Chocolate Fudge Loaf Cake!
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A thick, fudgey and delicious chocolate fudge loaf cake, topped with luscious chocolate fudge buttercream frosting, and more!
Loaf cakes!
Loaf cakes… loaf cakes… I wish I’d known about your popularity before this past year, otherwise I would have done more recipes sooner. I honestly cannot get my head around how popular my loaf cake recipes have been! So, here is another..
My Terry’s Chocolate Orange Loaf Cake, and my Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cake have been super popular recently – and I love it! Although, I have had request after request for a really lovely, dense, fudgey and amazing chocolate fudge version, so here it is!
Chocolate fudge loaf cake
I couldn’t resist this from the beginning because you all know how much I adore a chocolate fudge cake. My chocolate fudge cake traybake and the cupcake version have always been popular, but nothing is as popular as the layer cake version! They all directly inspire this one, as they are all based around the same recipe!
As you may be aware, a classic and easy chocolate cake is based around five ingredients, usually. Flour, cocoa powder, eggs, butter and sugar – they make a chocolate Victoria sponge style cake, and I use that style of recipe all the time in my various bakes.. but this one is very very different.
This sponge recipe uses ELEVEN ingredients, so quite different. Flour, cocoa powder, butter, eggs and sugar are still all there, but so is instant coffee, water, dark chocolate, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, and buttermilk. This will sound a bit extreme, but trust me – it’s worth it.
Chocolate, butter and coffee
This cake recipe is very easy to make. You need to melt the dark chocolate and butter together until smooth – like you would for the base of a brownie mixture – and dissolve the coffee into the water.
YOU CAN’T TASTE THE COFFEE in the end results.. so PLEASE, trust me here, and use it. The coffee is designed to bring out a rich and delicious chocolate flavour. It’s 100% worth it!!
Dry ingredients
Instead of self raising flour, you use plain flour, baking powder, and bicarbonate – they react with the other ingredients and create the texture you are after! You whisk the dry ingredients together with the sugar into a bowl with just a spatula or something – you really do not need or want to use an electric mixer here.
Eggs and buttermilk
You then whisk the eggs and buttermilk together – buttermilk is there to react with bicarbonate to create a rise in the cake – it’s very different to your regular use of self raising flour!
However, if you don’t want to buy a pot of buttermilk (which is found with the creams in the uk) you can make your own using whole milk (full-fat) and whisking in 1tbsp of lemon juice and leaving it to sit. It will look split almost, but that’s what you want!
Combine and pour
You then combine the three different mixes together, with a whisk – stir as little as possible, pour into the tin and bake! As it’s a loaf cake, it will take a long time to bake – loaf cakes are similar to bundt cakes in that sense.
Tin
I use my favourite 2lb loaf tin as normal, but they can also vary in size (never understood why?!) – so if you think your tin is too full, make a few cupcakes with the spare mix. I usually fill my tin up to about 3/4 full, so by the time it rises, the tin is full!
Frosting
For the frosting, I used the same idea as the best ever frosting ever – evaporated milk being the key ingredient. The only thing is that yes you will have some evaporated milk leftover, but don’t worry, you can freeze it!
Decoration
With loaf cakes I just like to slather the frosting all over the top, or pipe, but it’s up to you – I often use some strawberries and some more chocolate goodies to decorate and it’s done, but that’s up to you – sometimes just chocolates are good! It’s a bit more effort with the ingredients, but otherwise, it’s such an easy cake to bake! I hope you love it!
Chocolate Fudge Loaf Cake!
Ingredients
The Cake
- 175 g dark chocolate
- 175 g unsalted butter
- 2 tsps instant coffee
- 100 ml boiling water
- 135 g plain flour
- 25 g cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 300 g light brown sugar (or caster sugar)
- 3 medium eggs
- 75 ml buttermilk
The Frosting
- 125 g unsalted butter (room temp - not stork/spread)
- 250 g icing sugar
- 25 g cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp vanilla (optional)
- 50-75 ml evaporated milk
Decorations
- Sprinkles
- Chocolates
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat your oven to 180C/160C Fan, and line a 2lb loaf tin!
- In a microwave proof bowl, add the chocolate and butter and heat and mix until melted. I usually do 30 second bursts!
- Add the coffee granules to a mug, and pour over the boiling water and mix until smooth - add the coffee mix into the chocolate/butter and mix until smooth.
- In a separate bowl, add the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and sugar to a large bowl and whisk until distributed.
- In another bowl, mix together the buttermilk and eggs.
- Add the three mixes together - I pour the chocolate/coffee mix and the egg/buttermilk mix into the dry ingredients and fold until smooth. You do not need to use a stand mixer as you may over-mix it.
- Pour the mixture into the lined 2lb loaf tin - bake in the oven for 55-60 minutes, or until baked through!
