Hershey's Chocolate Cake

This Hershey’s Chocolate Cake is rich, moist, and deeply chocolatey with a tender crumb and glossy chocolate frosting. A classic, no-fail layer cake for birthdays and celebrations.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword Hershey's Chocolate Cake, Triple Layer Chocolate Cake

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 30

Total Time 40

Servings

Calories 712kcal

Author Kathleen

Ingredients

Cake:

2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cups cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1 cup boiling water

Frosting:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 1/3 cups cocoa powder
6 cups powdered sugar sifted
2/3 cup whole milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

Make the Cake:

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC). Line the bottom of 3 8-inch, high-sided, round cake pans with parchment paper and spray well with nonstick cooking spray.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together sugar (2 cups), flour (1 3/4 cups), cocoa (3/4 cups), baking powder (1 1/2 teaspoons), baking soda (1 1/2 teaspoons), and salt (1 teaspoon).
Add eggs (2), milk (1 cup), oil (1/2 cup), and vanilla (2 teaspoons), and using a hand-held electric mixer, beat on medium speed, for about 2 minutes.
Add espresso powder (1 teaspoon) to boiling water (1 cup) and stir to dissolve.
Add boiling water to the cake batter and stir until well combined. Batter will be thin-this is how it's supposed to look!
Pour batter evenly into prepared baking pans. Bake in preheated oven 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. Cool in pans set on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove cakes from pans and cool completely on wire racks.

Make the Frosting:

In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt butter (1 cup) completely. Stir in cocoa (1 1/3 cups).
Add powdered sugar (6 cups) and milk (2/3 cup), alternately, using an electric hand-held mixer and beating until smooth and a spreadable consistency is reached. Stir in vanilla (2 teaspoons). If needed, add a little extra milk.

Notes

Use parchment + spray, never just flouring. This cake is for celebrations — parchment guarantees perfect release.
Use 8-inch pans with high sides. The batter rises a lot and can overflow in shallow pans.
Don’t skip the espresso powder. It deepens the chocolate without leaving a coffee taste.
Cool fully before frosting. Warm cake melts frosting instantly.
Sift your powdered sugar. Makes your frosting ultra-smooth and airy.
A crumb coat helps. Spread a thin layer of frosting all over the cake, chill 15 minutes, then frost the final layer for beautiful sides.

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