Extra Dark Chocolate Snack Cake

An extra dark chocolate snack cake with a hint of espresso and a silky smooth, rich chocolate buttercream. This cake is perfect for all occasions and bakes up quickly for a decadent dessert in no time.

This post was created in partnership with Williams-Sonoma. As always, all thoughts and opinions are 100% my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that make Browned Butter Blondie possible. 

I’m a girl that loves to celebrate everything. And I mean everything. Birthday, anniversary? I’m on it! Make the school tennis team? I’ll bake a cake. Loose a tooth? Cookies…coming right up!! What’s that? You started a brand new job today? Let me whip up some cupcakes. The dog’s half birthday is today? Well then, I think we better buy some balloons! I really do love any reason to throw a party and celebrate the little things. Isn’t that what life is all about anyway?

I’m not shy about my love for celebrating all the big and little moments that come our way. I love the cake and the candles and the balloons and aaallll the glitter. The sappy cards that only make me cry and the confetti strewn all over the floor with abandon. I love picking out the matching paper plates and napkins and finding the perfect cake topper to fit the theme. I love washing the champagne glasses the day after a party and remembering all the love and laughter shared the night before. Call me crazy but it’s these little things that bring me joy.

If you ask me, we should all be celebrating more. We all have so much to be grateful for and each of us has special people in our lives that are worth appreciating. It doesn’t even have to be a birthday or an anniversary to be worthy of a cake, a few balloons and a sappy Hallmark card. There is joy to be found in the ordinary and the extraordinary moments in life. I say let’s celebrate more…just because.

This deep, dark chocolate snack cake is just the thing to make every whoop-tee-do memorable. It’s nothing fancy but it’s always a hit and you won’t be slaving away in the kitchen for long when you’d rather be sharing smiles and happy times with those that came to eat cake.  It’s such a simple dessert really but one that garners rave reviews every time and it couldn’t be easier to throw together. Did I mention that my husband loves this cake and he doesn’t even like cake?? I’ll never forget the first time I made this cake and he walked into the kitchen, took a bite right off the pan and declared “wow, that’s really good cake”. Yep, my non-cake-loving husband had just made my day. Maybe even my whole year!! Let’s just say this cake is on repeat over here.

Seriously tho…who doesn’t like cake?

We’ll get to that another day…

But back to this deep, dark chocolate espresso cake with the smoothest, silkiest chocolate buttercream you’ll ever taste. Gah! It’s just soooo good and so decadent and it’s honestly embarrassingly easy to make. The perfect cake to whip up when you are short on time and big on wow factor. This cake will make your day over and over again.

To make this extra dark chocolate snack cake, first we start with a bit of bittersweet chocolate and a hint of espresso. Sub in hot coffee if you don’t have espresso but trust me when I say your cake will not taste like coffee. The espresso just elevates the chocolate flavor oh-so-perfectly so it’s even more, well…chocolately. You’ll love it and wonder why you aren’t adding espresso to all of your chocolate bakes. For this recipe I used freshly brewed espresso from Williams-Sonoma’s new line of Fair Trade coffee capsules. They are available in five flavors including decaf and I love that they are compatible with my Nespresso machine. Just pop in a capsule and in ten seconds I’ve got hot espresso ready to add to my cake batter. And the capsules are packaged in 100% recyclable aluminum which we can all feel good about. Next we combine the yogurt, milk, oil and eggs and add this slowly to the dry ingredients. Be sure to use Dutch process cocoa powder for this recipe for this deep, dark cake that delivers a rich and decadent flavor. Finally, we add the melted chocolate and mix until barely combined. Do not over mix. If you remember one thing from this post, let it be “do not over mix”. We good??

Once you’ve made your batter, divide it evenly between two 8 inch square or round cake pans. You can also make one full size sheet cake in a 9 x 13 inch pan if you prefer. I like to make a smaller snack cake and freeze one for later. Double the cake. Double the goodness. And it never hurts to have a cake waiting in the freezer for those last minute impromptu celebrations you’ll be having just because. {wink, wink}.