- Leave to cool fully once baked!
For the Frosting
- Make sure your butter is at room temperature!
- Beat the butter on it's own for a few minutes to soften!
- Add in the icing sugar and cocoa powder 1/2 at a time, and beat until combined.
- Add the vanilla, and then the evaporated milk a little at a time beating fully in-between each go!
Decoration!
- Slather the frosting onto the top of the loaf cake, and then decorate how you want - chocolates and more!
- Sprinkle on your favourite sprinkles and enjoy!
Notes
- This recipe is based on my chocolate fudge cake and chocolate fudge cupcakes with a few changes to suit the loaf cake!
- I used this 2lb loaf tin as always!
- The evaporated milk cannot be switched to condensed milk.
- PLEASE USE THE COFFEE - it just makes it taste more chocolatey, it doesn't taste of coffee.
- You can make your own buttermilk with 75ml full-fat milk, and 1tbsp of lemon juice.
- This cake will last for 3-4 days, at room temp.
ENJOY!
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J x
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Hi Jane, I’m going to try this lovely recipe at the weekend but only have oat milk, coconut milk or lactose free. Would that work for the buttermilk?
I’m afraid I have only made homemade buttermilk using whole milk (which is typically what you should do) – I’ve read that soya milk is the best alternative if using dairy free, but I assume it work the same with the others as long as they are full-fat x
Hi Jane,
I’m so excited to make this cake but I have one question.
How come adding the coffee water mixture to the melted chocolate will not ruin the melted chocolate i.e. why won’t it seize up? Or is it because it’s is being added after the chocolate is melted?
The chocolate is mixed with butter, and the amount of water is quite considerable – you can even make chocolate sauce with just chocolate and water. Water is dangerous for chocolate in small amounts (even one drop of water can ruin chocolate) but like this there are absolutely no issues!
Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. Could it be made in two 1lb tins for those with eating restrictions?
I’m not sure what you mean by eating restrictions? But it can be – does reduce baking time but I am unsure how long. x
HI,
If i have left over mixture and make cupcakes, how long do the cupcakes need to be in the oven? The same amount of time or less?
Thanks 🙂
The cupcakes will take about 20-22 minutes! x
Delicious cake! Day 2 microwaved for 40secs and served with ice cream. Oh yes! Another 5 star recipe.
Hiya, I bake using your recipes every week and they are such a hit! But I can’t seem to get the frosting thick and sturdy, it’s always runny. Any tips? X
It is a softer frosting – but what butter are you using? It needs to be a block butter and no spread of any sort x
hi jayne i have made your choc fudge loaf twice and twice it has sunk in the middle i have followed the recipe as you say to and still sunk a little but tastes amazing any idea why this is happening cooked it for 1 hour 10 min
Did you make any ingredient swaps? Such as dark for milk chocolate etc? And how did you mix it? Jane
What are the measurements of a 2 LB loaf tin? I’m in Australia and recipes usually stipulate the length and width (or diameter) of the tins required
Typically ours do too, just not loaf tins or bundt tins – the one I use is linked on the post, which I believe has the exact measurements on!
Hey Jane! This looks like such a delicious and amazing recipe. Was wondering though, does this taste the same as your chocolate traybake? As fancy making a traybake version as my old 2lb tin is too small and waiting for the one you use to come in the post. Or are they still slightly different? Thanks!
Hey! Yes its the same sponge style, just slightly different measurements is all to fit the tins! xx
Hi Jane,
50 minutes into cooking I notice my mix is leaking out over the tray quite badly. I use the same size tray as you, any ideas? 🙂 Thanks!
Hiya – so as mentioned on the post, 2lb loaf tins can vary in sizing, so it probably just means that even though yours is called it, it wasn’t the same size as mine. Sorry! x
Hi Jane
Mines currently in the over (45 min in) and still quite wobbly so will check in 10-15.
Also, I must have put too much of the mixture in as it’s over spilled 😭 I didn’t see the part where you put in the write up about filling 3/4 way. I’m annoyed with myself as was going to stop then thought…nope, the recipe/method doesn’t state this so pour it all in! 🤦🏽♀️
I hope it still turns out ok 😔
Keep your fingers crossed for me x
Was just about to post that mines been in an hour and still wet inside, and no where near cooked. Not sure what’s gone wrong.
Did yours fix itself?
Yes it did for her! As long as you used the correct ingredients and didn’t over mix, it can just sometimes take longer – cover with foil and continue to bake x
Ok! It came out fine and tastes INCREDIBLE!!!! Thank you 😊
Hello …the recipe looks awesome …want to really try …what is evaporated milk ..I doubt I can get that here …if not what else can I use instead it can I make that at home
Hi – could I swap for GF plain flour?
I haven’t tried it – but I think with some xantham gum to help bind the mixture it should be okay!