Raspberry Mojito Cupcakes

I have been searching for a great chocolate cake recipe for years. I have found it. My search has ended. I now have THE recipe. If you have ever seen the movie Matilda you will surely remember the scene where the boy is forced to eat the most delicious looking chocolate cake ever. I feel just like that boy when I eat this cake. It is my Matilda chocolate cake for sure.

This cake is moist and has the perfect crumb. I cannot imagine making a chocolate cake using any other recipe. It is so easy to make and puts doctored cake mix recipes to shame. I’m eating a piece of the cake as I’m writing this, drooling all over my keyboard. It is insanely delicious. A decades search was worth the wait. Every…decadent…bite. Who wants cake?

When I was traveling in the United States about two months ago, I got to eat lots of American food classics. Due to the fact most of the trip was done with a rented car, we got into quite a few remote diners all around Oregon and Washington, and diner dining was definitely one of the most enjoyable parts of the trip. We certainly loved the experience itself (in Israel we have nothing similar to these road diners) and devoted ourselves entirely to it.

In one of the diners we stopped at, we pondered a bit about the desserts. Our waitress so enthusiastically recommended their chocolate cake that we simply could not refuse. A huge slice of amazing American chocolate cake was coming our way! That chocolate cake was soft, damp, dark and absolutely amazing. Layered with rich chocolate buttercream, it was simply excellent.

When we left, it was clear to me that I had to try to make a similar chocolate cake when we get back home. This American chocolate cake is made of two layers of soft chocolate cake filled with luscious chocolate cream. I decided to make the cake with dark chocolate ganache cream instead of chocolate buttercream in order to make the frosting a little less “heavy”. Chocolate lovers – this cake is dedicated to you.

WHAT IS BUTTERMILK? IS THERE A SUBSTITUTE FOR BUTTERMILK?
Buttermilk is necessary for this recipe. It has to do with the way it interacts with other ingredients. Buttermilk is the liquid leftover after churning butter. Check out my more in depth post about how to make buttermilk substitute.

CAN I MAKE THIS A DAIRY FREE CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPE?
Yes! Add 2 tablespoons of white vinegar to almond or soy milk. Let stand 5 minutes and use in place of the buttermilk. For the frosting, use a dairy free frosting option.

The best chocolate cake recipe. Ever? There are plenty of claims for the best chocolate cake recipe. I get that. But with one bite of this decadent, moist chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, every single person around the table commented that this was the best chocolate cake they’d ever tasted.

So as for my house, this chocolate cake recipe now holds that honor.

As the compliments continued, I didn’t begin to tell them how easy it was to make.

In all honesty, it is probably one of the easiest cakes I’ve made in a long time, really, but I just smiled and thanked them.

As we continued on gobbling up the cake, drinking our coffee or iced cold milk, the compliments just kept coming.

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon espresso powder
• 1 cup milk buttermilk, almond, or coconut milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable canola oil, or melted coconut oil
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water
• Chocolate Buttercream Frosting Recipe

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350º F. Prepare two 9-inch cake pans by spraying with baking spray or buttering and lightly flouring.
2. For the chocolate cake:
3. Add flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt and espresso powder to a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk through to combine or, using your paddle attachment, stir through flour mixture until combined well.
4. Add milk, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla to flour mixture and mix together on medium speed until well combined. Reduce speed and carefully add boiling water to the cake batter until well combined.
5. Distribute cake batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center of the chocolate cake comes out clean.
6. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes, remove from the pan and cool completely.
7. Frost cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting.

Notes

• The cake batter will be very thin after adding the boiling water. This is correct and results in the most delicious and moist chocolate cake I've ever tasted! xo
• Freezer Friendly
• Let the baked cake layers cool completely. Wrap them well with plastic wrap and then with foil. Put each layer into a freezer bag and freeze up to 2 months. To serve, thaw in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, the layers are ready to fill and frost.