Cool the cakes completely before frosting with the chocolate buttercream. And this is not just any chocolate buttercream. The confectioner’s sugar to butter ratio is dialed in just perfectly to make the smoothest, creamiest, most swoon-worthy buttercream your sweet tooth will ever meet. It’s fluffy but not airy and the flavor is out of this world. It’s a wonder I didn’t lick the bowl clean before any of the buttercream made it on to the actual cake. Just look at those swirls!! Save this buttercream recipe for all of your cupcakes, layer cakes, even brownies. It’s just the best thing ever and it will be the star of your next party.

I hope you have some fun moments and milestones to celebrate soon. Buy that sappy card, blow up a balloon or wrap a gift and call it a party. And whether or not you bake this ultra chocolate cake for your next special occasion, I hope you find more time to celebrate just because. I’ll be surprising my hubby with this cake for Father’s Day coming up next weekend and probably for graduation the week before that. Keep the parties {and the cake} coming!!

If you make this extra dark chocolate snack cake, be sure to tag @brownedbutterblondie on Instagram. I love to see what you’re baking up in your kitchens. And don’t forget to follow along on Pinterest for all the latest recipe details straight from the blog. And let me just say, thanks for being here and following along. It really means so much that you check back here each week for new recipes. This little blog of mine is something worth celebrating so I’m going to sign off and go enjoy a slice of cake.

Happy baking!

Extra Dark Chocolate Snack Cake

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 3 reviews

• Author: Browned Butter Blondie
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 50 mins
• Yield: 2-8 inch cakes 1x
• Category: Cakes

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Description

A deep, dark ultra chocolatey snack cake with a hint of espresso and a silky smooth, rich chocolate buttercream. This cake is perfect for all occasions and bakes up quickly for a decadent dessert in no time.

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Ingredients

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For Cake

• 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup hot freshly brewed espresso
• 3/4 cup hot water
• 1/2 cup full fat Greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 2 large eggs, plus one egg yolk, room temperature
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup cocoa powder, Dutch process
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt

For Buttercream

• 1 cup semisweet or dark chocolate, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 1/4 cups confectioner’s sugar

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Instructions

For Cake

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Grease two square 8 inch cake pans with non-stick cooking spray and line with parchment paper
3. Place the bittersweet chocolate in a small bowl and cover with hot espresso and hot water
4. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside
5. In a medium bowl, combine yogurt, milk, canola oil, eggs and vanilla
6. Whisk to combine and set aside
7. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt on low speed until well combined
8. Put mixer on low speed and slowly add the yogurt mixture
9. Mix on medium speed for just 30 seconds until well combined
10. Stir the chocolate and hot espresso mixture together until smooth
11. Slowly pour the melted chocolate into the mixer and mix on low speed until incorporated
12. Remove the bowl from mixer and scrap down sides and bottom of bowl with a rubber spatula to be sure mixture is well combined
13. Do not over mix
14. Pour batter into the prepared pans, dispersing evenly
15. Bake on center rack of oven for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a bit of crumb remaining
16. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack for 25-30 minutes
17. Invert cakes onto a platter or cooling rack and allow to cool completely before frosting

For Buttercream

1. Over a double boiler, melted the chocolate while stirring constantly
2. Once melted, remove from heat and cool slightly
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter on medium high speed for 3 minutes until pale and fluffy
4. Add the vanilla and salt and beat on medium speed until incorporated
5. Reduce mixer to low speed and carefully add the confectioner’s sugar
6. Once combined, increase speed to medium high and beat until smooth and silky, about 3 minutes
7. Stop mixer and scrape down sides of bowl
8. Add melted chocolate to the butter and sugar mixture and mix on low speed until completely combined
9. Once cake has cooled completely, frost with buttercream

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Notes

Store leftover cake in a cool, dry place for up to 3 days.
Cake may be made in advance, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and frozen or refrigerated until ready to frost.

*Cake adapted from the Chocolate Cake recipe by The Vanilla Bean Blog.