example, but never done a post on a simple chocolate cake before. I personally, prefer using light brown sugar in the sponge because I like the flavour, but either that, caster sugar, or golden caster sugar would work perfectly fine.
I hope you all love this recipe as much as I do! Enjoy! X
Chocolate Cake!
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 300 g unsalted butter
- 300 g caster sugar/light brown sugar
- 245 g self raising flour
- 55 g cocoa powder
- 6 medium eggs
Chocolate Buttercream
- 200 g unsalted butter (not stork)
- 400 g icing sugar
- 50 g cocoa powder
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat your oven to 180C/160C Fan, and line two 8" cake tins with parchment paper.
- Beat together your butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add in the flour, cocoa powder and eggs, and beat again until combined.
- Split evenly between the two tins, and bake in the oven for 28-32 minutes. Sometimes it can take a little longer - don't open before 25 minutes, and be as quick as you can checking with a skewer.
- Once baked, leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to cool fully.
For the Chocolate Buttercream
- Make sure your butter is at room temperature. Don't use a spread such as margarine or stork.
- Beat your butter on its own for about a minute, to loosen it up.
- Add in the icing sugar gradually, beating in during or in 1/3 at a time. Don't add it all in at once.
- Also, add in the cocoa powder, beating in fully.
- If it's really very stiff, add in ONE tablespoon of boiling water at a time, beating fully each time, until it becomes smooth and lovely.
To Decorate
- Place your first sponge on a plate/cake board, and pipe/spread on half of the buttercream frosting. Add on the second cake, and pipe/spread on the rest of the buttercream.
- Add on anything you fancy as decoration, I used sprinkles. Enjoy!
Notes
- This cake will last at room temperature (not in the fridge as it will go hard) for three days.
- I use a cake tin, or a cake box to store it.
- You can use dark chocolate in place of the cocoa powder if you wish - use 100g for the sponge, and 100g for the buttercream.
- If your cake isn't baked fully, your oven might be at the wrong temperature, or it wasn't mixed correctly. Keep it in, till a skewer comes out clean, and it's springy to touch.
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J x
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Hi,
Could you post the quantities for a 6inch version of this cake please? I never know how much flour to substitute for cocoa so be really good to have a 6 inch version receipe to refer to.
Thank you!
Hi Jane, I always use your recipes thank you.
I made this chocolate cake for my father in laws birthday and then my mother in law decorated it with whipped cream and dark chocolate ganache. It went down very well with everyone x
It was my first time baking the cake. And although the decorations did not go as beautiful as I would have liked, it turned out very good! I would reduce the sugar slightly, next time I bake this as its a tad too sweet.
Hi Jane.
Would I be able to use golden caster sugar for this cake?
Thank you!
Yes, you can!
Hi Jane.
Would I be able to use golden caster sugar for this cake?
Thank you!
Yes!
Our favourite chocolate cake – just wondering how many cupcakes this wiuld do and how long you would bake them for thanks
Just made 27 with approximately 40 grams of mixture in each. Cooked for 20 mins in a fan oven at 180.
Can you use stork (fluffy cakes) instead of block butter ??
She already said no to this
Yea you can, as Jane says, stork for cakes and real butter for butter cream
I only have 2x 6×4 cake tins. How would I use the ingredients to make a cake this size?
Can this chocolate sponge be frozen?
Yes, it can!
Hi Jane! I’d like to make this for my daughters 3rd Birthday, I was wondering would it be enough buttercream to spread around the whole cake? as I want to make a farm cake and stick chocolate fingers around the edges. Do you think this would work?
Great recipe and turned out perfectly! I adapted the recipe and made it dairy free using stork block for the sponge and flora plant butter for buttercream (but did add sml amount of warm water to buttercream). Amazing!
I have also made the sponge and used the buttercream recipe from Jane’s Vegan Biscoff cake. Highly recommend this as an option.
Can anyone tell me though if I was planning on making it as a tray cake what size of dish I should use? Need to make a work treat again soon and thought that I might make it with Biscoff topping.
So glad you love this recipe – take a look at my chocolate school cake recipe for a traybake! Hope this helps! x
This is an excellent recipe, I used for a 5 birthday cake and did extra buttercream to make a crumb coat. Just thought I’d note that I made this using milk free substitutes for the butter, straight swap quantity wise and it turned out great. I used a spread in the sponge. For the buttercream I used a brand called Violife who make a plant based product called Vioblock. It behaves pretty much like butter, as I was making in January I did use the boiling water tip as room temp was still pretty cold. There are great vegan buttercream recipes out there but they’re a bit more time consuming. Thought I’d share in case it makes anyone’s life easier!
