It's my birthday today and I made myself a chocolate cake…a cake I call the best chocolate cake ever.
After having a facebook conversation, we all agreed it's not sad at all when you make your own birthday cake. It started after my husband told how sad it was when I told him my plan. I didn't think it was at all…I get what I want! Don't you agree?
What makes this cake so amazing and the best ever? I really think it's the coffee and the buttermilk. Coffee in chocolate cakes just brings the chocolate flavor to a new level and it doesn't taste like coffee AT ALL. The buttermilk lends to the moistness of this cake. The frosting is the perfect ending to this cake. It's fluffy and tastes amazing. Remember though because there's cream cheese and milk in the frosting, the frosting and the cake (after it's frosted) has to be refrigerated.
I have posted this chocolate cake recipe before…it was the first ever post on The Little Kitchen. If you go looking at that post, please don't make fun of those pictures! I already know how bad they are!
In that post, I talked about a whipped frosting (made with pudding) that I would share and I realized I never did so when I told myself I'm baking my own birthday cake…I thought I would share that recipe along with some of my tips for baking cakes.
I learned this from my Wilton cake decorating instructor. I cut out pieces of wax paper that measure the same size as the bottom of the cake pans. Using a silicon brush, I spread Wilton Cake Release on the sides and inside bottom of the pan. Place the wax paper inside the pan and you have a non-stick surface. This cake batter is very wet and if you don't do this, you're likely to have the cake stick on the inside of your pan.
Once the cakes are done, allow them to cool inside the pan on a cooling rack for 10-15 minutes before flipping them onto the cooling rack. Once you remove them from the pan, be sure to peel off the wax paper and allow the cakes to cool completely before adding the frosting.
I usually don't have buttermilk on hand but I always have buttermilk powder in my fridge. The brand I use, it's 4 Tbsp of buttermilk powder to 1 cup of water. A tip to keep the oil from sticking too much in your measuring cup, I measure the water first then add the oil.
I actually measure all of my wet ingredients first and have them set aside before I start sifting the flour.
I always sift the flour and cocoa powder. Something else I usually do when I make this cake is measure enough out for several more cakes…in separate bowls and then place my newly made “cake mix” into plastic zippered bags with labels for what it is and date it. Homemade cake mix makes it way convenient later for making cupcakes or a tasty cake in the future…all you have to do is add the wet ingredients and bake!
Doesn't that cake look super moist?
I love this frosting. First mix the instant vanilla pudding mix with milk. In a separate bowl, whip the cream cheese and then add the cool whip and mix thoroughly. Then add the pudding and mix thoroughly.
Torting (cutting the cake length-wise to create multiple layers) this cake is necessary so you get more frosting per square inch of cake. 🙂 I usually use a cake leveler but I haven't been able to find it since we have our office torn upside down during a remodel. Using a knife and just being very careful, slice the cake lengthwise to create two layers. When I finished, I had a four layer cake.
Here are some frosting shots…it looks like buttercream, doesn't it? Nothing like it…it's very fluffy and creamy. Don't get me wrong, I love buttercream but I love a good whipped frosting too.
Almost there.
Nice, huh?
Almost done…
This is seriously the best chocolate cake ever. My co-worker calls me a cake snob…I'm sorry I guess I am.
I have some other news to share too. I got a new job! This is really bittersweet for me. I really love some of my co-workers, I'm going to miss them. I have worked for this company for almost 8 years and it feels like a family. But I have this awesome opportunity in this new company, I'll have a lot of flexibility and will get to learn a whole lot. I love learning new things and I'm really excited about the work. I'm really excited that I'm going to get to travel a little bit too…I just can't wait to start next month! But today, I'm sharing this cake with my co-workers whom I'm going to miss.
Recipe
The Best Chocolate Cake Ever with Pudding Frosting
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup baking cocoa
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup black strong coffee, 1 Tbsp coffee with 8 oz boiling water
- 1 cup buttermilk OR combine 1 Tbsp vinegar with 1 cup milk OR 1 cup equivalent of buttermilk powder & water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Pudding Frosting
- 1 cup milk
- 1 3.4 ounce box instant vanilla pudding
- 8 ounce cream cheese, room temperature, leave out for at least an hour or two
- 12 ounce tub of Cool Whip, put out on the counter 10-15 minutes before making the frosting
Instructions
Chocolate Cake
- Grease a 13 x 9 inch cake pan (or two 9 inch round pans for round cake or makes about 36 cupcakes) and line the bottom of the pans with wax paper cut to size.
- In a mixing bowl, sift all dry ingredients together. Then take a rubber spatula and thoroughly mix the dry ingredients together.
- Mix in all of the wet ingredients and do a quick mix with your rubber spatula and then mix with an electric mixer until well blended but don't overmix.
