A delicious Chocolate Pound Cake with a moist, rich, velvety texture and rich chocolate flavor. A must-make pound cake recipe for the chocolate lover!
This absolutely delicious Chocolate Pound Cake has always been my sister’s signature birthday cake.
As early as I can remember, my Grandmother Verdie would make her amazing Chocolate Pound Cake topped with her fudge icing (as shown) for my sister each year. It seriously was the highlight of my sister’s birthday.
At least for me, it was. And once you try this pound cake, you’ll know why.
Table of Contents
How to Make Chocolate Pound Cake
This pound cake is super simple to make and oh-so worth it too! It’s delicious with or without the fudge icing, but do me a favor and try it with the icing. Oh mercy is it ever a cake to remember!
Ingredients
Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full listing of ingredients, instructions, notes, and estimated nutritional information.
To make this rich, moist chocolate pound cake, you’ll need the following:
- Butter – Make sure the butter is softened to room temperature so that it incorporates well into the cake batter.
- Cream Cheese – I use full-fat cream cheese in this recipe to ensure the cake’s rich, moist, velvety texture. Like the butter, the cream cheese should be softened to room temperature.
- Sugar – I use granulated sugar in this recipe.
- Flour – I use all-purpose flour in this pound cake recipe. You can also use cake flour if your all-purpose flour is of higher protein content. If you don’t have it, here’s how to make your own cake flour.
- Cocoa Powder – unsweetened
- Eggs – The eggs should be at room temperature for better mixing into the cake batter.
- Salt – I use kosher salt.
- Vanilla extract
Step-by-Step Instructions
Start by letting butter, cream cheese, and eggs come to room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 325º F. Prepare your Bundt pan or tube pan with butter and cocoa powder, shaking out the excess, and set aside.
Prep Cake Pan
Use cocoa powder in place of flour to prep cake pans when making a chocolate cake. There won’t be white specks on the final cake when transferred from the cake pan!
Using an electric mixer, cream (mix) together butter, cream cheese, and sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Then add one egg at a time, mixing until just combined after each. Do not overmix.
Add flour and salt and mix at low speed until combined.
Add the cocoa powder and vanilla extract and mix on low speed until well combined. Do not over-mix.
Spread into prepared bundt or tube pan.
Bake until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. This is about 1 1/2 hours. You can follow my tips for how to tell when your cake is done.
Let the cake cool for about 10 minutes in the pan. Then carefully transfer the cake onto a rack to completely cool, about 25 minutes.
After the cake is completely cool, place it on a cake plate. It is delicious as is, but I also love to serve it with Fudge Icing or a simple dusting of powdered sugar.
Serve and enjoy!
Tips for Baking the Best Chocolate Pound Cake
- Use high-quality butter such as Kerrygold, Land O Lakes, or Plugra.
- Use cocoa powder instead of flour to prepare your cake pan for chocolate cake. To prepare the cake pan, coat the pan well with softened butter. I like to use a pastry brush to make sure the pan is well coated with butter. Then sprinkle about two tablespoons of cocoa powder into the pan, making sure that the entire interior of the bundt or tube pan is well coated with the cocoa powder.
- Cream together the butter, cream cheese, and sugar until it is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. This ensures the sugar is well incorporated into the butter and cream cheese. Do not overmix!
- Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes and then turn the cake out onto the wire rack to cool completely.
Storage Tips
To store. Store the cake under a cake dome on the counter for up to 5 days.
To freeze. Cool the cake completely. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and then store in a freezer-safe zip-top bag for up to 3 months. To serve, thaw overnight and then slice and serve.
More Cake Recipes
The Best Chocolate Cake Recipe. Ever
Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe
Frequently Asked Questions
Over-mixing and too much leavening will cause a pound cake to fall. Be sure to follow the recipe instructions and measure your ingredients carefully.
Overmixing the butter and sugar can cause gummy streaks to form in your final baked cake. Make sure the butter and cream cheese are at room temperature and are mixed on low speed with the butter just until light, creamy, and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
So, here’s my Chocolate Pound Cake recipe. I hope it makes it to many of your favorite celebrations.
Chocolate Pound Cake Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (369 g) butter, room temperature
- 1 (8-ounce) package (227 g) cream cheese, room temperature
- 3 cups (594 g) sugar
- 6 large (300 g) eggs, room temperature
- 3 cups (360 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (42 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon (2.8 g) kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon (14 g) vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325º F. Prepare bundt or tube pan with butter and cocoa powder and set aside.
- With a mixer, cream together the softened butter and cream cheese with the sugar until it is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing each until it is just incorporated.
- On slow speed, stir in the flour and salt and then the cocoa powder and vanilla extract. Do not over mix.
- Spread the cake batter into the prepared bundt or tube pan.
- Bake until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean, about 1 1/2 hours, or until the cake reaches 210º F when checked with an internal digital read thermometer.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
@Heather- me too. I love this CAKE!!!!
Am I the only one that just gained 90 pounds by reading this post? 😉 I can’t wait to see the frosting tomorrow!
I hope you don’t mind that I just drooled ALL OVER your blog by looking at this cake. Holy YUM, lady!
This is so beautiful! Yum
Best chocolate pound cake recipe that I have ever tried.
It sounds like you like this pound cake as much as my family does. Thanks, Hannah!
Love this cake!! It looks perfect!
I hear ya… We have the same January/May birthday scenario in our house!
Love this cake!!
Three sticks of butter will soothe anything! Thanks for sharing!
This is from West Australia…what is a Stick of butter?
I have a birthday at the end of June and it’s always winter and no one wants to go out in the cold.
I am looking forward to making this cake. Today I made Vanilla slices for the very first time.
1/2 cup
I’m always on the lookout for a great pound cake recipe! Yay Robyn!
All of my kids have winter-ish birthdays, and I always feel badly. Maybe I need to make them this cake to make up for it!!
Since my birthday is January 21, I completely understand. Every single skating party was cancelled due to snow! I love this cake and will have to try it soon.
That is my Birthday too! 🙂