Hiya I wanted to make this cake but make a 3 layer 9inch cake.. How much of everything would I need please?
Also wanted to cover the whole cake with buttercream instead. Again how much of the ingredients would I need please? X
Hi. I’ve made this as a 3 layer and a 4 layer for a wedding cake.
3 layer was 500g of flour, sugar, stork and 10 eggs..
Though I swapped some flour for cocoa powder and altered sugar ratio with some light muscavado sugar.
I didn’t use ordinary buttercream. Instead Swiss meringue buttercream
Hiya! I am making my niece’s birthday/christening cake for this Sunday and I’d like to make this using a 10×3 inch tin. Please can you advise how much I need to increase the ingredients and cooking time by and if I can cook it all in the one tin? Thank you so much 😊 xx
I want to make an 8 inch square cake. Would this recipe work? If not which of your recipes would please X
I did this recipe for my grandsons birthday it turned out great will definitely use this recipe again
Tasted great and it wasn’t dry but it was quite dense. Should it have come out light and fluffy? I believe all the ingredients were measured correctly, what other factors can affect this?
If it was dense but not dry then this may just be underbaked! Hope this helps! x
Hi Jane , can I make this into a 6” recipe over 3 cake tins? Or would it be better to use two cake tins. Also if I was to go with the second option how much longer would it take to bake x
Hi. Can this go in a 9×13 traybake? Thx
Hiya! Take a look at my Chocolate Traybake Cake recipe. Hope this helps! x
Hi I only have a 9 inch (24 cm) cake tin (in France)
How would you ration up the ingredients? by 100g each? 7 eggs instead of 6?
Thank you for your lovely recipes
Thanks for sharing the recipe. Do the dry ingredients including the icing sugar need to be sieved?
You can do if you want but I personally don’t!x
I only have 1 round tin so would I be able to bake one at a time? Would that alter the time it needs to be baked at
How would I adjust the ingredients to make this as a 10 inch cake please
This recipe made the perfect wedding cake. 4 x 9inch sponges. I used 2 thirds soft light brown sugar and a third soft light muscavado sugar.
Plus used intense deep black cocoa. It layered well. I’ll definitely be using this as my special cake recipe.
Used this recipe to do a 60th birthday cake … it was delicious 😋
Thank you Jane 😊
I made this cake today and have to say I would probably add Baking powder next time as the sponge was quite dense and dry. Perhaps I need to try it again looking at the above comments.
A dry cake just means over-baked to me, so it may need less time in the oven (but also chocolate cake can be a bit like that unless you make a fudge cake.)
I made this cake yesterday using 2 x 9 inch tins. Ended up using mainly light muscovado sugar.
The verdict was light and chocolatey by everyone.
It was very level, so stacked well. It’s the only chocolate cake recipe I’ve baked recently that has done it. So it’s been chosen for a chocolate wedding cake in a couple of weeks time.
One of the best chocolate cakes I’ve tried in a while, I used 100g of chocolate in the cake and cocoa + chocolate in the icing to make it super chocolatey (for my chocoholic nephew)
Can you cover this with fondant? Why are my comments not being approved??
Thanks
Yes, you can. All comments await approval because of spam, and hundreds are received every day. You need to allow time for replies as it is not possible to respond every day. x
Hi, worry to jump on your comment, but could you tell me how do I do my own comment please because I can seem to find/do is comment on someone else’s.
Can you cover this with fondant?
Thanks
Yes! Chill the cake well first and crumb coat x
can I make it gluten free?
Hello, yes you can may be worth adding Xantham gum x
If I wanted to make any of your 2 tier cakes in 6 inch tins, how many tins would I get out of it? 3 or 4? I love your recipes!! X
As I only have one 9inch tin , what would the amount of ingredients be for just one 9inch cake please. Should I just half the amount or will that end up flat and not rise very much? X
Also I was going to decorate the cake with chocolates so could I keep it in the fridge. I know you said not to else it’ll go hard but if I don’t the chocolate will melt 😬 will it go hard and dry if I do?
