This chocolate pound cake is velvety, buttery, and chocolaty! It has everything a good pound cake should. It’s a little dense, yet still moist and tender. It gets its rich flavor from lots of pure butter, eggs, and cocoa powder.
Then it’s topped with a rich, shiny chocolate ganache. This is a chocolate lover’s dream come true!
Try more of my fan-favorite pound cakes. I promise you’ll love them all! ♥
Chocolate Pound Cake Ingredients
Cake
- All-Purpose Flour: All-purpose flours are not all the same. They vary in protein levels. I use moderate protein flour, like Gold Medal unbleached all-purpose flour or Pillsbury unbleached all-purpose flour.
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: I use HERSHEY’S Cocoa. It’s made from 100% cacao and is unsweetened. It has not been Dutch-processed so it still contains cocoa’s natural acids. If you want a dark chocolate pound cake use HERSHEY’S special dark cocoa.
- Espresso Powder: I use King Arthurs’s espresso powder. You can get it on Amazon if you can’t find it at your local market. It doesn’t give the cake a coffee flavor at all, it just enhances the chocolate flavor.
- Salt: Simple table salt.
- Butter: I always use unsalted butter.
- Sugar: Simple white table sugar.
- Eggs: I use large eggs. For best results, it’s important to have them at room temperature not cold from the fridge.
- Buttermilk: Because buttermilk is an acidic ingredient it helps tenderize the gluten in the cake, giving it a softer, more tender texture.
- Vanilla: Use pure vanilla extract not imitation. It really makes a difference.
- Baking Powder
Ganache
- Chocolate Chips: I like this with semi-sweet but you can use a darker version if you’d like.
- Butter: Again, I only use unsalted.
- Heavy Cream: According to the Food Network, heavy cream and whipping cream are essentially the same things. Here’s their article about it if you care to read more.
Notes + Tips
- Room Temperature: Start with room temperature ingredients. This will ensure everything mixes properly and you will get the maximum volume from the ingredients.
- Over Beating: This may sound strange after you read the recipe and see that the first thing you do is beat the butter for 6 minutes! It’s after the eggs are added that you need to beat just to incorporate. Do NOT over beat your eggs! Add your eggs and mix until the yolk disappears.
- Baking: It’s very easy to over-bake a pound cake. I like to bake it until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out with a few moist crumbs.
- Size: I use a 12-cup Bundt pan for this recipe.
- Cake Release: I use Baker Joy no-stick spray. This cake always releases from the pan perfectly for me with this spray. I spray the pan heavily after I make the batter, just before I pour it into the pan. That way the spray doesn’t have time to slide down the pan.
Storing + Freezing + Make-ahead
- How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge? This can be stored at room temperate. Refrigeration extends the shelf life of your cake, but as with all butter cakes, it is best served at room temperature. It will last up to 2 days at room temperature and up to a week in the fridge.
- Can You Freeze This Old Fashioned Pound Cake Recipe? This cake freezes beautifully. Wrap it well and it will last up to 6 months.
- Make-Ahead: This cake is perfect for making ahead. It can either be made and refrigerated or frozen.
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this link.
How To Make Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe
- Combine the dry ingredients except for the sugar.
- Mix butter.
- Beat the butter.
- Add the sugar gradually. Mix.
- Add eggs one at a time. Mix after each addition.
- Add flour mixture and buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.
- Pour batter into the prepared bundt pan. Tap the pan on the counter to remove any air bubbles. Bake
- Make the ganache. In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate and butter. Microwave for 30 seconds.
- Heat the cream in a saucepan then whisk with the melted chocolate.
- Pour the ganache over the top of the cake.
****See full instructions below.
More Lovely Pound Cakes
- Banana Pound Cake
- Strawberry Pound Cake
- Eggnog Pound Cake
- Coconut Pound Cake
- Lemon Pound Cake
- Bourbon Pecan Pound Cake
- Orange Pound Cake
- Million Dollar Pound Cake
- Peach Cobbler Pound Cake
- Buttermilk Pound Cake
Chocolate Pound Cake
This chocolate pound cake is velvety, buttery, and chocolaty! It has everything a good pound cake should. It's a little dense, yet still moist and tender.
Servings: 12 servings
Ingredients
Cake:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter at room temperature
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 5 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 cup buttermilk shaken well
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Ganache:
- 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
Instructions
Cake:
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour (3 cups), cocoa (5 tablespoons), espresso powder (1 teaspoon), baking powder (1/2 teaspoon), and salt (1/2 teaspoon); set aside.
- Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C).
- In the bowl of a stand-up mixer, beat butter (1 1/2 cups) on medium speed, until light and fluff, 6 minutes.
- Gradually mix in sugar (3 cups) until blended. Beat on medium for 1 additional minute.
- Add eggs (5), one at a time, mixing after each addition just until the yolk disappears.
- Reduce mixer speed to low. Add flour mixture and buttermilk (1 cup), beginning and ending with flour mixture, on low speed until just combined. Scrape down the bowl as needed. Mix in vanilla (1 tablespoon).
- Spray a 12-cup bundt pan with no stick baking spray or grease and flour. Pour batter into the prepared bundt pan. Tap the pan on the counter to remove any air bubbles.
- Bake for 45 minutes in the preheated oven. Cover with foil and continue to bake, about 45 minutes longer, or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Cool in a pan on a wire rack for 1 hour. Remove from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.
Ganache:
- In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate (6 ounces) and butter (2 tablespoons).
- In a small saucepan, over medium-high heat, bring the cream to a boil. While the cream (1/2 cup) is heating, microwave the chocolate and butter for 30 seconds at 100% power. Immediately pour the cream over the chocolate and butter. Whisk until the mixture melts and becomes smooth.
- Pour the ganache over the top of the cake. Allow the ganache to set for about 20 minutes, then cut the cake and serve.
Fans Also Made:
Notes
- Room Temperature: Start with room temperature ingredients. This will ensure everything mixes properly and you will get the maximum volume from the ingredients.
- Over Beating: This may sound strange after you read the recipe and see that the first thing you do is beat the butter for 6 minutes! It’s after the eggs are added that you need to beat just to incorporate. Do NOT over beat your eggs! Add your eggs and mix until the yolk disappears.
- Baking: It’s very easy to over-bake a pound cake. I like to bake it until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out with a few moist crumbs.
- Size: I use a 12-cup Bundt pan for this recipe.
- Cake Release: I use Baker Joy no-stick spray. This cake has always released from the pan perfectly for me with this spray. I spray the pan heavily after I make the batter, just before I pour it into the pan. That way the spray doesn’t have time to slide down the pan.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 689kcal | Carbohydrates: 84g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 148mg | Sodium: 153mg | Potassium: 237mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 57g | Vitamin A: 1052IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 71mg | Iron: 3mg
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I follow the steps to the T! I also added sprinkles on top. So gooood!
Oh yes, sprinkles! That’s a great idea. Thanks, Toni! 🙂