I was recently looking through my collection of Valentine’s Day cakes and I noticed something pretty significant. Nearly all of the cakes and desserts in that category serve enough for a small gathering! That’s great news if you’re throwing a Valentine’s (or Galentine’s) Day party, but not likely what you’d make to celebrate an evening with your significant other. So, I set out on a recipe testing journey in search of the most delicious, perfectly sized chocolate cake recipe for two. And guess what? I found it!
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This chocolate cake recipe is essentially a super scaled down version of my favorite one-bowl chocolate cake recipe, so it’s incredibly easy to throw together. I thought it’d be so cute to make a mini layer cake, so the batter yields enough for three 4-inch cake layers (here are the tiny pans I use!). It will also make one 6-inch layer if you’d rather not build a tiny layer cake.
These mini chocolate cake layers are so moist and decadent with amazing chocolate flavor. The perfect texture comes partly from the oil and buttermilk added, partly from the hot liquid added at the end. That heat helps to bloom the cocoa powder and really incorporate the ingredients before the baking process.
Pro Tip: If you don’t have easy access to buttermilk you can easily make a DIY version by adding 1 Tablespoon of white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or lemon juice into a measuring cup, then topping it with whole milk until it measures 1 Cup. Give the mixture a stir and let it sit for at least 15 minutes, which is how long it takes for the ingredients to chemically react.
I paired this chocolate cake with a halved version of my favorite chocolate buttercream and it’s just everything you could want in a chocolate cake. If you’d rather pair it with a different frosting flavor, here are some I recommend. Just be sure to half the recipe whichever you choose:
- Strawberry Buttercream
- Raspberry Buttercream
- Nutella Buttercream
- Coffee Buttercream
- Funfetti Buttercream
- Vanilla Buttercream
- Cream Cheese Buttercream
- Salted Caramel Buttercream
This small batch chocolate cake recipe also works great as a smash cake and is perfectly sized for any celebration where the guest list is 2-4 people. It could also be just the thing to lift someone else’s spirits or brighten your own day. That makes this cake extremely versatile – there are so many reasons to make it!
Small Batch Chocolate Cake
Equipment
- 3 4-inch cake pans OR
Ingredients
Small Batch Chocolate Cake
- 1/2 Cup (65g) all purpose flour
- 1/2 Cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 Cup (21g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 Cup (60ml) buttermilk, room temperature* DIY recipe in notes
- 1/4 Cup (60ml) hot coffee or hot water
Chocolate Frosting
- 1/2 Cup (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 Cup (180g) powdered sugar
- 1/4 Cup (21g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 Tbsp whole milk, room temperature
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- pinch of salt, or to taste
Instructions
Make the Small Batch Chocolate Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and prepare three 4-inch or one 6-inch cake pan by spraying the sides with cooking spray and fitting the bottom(s) with a wax paper or parchment paper cake circle.
- Place all of the dry ingredients into a medium bowl and whisk them together. Add the egg, vegetable oil, vanilla, and buttermilk and whisk until fully combined. Add the hot coffee (or hot water) in a slow stream and whisk until fully combined and smooth. The batter will be very thin.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan(s). If using 4-inch cake pans, bake for 18-22 minutes. If using a 6-inch cake pan bake for 24-28 minutes. The cake is done when it springs back to the touch and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool completely before assembling and decorating.
Make the Chocolate Frosting
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, whip the butter on medium-high speed until creamy and light in color, 4-5 minutes.
- Scrape down the bowl and paddle, then add the powdered sugar, cocoa powder, milk, salt, and vanilla extract. Cover the mixer with a clean kitchen towel (to prevent ingredients flying out of the bowl), then turn the mixer to low speed and mix until all ingredients start to come together.
- Remove the kitchen towel, scrape down the bowl and paddle, then continue mixing on low speed until uniform and smooth, 2-3 minutes.
Assembly
- Once the chocolate cake is completely cooled, frost and decorate with the chocolate buttercream. To create the mini layer cake pictured, level the cake layers to your desired height. Add a swipe of chocolate buttercream onto a cardboard cake circle and place the first cake layer on top. Fill and stack the cake with chocolate buttercream, then crumb coat the cake with chocolate buttercream. Place the crumb coated cake in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to let the buttercream set firm.
- Use the remaining frosting to create a smooth buttercream finish and pipe a star border on top using Wilton Tip 4B. Decorate with sprinkles (I used Sprinkle Pop's "Hey Sugar" mix).
Notes
- The small batch chocolate cake layer(s) can be made ahead and stored at room temperature, covered tightly in plastic wrap, for up to two days. Alternatively, you can cover with plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to two months before thawing to room temperature.
