One Bowl Devil Cake

Sometimes the simplest approach makes the best chocolate cake. Everything gets mixed in a single bowl: dry ingredients sifted in, shortening and half the buttermilk beaten in for two minutes, then the rest of the buttermilk and melted chocolate beaten in for two more. That’s it. No creaming, no folding, no fuss.

Using real melted unsweetened chocolate instead of cocoa powder gives this cake a deeper, more complex chocolate flavor with a fudgy richness that cocoa alone can’t match. The buttermilk reacts with the baking soda to create a tender, velvety crumb with that signature reddish-brown color that makes devil’s food cake different from regular chocolate cake.

Cream of tartar is the quiet workhorse here. It stabilizes the rise and helps the cake set with a fine, even crumb rather than a coarse, holey one.

Kitchen Tips

• Sift the dry ingredients together, don’t just whisk. Cake flour clumps easily and unsifted lumps will show up in the finished cake
• Beat the full 2 minutes at each stage. This isn’t optional. The beating develops the structure and incorporates air that keeps the cake light
• Let the melted chocolate cool slightly before adding. Hot chocolate can partially cook the eggs and create lumps
• Cool the cake completely in the pan before frosting. This is a moist cake and it tears easily when warm

Variations

• Frost with a classic chocolate buttercream or a tangy cream cheese frosting
• Add a teaspoon of instant espresso to the batter to intensify the chocolate flavor
• Bake in two 9-inch round pans (reduce baking time to 25-30 minutes) for a layer cake