One-Bowl Chocolate Cake Pantry Mix

Introduction

Some cake recipes are worth keeping simply because you know you can throw them together without much thought, and this is one of those recipes.

For Episode 5 of Sunday’s Bake, I’m making a really simple one-bowl chocolate cake. There are no complicated steps and no need to cream butter and sugar first. Once the pantry mix is prepared, you simply add the milk, melted butter, eggs and vanilla, then beat everything together in the one bowl.

I like to double this recipe but if you use it just as it is it will make a lovely small cake.

That’s also what makes this recipe such a good one to turn into a homemade pantry mix. The flour, brown sugar, cocoa and baking powder can all be measured and stored together ahead of time. Then, when you feel like making a cake, most of the measuring has already been done.

I finished mine with a simple chocolate cream cheese buttercream, but the cake itself is just as useful to have up your sleeve. You can make it as written for a smaller everyday cake or double the recipe when you need something a little bigger.

Watch the Video

This One-Bowl Chocolate Cake is Episode 5 of my Sunday’s Bake series, where I’m sharing simple homemade baking recipes to make and enjoy at home.

In this week’s video, I make the chocolate cake from start to finish, adding all of the ingredients straight into one bowl before beating everything together and baking. I also finish the cooled cake with a simple chocolate cream cheese buttercream.

The original recipe is already such an easy throw-together cake, but while putting this post together I realized the dry ingredients also make a really handy make-ahead pantry mix. I’ve included those instructions below so you can either make the cake straight away as I do in the video or prepare the dry ingredients ahead of time to keep in your pantry for another day.

Watch Sunday’s Bake – Episode 5 here: (uploading Sunday 27th september)

How to Make the One-Bowl Chocolate Cake Pantry Mix

This is a particularly easy pantry mix because there isn’t much preparation involved. You’re simply measuring the four dry ingredients ahead of time so they’re ready to tip straight into your mixing bowl when you want to make the cake.

Ingredients for the Pantry Mix

• 1 cup plain flour
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 2 tsp baking powder

Method

Write on the Label

One-Bowl Chocolate Cake

ADD:

• ½ cup milk
• 75g butter, melted
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Bake: 180°C for approximately 45 minutes

How to Store Your Chocolate Cake Pantry Mix

Store the prepared cake mix in a well-sealed airtight container in a cool, dry pantry.

Because all four ingredients are dry pantry staples, this is an easy mix to prepare ahead. For the best quality, I would aim to use it within 6–12 months, while also checking the best-before dates of the individual ingredients you’ve used.

Moisture is the main thing you want to keep away from homemade baking mixes, particularly once baking powder has been mixed through. Make sure your container is completely dry before filling it and seal it well after preparing the mix.

How to Make the One-Bowl Chocolate Cake

Once you’ve got your pantry mix prepared, this cake really does live up to its one-bowl name.

You Will Need

• 1 prepared One-Bowl Chocolate Cake Pantry Mix
• ½ cup milk
• 75g butter, melted
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat your oven to 180°C and grease and line your cake tin.

Empty the prepared Chocolate Cake Pantry Mix into a large mixing bowl.

Add the milk, melted butter, eggs and vanilla.

Using an electric mixer, beat everything together for a round two minutes until the ingredients are well combined and you have a smooth cake batter. There’s no need to cream anything separately or use multiple bowls.

Pour the batter into your prepared cake tin and smooth the top.

Bake at 180°C for approximately 30-35 minutes, or until the cake is cooked through and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Allow the cake to cool before removing it from the tin and adding the icing.

If you’d like a larger cake, simply double the entire recipe and use an appropriately sized tin. The baking time may need to be adjusted depending on the size and depth of your cake.

Chocolate Cream Cheese Buttercream

For the cake I made in the video, I finished it with a simple chocolate cream cheese buttercream.

I used roughly equal quantities of softened butter and cream cheese — around 4–5 Tbsp of each — and whipped them together first until light and smooth.

I then added a little vanilla, followed by icing sugar and cocoa powder until I had the sweetness, chocolate flavour and consistency I wanted.

Because this is the sort of icing I tend to make by feel rather than measuring everything precisely, you can easily adjust the icing sugar and cocoa to suit your cake. Add enough icing sugar to create a soft, spreadable buttercream and cocoa to taste.

Make sure the cake has completely cooled before spreading the icing over the top.

Stacey’s Kitchen Tips

• Mix the dry ingredients well. You want the baking powder and cocoa evenly distributed throughout your pantry mix.
• Label the wet ingredients on the container. This makes your homemade cake mix just as convenient to grab as a packet mix.
• Check the cake before removing it from the oven. Ovens and cake tins vary, so use the 30-35 minute baking time as a guide and check the centre with a skewer.
• Cool before icing. The chocolate cream cheese buttercream will soften or melt if the cake is still warm.

Variations & Substitutions

• Larger cake: Double all of the ingredients and use a larger cake tin. Adjust the baking time as necessary.
• Plain chocolate icing: If you don’t want to make the cream cheese buttercream, use your favourite chocolate buttercream instead.
• Simple finish: Skip the icing altogether and dust the cooled cake with icing sugar.
• Vanilla buttercream: Leave the cocoa out of the icing for a simple vanilla cream cheese buttercream.
• Chocolate chips: Stir some chocolate chips through the batter before baking if you want an even more chocolatey cake.

Storage, Freezer & Make-Ahead Notes

Pantry Mix: Keep the prepared dry cake mix in an airtight container in a cool, dry pantry. For the best quality, aim to use it within 6–12 months and take the original best-before dates of your ingredients into account.

Finished Cake: Once the chocolate cream cheese buttercream has been added, I would keep the cake covered in the fridge because the icing contains cream cheese. Bring individual pieces back towards room temperature before serving if you prefer a softer cake and icing.

Freezing: The un-iced chocolate cake can be frozen once completely cool. Wrap it well or place individual pieces into an airtight freezer-safe container. Thaw before icing and serving.

Make Ahead: The dry mix can be prepared well ahead of time, or the cake itself can be baked a day before you need it. If you’re making the chocolate cream cheese buttercream ahead, keep it refrigerated and allow it to soften slightly before spreading over the cake.

More from Sunday’s Bake

As this is Episode 5, I’d include links here to Episodes 1–4 once you’ve got their exact titles/links on the website:

• Episode 1 – Two Easy No-Bake Slices | NEW – The Sunday Bake Series
• Episode 2 – Loads of Biscuits from One Simple Dough | Easy Pantry Baking
• Episode 3 – Soft & Fluffy Spiced Chocolate Chip Buns
• Episode 4 – One Basic Slice Recipe, So Many Fruit Flavours

Other Recipes You May Like

You might also enjoy:

• No-Bake Apricot Slice Pantry Mix
• Cranberry & White Chocolate No-Bake Slice
• No-Bake Chocolate Fudge Slice
• Chocolate Chip Cookies – Pantry Dry Mix

Final Thoughts

This is exactly the sort of recipe I wanted Sunday’s Bake to include — simple baking that doesn’t require lots of fuss or complicated techniques.

Turning the dry ingredients into a pantry mix makes an already easy cake even more convenient. When you want to bake it, there’s no measuring flour, sugar, cocoa or baking powder. Tip your mix into a bowl, add four ingredients, beat it together and into the oven it goes.

And while the chocolate cream cheese buttercream makes it feel a little more special, underneath it is still a straightforward everyday chocolate cake that you can make again and again.

Stacey