- Pour evenly between pans and bake at 350 degrees for 28-30 minutes or until after inserting a toothpick into the center of a cake, it reveals just crumbs.
Pudding Frosting
- Mix vanilla pudding mix with milk in one bowl, using an electric mixer, until pudding sets. In another bowl whip up cream cheese using an electric mixer. Add cool whip to the cream cheese and mix together well.
- Add vanilla pudding to the cream cheese-cool whip mixer and mix together well.
- Store in the refrigerator until the cake cools. After frosting the cake, the cake will need to be stored in the refrigerator.
- For best results, after frosting the cake, refrigerate the cake for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Tips:
- The first thing I do when making this recipe, is to brew the coffee. That way it's mostly cooled by the time I mix it in and it doesn't start cooking the eggs.
- A great time saver tip (that I learned from a CakeCentral.com forum and use ALL of the time) is to mix all of your dry ingredients ahead of time and put in a plastic zip bag or a plastic container, this way when you're ready to bake, you just pour into your mixing bowl and add wet ingredients. It's kind of like making your own cake mix. Be sure it's sealed tight and you date the container so you know when you mixed it.
Notes
Upload a Photo
Tag on Insta
Leave a RatingOne more thing, I wanted to say happy birthday to my friend, Julie. We have the same name and birthday!
And huge thanks to our friends, Joe & Tricia, who introduced me to this recipe. I actually never really liked chocolate cake until I had Tricia's cake!
For more awesome chocolate cake recipes:
Blackberry Red Wine Chocolate Cake
Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Frosting
Disclosure: This post does contain affiliate links.
Tracy Edmonson says
This is my go to chocolate cake. My mom made this for every gathering. Reminds me of her. 💕
Julie Deily says
aww yay! sending 💛💛
Gabriella says
Julie! You just won a person over to “chocolate cake lovers” 😀
I was begged and begged for months to make a chocolate cake, and i kept ducking it , because i DIDN’T like chocolate cake…. then i stumbled across your recipe and i decided to make it.
It is amazing! Moist, light, not too sweet….and the frosting is just perfect. I used Godiva Belgian chocolate pudding, and it goes really well with the cake.
Thank you for the great recipe.
Julie Deily says
Omgosh, Gabriella…I didn’t like chocolate cake UNTIL I HAD THIS CAKE TOO!! Yay!! So happy you liked it!
Zee says
Hi
I was wondering whether I can use marscapone instead of cream cheese.
Victoria says
The cake is so good! I didn’t do so well with the frosting though. You could see little grainy bits in it. Tastes good. I just wish I made it smoother.
(Covered it with some sprinkles so you can’t tell.. )
KE says
Hi! I made the frosting today with regular whipping cream instead of cool whip. I whipped the cream cheese with 1 cup of powdered sugar, then I slowly poured in 1.5 cups (12 fl oz) of the whipping cream. It started emulsifying right away! As soon as that mixture was well-blended, I added in the pudding/milk mixture and beat. I watched it carefully for signs that the whipping cream was going to turn to butter, but that never happened. It is lovely and thick and will surely spread nicely when my cake is cooled. Thanks for this great recipe – my daughter will be very pleased with her birthday cake!
Rabiah Morning-Parker says
This cake was AMAZING!! It was my first try at baking a chocolate cake and it came out perfect and don’t get me started on the pudding frosting…I could have eaten a bowl of it by itself.
Thanks!!
Bella Burke says
i have to make a cake for 22 people how would i change the measurements for this cake?
Aubrey says
Hi! Is this frosting sturdy enough to pipe rosettes with? Thanks!
Julie Deily says
Hi Aubrey, the frosting is definitely not sturdy enough to pipe rosettes. So sorry! I would try a buttercream recipe such as this one: https://www.thelittlekitchen.net/birthday-vanilla-cupcakes/ if you want to pipe decorations!
Cheryl says
Made this today, and flavor is wonderful ! However, I did not allow for altitude(4500 ft) and my three cake pans overflowed in the oven and sank in the middle! It is not worthy of a picture, but knowing my family it still will be scarfed down. Do you have any suggestion for high altitude for this particular recipe
Becky says
Julie, I’ve been making this glorious cake and heavenly icing ever since you posted this. Hands down THE BEST. The cake is perfect and the icing is exactly what I’ve been missing my whole life. Thank you! I am also a self proclaimed cake snob and I’m unapologetic. It’s a lot of fat, sugar and calories so it better be worth it and this is!
melissa says
I made the frosting for a birthday cake and it turned out great! I didn’t have cool whip so I found a diy recipe for cool whip that used whipped cream with the addition of cream of tartar and unflavored gelatin to keep the texture. I don’t think whipped cream on its own would have held up as one reviewer stated above. I also added a few teaspoons of unsweetened cocoa to the pudding as mine was a yellowish color that I didn’t quite like. I should have just bought the chocolate pudding… I was a bit nervous about chocolate and cream cheese together, but I thought it was really lovely. Thanks for the recipe!