Hey, I was planning on using this recipe for a but I am using a number shaped tin and have been advised to follow3 a recipe for a 10 inch cake tin. what alterations would need to be made for this recipe for a 10 inch please?
Hiya, for all conversions use this website – http://www.cakebaker1.co.uk/apps-for-bakers/baking-tin-size-conversion-calculator/ . Hope that helps!x
Hi Jane, can you freeze the cake overnight and then decorate it the next day? Thank you
Hiya, yes you can! Or if easier, you can just wrap the cake in cling film and store at room temperature if you are decorating the next day! Hope this helps, Team Jane x
Best cake ever! So simple and moist I always use this week in week out! I am going attempt a 6 inch this week coming over 2 tins. Are you able to convert the measurements for me please so we still get the moistness of a 8 inch! Yum yum yum thank you!
It’s about 2/3 of a the recipe for a 6″!
Hi Jane,
Sorry if this is a silly question have one tin so since this doesn’t have any baking powder or soda would it be ok to bake the first and then the second?
Ally
Hey! Personally I would only mix up half and then bake and do the second half and bake, as all cake mix should be baked fresh xx
Hi Jane,
Just wondering if I could make two 6 inch cakes instead and what the quantities would be?
Also I only have one 6inch tin so since this doesn’t have any baking powder or soda would it be ok to bake the first and then the second?
Sorry if this is a totally silly question!
Ally
Can I use this buttercream to cover the whole of a cake to make a drip cake?
Thanks
Laura
Yes! You will need to increase the quantities by double x
Hi Jane Was thinking of using an apple corer around the top of the cake, and putting in some flakes, and dot mini eggs around the top for easter.
Hi! I made this cake last month and it went fantastic. It was soooooo yummy. I made it again today, exactly the same, same ingredient brands etc. And it’s sooo dry and has dipped in the middle! 😭 what went wrong? I’ve tried to salvage it with simple syrup but looks like I’ll have to start again.
That’s so strange! Dips mean the oven door may have been opened too early, or it is under baked – but to do both sounds like something may have been measured wrong? xx
Hi,
My 7 year old and I love your recipes, baking over lockdown has been great (not for anyone waistline).
Wondered how much ingredients I’d need for a 24” circular baking tin,
This is the best website to use for recipe conversions! http://www.cakebaker1.co.uk/apps-for-bakers/baking-tin-size-conversion-calculator/
Hi Jane, Thanks so much for all of these fab recipes. I’m looking to make a rectangle chocolate cake to cut into a number. My tin is 35cm x 24cm. What quantities would I need for this? Also would I be best baking two cakes or cutting one in half to make 2 layers?
So I use this website – http://www.cakebaker1.co.uk/apps-for-bakers/baking-tin-size-conversion-calculator/ – and it says you’d need double the recipe for that size! And that depends on how confident you are in cutting the layers! X
Hi Jane,
Yesterday for the first time I tried baking the back to basics chocolate cake, my sister and nieces have just given me a very positive feedback, they have said it’s amazing and lovely and moist. I had to bake it a bit longer than you said so I am on the lookout for an oven thermometer, maybe my oven is not as good as I thought it was. I will be trying out some more of your recipes they all look fantastic.
What cocoa powder do you use in your recipes? Does it make a difference? Thanks
I use Barry cacao as I buy larger 1kg bags from the wholesalers.. it can make a different to colour in taste, but not enough to cause a problem in my opinion if you use any other! X
Made this recipe this weekend but added a teaspoon of orange flavouring as I wanted a chocolate orange cake and buttercream. It was beautiful. Really easy to follow
Hello,
Just did this recipe. absoultley loved it. However, could you recommend anything to make it slightly more moist at all?
I find if it’s ‘dry’ its just slightly over baked! My chocolate fudge cake sponges is completely different recipe and SO good if you want a more moist sponge!! x
Hello Jane.
Is it possible to cover this cake in fondant? Would I need to crumb coat it with the buttercream? Thanks
Yes its possible – but yes you should crumb coat so double the buttercream maybe!
Can I make this into 6in 4 layer cake?
Yeah I think so!
Hi Jane,
I absolutely live this recipe but my sponges always rise to a dome in the middle. Is there any way I can prevent this from happening?
Thanks 🤗
You can try baking at a lower temp and for longer instead – such as 140 fan, for a longer longer time x
You could also use a baking belt?
Hi Jane,
Does the butter need to be room temperature for the sponge?
