The BEST Yellow Cake & Chocolate Buttercream Frosting – a classic combination! Super easy to make – start with a box of cake mix and add pudding mix, sour cream, oil, eggs, and milk. Frost the cake with an easy chocolate buttercream made with chocolate chips, butter, powdered sugar, and heavy cream. The cake is super moist and the frosting is to-die-for! Perfect for any occasion!
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Pin This RecipeEasy Homemake Cake and Frosting
I don’t think there is a more classic combination than yellow cake and chocolate frosting. It is perfection. I made this cake over the holiday weekend, and it was so good that I had to share it with you. It is THE BEST! The cake is super moist and the chocolate buttercream frosting is to-die-for delicious! This cake is perfect for birthday parties, anniversaries, cookouts, Tuesday. You know, anytime you need something sweet.
How to Make Yellow Cake and Chocolate Frosting
This cake is super easy to make. Start with a box of yellow cake mix. Add pudding mix, sour cream, oil, eggs, milk, and vanilla. Pour the batter into the cake pan of your choice and bake. I baked the cake in two 8-inch cake pans. Each cake layer is thick enough to split into two layers to make a four-layer cake if you wish.
While the cake is baking, whip up the chocolate buttercream frosting. Melt some chocolate chips and let them cool. Add butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and heavy cream. Mix it all together and refrigerate until ready to frost the cake.
Tips for Making Homemade Cake and Frosting
This cake was delicious! I’m not really a sweets person, and I could not stop eating this cake. It was so light and moist. And the frosting – it is the BEST. I could just eat it with a spoon! Seriously! YUM! This truly is The BEST Yellow Cake & Chocolate Buttercream Frosting!
I love how easy and simple this dessert is to make. Here are a couple of tips for making sure your cake turns out perfectly.
- Don’t use low-fat or fat-free ingredients.
- Do not make the pudding. Just use the dry pudding mix in the cake batter.
- You can make the cake in any pan you prefer. Use the box baking times as a guideline.
- You can make the cake in advance and freeze it unfrosted until ready to serve.
- The buttercream frosting can be made in advance and refrigerated before frosting the cake. The frosting will keep 2 or 3 days in the refrigerator.
- Store the cake in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.
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The BEST Yellow Cake & Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients:
- 1 boz yellow cake mix
- 1 (3.9-oz) package Jello instant vanilla pudding mix
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 4 eggs
- ½ cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla
BEST Chocolate Buttercream
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 (12-oz) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled
- 5 cups powdered sugar, may need a little more
- ½ cup heavy cream or whole milk
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease and flour cake pans.
- In a very large bowl, mix together all cake ingredients. The batter will be thick. Pour batter into cake pan of choice.
- For cooking time, use the cooking times on the back of the cake mix box as a guide. Do the toothpick check after the suggested cooking time; if it’s not done check on it every 5 mins after that.
- Cool and frost with buttercream (recipe below).
BEST Chocolate Buttercream
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter until smooth and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes.
- With mixer on low speed, add melted chocolate, powdered sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla; mix until light and fluffy.
- If necessary, gradually add more powdered sugar or heavy cream to reach desired consistency.
Steph
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A 9/13 or an 8 inch??? Isn’t that a lot of batter for an 8 inch pan
No. It fits in two 8-inch round cake pans.
Hi!
I’m making this cake right now- just want to double-check: you do not have to grease the pans?
Thank you in advance for a prompt response,
Diane
Yes you do need to grease and flour the pans
Will a 3.4 oz pudding work for the cake or is a 3.9 oz required
I’m sure 3.4 would work fine. Just make sure it is instant pudding.
Hello,
I’m about to make cake for my husbands birthday, but I want to double check is it really 1 cup oil?? Seems like a lot
Thank you
Hope to have yr respond as soon as you can
Patricia
The ingredients listed are correct.
Have made this cake 2 years in a row for my husband’s birthday, absolutely the best doctored up yellow cake mix recipe !
Absolutely delicious and the frosting tastes like something from a diner on the Hallmark channel… you know when the cake is under a clear dome and you think to yourself, I wish real diner’s made cakes like that! *I used 4 1/4 cups of powdered sugar, used unsalted butter, and added a quarter teaspoon of salt. Definitely a keeper.
SO glad you enjoyed it, Lacey! AND I’m watching a Hallmark movie right now!
I don’t have pudding mix… any subs?
A really great yellow cake is so moist and favorable. I made it many times and all have enjoyed it thanks so much.
You’re definitely right Stephanie , this was the best yellow cake ! Made it for my husband’s 62 birthday and everyone raved ! Thank you for this recipe, so easy & delicious
YAY!!! SO glad you enjoyed it! Happy Birthday to your husband!
OMG!!! So good! I had to bake this cake even though it is hellishly HOT right now in Texas.
Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Claudine in Fort Worth, TX
Enjoy!