This sourdough chocolate cake recipe is rich, delicious, healthier, and a more nutritious take on your classic dessert. Start the night before to ferment the grains, develop the flavors, and make the cake easier to digest.
I’m a big fan of all things cake. Sourdough pumpkin coffee cake, sourdough lemon cake, gingerbread cake with einkorn flour, sourdough carrot cake and this sourdough chocolate cake recipe are some of our favorites to make for a special occasion (or any day of the week really). This chocolate sourdough cake is light, fluffy, and boasts my favorite sourdough tang, it has an amazing depth of flavor. Layers of tender chocolate cake smothered with chocolate buttercream frosting is just what dreams are made of if you ask me!
Plus, if you choose to long ferment this recipe, you can enjoy a slice of the best chocolate cake knowing that it is easier to digest and better for you, while also being extremely delicious. It’s a win-win!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Chocolate flavor – Chocolate lovers rejoice! This chocolatey, fluffy, layer cake with chocolate frosting will have your family asking you to make this recipe over and over again.
Healthier cake – Start this recipe the night before (or even up to 24 hours before) to allow it to ferment. Starting the night before removes a few steps the next day, making it easier to whip together, and making it easier to digest than traditional cake.
Special occasions – This rich chocolate cake is the perfect cake for a birthday, holiday, or even just a weekend.
Ingredients
Coconut oil: You could also substitute with another oil like avocado. I would avoid using vegetable oil as it is inflammatory and highly processed.
Sourdough starter – Discard sourdough starter or active sourdough starter will work.
Sugar – You can opt to use Sucanat or rapadura for a healthier option than sugar.
Vanilla extract: Homemade vanilla extract is so easy to make and adds an elevated flavor to baked goods. Learn how to make homemade vanilla extract in this post.
Salted butter: If you only have unsalted butter available, you may want to add a dash of salt to the frosting to bring out all the flavors.
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
How to Make Sourdough Chocolate Cake
Step 1: In a bowl, mix together flour, coconut oil, sourdough starter, and water. Cover and allow to sit overnight or up to 24 hours (optional).
Step 2: In a large mixing bowl, mix together granulated sugar, salt, and finely ground coffee.
Step 3: To the dry ingredients, add eggs, vanilla, cocoa powder, and whole milk.
Step 4: Next, add the sourdough mixture into the rest of the ingredients. Whisk to incorporate until smooth.
Lastly, add baking soda and incorporate well.
Step 5: Preheat the oven to 350º F. Prepare two, 9-inch cake pans with butter.
Divide cake batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans.
Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Remove from the oven. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes, then remove from the pan, place on a cooling rack, and let the cake cool completely before frosting.
Step 6: In a stand mixer bowl with whisk attachment (or a large bowl with a hand mixer), add the softened butter.
Beat the butter on high speed for a few minutes until it becomes light and fluffy.
Step 7: Turn the mixer down to low speed and slowly add in the cocoa powder and powdered sugar until it is incorporated.
Step 8: Add vanilla and 3 tablespoons of cream.
Once the ingredients are incorporated well, turn the speed back up to medium and whip until light and fluffy. Add remaining cream if the frosting seems too stiff.
Step 9: Frost cake.
Tips
- Ferment this recipe overnight to increase the nutritional value of the grains and make them more digestible. If you are in a pinch for time, skip the fermentation and use sourdough discard to easily turn it into a sourdough discard chocolate cake.
- You can use active sourdough starter or sourdough discard. It is a great way to use all that extra sourdough starter you may have on hand. Learn how to create your own sourdough starter here.
- Add finely ground coffee to give this a deeper and richer chocolate flavor. Coffee and chocolate go together perfectly in baked goods
Recipe FAQs
Not only does it add a slight tangy flavor to the cake, but it also helps break down the gluten in the cake. This helps it be more tender rather than tough and chewy. If you ferment the grains with the starter it helps break down the phytic acid which makes the nutrients in the grains more absorbable.
It is sourdough starter that has not been fed in over 12 hours. When you feed a sourdough starter it gets nice and active, plus it should double in size.
Once the yeasts in the starter have fed off the new flour and water, the bubbles release, and it will then come back down (the process takes about 12 hours). This is then considered unfed sourdough stater. Normally, you toss half of the starter (or use it in a discard recipe). What you get rid of would be considered unfed sourdough discard.
This depends on the recipe. Some recipes like sourdough bread can be more challenging, while others like this sourdough cake recipe are much easier.
I love this type of recipe because you mix a portion of it the night before and then finish the recipe the next day. It does take some planning ahead (although you could just whip it up and forgo the fermentation), but it is worth it.
Frosted cakes (with dairy) should be stored with a cake cover in the refrigerator up to 5 days. You don’t want to keep it in an airtight container as the cake can absorb the frosting.
Frosted cakes without dairy can be kept at room temperature covered.
Freeze unfrosted leftover cake in an airtight container with a piece of parchment paper between layers to prevent sticking for up to 6 months. Allow to thaw at room temperature for 6-12 hours before frosting and serving.
Freeze frosted cakes in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Be aware that frosted cakes may not looks as pretty after they come out of the freezer.
More Dessert Recipes from the Farmhouse
- Pumpkin Ice Cream
- Easy Sourdough Discard Blondies
- Sourdough Strawberry Cream Cheese Cobbler
- Einkorn Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Sourdough Thumbprint Cookies With Discard
If you try this recipe and love it, I would love it if you could come back and give it 5 stars! Tag me on Instagram @farmhouseonboone.