If using block butter then yes as it will make it easier to mix, but a baking spread is fine to use fridge cold x
Honestly the best chocolate cake recipe. I’ve made it soooo many times and it’s turned out perfect every time.
Hi Jane!
I would love to recreate this recipe, I’m thinking 4 layers and using 6inch tins, please can you recommend how I would alter the recipe?
I have used a 300g/6 egg mix for a 6″ cake before, which I baked into two tins and split each cake x
Hi! I am hoping to make this cake over the weekend. Can I bake the two sponges Saturday evening and then add the buttercream the following morning? I was going to wrap the sponges in clingfilm and put in a cake tin over night. I’ve never done it like that before, so would be great to know if it should be ok in advance! Thanks so much.
Yes you can indeed! I usually wrap them well in clingfilm and leave at room temp xx
Hi, can you freeze this cake?
Yes you can!
Hello! I made your fudgy traybake before and it’s amazing, was wondering could I add the little bit of coffee and hot water to this recipe to make the cake super fudgy!?
Xx
For this I just stick to the recipe as it is because it’s a basic sponge cake x
Hi Jane
I’m thinking about baking this cake for my daughters 2nd birthday but using number 2 shaped cake tin from wilko. do you think this recipe and measurement will ok? or would it have to be adapted?
It really depends on the size of the actual tin as number tins can vary, but it would probably be best to make the recipe as it is and if it’s too much, make a few spare cupcakes or similar!
Hi , I was wondering if we could use chocolate whipped cream in stead of double cream? If so how much? 300ml or more? And how much coco powder and powdered sugar?
Thank you x
Sorry I meant in stead of butter cream *
You can do, but then the cake needs to be stored in the fridge which will dry the sponge out a lot. I would use about 300-450ml with 1-2 tbsps of each!
Hey Jane sorry me again!! What could I replace the eggs with in this recipe as ideally just needs to be eggless not vegan? Thank you!
I would say it’s better to bake a vegan sponge and use dairy milk, I find the results better than replacing eggs x
Hi Jane, I have one of them cake tins that looks like a big cupcake, do you think this recipe would work for that? If so what would you recommend for oven temperature and baking time?
I’m no 100% sure I am afraid as those tins can vary in size – it may be worth looking at a Bundt Cake recipe and following that! x
Hi Jane what would the measurements be for a 6 inch cake? Xx
Usually you use about 2/3 of the recipe xx
I’m attempting to bake this tomorrow however I could only get my hands on 22cm tin, how will this effect the recipe? Will I need to alter?!
If you used the recipe as is, it would just be thinner and potentially have a different baking time. You could increase the mix by about a quarter to make it a better suited fit (And increase the baking time slightly) if you still want the same sort of depth xx
Hi Jane
I would love to make this cake, however I noticed that in other American recipes they also use buttermilk. Rather than use 6 eggs, could I use 4 and weigh 2 eggs and then add the equivalent weight with buttermilk?
This is a chocolate victoria sponge recipe which does not want or need buttermilk – have a look at my chocolate fudge cake for a different style sponge. x
Could I use this recipe in two 6inch tins? Would i just have to bake it for longer?
Thanks, Sonam
Hello,
I made this cake the other week and wanted it to be a bit more chocolatey and moist. Could I add coffee granuals to the mix or is there another recipe you’d recommend to follow. Also need it to be 3 tiers.
It’s probably best to look at my chocolate fudge cake, and either split that between three tins, or increase the recipe for three tins x
Hi Jane!
I make your recipes a the time! Not a single one has turned out less than perfect! Thank you. I would like to make a cookie shaped chocolate cake, to look like an oreo. I have a silicone cake mould but don’t know what quantities to use or how long I should bake for. It is 9inches and I would need to make two. Thank you.
Hello! So typically for a 9″ cake, you would use 1.3x the recipe – but that’s for the same depth sponge. I really am not certain as it will depend on your mould, but it may be worth just giving it a go, and not over filling the mould x
Hi Jane. How could I make this recipe for a 2 layer square cake please?? Thankyou xxx
Hey! It depends on the size of tin you are using? x
Hi Jane, the 2 square cake tins would be 23cm. How could I adapt this recipe please??
Xx
Hey! I would use 1.6x the recipe – I’m not 100% certain on baking times however, but it’s certainly quite a bit more xx
Hi Jane!
