Hershey’s Perfectly Chocolate Cake
I had been hearing numerous raves about Hershey’s “Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Cake and was waiting for an excuse to make it. I finally broke down yesterday and, with no good reason, made the cake anyway 🙂 It definitely lived up to all its hype, without question. It’s the best chocolate cake I have ever had. I chose to frost it with the equally sinful “Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Frosting.Really, this cake is too good for words…
“Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Frosting (Source: Hershey’s)
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter or margarine
2/3 cup Hershey’s cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Melt butter. Stir in cocoa. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating on medium speed to spreading consistency. Add small additional amount of milk, if necessary (I did not need to). Stir in vanilla. Makes ~2 cups frosting.
Here, I saved you a piece… ENJOY! 🙂
Yum! Chocolate cake sounds awesome right now!
That looks decadent! Can’t wait to try this recipe.
OMG! Put that on my next baking list. I even have everything I need already. Oh it’s on!
(Note – I don’t think I’ve added you to my favorites yet. I need to!)
Jennyfer
Mmmm… chocolate cake. This looks awesome!
yummmmm, i need to go get a slice of this from my fridge!
Thank you so much for saving me a piece. It looks divine!!
MUST. BAKE. THIS.
YUM!
Would this cake stand up to fondant?
Yumm..very good chocolate cake recipe..I played with it used cake flour and buttermilk to the mix..My husbands favorite cake but with Peanut butter icing or Chocolate Ganache
I was wondering if you have tried this as cupcakes?? I have yet to find a recipe that turns out as a moist chocolate cupcake….it’s enough to make me want to pull my hair out!! Or resort to altering a cake mix!!
I just made cupcakes from this, and they were moist as anything! I did use cake flour, though, just to make sure they turned out moist and not dense. Hope that helps you!
Did you just use an equal amount of cake flour instead of all purpose flour? Everytime I make this as cupcakes, they are flat, but the flavor is too good to give up on them. Thanks!
I did use equal parts, but I have switched to using AP. Comes out perfect every time!
I did a chocolate cake cook-off this weekend. This cake against chocolate cakes from my favorite cookbooks: Cuisine at Home and America’s Test Kitchen. We all voted and this one WON! It was awesome. Can’t thank you enough for your dedication to baking! Your chocolate chip cookie recipe won my last bake-off.
Yay!! It’s always awesome to find a winner of a recipe, glad this cake was it for you. I just love it!
Hi Michelle!
I had a cake taste-testing with my friends and family last Saturday between this Hershey’s recipe and ATK’s Old-Fashioned Chocolate Layer Cake, and the winner is HERSHEY’S recipe (all voted for it, nobody liked the ATK’s recipe).. Can I ask which do you prefer among all the Chocolate cake recipe you have ever tried?? Thanks..
She says in the blurb this one is her favorite… And I would have to agree. I own a cake baking/decorating business, and this is BY FAR my most popular flavor. People say it’s the best chocolate cake they’ve ever had!
I am amazed at how moist and light this cake is, considering the batter was more than “thin” to me. It was like water! I am shocked, extremely pleased, and never using another chocolate cake recipe ever again!
Love this recipe <3
It would be amazing if you made the chocolate cake from Matilda.
🙂
First thing I will say is that I have been searching for a great chocolate cake recipe and taste-wise this is def it!!!!! Flavor is amazing. I did use some really expensive dark cocoa from Fresh Market. But both times I tried it mine did not raise as beautifully. I got a pretty flat cake. It might be due to the fact that I live in Florida and it is May so maybe it was due to the humidity??? Any ideas???? I love it and want to use it all the time but it was only like an inch tall. Icing was the best chocolate icing I have ever made!
Hi Brienne, There are a few reasons why your cakes could have not risen – expired/bad baking soda or baking powder, inaccurate oven temperature, too much greasing/butter of the pans, the cakes not being baked completely before removing them, etc.
Have you tried making this recipe as cupcakes? Every time I make them, they’re flat. I’ve used this to make cake, and it’s beautiful, but the cupcakes are always flat. I LOVE the flavor, I’m just not sure how to make them round and pretty or if it’s typical for them to be flat.
Hi Rachel, I actually haven’t made this into cupcakes, but the recipe definitely says you can do 24 cupcakes. Are you baking them long enough? Sometimes if cupcakes aren’t completely cooked when they cool they will sink down in the middle.
I discovered this recipe this past weekend and I really could have eaten the whole bowl myself. I don’t usually even LIKE chocolate icing. This was more like a mousse and so, so good!
