Hershey’s Chocolate Cake – just like Grandma’s!

This cake. Hershey’s chocolate cake is the most versatile and delicious the easiest perfect one bowl chocolate cake recipe I’ve ever made.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve seen the well-known chocolate cake recipe on the side of the Hershey’s cocoa box and made it countless times. A few years ago, on a whim, I decided to make a gluten-free version of the famous Hershey cake.

WOW. It turned out wonderfully the first time and I’ve made this cake many times since, both using the original recipe and the gluten-free version.

There’s nothing like a lightning-fast homemade cake recipe that turns out perfectly every time.

Hershey’s Perfect Chocolate Cake

The cake is sturdy enough to hold together in layers, form into cupcakes, or slice into a Bundt cake. I made this recipe Cupcakes and topped them with Fresh Strawberry Frosting.

I filled a layered cake with strawberry frosting and a layer of berries and then covered the cake with chocolate frosting.

I made Bundt cakes and just poured the warm frosting over the cake. No matter how I served this cake, it was gone in no time!

Hershey Brownie

Nothing evokes that warm, comforting feeling like the smell of chocolate cake in your home. Put something chocolatey in the oven and watch as all members of your family suddenly flock to the kitchen like moths to a dazzling light.

Do not get me wrong. I love an adventurous dessert (hello flourless hot chocolate cake) and sometimes you need an elegant centerpiece like chocolate lava cake to wow a table.

But at the end of the day, the well-known indulgence of a simple Hershey’s Chocolate Bundt Cake is hard to beat.

The original version of this recipe has sat on the side of Hershey’s unsweetened cocoa box for decades. So you probably grew up eating this cake or something similar.

There’s something fun and a little magical about recreating a familiar childhood dessert! And if you weren’t introduced to this deliciously perfect Hershey cake recipe as a kid, now’s your time.

Is Hershey’s cocoa powder gluten-free?

YES! Baking gluten-free shouldn’t mean missing out on the enjoyment of a classic Hershey’s chocolate cake, which is why I’m sharing this gluten-free version of the famous Hershey’s cake.

For another extra rich and unforgettable gluten free chocolate cake, be sure to try this Gluten Free Chocolate Cake With Salted Caramel Frosting. It’s a little more cumbersome, but the payout is well worth it.

Cake Frosting Recipes

This Hershey’s Perfect One Bowl Chocolate Cake recipe includes instructions for making a creamy chocolate frosting that you pour over the cake once it has cooled. It’s an easy way to create a visually stunning cake without much effort.

Nonetheless, this cake is a great vehicle for all types of icing. Fluffy chocolate buttercream frosting would be a dream on this Hershey’s cake, as would fresh strawberry frosting.

This recipe also makes great cupcakes. Simply fill two cupcake molds evenly with batter and bake the cake a little shorter than with a tin or Gugelhupf.

Hershey’s Chocolate Cake Recipe

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a Bundt cake tin and dust lightly with a few tablespoons of cocoa powder. (Alternatively, grease (2) 9-inch round pans or prepare (24) cupcake liners.)
2. Whisk together the sugar, flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla and beat with a mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes.
3. Slowly pour in the boiling water and keep stirring. The batter should be very thin and watery. Pour into the prepared Bundt cake tin or divide between two round molds or cupcake holders.
4. Bake the Bundt Cake for 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. (2) 9 inch rounds bake in 30-35 minutes and cupcakes bake in 22-24 minutes. Leave to cool completely.

Hershey’s Chocolate Frosting

1. Heat the cream on the stovetop over low heat until steaming, or in a medium glass bowl in the microwave until simmering. (It took about 2 minutes on high heat in the microwave.)
2. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate to the hot cream. Let this sit for a few minutes. Stir or whisk until the chocolate mixture is smooth and glossy.
3. Add the sugar and cocoa powder and whisk or stir until completely smooth. Pour the frosting over the cooled cake. Serve immediately or place the cake in the fridge to chill until the frosting is set.

Make this one bowl cake over and over again and experiment with different toppings.

Hershey’s Perfect One Bowl Chocolate Cake is:

• Rich and chocolaty
• Easy and quick to prepare from scratch
• Versatile
• Easily prepared gluten-free

Check out all gluten free dessert recipes on this website!

Hershey’s Cocoa Recipes

Would you like some more recipes with Hershey cocoa? Try a scoop of homemade chocolate ice cream on top of your cake for a chocolate lover’s dream dessert.

Also, flourless chocolate brownie cookies and this cold chocolate snack cake are must-haves. Grandma’s Old Fashioned Crazy Cake is a recipe my kids have always loved making, as is this striped zebra cake.

It’s hard to go wrong with a Hershey cake recipe. They’re classics for a reason.

{originally posted 4/30/14 – recipe notes and photos updated 5/30/23}