Can i double this recipe so it makes 4 layers using 4tins? if so, would i need to adjust the cooking time/temp and if so how much by? i’m making this for a birthday next week but would like 4 layers.
I’ve tried this recipe before and was delicious!
Thanks! xx
Yes! So if you have four separate tins, you would just double it and bake between the four tins (it will be very very tall!) X
How did this go i am needing to make this cake tomorrow and want it for 4 layers? Was it stable etc 🙂
Jane
Another Fabulous recipe a]and I am in awe of how responsive and knowledgeable you are. You say I the buttercream should have unsalted butter – does it matter what kind of butter you use for the cake . Thank you
For the cake you can use a baking spread or unsalted butter – that’s quite open!! And thanks! X
Hi Jane, just wondering could we go 50 50 with sugar? like 50% light brown 50% caster?
Thanks
Yes for sure! You just want the same weight x
Hello, I’m looking to make this cake this week but I only have 2 x 10’’ tins, how much would I need to increase the quantities of ingredients by and how much would this affect the cooking time by? Thanks x
So you need about 1.6x the recipe so about 475g dry/sugar/butter/eggs – and yes it will increase. I’m not sure how long, but I find it best to reduce the cooking temperature (I would use 140c for my fan oven) and bake for a much longer time to prevent drying out! X
Hi Jane looks amazing!! How much ingredients would you need to increase it from two sponges to three please 🙂 will make as a drip cake!! Xx
You can have a look at many of my drip cakes as they already use this sponge for three layers – such as my Mini Egg Drip Cake! In general it’s a 400g mix! x
Hi Jane, The cake looks amazing. I am looking forward to bake this cake for my Da’s birthday next week. Can I replace cocoa powder and use Dutch process cocoa powder instead. If yes, would the quantity and other ingredients remain the same?
Please let me know. Thank you
Oh I meant 500 and 250 or 600 and 300 xx
Hello! If I were to put buttercream round the sides too would you reduce the ingredients to 600 icing sugar and 300 butter? Or more? Xx
I would increase to the 600/300 xx
Hi jane,
Please help me what would I change the recipe too for 3 x 9 inch tins?
I would use a 500g/10 egg mix – and split between the three tins! Baking time is longer, but I’m not 100% sure how much xx
Thanks jane is that just 500g of flour?
It’s 500g of everything – so dry/butter/sugar/eggs – you need to increase everything to be the higher ratio. For the flour I’d do maybe 400g flour, 100g cocoa? The layers might be slightly thinner so you could increase it a bit more if you wanted!
Hi Jane
Could I replace the cocoa powder with melted dairy milk? Or do half and half?
Thanks so much!
I meant specifically for the buttercream x
Hey! You can have a look at my Cadbury’s cupcakes for info for a dairy milk frosting – but half and half could be nice!! x
I only have a 26cm cake tin, do I need to increase quantities and if so by how much? Thank you!
Hey! Yes so that’s about 2/3 bigger in size – so youll need to use 1.6x the recipe! x
Hey am I able to use this as a layer cake ideally 4 but can do 3?
Thank you x
For four I would double it! x
Hi! Which cocoa powder would you recommend?
I use cacao Barry personally – but I buy in larger bags! Shop bought wise I like dr Oetker extra dark, or green & blacks!
Hi Jane I tried this recipe yesterday and I found it quite sweet with the buttercream. Is there anything I can change? Maybe reduce the sugar or change it to granulated? Will this make a difference?
American buttercream frosting is naturally sweet I’m afraid – with less sugar it just tastes of butter which I find quite unpleasant but you may like it! You could try slightly salted butter instead maybe?
Could I swap caster sugar for granulated in the main cake recipe?
You can do, just make sure you beat it in properly before carrying on with the rest of the recipe x
Can I use granulated sugar in the main cake recipe instead of caster sugar?
You can do, just make sure you beat it in properly before carrying on with the rest of the recipe x
Hi Jane
I was wondering is i could make this buttercream with cadbury dairy milk instead of the cocoa powder? how much would i use?
You could do! I would add probably 200g! x
Hi,
Apologies for the really basic question but I’ve only taken to baking since lockdown. I baked your basic chocolate cake sponges today. They smell lush (will fill /decorate tomorrow for Father’s Day gift) but as with every sponge I’ve made, they rise lovely but then end up flat as pancakes (not quite that flat but that’s how I feel!) within a couple of minutes of removing from the Oven. What am I doing wrong and how might I combat this? Thanks in advance.