I’m always up for trying new recipes (to the extreme that my mother-in-law is irritated that I never make her favorites again) so I decided to give this one a whirl! Weird because on their site, the rave reviews don’t match the ratings. Why only 3 stars (out of 5) for “this is the best cake I ever had!” ??? Anyway, let me preface this by saying that chocolate cake is my favorite thing on the planet and I could eat it for my last meal. This chocolate cake is definitely for those that want that chocolate intensity. I made cupcakes for my son’s 5th birthday at his school and my husband said that one of the kids comments how it was “too chocolately”…is there such a thing? LOL Sadly, even I thought it was a little bit too intense but I think if I had chosen a vanilla buttercream rather than putting chocolate on chocolate, I would have liked it a lot better. A couple of problems that I ran into that might help some of the other posters. First, the flat cupcakes. Due to the size of my oven, I have to put one dozen on top and one on the bottom and since I did not turn or swap them during cooking, the bottom ones took longer and since I also over filled them a bit, they spilled over so I now know that for my oven, I need to rotate because the top ones came out much better. I did not under bake so that was not my problem with the flatness that some people experience. All of my baking soda/powder are not expired so that’s not it either. I do own an oven thermometer as I discovered that my oven is hotter by a whole 50 degrees! I haven’t made a great cupcake in years and I guess it’s this stinking oven! Next – the liners separating from the cupcakes…what the???? After reading a lot after googling my problem, I have discovered several reasons that could happen. I do use the silicone cupcake pans with liners and no, I don’t spray them as some do but I have read that some of the newer colored pretty liners that I did use could be made from a waxier paper than the plainer ones so that might cause it or condensation from when some let them cool in the pan rather than on a rack. For me, it might be the liners, not the condensation. Some say it’s the amount of batter in the liner but I had some that were done correctly and some that were overfilled and it didn’t matter. Anyway, it was unsightly and I don’t like it. Back to cheap, plain liners and using a cup (like your pictured limoncello) or the foil ones that prevent that…or a wrap but those can seem a little pricey. My cakes come out beautiful but I still struggle with the nice pretty cupcake. One thing that I want to mention is the I love, love, love using that #1 tip from Wilton you suggested. My friends wanted to know how I got my cupcakes to look so professional! And it makes frosting so easy. And I love the Wilton disposable frosting bags. They are so thick that I washed out the last one I used. I had a different brand that were so cheap, I thought they’d all be like that but Wilton is fabulous. Sorry for the long post but thought some of my info might help others!
I made this cake last weekend in square cake pans. I like the square pans because I use parchment paper on the bottom and the square pans waste less paper than the round pans. I then put a thin layer (like a crumb coat) of the Hersey’s frosting on the cake. To make it extra decadent I used TBBB peanut butter frosting on the outside. Amazing!! told my son that this cake may be your grooms cake at your wedding, it was that good. I’m only a recent user of this site, and I’ve had a blast making everything from scratch. I also have also noticed I’m using less trash cans because I don’t have all that wasteful packing from pre-made and fast food containers. Saving the planet and making the world more delicious. Awesome!
Michelle, this cake is divine. I made this for a friend with the Hershey buttercream and your peanut butter frosting to fill the layers. It was a hit and I have made six since then. My best girlfriend says that it is better than … Cake!
I’m making this for a 21st birthday party tomorrow. The birthday girl to be loves chocolate cake and I can’t wait to make her happy!
Sorry if this seems a little silly but I’m confused. Your recipe for the Perfectly Chocolate cake has no flour bkn soda or pdr, eggs and other things not listed on Hershy’s site. Is it an adapted recipe or am I having one of my “moments”?
I am awe inspiringly stupid. I just reread and saw yours was for the icing and not the cake its slef. Please iqnore me and my moments.
has anyone ever used applesauce instead of the oil in the cake? I dont want to go to the store–but dont want to ruin the cake either!
Ive made this numerous times. Saw it on your blog. Thought i’d write some feedback. Its definitely one of the best homemade chocolate cakes ive had. Ive recently started selling cupcakes on orders. I have although altered the recipe a bit as i like extremely soft and crumbly , melt-in-your-mouth cakes and cupcakes. For anyone who is hesitant to try this, DONT BE. Always turns out flawless!
I have made this cake twice. Always gets great reviews. Absolutely the best chocolate chocolate cake out there. Moist and Delicious.
I love this recipe. The cake recipe is almost the exact same as one I have been using for years, the only difference is my recipe calls for 1 cup of hot coffee, and not boiling water. If you have not tried it, you should it is sooo good! and really brings out the chocolate flavor. I will try it with the boiling water to see how I like it, but I usually have coffee pretty close, even if I use instant.
Hi!! I’ve made this cake a couple times so far and loved it! The last time I made it I took it to a friend’s house and no one believed that I’d made the cake and the frosting from scratch, it was that good! I want to make it again to take to a friends house but I’ kind of in a time crunch. Could I make the batter the night before I need it and then bake it the next day or would this alter the texture since the batter wouldn’t be warm from the boiling water? Thoughts?
Thanks!
Hi Sarah, I would not make the batter ahead of time and leave it refrigerated overnight. Even if you leave batter to sit on the counter for 30 minutes or so after mixing before getting it into the oven (I’ve done it!), there is a significant difference. The cake doesn’t rise nearly as high, because when you initially mix everything the baking powder and baking soda are activated; after it sits for awhile, they are less potent.
I know it’s been a long time since people have commented, but I just discovered your recipes, thanks to pinterest! I was just curious about the Hershey’s cocoa. When I went to the store, there was only “Hershey’s unsweetend cocoa”. Is this what the recipe is calling for, or is there some standard “Hershey’s cocoa” that the store did not have? Thanks!! I’ll be attempting to make your Cherry Coke Float Cupcakes today! I am quite excited.
