Chocolate Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is a chocolate cake lover’s dream. Perfect for birthdays, Valentine’s Day or anytime cake is the perfect finish to a meal or surprise treat for a loved one.
Another great dessert is my chocolate babka recipe.
For ease of browsing, here are all of my baking and dessert recipes.
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Why you’ll love this recipe
This chocolate bundt cake with cream cheese frosting is super easy to make, stays moist for days (yup I used the word “moist”) and I think it’s a chocolate lover’s chocolate cake. I can say this, cuz I’ll pretty much do anything for a good slice of chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting.
The combination of tangy, rich, and decadent cream cheese frosting and the fudgy but not at all dense cake is just superb.
This recipe was originally inspired by a recipe from the blog Merry Gourmet. She describes this cake as similar to red velvet cake without using the food coloring. For me, it’s the ultimate chocolate cake with an extra depth of flavor from the addition of coffee.
I reduced the sugar in the cake by 1/2 cup and I only make 1/2 the frosting of the original recipe since I also make this as a bundt cake, instead of a layer cake.
Ingredients you’ll need
If you bake even occasionally, it’s very likely you’ll have all the ingredients on hand to make this lusciously easy chocolate bundt cake with cream cheese frosting.
Cake:
Unsweetened cocoa powder: Use regular unsweetened cocoa powder, not dutch process because you want the acidity of the cocoa powder to work with the baking soda to help the cake rise.
Buttermilk: If you don’t have any, just combine a tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice with a scant cup of milk (to equal one cup) and let it sit for about 5 minutes. It should thicken and begin to curdle. This is a one-for-one substitute for buttermilk.
Coffee: You can brew coffee or use instant and decide whether you want it to be caffeinated or decaf.
Frosting:
Cream cheese: Use a standard 8 ounce block of cream cheese, not whipped. And be sure to let it soften or come to room temperature.
Unsalted butter: Unsalted butter is always my choice – if I need more salt in a baked good, I prefer to add it myself.
How to make this recipe
You can use a stand mixer for this but I have always just mixed by hand and it comes out great every time.
1. Whisk your dry ingredients first:
2. Add liquid ingredients and beat by hand or on medium speed in a stand mixer for about 2 minutes. Batter will be thin.
3. Pour cake batter into a well-greased Bundt pan. Even if the pan is non-stick like this one, spray it with non-stick spray as well.
4. Bake the cake for 30 – 35 minutes at 350°F.
5. Let cool for at least 20 minutes and then unmold on to a cooling rack and let the cake cool completely before frosting.
6. While the cake is cooling, make the cream cheese frosting (or whatever frosting or glaze you want to use). I have also turned this chocolate cake into a German chocolate cake by making a traditional pecan and coconut frosting.
7. When cake is completely cool, place it on the plate, platter or cake stand you want to serve from and apply the frosting. Here you see my slightly pathetic but heartfelt attempt to make this look like a Nothing Bundt Cake.
Or use a frosting knife and spread it all over:
Or try a different frosting like the German chocolate frosting:
Expert Tips and FAQs
- You can make this cake one day ahead. Cover with cake dome and refrigerate overnight. Let cake stand at room temperature for 2 hours before serving.
- This cake is just as good 2 or 3 days later, if it lasts that long.
- If you are going to use any fresh fruit as I show in the picture – I recommend making a bowl of sliced berries on the side, macerating them for a few hours with a bit of sugar and serving alongside a slice of cake. If you decorate the center with berries, it looks good for presentation but don’t leave them in there – they will spoil before the cake does!
Yes you can. Make the cake, let it cool, wrap it well so it’s airtight and place it in the freezer, clearly marked so you remember to eat it in the next 2 or 3 months! Frost it after you defrost the cake.
I would either make a layer cake using two 8- or 9- inch round pans. Cakes should bake in about 30 minutes. Or you could try a rectangular pan. Or make cupcakes! Bake the cake, in all cases, until a toothpick comes out clean. The smaller the size or thinner the cake, the faster it will bake.
Generally, dark non-stick cookware will bake up more quickly so always check the doneness of your cake at least five minutes before the estimated time of completion.
Other OMG! Yummy recipes perfect for Valentine’s Day
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Chocolate Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Cake
- 1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1-3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 cup black coffee
Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 8 ounces confectioners sugar sifted
Instructions
The Cake:
- Heat oven to 350° F or 325° F convection with the rack in center position. Butter or spray one Bundt pan.
- In a large bowl, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the sugar, flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cocoa.
- Add eggs, vanilla, vegetable oil, buttermilk, and coffee. Beat by hand or on medium speed for 2 minutes; batter will be thin.
- Pour into the prepared Bundt pan.
- Bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then invert cake onto a wire rack and cool completely before frosting.
The Frosting:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in vanilla extract. Gradually add the sifted confectioners sugar, beating until frosting is smooth and creamy, about 5 minutes.
Frost Cake:
- If you have frosting bags and tips and want to make it look like my marginal attempt at a Nothing Bundt Cake, have at it :-). Otherwise, use an offset spatula to spread the frosting. A bundt cake might lend itself to more of a drizzly icing but we love the cream cheese frosting so I make it work!
Notes
- You can make this cake one day ahead. Cover with cake dome and refrigerate overnight. Let cake stand at room temperature for 2 hours before serving.
- This cake is just as good 2 or 3 days later, if it lasts that long.