Hey! I would say that means they are under baked – most of the time if a cake hasn’t been baked for long enough they will sink! xx
Thanks for your reply I will bear this in mind. I’ve not tasted the cake but have it on good authority that it is very very tasty! I’m going to bake the next one for this house!!
Hi jane i loved the condensed cookie fudge recipe it was delicious ive wanted to try some of your cake recipes buh i saw you don’t usually use butter milk is thia a reason why
Hiya I don’t fully understand your message sorry! This is just a basic chocolate cake recipe?
Hi Jane I only have 2 9” tins will this be okay still? X
For a 9″ version you’ll want to use 375g (7 eggs) of everything rather than 300g/6 medium eggs and bake for a bit longer! x
Hi Jane, I was wondering if I could use two deep 7 inch tins for this recipe? Thanks! I absolutely love your recipes.
Hey! That should be fine yes! The baking time will increase a bit though! X
Hi Jane,
I have been recommended your chocolate fudge cake but from reading some of your comments I think this recipe may be more suitable ( I will still be making the fudge buttercream filling 😍) I am attempting to make my boyfriend a birthday cake…. the idea is to make a rectangle cake, with grass effect buttercream – Which would you go for and do you have a recipe for a firm buttercream that I could use for the grass effect? Also if I use a rectangular tin rather than round, would I need to alter the ingredient quantity? Thank you very much for any help – I am a novice baker but really want to do something nice for the boyfriend.!
Hey! Have a look at my easter nest cupcake post – I do a grass effect on those! And the ingredients depends on size of tin! x
Hi Jane! I only own one 8’’ round tin. Will this work if I pour all mixture into one tin? Thank you!
Hey! You certainly could do, but I would lower the temp of the oven by 20C, (for example, in my fan oven I would bake at 140) – and then bake for a long long time – probably more than an hour and a half! This will prevent it from drying out! x
Hi Jane!! I love this recipe for my chocolate cakes but I feel like it sometimes is too dry. Do you have a way of making it moister but still holds it’s shape? I wondered about adding some golden syrup or something? Thanks xx
Hey! So personally I would just bake it slightly less (As that’s basically the killer for cakes!) or drizzle with a sugar syrup after baking! xx
I am going to make this recipe in a couple days but doing them the mini tins so I can get 2 little 2 tier cakes out of it. (12cm) how long would you think they will take in the oven?
Hey! I’m really sorry but I’ve got no idea! I’ve never baked a cake that small – but I imagine if cupcakes take about 18-20 minutes, it wouldn’t be much longer?! x
Hey, I made this cake today and it ended up a wee bit dry. Do you have any idea why this could be, perhaps what I did wrong?
It just means you over baked it slightly x
Okay great thanks for getting back to me! X
Tried this today and it tastes great! Although I only had a 24cm cake tin so has come out quite thin! Couldn’t work out the ratios to make it thicker.
Hey! a 24cm tin is about 1.4x the recipe – so it’s a chunk bigger! X
Could I replace the 55g of cocoa powder with 100g of milk chocolate instead of 100g dark chococolate?
Hey – you can, but sometimes using melted chocolate changes the texture slightly of the sponge! x
Hi Jane, Love your recipes, just a quick question. How deep are your 8” cake tins please
Hey! Ahh thank you! They’re all at least 3″ deep – the sponges don’t rise up to that, but I don’t tend to use thinner tins in general!
Hi I want to use this recipe but turn it into a drip tier cake how much do I use for 3-4 tiers x
The easiest thing would be to look at my drip cakes, as they’re already 3/4 tiers and most are chocolate cakes with the same style recipe! X
Hi Jane, with this recipe do you not add the eggs one at a time? It suggests that you just put all dry ingredients and eggs at the same time, but I’ve never done it like that. Thanks
I do it always as mentioned – for cakes, I cream the butter and sugar, and then add in all the eggs and flour at the same time! x
Hi I only have large eggs I was just wondering how many should I use and should I adjust anything else?
For this cake you can just swap to 5 large eggs, instead of 6 medium!
Hi Jane, just in the process of baking this cake. The top of the sponges have split whilst cooking, any idea why? It doesnt ultimately matter for this one as I’m covering with buttercream anyway but it has frustrated me and will doing me another for my daughters birthday friday.
