Chocolate Bundt Cake

This easy chocolate bundt cake is moist, fudgy, and oh so chocolatey. It’s topped with chocolate ganache for a chocolate cake that’s rich, not too sweet, and completely decadent. 

This chocolate bundt cake always gets rave reviews because of its velvety smooth texture and fudgy chocolate flavor. But what I love most is that baking a bundt cake is way easier than making a chocolate layer cake, cupcakes or even a sheet cake. Instead of frosting, it’s drizzled with chocolate ganache. It’s not too sweet, and the chocolate flavor really shines on its own. 

How to Make a Chocolate Bundt Cake

I adapted this bundt cake from my favorite chocolate layer cake recipe. However, because it’s baked in a bundt pan – I knew the batter had to be a little thicker so that the cake would be more sturdy and could hold its shape. Here’s the rundown of the recipe:

1. Whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar.
2. In a separate bowl, beat together the wet ingredients: oil, eggs, sour cream, milk and vanilla extract.
3. Carefully beat the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients – I typically do this about ½ at a time.
4. Whisk in the boiling water.
5. Then pour the batter into your prepared pan, and bake for 50-60 minutes.

Simple, straight forward, and you could actually make the entire recipe by hand using a wire whisk.

Now, there’s a few key ingredients that I figured we should give some attention to:

• Cocoa powder. I recommend using Dutch-process for this recipe for a richer, more chocolate-y flavor. If you look at the photos of my cake – you’ll notice it’s very dark in color from using Dutch-process cocoa.
• Oil for a tender, super moist cake. Because oil is liquid at room temperature (as opposed to butter which is not) – it makes cakes softer and less likely to get hard. Therefore, whenever I make a cake that doesn’t require the extra flavor from butter (such as chocolate) – I use oil.
• Sour cream and buttermilk for a moist, velvety smooth cake. Because I wanted this cake to be a little more sturdy, I used sour cream in addition to the milk because it adds so much moisture without being too liquidy.
• Boiling water. The heat from the water causes the cocoa powder to bloom – which basically means that it brings out the flavor and intensifies the chocolate.

The batter comes together in under 15 minutes, and then it’s time to bake. If you’re looking for more tips and tricks for baking bundt cakes (including tips on how to get them out of the pan) – I’ve included all my best advice here.

How to Make the Chocolate Ganache

I so love that this cake is topped with chocolate ganache. There’s no overly sweet frosting, and instead, you get this delicious layer of fudge that’s drizzled over the cake. To make the ganache:

1. Chop 4 oz of chocolate into small pieces and place in a large heatproof bowl. You could use chocolate chips instead – however, I do find that a chocolate bar or chocolate baking squares work best.
2. Heat the cream – either in the microwave or on the stovetop. You want the cream to be hot, but not boiling. Be sure to whisk the cream if you’re using the stove so that it doesn’t burn.
3. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate.
4. Leat to sit for 2 minutes, then whisk until smooth.
5. I like to whisk in 1 tablespoon of corns syrup (aka golden syrup) to make the ganache extra glossy. (Optional – but recommended). 

Variations on This Chocolate Bundt Cake

• Instead of topping with sprinkles, add a few chocolate curls on and serve with fresh raspberries for a sophisticated dinner party.
• Skip the ganache, and serve with ice cream and hot fudge sauce.
• Or if you feel like frosting – try decorated with chocolate buttercream, chocolate cream cheese frosting, or even raspberry frosting.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Chocolate Bundt Cake

Easy chocolate bundt cake is moist, fudgy, and oh so chocolatey. It's topped with chocolate ganache for a chocolate cake that's rich, not too sweet, and completely decadent. 

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time1 hour hr

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: bundt cake, from scratch, Homemade, Moist

Servings: 14 slices

Calories: 355kcal

Author: Fiona Dowling

Ingredients

Chocolate Bundt Cake

• 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup cocoa powder*
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups caster sugar
• ½ cup oil vegetable or canola
• 2 large eggs*
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup buttermilk*
• ½ cup sour cream*
• ⅓ cup boiling water

Chocolate Ganache

• 4 oz dark chocolate*
• ⅓ cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon corn syrup or golden syrup

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Chocolate Bundt Cake

• Preheat the oven to 350F (180C) degrees and position a wire rack on the bottom ⅓ of the oven.
• Brush a 12-cup capacity bundt pan with pan release* or grease and dust with cocoa powder. Be sure to get inside all the creases of the pan.
• In a large bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, and sugar.
• In a separate large bowl beat (or whisk) together the oil, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream, and buttermilk.
• Beat the flour mixture into the wet ingredients (I usually do this about ½ at a time).
• Carefully whisk the boiling water into the batter.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 50-60 minutes - or until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then carefully invert the pan onto a wire rack to slide the bundt cake out. *Do not try to invert the pan immediately, or wait until the cake is fully cooled to invert.

Chocolate Ganache

• Chop the chocolate into very small pieces and place in a heatproof bowl.
• Heat the cream in a small saucepan, stirring constantly to prevent burning.
• Once the cream is very hot (but not quite boiling), pour the cream over the chopped chocolate.
• Let sit for 2 minutes, then whisk until smooth. Whisk in the corn syrup.
• Transfer the cake to a serving plate.
• Drizzle or pour the chocolate ganache over the cooled cake.

Notes

1.Dutch-process cocoa powder preferred. 

2. Eggs, sour cream and buttermilk should be at room temperature. 

3. 50-70% dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate works best. Do not use bittersweet chocolate.

4. To make your own pan release, beat together ¼ cup shortening, ¼ cup vegetable (or canola) oil, and ¼ cup flour. Use a pastry brush to brush the inside of the bundt pan. Store leftover pan release  in an airtight container in your pantry. 

Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days, or in the fridge for up to 7 days. Note that the ganache can discolor if placed in the fridge. Un-glazed cake can be frozen.

To freeze - cool the cake fully as instructed in the recipe. Then wrap the cake in the plastic wrap going around the ring shape (ie - do not wrap over the hole in the middle). Then place the cake in the a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge. 

Nutrition

Calories: 355kcal | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 43mg | Sodium: 273mg | Potassium: 183mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 33g | Vitamin A: 190IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 41mg | Iron: 2.5mg