The Most Perfect Moist Chocolate Cake [+Video]

Homemade Chocolate Cake like this is not easy to find. This is the Most Perfect Moist Chocolate Cake recipe, and that’s coming from an obsessed cake tester!

Moist Chocolate Cake Recipe with Chocolate Frosting

You all know how I work. It’s why we have the best Traeger Ribs, Buttermilk Pancakes and Banana Bread recipes among a gazillion others. I get all sucked into finding the best of the best for a specific recipe and I can’t let it go until I’ve achieved it.

And friends, I’ve discovered which chocolate cake is best. If you’re needing chocolate cake for a birthday or a family celebration, you just step right up.  (Who am I kidding, just make it because you are surviving the crazy these days.)

Everyone I know loves a moist chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting, but no one has great luck with a homemade chocolate cake without just using a cake mix. I am crazy giddy to share all of my secrets!

Don’t go crazy, but this is a chocolate cake recipe without butter. That’s for a very specific reason. As much as I thought that butter would be all the difference in flavor, it just wasn’t the truth. The flavor didn’t count enough for how much the cake lacked moisture.

Apparently butter doesn’t make cakes moister, which makes sense. Butter has a high water content that evaporates as steam in the baking process so it can’t keep the moisture like an oil can. If you really want to use butter you can, just use equal amounts or half and half, but all oil did lead to a better chocolate layer cake!

Homemade Chocolate Cake Ingredients

As I already mentioned, the moistness of this homemade chocolate cake is thanks in part to the oil used in the batter. Our other secret? Buttermilk! Yep, this is a buttermilk chocolate cake.

Any time a recipe calls for buttermilk, it makes me think it’s going to be a fancy recipe. But in reality, this chocolate cake from scratch couldn’t be simpler to make.

Here’s what you’ll need to make this moist chocolate cake recipe:

1. All-Purpose Flour: I’ve tested all sorts of flours but had the worst luck in a chocolate cake with cake flour.
2. Unsweetened Natural Cocoa Powder: Do not use dutch-process cocoa powder, but opt for an unsweetened cocoa powder, which will give a better rise. Try Hershey’s or a similar brand just in the grocery store. Not crazy trip to a gourmet store needed.
3. Espresso Powder: Espresso powder is optional, but listen, as one who does not drink coffee for religious reasons I really do believe this makes a difference in the chocolate flavor.
4. Baking Soda & Baking Powder: Yes, use both!!! I’ve tried many baking powd

With a rich, buttery dough that is loaded with irresistible morsels of chocolate, these Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies nail every delicious detail. And, bonus, they stay soft and chewy for days.

Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies

I have made this recipe more times than I can count, over the years. They’re perfect for potlucks and gift-giving. And, I get asked all the time how they are so soft and chewy.

The not-so-secret ingredient is instant pudding mix. It’s that simple. In addition to their incredible chewy texture, these cookies freeze beautifully, making them especially easy to have ready to go when you need them.

And, I happen to know that both the cookies and the dough taste awesome straight out of the freezer. Yes, I did admit that. I often bake about half of the batch and freeze the remaining cookie dough.

When I am ready to use the frozen dough, I set it on the counter for 20-30 minutes to thaw slightly and then scoop out the number of cookies I want to bake.

Read more

Spicy Chocolate Ice Cream is cold, creamy chocolate with a hint of spicy heat from chili and cinnamon. This spicy ice cream warms your mouth even as you are chilled from the ice cream.

Spicy Ice Cream

When some friends requested a chocolate and chili ice cream combination last year, I was excited to finally try a spicy ice cream recipe for myself.

At the very first taste, I was immediately glad that we were planning to share this ice cream with them and I could avoid the temptation of eating the entire batch myself! This spicy chocolate ice cream has received rave reviews from everyone who tastes it.

I’ve made this ice cream over a dozen times now. It is my husband’s favorite ice cream flavor and after I first started making it, it was over a year later before I managed to get a photo of it.

He loves to give it away to friends and it continues to disappear lightning fast every time it is in the house. If you love the chocolate and chili combination as much as Sean does, you’ll want to try adding a bit of chili powder to the batter the next time you’re making a batch of brownies too.

Or if you’re feeling adventurous, try this Flourless “Hot” Chocolate Cake. With a dash of Tabasco sauce, it’s a sweet, cold, creamy, chocolate cake with a hint of unexpected heat as you finish each bite; this dessert is unforgettable.

Spicy

Peppermint Double Chocolate Cookies

Peppermint Double Chocolate Cookies have a rich chocolate taste and are infused with peppermint. They’re dipped in chocolate and sprinkled with crushed candy canes for the perfect holiday cookie!