This can be down to how it’s mixed, or even your oven and so on – there are a few reasons it can happen, but trimming off the top isn’t a bad thing! Offcuts are always tasty!
Thank you Jane for sharing this recipe. It was easy and delicious. I’m not a baker by any stretch but used this as the basis for my son’s 4th birthday cake. We all loved it. Can’t wait to try more of your recipes.
Hey Jayne I have just discovered your website and your recipes look great. I’m going to attempt to make your chocolate cake for y son’s 18th birthday on Thursday. I only have one deep inch cake. How long do you suggest I bake the cake for if the recipe is in the one tin. Would I have to reduce the oven temperature to?
Hey! I would lower the temp to 140C for a fan oven, and bake for 105-120 minutes! It sounds like a long time, but it does take a good while and it’s worth it!
Hi Jane, Love your Recipes ! Just wondering as I have no self raising flour whether it would be possible to use plain flour and baking soda for this recipe ? X
You need baking powder, (various names across the world, but just not bicarbonate of soda) – and you mix in two level teaspoons per 150g of plain flour – whisked in well before using! x
Hi Jane. I’m struggling with adapting recipes to make 6inch cakes. I have three deep 6inch tins, I want to make quite a tall cake so would you say this same amount split between the three tins would be ok? Thanks xx
Hey! Yes I would bake the same mix between 3x 6″ tins!! x
Hi,
This is probably a stupid question but my son has requested a chocolate cake for his birthday. If I was to make this would it hold up well to being covered in fondant/ready to roll icing or is there another chocolate cake recipe you would suggest instead?
Love all your recipes, they always get great feedback!
Thanks!
Hey! Yes I think this would work well – it would be best to fill it, and crumb coat the cake and then put it in the fridge for a while before cover – this firms it up nicely before covering so makes it easier!! x
Great, thanks. That’s what I was planning so hopefully it turns out ok! Thanks!
Hi Jane, I’m planning on making this cake next week for my boyfriend. I don’t have a good track record with chocolate cake, so hoping this goes better. What cocoa powder would you recommend using? Thank you!
Shopbought I like green and blacks and tescos own – bit I actually buy large 1kg bags from amazon (cacao barry) and it’s my favourite!
Hi Jane,
I love your recipes! I’m planning to make this cake for my husband’s birthday, but want to make a smaller version using two 6 inch tins. Could you please tell me how much I would need to reduce the recipe by?
Thank you so much! 🙂
Hey! Typically 6″ tins about 2/3 of the volume, so use a 200g mix/4 eggs for a 6″ version!
Same question for me too please Jane
200g of sugar, flour and butter
4 eggs
And same amount of cocoa powder?
Can we use same amount as recipe and just cook longer and at 150 fan?
Hiya – so no the dry needs to total the 200g, so you could do 150g flour/50g cocoa, or 160 flour/40 cocoa etc. Theoretically yes you can use the full amount though but for longer x
Can you help with the quantities for 8 inch square tin please? Can I cover this lovely cake with fondant please? Thanks
Tasted amazing and so easy to follow even for new bakers!
Hi Jane, I have made your Cadbury cupcakes and your basic chocolate sponge in the last week which have been delicious. This week is going to be to try and tackle the 3 tier biscoff cake🙈 have you got any advice on how to do the icing and how to pipe it properly please? The icing seems to be the part I struggle with. Also, we would like to replace our hand mixer, do you have any recommendations? Thank you xx
Hey! So glad you liked the recipes!! I do actually have a video for this one on my YouTube channel here – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-L2bRFq6yI&t=19s – it’s a bit of an older video, but it’s still the same as I would do it now!! And I will be doing a post about electric mixers soon! x
Would I be able to use dark brown sugar as that’s all I have or will this effect the sponge? x
It won’t affect the sponge, it just has a more caramel taste is all!!
Hi Jane
I love your recipes thank you.
Just one thing though may cakes always have a crust on them, I bought an oven thermometer and it’s at the correct temp but still happens. Any ideas?
It might be that your oven just requires a lower temperature! Some ovens can cause that as the heat distribution is different, even though the temperature is still correct! Maybe lower by 10-20c and bake for a smidge longer instead!
Made this for the first time for my birthday today! (I managed to get flour just in time! Yay!) it was huge and absolutely delicious! I did break a rule though as I made the buttercream (and the sponge) with Flora Buttery, as my daughter can’t have milk. I will say that both came out perfectly! 👍🏻 I will use this recipe in future! (It took 50mins to cook but it was well worth the wait!)
