Black Magic Cake

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whole frosted black magic cake with sprinkles.

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5 from 4 votes

Rich, moist, and intensely chocolatey, this decadent Black Magic Cake will become your go-to chocolate cake for any occasion. This foolproof recipe guarantees flavor with buttermilk, high-quality cocoa, and a bit of espresso. Perfect for the chocolate lover in your life!

Prep Time5

Cook Time35

Total Time40

Servings: -12 servings

Calories: 512kcal

Author: Melissa Griffiths

Ingredients

For the Cake:

1-¾ cups sugar
1-¾ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup good quality cocoa I used King Arthur Triple Cocoa Blend.
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 ¼ cup full fat buttermilk
¼ teaspoon espresso powder
1 cup boiling water
½ cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Chocolate Fudge Frosting:

¾ cup butter melted
1 cup good quality cocoa
4 cups powdered sugar
½ cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

Make the Cake:

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans or one 13x9x2-inch baking pan. (Line bottoms of pans with parchment paper if making a layer cake so the layers will turn out easily.)
Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.
Add eggs, buttermilk, espresso powder, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 30 seconds until mixed.
Add dry ingredient mixture to the mixer and mix on low briefly until it's starting to mix. With the mixer on low, gently add in the hot water and mix for 1-2 minutes until thoroughly combined, scraping the sides of the bowl. Batter will be thin.
Pour batter evenly into prepared pans. Bake 30 to 35 minutes for round pans, 35 to 40 minutes for rectangular pan or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

Make the Frosting:

Place melted butter in large mixer bowl. Add cocoa, stirring until smooth.
Gradually beat in powdered sugar, milk and vanilla, beating until smooth. If necessary add additional milk, ½ teaspoon at a time, beating until spreading consistency. Frost cake after the cake has cooled. Makes about 3 cups of frosting.

Notes

Cocoa Quality: Use a good quality cocoa powder. Hershey's is good, and I also like the King Arthur cocoa powder. It works for all types of recipes, whether the recipe calls for Dutch-process or regular cocoa. It includes black cocoa for a dark rich color

Buttermilk Tip: Make sure not to use low-fat buttermilk. Alternatively, if you are making your own sour milk, use whole milk, not skim.

Freezer Friendly: This cake freezes beautifully. You can freeze unfrosted cake layers for up to 3 months by wrapping them tightly in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil. The completely frosted cake can also be frozen – just place it in the freezer until firm, then wrap well. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.

Storing Leftovers: Leftovers can be wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for 1-2 days. If you choose to store in the refrigerator bring to room temperature before eating.

Nutrition