Chocolate cake is delicious, but could it be made a little healthier? Fudgy Sourdough Chocolate Cake is made with grains that are fermented overnight, which helps the grain to be more easily digested. It has the same decadent chocolate cake flavor, but with a healthier twist! Sourdough lovers rejoice! Keep reading to learn how to make this sourdough bundt cake recipe!
This is the perfect recipe to use your starter in! But, if you are just here for the bundt cakes and not so much sourdough, my Bourbon Buttermilk Bundt Cake or Old Fashioned Lemon Bundt Cake are very delicious and do not require sourdough starter or fermentation.
If you are brand new to sourdough and need to make a sourdough starter, I have a detailed step-by-step tutorial for how to make a sourdough starter in the body of the post How to Make a Loaf of Sourdough.
Ingredients for fudgy sourdough chocolate cake
- all-purpose flour
- butter
- sourdough starter - discard or active starter
- water
- eggs
- sugar
- salt
- instant coffee
- vanilla
- cocoa
- milk
- baking soda
See recipe card for quantities.
how to make fudgy sourdough cake
Follow along with the pictures in these guides, but I would recommend reading through the instructions before starting. It's fairly easy and straightforward, but it is important to do the steps in the correct order.
- The sourdough starter should be fed (active) for this recipe. If it is not, feed your starter and wait until it is bubbly and tall before continuing to step two.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, butter, sourdough starter, and water. Stir well and cover. Let it sit on the counter overnight or for up to 24 hours.
3. In a large bowl, mix together sugar, salt, and instant coffee.
4. Add the eggs, vanilla, cocoa powder, and whole milk. Stir to combine.
5. Pour the sourdough mixture into the bowl with the egg mixture and whisk until smooth. I like to use the batter attachment and my stand mixer. Add the baking soda and stir well.
6. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare your desired pan. I recommend mixing the flour 1:1 with cocoa powder to make it a little darker. Make sure not to over fill your cake pans or they will overflow during baking!
7. Bake the fudgy chocolate sourdough cakes as directed below. Resist the urge to open the oven door before the timer goes off! The bundt cake is done when it pulls away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
8. Dust with powdered sugar for serving or frost with chocolate buttercream or ganache.
baking times for different cake pans
- Two 9” cake pans: Bake 30-35 minutes: really really grease and flour your pan well, same with the bundt pan! This is a delicate and airy cake batter. Once the cake is baked, set it in the pan on a cooling rack for ten minutes. Invert onto the cooling rack and let it release naturally without shaking the pan. This may take a few minutes.
- 12-cup Bundt pan: Bake 1 hour, then open the door and toothpick test. Follow step one for removing the sourdough chocolate bundt cake from the pan. If you do not have a large 12 cup bundt pan, use a smaller bundt pan but remove 1-2 cups of batter and bake it separately to prevent the cake from spilling over the top of the pan.
- 9X13 baking dish: Bake 35-40 minutes. I strongly recommend using a baking dish or sheet pan! No need for inverting the cake, which is so much easier and saves time. The pieces of cake will be a little taller and more generous servings.
- 11X15 sheet pan: Bake 20-25 minutes. This is a great method for baking for a crowd! It’s quick and easy and everyone will get a nice sized slice of sourdough chocolate cake.
Hint: Resist the urge to open the oven door before the timer goes off! Opening the door before the center has had a chance to cook through will result in a sourdough cake that has ‘fallen’ in the middle.
Variations for sourdough chocolate cake
This fudgy sourdough chocolate cake recipe is decadent and delicious on it's own, but here are a few ways it can be customized for an even more delicious dessert!
- toffee - add a cup of toffee bits to the batter before baking
- pecans - for a nuttier cake, add 1 ½ cups of crushed pecans to the batter before baking
- marshmallow cream - think Little Debbie's chocolate cupcake with marshmallow filling. You will need a container of marshmallow cream and apply it like frosting!
As an amazon associate, this post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. See my full disclosure here.
how to store a sourdough bundt cake
Sourdough chocolate cake can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container, like a cake carrier, for up to three days at peak freshness. It can still be enjoyed for up to a week, but it will begin to get extra moist and be less fresh.
This chocolate cake can be made ahead of time and frozen. To freeze the cake, bake it according to the instructions and let it cool fully. If it is a bundt cake, remove it from the bundt pan. If it is a cake in a baking pan, leave it in the pan. Do not add powdered sugar or icing. Wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and tin foil. Store it in the freezer for up to three months.