Amazing recipe, cake turned out so moist and delicious, will definitely bake again!
Awwh yay! So glad you liked it!
Hi,
I am just wondering if I could use this recipe but put it into 3 6inch cake tins rather than 2 8inch pans? Would this work? If so would it take slightly less time to bake? Thank you!
Yes that would work – and yes, less baking time!!
Great recipe and went down a treat. I made this for my mums birthday last minute and she loved it. The only reason its a 4* is because the butter cream was slightly stiff even after adding the boiling water so I added a splash of milk as well but apart from that it was great.
Glad it was a success. For the buttercream – some buttercream will need less or more water, some times it won’t need any at all depending on the weather. It only needed a little more water, milk isn’t necessary!
Hi,I made this cake n it came out really nice ,every 1 enjoyed ,thank you
Hi Jane.
I’ve made this recipe a few times and I love it! I would like to make it in a rectangle shape could you tell me what size tin would be best please? Many thanks.
Hiya – The general rule is an 8″ circle = 7″ square, but rectangle tins have different volumes to the square tins. I think I need more info to help more!
Hi Jane.
Thanks for your reply. Im making this cake for a childs birthday party. There will be about 15 kids. It will be sandwiched together with buttercream in the middle. I know the above recipe makes enough for that many kids in a round tin I’m just trying to figure out do I need more batter to make it into the shape he has requested (A traffic light!) I have a size adjustable tin so i can make it to any size. Any advice you can give would be greatly appreciated!
What measurements would you use for 8 inch or 9 inch square tins.
Thank you.
Use this website – http://www.cakebaker1.co.uk/apps-for-bakers/baking-tin-size-conversion-calculator/
Jane just wanted to say i love all of your recipes, i am slowly working my way through them and i haven’t had a disaster yet ! they always turn out fabulous. Your instructions are easy to follow, you explain things clearly and the recipes easily adaptable. Today i am making this chocolate cake for work tomorrow and also doing the Toblerone brownies yummy 😋😋 Thank you so much xxx
Hi I want to make this for my sons birthday next week, but I’m unsure of the cake tins to use. Do you use the sand which tins or the deep 8”? As I’m going to decorate with chocolate fingers round the sides and sweets on top. Thanks
All of my cake tins are deep, even if the cakes don’t rise up too much per tin as they’re handier for all bakes! Just guarantees it won’t overflow!
Hi This looks yum but I only have three 6 inch tins can I use the same amount for 3 of them
Keep it up, i followed the steps and baked a fantastic cake, we enjoyed with my family.
Hi what depth are the tins that you use?
I happen to use ones that are about 4 inches deep as they work for cheesecakes as well, but you can use thinner ones for this particular bake.
I made this, as requested by my son, for his birthday cake this year. It was lush. Thank you for sharing this and all the other recipes you share.
Great chocolate cake recipe needed to cook fora bit longer,but as you say it could be my oven x
Hey
I just made your recipe and it came out fantastic so thank you so much for sharing your recipe
Just wanted to ask what the difference would be if next time I used light brown sugar instead of caster sugar?
There won’t be any difference other than a faint flavour change x
Hi if I wanted 3 layers how much would I increase the recipe by please? Thanks
Just add another 1/2 on top, and an extra tin – baking times will stay the same!
Hi Jane- I made this yesterday- it was so straightforward and looks amazing! My daughter and I are going to have a piece later- it would be rude not to! Thank you for this recipe- your other recipes are fantastic as well but it’s nice to go back to basics once in a while!!!
Could I add some espresso into the cake mix to give the cake a richer flavour?
You can do – but my Chocolate Fudge Cake is a richer one with espresso in so you can make that instead https://www.janespatisserie.com/2015/08/28/chocolate-fudge-cake/
Hey I was wondering if I could bake this cake mix all in one 9” cake tin and split the cake in half after it has cooled down before icing?
I have no idea how deep the cake will be – but theoretically for a 9″ tin you need to use 1.3″ the recipe.
Could I make this is 7” tins?
You could do! It will take slightly longer to bake however x
can you use salted butter instead of unsalted butter?
You can, but it will be slightly salty!
Hi could I double.the mixture to have a deeper cake and still bake in 2 8″ tins?