Also, I too had a question about fondant. Do you think fondant would work on this cake? I’ve never worked with fondant before and wanted a standard cake to try it with
Hi Jeannine, Yes you just want to use the regular Hershey’s unsweetened cocoa, that’s the one! I have used this cake recipe underneath of fondant before without any issues.
Thank you! I made both your Cherry Coke Float Cupcakes AND this Chocolate Cake yesterday (with your chocolate buttercream frosting) yesterday, and both turned out great! I am currently trying the “Perfect Party Cake” as a rainbow cake! I am so glad I found your blog. Your recipes are so reliable, and I really appreciate that 🙂
Pleeease, i’m looking for a chocolate cake with different layers to do at my dad’s 50th birthday!!!, i’ve seen some, but there’s no single one that makes me wanna say “that’s the one!!” as i think when i see almost all of your recipes!! (and they taste always like you describe them, the most important!!). Can you help me? 🙁
Anaisa, This is my favorite chocolate cake, believe it or not (I know the photo is old).
I forgot, i’m looking for something moist, richfull and with looots of frosting and ganache, something like that!! 🙁 please Michelle, help me!
This is hands down my favorite chocolate cake. It’s my go to chocolate cake.
Sometimes I use the Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder, and it’s excellent. I like to frost with 7-minute icing.
Used the frosting as a ganache substitute on a chocolate bundt cake, made it a little looser. So delicious!
For dark chocolate lovers, you may want to try the variant of this cake I made. Since I had the Hershey’s Especially Dark cocoa powder in the house, I followed the directions on the back of the cocoa box. It’s almost exactly the same recipe, just with dark cocoa powder. There’s also a recipe for Especially Dark frosting on there too. I agree that this is the best chocolate cake ever. I made it a 3 layer cake and reduced the bake time to about 20 min. My cake was hideous, so I’ll have to work on that, but it was really decadent and the chocolate flavor is really bold. Oh! another tip, I usually choose butter over non-stick spray to grease my baking pans, but butter wasn’t enough, and my cakes stuck really badly. This is a super moist and sticky cake, so you will need a good amount of grease on your cake tin.
i wonder if you could use buttermilk
Hi Michelle,
I love ur website, i like to surf, read and imagining ur recipes. I’m new in baking, I’ve tried this hershey cake but my cake turn out to be another failed :'(. The surface wasn’t flat. Too many holes. And it takes more than hour to cook it. I baked in 9’5 inches pan. Tell me why i failed this easy cake?
Btw, is it [1 & 3/4 cup of flour ]or [1 or 3/4 flour]? I think i misread the recipe 😀
Hi Jesse, It should be 1&¾ cups of flour. As for the cake not being flat, this is not uncommon with many cake recipes; they do not always bake up completely flat, which is why if you’re layering a cake, you will often need to slice off any domed top. You say you baked it in a 9.5″ pan. If you put ALL of the batter in one pan, then that would be why. This is meant to be divided between two 8″ or 9″ pans.
I just made this today for my daughter’s 12th birthday, and it is fantastic! It stuck to the pan just a little, so I doubled the frosting recipe and used it as glue. There is no such thing as too much frosting, after all. The girls loved it.
Made this cake today and it was a total flop. The cake sunk in the middle! I’ve been baking for 35 years and have NEVER had a cake sink. I quickly made a different chocolate cake recipe – so I controlled the “oven variable and it came out perfect! I was suspicious of the 2 cups of liquid – which is a lot for a cake – so I’m thinking the recipe is to blame. Won’t be making this one again. Life is too short and there are too many other great recipes out there..
Ditto! I am an experienced baker, who bakes all our bread from scratch every day. Followed recipe to the “T” & even set the timer for 5 min early to check it. When it hit 30min, timer went off, I turned light on to look inside the window….FLAT, FLAT, FLAT. Checked it & toothpick inserted came to clean. Continued to sink after removed from the oven. Grrrr. The only up shot is that now I don’t have to trim the domes off for my layer cake!!!!!
I made this cake as a chocolate mint layer cake for my Son’s birthday and it came out fabulous, especially with the chocolate buttercream frosting. Had to drive 5 hours through a snowstorm to get it to him in VT and I think it was well worth the drive. We all love it!
Hi Michelle,
I would like to make this cake but the link above says page cannot be found on the hershey’s website. May you please post the cake recipe. Thanks.
By the way, I have been enjoying your website and have saved a lot of recipes 🙂 I came across your website looking for Dorie Greenspan’s recipes and America’s Test Kitchen and I am glad you give a review before I try the recipes. I am a frequent reader now of your blog since you also introduced me to the cookbooks that I have not heard of. So I checked a lot of books from the library to try the recipes. I am definitely enjoying the perfect scoop and the baked cookbook.
Thanks Michelle!
Here is the correct link, sorry about that! https://www.hersheys.com/recipes/en_US/recipes/184/hersheys-perfectly-chocolate-chocolate-cake.html