Sourdough Chocolate Cake
Equipment
- 2 9 Inch Cake Pans
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1/2 cup sourdough starter, discard or active starter
- 1 cup water
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon finely ground coffee, optional
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 3/4 cup cocoa
- 1 cups whole milk
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup salted butter, softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 3-4 tablespoons heavy cream
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix together flour, coconut oil, sourdough starter, and water. Cover and allow to sit overnight or up to 24 hours. (Optional)
- In a large bowl, mix together sugar, salt, and finely ground coffee (optional).
- To the dry ingredients, add eggs, vanilla, cocoa powder, and whole milk.
- Next, add the sourdough mixture into the rest of the ingredients. Whisk to incorporate until smooth.
- Lastly, add baking soda and incorporate well.
- Preheat the oven to 350º F.
- Prepare two, 9-inch cake pans with butter.
- Divide cake batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and allow to cool completely before frosting.
Create the frosting:
- In a stand mixer bowl with whisk attatchment (or a large bowl with a hand mixer), add the softened butter.
- Beat the butter on high speed for a few minutes until it becomes light and fluffy.
- Turn the mixer down to low speed and slowly add in the cocoa powder and powder sugar until it is incorporated.
- Add vanilla and 3 tablespoons of cream.
- Once the ingredients are incorporated well, turn the spead back up to medium and whip until light and fluffy. Add remaining cream if the frosting seems too stiff.
- Frost cake.
Notes
- Ferment this recipe overnight to increase the nutritional value of the grains and make them more digestible. If you are in a pinch for time, skip the fermentation and use sourdough discard.
- You could also substitute with another oil like avocado. I would avoid using vegetable oil as it is inflammatory and highly processed.
- You can use active sourdough starter or sourdough discard. It is a great way to use all that extra sourdough starter you may have on hand. Learn how to create your own sourdough starter here.
- You can opt to use Sucanat or rapadura for a healthier option than sugar.
- Add finely ground coffee to give this a deeper and richer chocolate flavor. Coffee and chocolate go together perfectly in baked goods.
- Homemade vanilla extract is so easy to make and adds an elevated flavor to baked goods. Learn how to make homemade vanilla extract in this post.
- If you only have unsalted butter available, you may want to add a dash of salt to the frosting to bring out all the flavors.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I’ve made this cake twice now, and it comes out absolutely delicious! However, like a few other reviewers have mentioned, I do get small clumps of dough throughout the finished cake. The first time, I thought they were clumps of coconut oil, but after making it a second time with olive oil, I realized it’s actually the sourdough starter. I think next time I’ll let my starter come to room temperature before mixing to see if that helps it incorporate more smoothly.
I also have a propane oven, and this cake takes over 45 minutes to bake for me. I’ve found that opening the oven too early can cause the center to cave in, so just beware!
Otherwise, this cake is absolutely delicious and one I’ll continue making! I do use a separate frosting recipe, but the cake itself is amazing.
That first step is so important, to really get that starter thoroughly whisked in and then making sure it is completely incorporated into the mix. So glad you are enjoy the cake!
This was one of the best chocolate cakes I’ve ever had, but I have a remark: When I did the sourdough mixture, it turned into a consistency kind of like dough and as a result made these lumps in the cake when it was baked. Is this supposed to happen or did I do something wrong?
When you mix the flour, oil, starter, and liquid to sit overnight, the mixture can easily dry out into a tight, dough-like ball if your starter is thick or your flour is highly absorbent. In the morning, this stiff dough cannot easily integrate with the liquid cake batter, creating unblended pockets that bake into floury lumps. How to Prevent Lumps Next Time….Blend liquids first: When prepping the overnight mixture, whisk the sourdough starter completely into the liquids before stirring in the flour to ensure even hydration. Loosen the morning sponge: If the overnight mixture looks like a stiff dough in the morning, stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons of liquid (water or milk) to turn it into a wet paste before adding the rest of the ingredients. Add in small dollops: Introduce the overnight sourdough mixture into the final cake batter a small spoonful at a time, whisking thoroughly after each addition to break down any chunks.
This is the richest and best cake I’ve ever made! I made a half recipe for my sons birthday last month, and I realized that I hadn’t had cake in years. Thank you!
I’m a chocolate fan and loved this recipe- my whole family ate it up! It’s getting saved for Birthdays/parties etc! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Lisa I was wondering how to convert this to a fresh milled flour recipe. I am making it for my daughter’s birthday and really don’t want to mess it up, as I’ll be feeding many people lol. Would I need to change anything. I’m still diving into fresh milled, everything is a learning curve. Thank you
For my recipes, it is 140 grams of fresh milled flour per cup of ap flour listed. For desserts and pastries it is good to use a soft white wheat finely milled on the pastry setting if you have it on your machine. Otherwise just mill it as fie as you can.
We have made this several times but this time, there was coconut oil balls after it baked. What could be the reason for that and how do we avoid that in the future?
coconut oil melts very easily so I dont see how it could stand to the heat in the oven…If you believe that is what it was just make sure all your ingredients are room temp before mixing and or replace the coconut oil with avocado oil.
Can this be stored at room temperature or does it need to be refrigerated? WE LOVE THIS RECIPE! My daughter is making it for her friend today!
*Frosted cakes (with dairy) should be stored with a cake cover in the refrigerator up to 5 days. You don’t want to keep it in an airtight container as the cake can absorb the frosting.
Have you ever tried using this recipe with refined sugar ( maple syrup, coconut sugar)? What would be those measurements?
Yes, you can do the same measurements!
Delicious cake! Have made it many times for friends and family and it’s always a hit! I do struggle to get the starter to incorporate fully. I’ve hand mixed it and used my kitchen aid…it’s either clumpy or settles to the bottom of the mixing bowl and is gooey. Any suggestions?
You can try thinning it out first by mixing it with your other liquid ingredients before adding it to the dry ingredients.