Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix

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Jump to Recipe   Pin RecipeHomemade Chocolate Cake Mix ~ an easy, from-scratch pantry staple to whip up light, moist chocolate cake or cupcakes in a matter of minutes! | FiveHeartHome.com via @fivehearthome

Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix is an easy, from-scratch pantry staple to whip up light, moist chocolate cake or cupcakes in a matter of minutes!

 

If you're a fan of chocolate decadence, you'll also enjoy Warm Chocolate Cobbler, Homemade Chocolate Syrup, Chocolate Bread Pudding, or Triple Chocolate Fudge Cookies!

Well, birthday season at our house is officially coming to a close. With all five of our birthdays falling within a span of ten weeks, this is the time of year that I find myself wrapping gifts and hanging balloons and baking a cake (or pie, in my hubby's case) every couple of weeks.

And while I love celebrating the birthdays in our family each year, I have to admit that I get a little worn out doing alllll of them in such close succession. So when birthday #4 out of 5 rolled around a couple weeks ago and I found myself needing to bake a batch of cupcakes before bed, I was relieved to discover that I had a bag of Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix waiting in the pantry!

I'm not ashamed to admit that I grew up on cakes made from store-bought cake mix, and they were some of the first things I learned how to bake on my own. The ease! The speed! The convenience!

But then when I had kids and started paying more attention to the ingredients I was feeding my family, I reluctantly traded in my beloved cake mixes and start baking from scratch.

Reasons to Make Homemade Cake Mix

Even though it's a little more work and takes a little more time, I discovered that I love baking homemade treats that don't end up with the weird chemically aftertaste that can come from store-bought baking mixes. But to make from-scratch baking as easy as possible, I've been stocking my pantry with homemade mixes for the last several years, from Homemade Cornbread Mix to Homemade Waffle Mix to Homemade Pancake Mix and more.

This Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix is simply my newest addition to the arsenal!

  • It's quick to assemble.
  • I can control the ingredients. For example, I can bake a cake using wholesome whole wheat pastry flour instead of all-purpose white flour if I so fancy.
  • When I'm ready to whip up a homemade cake, I can do so in a flash!

How to Make Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix

Since chocolate tends to an oft-requested cake around here, that's the first flavor I decided to concoct. So for this Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix, I took inspiration from my favorite chocolate cake recipe (thank you, Hershey's). And it was SO EASY!

  • Measure out and whisk together the dry ingredients.
  • Transfer the mixture to a gallon-sized plastic bag.
  • Write up directions for adding the wet ingredients and baking. (Or print my handy-dandy, ready-made directions by scrolling just below the recipe!)
  • Repeat a couple more times for additional cake mixes.
  • And finally, store your from-scratch bags of cake mix in the pantry for future last-minute baking emergencies!

    • The BEST Chocolate Cake

    This Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix produces a light, airy, delectable chocolate cake (or cupcakes, as seen in this post). In fact, I recently used this cake mix to bake a cake for my daughter's birthday. My husband raved about how that Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix cake was so much better than the fancy bakery chocolate cake that he'd bought for my birthday a few weeks prior. The proof is in the pudding -- er, cake mix -- folks!

    But to me, an equally impressive aspect of this recipe is its convenience. When I stumble into the pantry after putting the kids to bed because I need to bake a cake for the next day (which letsbehonest is the last thing I feel like doing at the end of a long day), I inwardly do a little cartwheel when I spy a homemade cake mix waiting for me on the shelf.

    It's amazing how much time and energy are shaved off the cake baking process simply by not having to measure out dry ingredients! And y'all know I'm all for shortcuts while still being able to maintain "unprocessed ingredients status."