- If you are going to use any fresh fruit as I show in the picture – I recommend making a bowl of sliced berries on the side, macerating them for a few hours with a bit of sugar and serving alongside a slice of cake. If you decorate the center with berries, it looks good for presentation but don’t leave them in there – they will spoil before the cake does!
Christine Lemieux
Happy, Happy Anniversary to your wonderful blog!
Beth Lee
Thank you! It’s all possible because of wonderful readers like you who read, cook, and share their feedback. Thanks for your support!
Georgia B
Yes! Please!
Post that coconut pecan topping soon!! It’s almost Valentine’s Day!
Although I just saw a recipe for “Marshmallow Meringue” that I’m dying to try. Except, of course, DH (dear hubby) doesn’t like marshmallows. ;-(
As everything you do, I can’t wait to make it. xoxo
Beth Lee
See comment below for the recipe and I’ll be sure to add it to the post too in the notes. Also you might just find it in this Saturday’s newsletter! Hope you are doing well and keeping your oven busy and the pages of my cookbook are covered in flour!
Cheryl | Pook's Pantry
LOVED this Bundt cake! What a great recipe and so easy to follow.
Beth Lee
Coming from you, I take this as a high compliment! Thank you!
andi
I’m sure this cake is delicious, but German chocolate topping is my favorite and I was disappointed not to find the recipe for that frosting anywhere on your site, especially since you show it with one. Can you please share it?
Thank you.
Beth Lee
Hi Andi! Didn’t mean to frustrate you. Happy to share the basics here and I’ll add it to the notes of the recipe until I get the post up! I made a smaller amount than most recipes because I didn’t envision it covering the whole cake. I thought it was perfect. I also didn’t use sweetened coconut as many recipes do because I thought it would be fine without the extra sugar and nobody complained! The thing that is most unusual about German chocolate cake frosting are the egg yolks – be really careful when you heat them with the sugar, butter and evaporated milk that you mix continuously so they don’t become scrambled eggs. If you get a few pieces, just strain it. You need 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1/3 cup white sugar, 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, 2 egg yolks, 1/2 cup evaporated milk. Heat this together on medium to medium low heat until it thickens, stirring constantly. To this mixture, add 2/3 cup chopped and toasted pecans, 2/3 cup unsweetened coconut (I toasted this too), and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Mix well, let it cool and then frost!
Laura
I adore cream cheese frosting but never paired it with a chocolate cake. Soooo delicious, thank you!
Sandi G
I was craving chocolate…I love the two options. I haven’t had a coconut pecan topping in years so I am leaning towards that one!
Beth Lee
I will post the recipe for that frosting – it’s different cuz it has egg yolks in it but it was really yummy – toasted pecans and coconut – yum!
Denise
Made this cake for the first time on the 4th of July! It tasted amazing! So moist & so delicious
Beth Lee
I just love this cake – you’re inspiring me to make one again soon. So glad you liked it! Thanks for stopping by.
PHYLLIS WINE
ANOTHER GREAT RECIPE BETH
Beth Lee
Thanks Phyllis! How are you doing? Looking forward to the high holidays? Will you be cooking?
Little Cooking Tips
First of all, HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Both to your blog, as well as you daughter for turning 18! And the XO meant that you’re birthday was also around the corner? 🙂 Our best wishes to all of you, may the years ahead be healthy, joyful, creative and HAPPY!
As for the bundt now; we never used buttermilk (since it isn’t sold or used here) in a cake before, we’ll make some with lemon or vinegar at home and give it a try, it sounds very interesting! It must have a similar effect to adding freshly squeezed orange juice in a cake (as soda reacts to the acid), right?
Thanx for the yummy idea Beth!
xoxoxo
Beth Lee
The X refers to my husband’s May birthday but I am not allowed to say the age :-). Mine is shortly thereafter. Thanks for all the good wishes. It is a big year for us. Right now, we are helping our daughter choose a college. A rather monumental step for one so young. Love buttermilk in cakes and especially pancakes. Making it with a little lemon or vinegar works quite nicely. And I would guess you are right that the acid in OJ may have a similar effect to the buttermilk. First time I’ve thought about that but it makes sense for my orange juice hamantaschen now that I think about it!!!
Tamara Coleman
Oh how I love bundt cakes! I go to nothing bundt cakes a little to often 🙂 Looks fantastic!
Beth Lee
So do we! My frosting effort might not have been as perfect as theirs but I have to admit, the cake tastes fantastic and stays moist for days (if it lasts that long!). Thanks for stopping by Tamara!
Hannah
Congratulations on 6 years of blogging! I appreciate all you share here very much. Wow, many milestones indeed.Just keep breathing and eat cake. Lots of cake. Happy weekend to you and enjoy celebrating your daughter!
Beth Lee
Cake does help, doesn’t it? I appreciate the people I’ve met thru blogging most of all (or at least have virtually met). Thanks for all of your support Hannah!
Deb|EastofEdenCooking
Love that chocolate and cream cheese frosting! I’m all in, give any excuse and I’ll bake something. What a scrumptious V Day treat! Stay calm and enjoy every minute, Life just keeps on moving.
Beth Lee
It does,doesn’t it. Never a dull moment and then I wonder — what will I do next year when I might actually have dull moments? I am going to have to relearn to relax!
Sarene (FringeFood)
I’m drooling here! Congrats on the 6th anniversary of your blog and happy adulthood to your baby.
Beth Lee
A belated thank you Sarene for this and all of your support over the 6 years!