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Love a light, moist, super-chocolatey cake? You’ll love my Easy Devil’s Food Cake Recipe! Originally my late Mom’s recipe, I’ve been making it since I first started baking as a kid.
I’ve got so many memories of this lovely vintage cake recipe. From my own birthday parties as a child to the cupcakes I served at my son’s 18th birthday party, it’s been part of our family forever. Whether you want to make a traditional layer cake or scrumptious cupcakes, this Easy Devils Food Cake recipe is practically foolproof.
Top Quality Ingredients Make The Best Easy Devils Food Cake
The key to my recipe is good quality ingredients at room temperature. Be sure to use fresh butter, eggs and milk (free range, pastured or organic if possible) and let them sit out of the fridge for at least a half an hour before you start. Choose a high quality cocoa powder (preferably organic and definitely not drinking chocolate).
Baking soda gives my Easy Devils Food Cake it’s distinctive light texture. Be sure not to leave out the salt – it really does make the flavours of the cake pop.
Makes 1 two layer cake or 24 cupcakes
My Easy Devils Food Cake recipe is really versatile. You can make a two layer cake by using two 7 to 8 inch cake tins, or you can make cupcakes using two 12 cup muffin tins.
Only want a small cake? Make the two layers, but freeze one once they have cooled (before frosting).
The layers will take about 20 to 25 minutes to cook and the cupcakes will take about 12 to 15 minutes.
Lots of Frosting Options For Easy Devils Food Cake
This cake lends itself to just about any frosting – chocolate, vanilla, orange or even peanut butter. Recently I tried a salted caramel icing and a coconut icing from Sugar and Crumbs which were absolutely delicious. Just be sure the cakes or cupcakes are absolutely cool before you start to frost them.
My Easy Devils Food Cake is definitely one of my most-requested cake. Whatever the occasion, if it’s chocolatey deliciousness you are looking for, this is the recipe for you.
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Fan ovens 325°F or 160°C.
Grease two 8 or 9 inch round cake tins. Line the bottom of the pans with greaseproof paper. Or grease or line two 12 hole muffin pans.
Using an electric mixer cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Beat in the vanilla.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt together.
Add the sifted flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt to the batter alternately with the milk, using two additions of dry ingredients and two of milk.
Beat for about thirty seconds.
Divide the mixture between the cake tins or muffin cups and bake for 20 – 25 minutes for cakes or 12 to 15 minutes for cupcakes or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cakes comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and cool in the pans for 5 to 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
This looks and sounds like a great recipe April. I have made plain old chocolate cakes before but not a Devils Food Cake. Anxious to try your fabulous recipe! ❤️❤️❤️~Cydnee
Thank you, David! I’ve never made the recipe in the crockpot – wow! Sorry you got called into work, but pleased it worked in the crockpot. So pleased you enjoyed my Devil’s Food Cake – it’s one of my favourite chocolate cake recipes. 🙂
Before I make this, I’m trying to find the recipe for this amazing looking vanilla buttercream frosting/icing. It’s the perfect combination I’m looking for! However, I must be blind because I cannot find a link to the vanilla frosting as shown in this picture. I read through the recipe and notes several times. I also did a search on your site, but for the life of me, I must be an idiot and couldn’t find it. I wanted to make a devils food cake with vanilla buttercream tonight, since I didn’t make one last night. Could you please direct me to the recipe for this beautiful vanilla buttercream frosting?
Hi Dianne,
I’m so sorry, I made an error when I updated this post recently. This is an older post (although a recipe I use all the time, and have done for years), and when I first posted it I was actually testing an icing sugar mixture from a company called Sugar and Crumbs. So the cake in this photograph is actually frosted with a buttercream I made with the Sugar and Crumbs icing sugar mixture.
Thank you for the reminder to post my own buttercream recipe! Until I get round to it though, any vanilla buttercream recipe will work on the cake.
The key to the appearance is to just sort of ‘flick’ the knife as you are icing to give the little peaks. I hope this helps – and when I do post the buttercream recipe I will update this comment with a link. I am on holiday at the moment so it might be a couple of weeks.
I hope this helps for now.
With very best wishes,
April
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Comments & Reviews
Great cake which is a big hit at every birthday party 🙂
I’d love to try it with the peanut-butter frosting
Thank you, Winnie! It really is delicious with Peanut Butter frosting. You can find the recipe here
https://apriljharris.com/2011/03/devilish-peanut-butter-cake/
This looks and sounds like a great recipe April. I have made plain old chocolate cakes before but not a Devils Food Cake. Anxious to try your fabulous recipe! ❤️❤️❤️~Cydnee
I hope you enjoy it, Cydnee! It really is an often requested family favourite 🙂
LOOOOOOOOOOOVVVVVVVVEEEEEEE ITTTTTTTTTT! WILL SHARE PHOTOS SOON I HAD TO USE A CROCKPOT FOR ONE BATCH GOT PAGED IN TO WORK! THANKS FOR SHARING!!!!
Thank you, David! I’ve never made the recipe in the crockpot – wow! Sorry you got called into work, but pleased it worked in the crockpot. So pleased you enjoyed my Devil’s Food Cake – it’s one of my favourite chocolate cake recipes. 🙂
Before I make this, I’m trying to find the recipe for this amazing looking vanilla buttercream frosting/icing. It’s the perfect combination I’m looking for! However, I must be blind because I cannot find a link to the vanilla frosting as shown in this picture. I read through the recipe and notes several times. I also did a search on your site, but for the life of me, I must be an idiot and couldn’t find it. I wanted to make a devils food cake with vanilla buttercream tonight, since I didn’t make one last night. Could you please direct me to the recipe for this beautiful vanilla buttercream frosting?
Hi Dianne,
I’m so sorry, I made an error when I updated this post recently. This is an older post (although a recipe I use all the time, and have done for years), and when I first posted it I was actually testing an icing sugar mixture from a company called Sugar and Crumbs. So the cake in this photograph is actually frosted with a buttercream I made with the Sugar and Crumbs icing sugar mixture.
Thank you for the reminder to post my own buttercream recipe! Until I get round to it though, any vanilla buttercream recipe will work on the cake.
The key to the appearance is to just sort of ‘flick’ the knife as you are icing to give the little peaks. I hope this helps – and when I do post the buttercream recipe I will update this comment with a link. I am on holiday at the moment so it might be a couple of weeks.
I hope this helps for now.
With very best wishes,
April