Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (2024)

A delicious Chocolate Pound Cake with a moist, rich, velvety texture and rich chocolate flavor. A must-make pound cake recipe for the chocolate lover!

Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (1)

This absolutely delicious Chocolate Pound Cake has always been my sister’s signature birthday cake.

As early as I can remember, my Grandmother Verdie would make her amazing Chocolate Pound Cake topped with her fudge icing (as shown) for my sister each year. It seriously was the highlight of my sister’s birthday.

At least for me, it was. And once you try this pound cake, you’ll know why.

Table of Contents

  • How to Make Chocolate Pound Cake
  • Ingredients
  • Step-by-Step Instructions
  • Prep Cake Pan
  • Tips for Baking the Best Chocolate Pound Cake
  • Storage Tips
  • More Cake Recipes
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe

How to Make Chocolate Pound Cake

This pound cake is super simple to make and oh-so worth it too! It’s delicious with or without the fudge icing, but do me a favor and try it with the icing. Oh mercy is it ever a cake to remember!

Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (2)

Ingredients

Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full listing of ingredients, instructions, notes, and estimated nutritional information.

To make this rich, moist chocolate pound cake, you’ll need the following:

  • Butter – Make sure the butter is softened to room temperature so that it incorporates well into the cake batter.
  • Cream Cheese – I use full-fat cream cheese in this recipe to ensure the cake’s rich, moist, velvety texture. Like the butter, the cream cheese should be softened to room temperature.
  • Sugar – I use granulated sugar in this recipe.
  • Flour – I use all-purpose flour in this pound cake recipe. You can also use cake flour if your all-purpose flour is of higher protein content. If you don’t have it, here’s how to make your own cake flour.
  • Cocoa Powder – unsweetened
  • Eggs – The eggs should be at room temperature for better mixing into the cake batter.
  • Salt – I use kosher salt.
  • Vanilla extract

Step-by-Step Instructions

Start by letting butter, cream cheese, and eggs come to room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 325º F. Prepare your Bundt pan or tube pan with butter and cocoa powder, shaking out the excess, and set aside.

Prep Cake Pan

Use cocoa powder in place of flour to prep cake pans when making a chocolate cake. There won’t be white specks on the final cake when transferred from the cake pan!

Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (3)

Using an electric mixer, cream (mix) together butter, cream cheese, and sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes.

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Then add one egg at a time, mixing until just combined after each. Do not overmix.

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Add flour and salt and mix at low speed until combined.

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Add the cocoa powder and vanilla extract and mix on low speed until well combined. Do not over-mix.

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Spread into prepared bundt or tube pan.

Bake until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. This is about 1 1/2 hours. You can follow my tips forhow to tell when your cake is done.

Let the cake cool for about 10 minutes in the pan. Then carefully transfer the cake onto a rack to completely cool, about 25 minutes.

After the cake is completely cool, place it on a cake plate. It is delicious as is, but I also love to serve it with Fudge Icing or a simple dusting of powdered sugar.

Serve and enjoy!

Tips for Baking the Best Chocolate Pound Cake

  • Use high-quality butter such as Kerrygold, Land O Lakes, or Plugra.
  • Use cocoa powder instead of flour to prepare your cake pan for chocolate cake. To prepare the cake pan, coat the pan well with softened butter. I like to use a pastry brush to make sure the pan is well coated with butter. Then sprinkle about two tablespoons of cocoa powder into the pan, making sure that the entire interior of the bundt or tube pan is well coated with the cocoa powder.
  • Cream together the butter, cream cheese, and sugar until it is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. This ensures the sugar is well incorporated into the butter and cream cheese. Do not overmix!
  • Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes and then turn the cake out onto the wire rack to cool completely.

Storage Tips

To store. Store the cake under a cake dome on the counter for up to 5 days.

To freeze. Cool the cake completely. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and then store in a freezer-safe zip-top bag for up to 3 months. To serve, thaw overnight and then slice and serve.

More Cake Recipes

The Best Chocolate Cake Recipe. Ever

Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe

Lemon Pound Cake Recipe

Classic Pound Cake Recipe

The Best White Cake Recipe

Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (8)

Frequently Asked Questions

What causes a pound cake to fall?

Over-mixing and too much leavening will cause a pound cake to fall. Be sure to follow the recipe instructions and measure your ingredients carefully.

What causes the gummy streaks in a pound cake?

Overmixing the butter and sugar can cause gummy streaks to form in your final baked cake. Make sure the butter and cream cheese are at room temperature and are mixed on low speed with the butter just until light, creamy, and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

So, here’s my Chocolate Pound Cake recipe. I hope it makes it to many of your favorite celebrations.

Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (9)

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Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe

Robyn Stone

4.92 from 12 votes

A delicious Chocolate Pound Cake with a moist, rich, velvety texture and rich chocolate flavor. A must-make pound cake recipe for the chocolate lover!

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 24

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups (369 g) butter, room temperature
  • 1 (8-ounce) package (227 g) cream cheese, room temperature
  • 3 cups (594 g) sugar
  • 6 large (300 g) eggs, room temperature
  • 3 cups (360 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup (42 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon (2.8 g) kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon (14 g) vanilla extract

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325º F. Prepare bundt or tube pan with butter and cocoa powder and set aside.

  • With a mixer, cream together the softened butter and cream cheese with the sugar until it is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

    Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (10)

  • Add the eggs one at a time, mixing each until it is just incorporated.

    Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (11)

  • On slow speed, stir in the flour and salt and then the cocoa powder and vanilla extract. Do not over mix.

    Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (12)

  • Spread the cake batter into the prepared bundt or tube pan.

    Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (13)

  • Bake until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean, about 1 1/2 hours, or until the cake reaches 210ºF when checked with an internal digital read thermometer.

    Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe (14)

Notes

To store. Store the cake under a cake dome on the counter for up to 5 days.

To freeze. Cool the cake completely. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and then store in a freezer-safe zip-top bag for up to 3 months. To serve, thaw overnight and then slice and serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 309kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 81mg | Sodium: 234mg | Potassium: 76mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 415IU | Calcium: 24mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Enjoy!
Robyn xo

Categorized as:All Recipes, Birthday Recipes, Cake, Chocolate, Christmas Recipes, Cooking, Dessert Recipes, Father’s Day Recipes, Food Gift Recipes, Game Day Recipes, Halloween Recipes, Holiday and Occasion Recipes, Make-ahead Recipes, Mother’s Day Recipes, Recipes, Shower Recipes, Southern Favorites, Valentine’s Day Recipes

Welcome to Add A Pinch

About Robyn

Robyn Stone is a cookbook author, wife, mom, and passionate home cook. Her tested and trusted recipes give readers the confidence to cook recipes the whole family will love. Robyn has been featured on Food Network, People, Southern Living, and more.

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FAQs

Why is pound cake different from regular cake? ›

The differences include: Ingredients: Pound cake has more fat than regular cake, and has four ingredients: butter, eggs, flour, and sugar. Regular cake has the same four ingredients plus more ingredients. Regular cake also has baking powder, baking soda, and buttermilk or milk.

What makes a pound cake turn out dry? ›

If it's dry, the cake may have been over-baked. Pound cake can also be too dry if you added too much flour (or not enough butter or sugar).

Why a cold oven is the secret to a better pound cake? ›

Starting your pound cake in a cold oven also impacts the texture of the cake. A longer bake time and lower temperature allows the leavening more time to work before the cake sets, resulting in a taller, fluffier cake.

What causes a pound cake to be gummy? ›

Those gluey pound cake streaks happen when your over-cream the butter and sugar. The cake rises in the oven and then it quickly collapses a bit while cooling which causes those gummy streaks. To prevent this, use a low speed with creaming and do so just until combined and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

Which is better for pound cake cake flour or all purpose flour? ›

Cake Flour: Cake flour is lighter than all-purpose flour and produces the best pound cake in my opinion. Since it's so light, the attention remains on the butter. All-purpose flour is simply too heavy for this pound cake recipe; the cake will be heavy as a brick. If needed, use this homemade cake flour substitute.

Is bundt cake same as pound cake? ›

What Is The Difference Between A Bundt Cake And A Pound Cake? The differences between a Bundt cake and a pound cake are the amount of each ingredient and the shape of each cake. Pound cake is named for the traditional amount of each ingredient.

Is it better to bake pound cake at 325 or 350? ›

A steady 325-350 degrees is ideal when it comes to baking pound cake. Position the pan in the middle of the oven, and rotate it once, halfway through the baking time, as it bakes to account for any hot spots.

Should you sift flour for a pound cake? ›

Sifting aerates the flour, which allows it to more easily and evenly combine with butter, oil, eggs and liquid ingredients. But if your recipe doesn't call for sifting (and it is from a reliable source) chances are, it was developed and tested without sifting, and worked well.

Can I use both butter and oil in cake? ›

Oh yes, you sure can. This recipe has a combination of butter and oil to give off that nice buttery taste while keeping it soft and moist at the same time. Cake using pure butter tends to be more dense and dry compared to adding oil into the batter.

Can you open the oven while baking pound cake? ›

Even the slightest things, like opening the oven for too long while it's baking can cause your pound cake to turn out not as great as it could be. Avoid these mistakes to ensure you make the perfect pound cake recipe every time.

Why does my pound cake fall when I take it out of the oven? ›

Too much air and your cake will collapse because it simply can't hold onto all that air. Overbeating can add too much additional air and/or large air bubbles which the cake can't support, causing it to collapse in the oven.

How do you add moisture to a pound cake after baking? ›

Simple Syrup: Brush the cake with a simple syrup made from equal parts water and sugar. This can add moisture and sweetness to the cake. You can infuse the syrup with flavors like citrus zest or vanilla for an extra touch.

How do you know if cake batter is overmixed? ›

An overmixed egg foam will look dull or broken, like cottage cheese. With the addition of flour, an undermixed batter will have uneven streaks or visible pockets of flour. When properly combined, the batter will be satiny, a little glossy, and able to make luscious peaks or ribbons.

What is the best pan for pound cake? ›

Bundt pans are a baking essential. Their unique construction allows an even browning on denser cakes, like pound cake, with the well-defined curves that are the hallmark of the form. Bundts now come in the shape of rosettes, castles, and even pine forests.

Why does the top of my pound cake crack? ›

First, why the crack occurs: Since quick breads and pound cake batters tend to be thick and dense, the exterior bakes first. But as the center of the cake continues to bake, releasing moisture, it rises, pushing through the top crust, and creating a crack.

How do pound cakes differ from other cakes? ›

Pound cakes are shortened cakes that contain no chemical leavening agents. Pound cakes rely on air and steam for leavening. You must thoroughly cream the fat and sugar when making pound cake.

How do pound cakes differ from other shortened cakes? ›

Shortened cakes are lighter, airier, and less compact than pound cakes, but they're more dense than foam cakes like angel food, and they still have a very rich flavor.

Why does pound cake crust separated from cake? ›

Overbeating the eggs may cause the batter to overflow the sides of the pan during baking or create a fragile crust that crumbles and separates from the cake as it cools.

What is the difference between a pound cake and a butter cake? ›

Butter cakes (also referred to as creamed cakes) have a lighter texture and greater volume than pound cakes. Pound cakes (named because they originally contained one pound each of butter, sugar, eggs and flour) tend to be denser.

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