Here are two options for simple-as-can-be chocolate cakes using only pantry staples. The first is made all in one bowl but needs eggs and the extra step of melting butter. The second one doesn't even need eggs, and uses only oil, which means it'll work if you have a vegan friend over. Both are mixed with just a whisk so no electric mixer is required. I prefer the first one, but they're both tasty and worth having in your arsenal.
One-Bowl Chocolate Cake
Adapted from Sinfully Easy Delicious Desserts (2012) by Alice Medrich
Using a combination of butter and oil gives you a moister, softer cake. For a more buttery cake, omit the oil and use 8 tablespoons (1 stick) of butter. To make chocolate cake squares, grease and flour a 9-inch square baking pan and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. You can also make chocolate cupcakes in a standard muffin tin, baking for 18 to 20 minutes.
Dry ingredients
125 grams (1 cup) unbleached all-purpose flour
35 grams (⅓ cup plus 2 tablespoons) unsweetened natural cocoa, such as Hershey's
200 grams (1 cup) granulated sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon (rounded) salt
Wet ingredients
85 grams (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted (see note)
27 grams (2 tablespoons) neutral-flavored oil, such as vegetable, canola, or sunflower (see note)
2 large eggs
118 grams (½ cup) hot water or, for added flavor, coffee
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
confectioners' sugar, for serving, optional
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the sides of an 8-by-2-inch round cake pan (see the headnote for other options) and line the bottom with a parchment round. Alternatively, grease and flour the whole pan.
2. In a large bowl, thoroughly whisk together all of the dry ingredients. Add the butter, oil, and eggs and whisk gently until all of the dry ingredients are moistened. The mixture will be exceedingly thick, with a lot of it probably stuck inside the tines of your whisk. At this point, you're supposed to "whisk vigorously for 30 to 40 strokes," which I found very difficult; do the best you can. Gently whisk in the hot water or coffee and vanilla, using the hot liquid to help dislodge the thick batter from the whisk, just until the batter is blended and smooth.
3. Pour and scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 35 to 40 minutes. The cake will be domed in the center, but will flatten out as it cools. Cool in the pan for about 5 minutes before turning out onto a rack to cool completely. (If you used a parchment round, turn the cake out upside down onto one cooling rack, peel off the parchment, then invert it right side up onto another cooling rack.) If you want, dust the cake with confectioners' sugar or frost it before serving. In keeping with the theme of simplicity, it would also be good served with hand-whipped Mocha Whipped Cream (recipe below).
For a gluten-free cake:
Substitute 125 grams gluten-free flour blend for the all-purpose flour. In step 2, whisk in ¼ teaspoon xanthan gum along with the other dry ingredients. Whisk more vigorously when mixing in the hot liquid to help activate the xanthan gum.
Amazon Chocolate Cake
Adapted From Café Beaujolais (1984) by Margaret Fox via Food52 and the New York Times
I have no idea what makes this "Amazon" cake. It isn't super chocolatey, but you can pump up the chocolate flavor by using cold coffee instead of water and/or adding a little more cocoa if you like.
Dry ingredients
185 grams (1½ cups) all-purpose flour (ideally a high-protein flour such as King Arthur)
200 grams (1 cup) sugar
30 grams (⅓ cup) unsweetened cocoa (see note)
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon sea salt
Wet ingredients
236 grams (1 cup) cold water or, for extra flavor, coffee (see note)
66 grams (5 tablespoons) neutral-tasting oil, such as sunflower, canola, or vegetable
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon cider or white vinegar
confectioners' sugar, for serving, optional
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the sides of a 9-by-2-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with a parchment round. Alternatively, grease and flour the whole pan.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. Dump the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and whisk everything together until smooth and completely lump-free.
3. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until the top springs back when pressed gently and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 25 to 30 minutes. Cool in the pan for about 5 minutes before turning out onto a rack to cool completely. (If you used a parchment round, turn the cake out upside down onto one cooling rack, peel off the parchment, then invert it right side up onto another cooling rack.) If you want, dust the cake with confectioners' sugar or frost it before serving. In keeping with the theme of simplicity, it would also be good served with hand-whipped Mocha Whipped Cream (recipe below).
Mocha Whipped Cream
Adapted from Sinfully Easy Delicious Desserts (2012) by Alice Medrich via The Splendid Table
1 tablespoon (5 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
4 teaspoons (17 grams) sugar
1½ teaspoons (3 grams) espresso powder
1 cup (232 grams) heavy cream
In a large bowl, whisk to combine the cocoa powder, sugar, and espresso powder with a tablespoon or two of the cream to form a thick paste; make sure you work all the lumps out of the cocoa powder. Whisk in the rest of the cream until the mixture is uniform. For the thickest texture and richest flavor, refrigerate for an hour or overnight before whipping. When you're ready to serve the cake, whip the cream to soft peaks in the large bowl using a balloon whisk and your forearm muscles.
Variations
For Cocoa Whipped Cream, omit the espresso powder. For Coffee Whipped Cream, omit the cocoa powder and use 2 teaspoons (4 grams) espresso powder, and there's no need to make the paste before whipping everything together.
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