Double chocolate cookies are my absolute favorite. I love the rich chocolate taste, fudgy texture, and double dose of chocolate. And with a glass of cold milk? Perfection.

My soft-batch double chocolate chip cookies are actually one of the most popular recipes on my blog. So I wanted to make a holiday version in time for Christmas to share on Oh Sweet Basil.

The combination of rich chocolate and cool peppermint flavor is the perfect pairing. Then the candy canes make them so pretty for your Christmas cookie exchange.

Ingredients for Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

For the Double Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

• Flour: just regular all-purpose flour
• Cocoa Powder: dutch processed cocoa is preferred
• Cornstarch: adds a chewiness to the cookies
• Baking Soda: gives the cookies some rise and fluffiness
• Salt: enhances all the flavors
• Unsalted Butter: softened to room temperature
• Brown Sugar: adds sweetness and rich flavor
• Granulated Sugar: adds sweetness
• Egg: gives the cookies structure
• Peppermint Extract: can be reduced for a milder mint flavor
• Vanilla Extract: adds flavors
• Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips: dark chocolate chips could also be used or a mix of the two

For the Chocolate Peppermint Topping

• Semi-Sweet Chocolate: gets melted for the chocolate dip
• Vegetable Oil: helps smooth out the chocolate and gives it a nice shine
• Candy Canes: crushed up for a decorative topping

The measurements for all the ingredients are detailed in the recipe card at the end of the post. You can also print and/or save the recipe there.

How to Make Peppermint Chocolate Cookies

To get started, first we make our cookie dough. We whisk together our dry ingredients (flour, cocoa, corn starch, baking soda and salt), so they’re ready to be added to the batter later.

Then we cream together the butter and sugars in a stand mixer using the paddle attachment (I like to use a combo of brown sugar and white sugar) – and add in the egg, vanilla and peppermint extract. The dry ingredients are then carefully added to the wet ingredients, and finally we add in the chocolate chips.

Then it’s time to chill the dough. Chilling is recommended because the double chocolate cookie dough is thick and sticky. If you don’t chill the dou

Addicting Christmas M&M Pretzel Hugs

Mmmm, salty, crisp mini pretzels topped off with soft and silky chocolates with an M&M on top! These Christmas M&M pretzel hugs are the most addicting Christmas snack!

It’s one of those non-recipes so I know you don’t technically need a recipe card for our Christmas M&M Pretzel Hugs but it might come in handy.

You see, every year our teenager sets out to make little chocolate pretzels and every year I cannot remember what I set the oven to. So, yes, they are easy and take no instruction at all, but then again, if you’re losing your marbles like I am….

The best part about this Christmas Party Snack is that you can use whatever you’d like:

• Regular Kisses
• Hugs
• Candy Cane Kisses 
• Cookies and Creme Kisses

How to Make M&M Pretzel Hugs

1. Line a baking sheet with a silpat or parchment paper in case any chocolate melts through the pretzels. (PS I cannot live without my silpats. I have more than I can count and they are life changing in cookie making especially.)
2. Place pretzels in lines and top each with a Hershey’s Hug. 
3. Heat the oven and place the pan in the oven for a few minutes. 
4. Once the chocolate is shiny but still has a little consistency pull them out and quickly top with an m&m
5. Allow to set up completely before eating. 

How to Store Pretzel Hugs

Store cooled and hard pretzel hug snacks in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Refrigeration can soften the pretzels so it’s not recommended.

Oh Sweet Basil Pro Tip!

Make sure you test the chocolate before you pull them from the oven as sometimes only the tip of the chocolate has melted and the m&m is standing too high. 

Gently press the m&m onto a chocolate with the oven open and if it presses the chocolate down into a soft mound without totally making a puddle you’re ready to go!

To Correct a Problem

If the chocolate is too melted let them stand in a cool place to start to solidify again before pressing in the chocolate. 

Are Pretzels Gluten Free?

Pretzels are not gluten free unless you buy the gluten free pretzels. 

Are Pretzels Dairy Free?

Pretzels are almost always dairy free but it’s best to double check the packaging just in case. 

Are Pretzels Healthy?

Pretzels are a salty-carb. Not really a healthy snack as they are not full of many vitamins and minerals.

That being said, if you’re trying to decide between pretzels or chips, yes, go pretzels. 

Are Hershey Hugs Chocolate?

Hershey’s hugs are made with chocolate and white chocolate so it’s not a pure, good quality chocolate like some others, but it’s still a chocolate candy.