If you make this recipe, please leave a comment below! This provides helpful feedback to both me and other readers. For more delicious recipes from scratch and homesteading tips, follow me on instagram @NinnescahHomestead
Sourdough Chocolate Cake
Equipment
- 12 cup bundt pan or see substitutions
- Mixing bowl
- spatula
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup butter melted
- ½ cup sourdoughs starter active
- 1 cup water
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon instant coffee
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ¾ cup cocoa powder
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
Instructions
Day 1: The night before
- In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, butter, sourdough starter, and water. Stir well and cover. Let it sit on the counter overnight or for up to 24 hours.
Day 2: Baking day!
- In a large bowl, mix together sugar, salt, and instant coffee.
- Add the eggs, vanilla, cocoa powder, and whole milk. Stir to combine.
- Pour the sourdough mixture into the bowl with the egg mixture and whisk until smooth. I like to use the batter attachment and my stand mixer.
- Add the baking soda and stir well.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare your desired pan: either two 9” cake pans or a 9X13 baking dish, bundt pan or a sheet pan. Grease the edges with butter and dust with flour. I recommend mixing the flour 1:1 with cocoa powder to make it a little darker. Make sure not to over fill your cake pans or they will overflow during baking! I found this out the hard way when I used 8” pans the other day and had to deep clean my oven.
- Bake the fudgy chocolate sourdough cakes as directed below. Resist the urge to open the oven door before the timer goes off! Opening the door before the center has had a chance to cook through will result in a cake that has ‘fallen’ in the middle. Once the timer goes off, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake to test for doneness. I toothpick that comes out clean is done, if there is visible batter add 3-5 minutes to the cook time and test again.
- Let cool for 10 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar.
Notes
how to store a sourdough cake
Sourdough chocolate cake can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container, like a cake carrier, for up to three days at peak freshness. It can still be enjoyed for up to a week, but it will begin to get extra moist and be less fresh. This chocolate cake can be made ahead of time and frozen. To freeze the cake, bake it according to the instructions and let it cool fully. If it is a bundt cake, remove it from the bundt pan. If it is a cake in a baking pan, leave it in the pan. Do not add powdered sugar or icing. Wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and tin foil. Store it in the freezer for up to three months.Variations for sourdough chocolate cake
This recipe is decadent and delicious on it's own, but here are a few ways it can be customized for an even more delicious dessert!-
- toffee - add a cup of toffee bits to the batter before baking
-
- pecans - for a nuttier cake, add 1 ½ cups of crushed pecans to the batter before baking
-
- marshmallow cream - think Little Debbie's chocolate cupcake with marshmallow filling. You will need a container of marshmallow cream and apply it like frosting!
baking times for different cake pans
- Two 9” cake pans: 30-35 minutes: really really grease and flour your pan well, same with the bundt pan! This is a delicate and airy cake batter. Once the cake is baked, set it in the pan on a cooling rack for ten minutes. Invert onto the cooling rack and let it release naturally without shaking the pan. This may take a few minutes.
- 12-cup Bundt pan: 1 hour, then open the door and toothpick test. Follow step one for removing the cake from the pan. If you do not have a large 12 cup bundt pan, use a smaller bundt pan but remove 1-2 cups of batter and bake it separately to prevent the cake from spilling over the top of the pan.
- 9X13 baking dish: Bake 35-40 minutes. I strongly recommend using a baking dish or sheet pan! No need for inverting the cake, which is so much easier and saves time. The pieces of cake will be a little taller and more generous servings.
- 11X15 sheet pan: Bake 20-25 minutes. This is a great method for baking for a crowd! It’s quick and easy and everyone will get a nice sized slice of cake.
Seanna Borrows
Love this recipe! And your images are beautiful! This one’s a keeper!
Meg
Thank you, Seanna! I wish you lived closer so we could have a piece together.
Kristen Jordan
Made this cake, turned out beautifully! However it was quite “sour” tasting. Is the sourdough supposed to be strong tasting?
Meg
Yep, it definitely tastes like a sourdough recipe! Mine doesn't have much of a tanginess, it's fairly subtle. You could always try a shorter fermentation time to help minimize the sourdough flavor. I have found if I use active starter and let it ferment for 12 hours, the flavor is mild.