- The chocolate frosting can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 day. Alternatively, you can store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and rewhip with your stand mixer to bring back to frosting consistency.
I hope you love making this small batch chocolate cake recipe! Let me know who you made it for in the comments below + be sure to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me. I love to see what you create!
This cake and the buttercream frosting were amazing! I didn’t have the correctly sized pans, so I doubled the recipe and made it using a sheet pan lined with parchment (baked at the same temp for about 18 min). Once cooled, I covered the top of the cake with parchment and inverted it onto a cutting board (sticky side down), cut into circles, and frosted each as a 3-layer mini cake. I’m sure it could also be rolled jelly roll style. Regardless, it was so moist and flavorful. Oh, and the scraps after cutting were made into cake pops. This is a winning recipe!
Hi Whitney! Do you know if the sugar can be substituted with monk fruit sweetener and how much?
Hi Joann! I haven’t tried monk fruit sweetener here, so it would be an experiment. If you want to try it, a 1:1 substitution is usually recommended but I would follow the instructions on the bag of your monk fruit sweetener in case yours is more potent. Hope that helps!
I appreciate you answering very much. I think I will experiment and will report back. Thanks again!
Hi Whitney! I’m making a two tier cake, 4 inch abs 6 inch, with this recipe for the top tier. I’m curious if I should triple this recipe for 3 6-inch layers, or use your regular 1 bowl chocolate cake recipe instead. The ingredient ratios are slightly different between the two. What would you recommend? Thanks!
Hi Sam! Use my one-bowl chocolate cake recipe for the three 6-inch layers. It’s the perfect ingredient ratio for that size: https://sugarandsparrow.com/chocolate-cake-recipe/
I made this today! It was delicious. Just the right size for the 3 of us and then some. I watched your video on crumb coating. It was a great tutorial. These are a great size to practice on. Thank you so much.
Yay, Harmonie! I’m so happy you loved this cake!
Love your small batch cakes. I hope you will do a small batch chantilly cake. This one is delicious. I’ve made this. I made many of your recipes and they all turned out wonderful. Also would like to see maybe a Swiss meringue, chocolate buttercream icing. I’ve tried a couple others, but they make a little too much for the small batch cakes. Anyway, I love your cakes. Your instructions are clear and very easy to follow.
So happy you love the small batch cakes, Diane! And thank you for the ideas, I’m hoping to make more small batch recipes soon 🙂
Your small batch recipes are brilliant and just what I need for portion control. I made the chocolate 6 inch cake and noticed it is exactly half of a chocolate cupcake recipe that uses only one egg. The cake was good, but had some issues. It rose in a dome which I don’t mind. But the sides sagged and collapsed and there was a dense line of batter at the bottom. My 6 inch pan has high sides, non-stick, and a bit darker than ideal.
Too much liquid – should I use half of the egg?
Too hot of oven – should I reduce to 325 degrees?
Better cake pans?
Maybe I sprayed the sides with Pam so the batter couldn’t “climb” the sides?
Problem with leavening?
Thank you so much for your help. You are the cake guru!
Looks amazing and smells delicious. Can’t wait for it to cool down
I made this in a 6 inch round pan and it was perfection!
Hi Whitney.
Love your work! What are your thoughts on using 2 5 inch pans as far as timing and will the recipe as written be enough? Thanks…
I also have this question, however – I would assume this recipe would suit 2 5 in pans if it can fill 3 4 in and 2 6 in
Hi! This recipe should work as-is in two 5-inch pans. I’d check the cakes for doneness around 20 minutes. Enjoy!
Thankyou for the recipe. It turned out great, but i received feedback from my family that it could have been softer. I followed the instructions to the core and frosted with chocolate ganache. where could i have gone wrong?
I loved your pumpkin spice cake recipe Whitney! My family was so impressed. I was curious the reason why this recipe is okay with just all purpose flour vs cake flour. Just curious and trying to learn more about baking!
Hi Holly! For chocolate cakes I never use cake flour because the cocoa in the recipe makes the crumb extra fine already and the addition of cake flour would make the cake flimsy. Instead, all purpose flour helps bind the ingredients together much better and still gives the cake a soft crumb. Hope that helps!
Hi!
I would love to make this cake for my son’s first birthday, however I only have one 4 inch cake tin.
Am I able to let the mixture sit and bake each layer one by one or can I pour the whole lot in and cut each layer?
Thank you!
Hi Jaimie! Yes, you can let the batter sit out while you bake one layer at a time. I haven’t tried baking taller layers and torting them (slicing them into shorter layers) but my assumption is that is should work, but you will probably need to add more bake time depending on how tall your pan is.