    Options for Baking

    This Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix can be made in the following variations:

    So the next time you need to bake a chocolate cake, save time by using a cake mix...a Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix, that is! It's oven-ready in a flash with no icky ingredients, and the resulting cake tastes amazing. You'll only wish you'd thought to do it sooner. 😉

    Helpful Tips, Tricks, & Equipment

    • Pouring boiling water into cake batter seems weird, I know. And the resulting batter is alarmingly thin. But this trick produces a light, moist, tender crumb, so don't be afraid to give it a go!
    • I always use fresh baking powder and baking soda when I assemble homemade baking mixes, which ensures that they will keep fresh in the pantry longer. Because, you know, it's important that your baked goods actually rise when baked. 😉
    • Along those same lines, I like to mix up three Homemade Chocolate Cake Mixes at a time. But I do so with the intent to use them up within six months or so. And I'm sure to write the date on the bags so I remember how old they are!
    • I prefer whisking the dry ingredients together in a bowl, transferring the resulting mix to a baggie, and then repeating the steps in the same bowl for each additional cake mix I wish to assemble.
    • Finally, I frosted the cupcakes in these photos using Chocolate Buttercream Frosting and my favorite disposable plastic baggie trick.

    More Made-from-Scratch Kitchen Staples

    Homemade Cake Mix Recipe

    Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix

    Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix is an easy, from-scratch pantry staple for whipping up light, moist chocolate cake or cupcakes in a matter of minutes! By Samantha Skaggs Course: DessertCuisine: American Prep Time: 5 minutes Approximate Batter Making/Baking Time: 40 minutes Total Time: 45 minutes Servings: 24 servings Calories: 156kcal Print Pin Rate

    Ingredients

    TO ASSEMBLE A CAKE MIX:

    • 2 cups sugar
    • 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
    • ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
    • 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
    • 1 teaspoon salt

    TO MAKE A CAKE:

    • 2 eggs, at room temperature
    • 1 cup milk, at room temperature
    • ½ cup light vegetable oil, such as sunflower or safflower
    • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
    • 1 cup boiling water

    Instructions

    TO MAKE CAKE MIX:

    • In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until very well combined. Transfer to a gallon-sized plastic baggie. (Repeat for as many cake mixes as you wish to assemble.)

    TO USE CAKE MIX:

    • Adjust oven rack to the center position and preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a (9- by 13-inch) rectangular baking pan, OR two (9-inch) round baking pans, OR line 24 muffins cups with paper baking liners.
    • Pour the Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix into a large bowl. Blend in the eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla using an electric mixer. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed. Gradually stir in the boiling water (¼ cup at a time) until the batter is well-combined (it will be thin and runny).
    • Pour the batter into the prepared pans, dividing evenly. Bake until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, using these times as a guideline: one (9- by 13-inch) rectangular baking pan = 35 to 40 minutes; two (9-inch) round baking pans = 30 to 35 minutes; 24 cupcakes = 20 to 22 minutes.
    • Cool cake(s) in pans for 10 minutes (only 5 minutes for cupcakes) before turning out onto a wire rack. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

    Equipment Needed

    Video

    Notes

    • I prefer whisking the dry ingredients together in a bowl, transferring the resulting mix to a baggie, and then repeating the steps in the same bowl for each additional cake mix I wish to assemble.
    • I like to mix up three Homemade Chocolate Cake Mixes at a time with the intent to use them up within six months. Just be sure to write the date on the bags so you remember how old they are.
    • Always use fresh baking powder and baking soda when assembling homemade baking mixes to ensure that they will keep fresh in the pantry longer.
    • After you pour the boiling water into the batter, it will seem unusually thin. But don't be alarmed! This method produces a light, moist, and tender cake.
    • Nutrition values below are calculated for one serving of chocolate cake (not just one serving of cake mix), when made as directed using all ingredients.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 156kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 176mg | Potassium: 94mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 36IU | Calcium: 29mg | Iron: 1mg Made this recipe? I'd love to see on IG!Mention @FiveHeartHome or tag #FiveHeartHome!

    Post originally published on November 9, 2017, and updated on October 14, 2019.

    Printable Labels of Cake Mix Directions

    CLICK HERE TO PRINT DIRECTIONS TO STICK ON
    YOUR HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE CAKE MIX BAGGIES!

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