Lisa says
Just wondering if you’ve made this recipe as cupcakes. I make the cake all the time but when I made cupcakes they were incredibly flat. It’s such a great cake recipe that I was disappointed that it didn’t work so well. Just wondering if you had better results since I never tried it again in cupcake form.
Julie Deily says
Hi Lisa,
I have and they do and they are quite small too…I don’t mind because they taste so good! Sorry I don’t have a better answer for you!
Deborah says
This is the exact same recipe posted to the AllRecipes site 15 years ago, under the name Black Magic Cake. I’ve been making it now for over 10 years and its always a hit. I just googled chocolate cake recipes and this came up so I thought I’d take a peek. I knew it looked familiar. A tried and true recipe can’t be beat, by any name it’s given.
Julie Deily says
Hi Deborah,
I’m sorry it took me so long to respond…I didn’t know it came from allrecipes…the original cake recipe is actually Ina Garten’s. The frosting recipe came from a friend about 10 years ago. It’s a great recipe, isn’t it?
Have a great day!
Chelsea says
Just wondering if you have a way of converting this to a cupcake recipe? Hope this thread is still alive! PS – I used this recipe to make my own wedding cake…. SO yummy, and we will treasure this recipe for ever!
Jan Smith says
This is the best chocolate cake ever. My mom made a cake just like this over 50 years ago with a fluffy cooked frosting.Happy to see it is discovered again.
Pamela M. says
I just made this for a friend’s birthday. I used banana cream instant pudding instead of the vanilla, and it tasted wonderful! Just thought I’d pass along the info and thank you for the recipe. 🙂
Julie Deily says
Hi Pamela, that’s awesome!!! Good to know! 🙂
renee says
Does this cake and frosting last for a couple of days? Or can I freeze it once it’s iced? I’m actually going to use this cake as a sculpting cake so have multiple steps to do after making the initial cake one of which is making a jello pond carved into it so need time for that to set as well.
Pathmay says
Cake was fine- but frosting turned out lumpy and yellow. I think because the vanilla puddling was yellow- but it did not look like the picture – tasted good though!
Any ideas why it was not smooth?
Julie Deily says
Hi Pathmay, depending on the lighting and I use French vanilla pudding, sometimes my frosting comes out yellowish too. The cream cheese needs to be room temperature and the Cool Whip should sit out for a little bit. If the cream cheese is cold or too cold, I notice I will get lumps too. Hope that helps!!
PattieJune says
I only use reddi whip as the ingredients are healthier. wonderful recipe
May says
Hi,
we dont have coffee at our house, only espresso… what do you suggest I do?
Julie Deily says
Hi May, you can definitely use espresso, I would use a shot or two and add enough water to make it 1 whole cup. Hope that helps!
Karen says
Hi Julie,
My friends and family love this cake so i make it a lot.
My frosting always comes out with a yellow tinge to it. How does yours come out so white? What brand of pudding mix do you use?
Thanks!
Karen
christine says
Cake came out amazing! Made it for a birthday cake and everyone raved about it, especially my husband…will be making this again soon! Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Sarah Jane says
Hi Julie,
I’ve been meaning to try that cake for a while since it looks so amaziinnggg! I finally got around to it tonight. The cake is simply delicious but I’ve had lots of trouble with the frosting. Instead of using store-bought Cool Whip, I made homemade whipped cream. Unfortunately, when mixed with the cream cheese, it went flat. Any idea what could I do if I don’t want to use store-bought Cool Whip?? Still tasted awesome though 🙂
Ray ray says
I never make comments on sites, but this recipe us sooo amazing that the least I could do is say THANJS!!! I made this cake for my mother in law’s b-day. Everyone LOVED it. I normally have cake leftover, but that did not happen today. Thanks for sharing the recipe, it was delicious!!!
Tina says
I made this cake today… it is the best chocolate cake I’ve ever had! I used regular cream cheese frosting from the can tho but I rate this cake 5 stars!!! Thanks for the recipe.
Brenda says
My daughter requested a chocolate pudding cake for her birthday. After searching for many recipes I came across this one which sounded perfect. I am not a fan of cool whip so is there anything else I can use instead? What about real whipped cream? Thanks. I am looking forward to trying this!
Julie Deily says
Hi Brenda, you can definitely try using heavy cream and sugar and whipping it. I have never done this with this recipe but you can certainly try. As for measurements, I would try to make the same amount required for the cool whip. Let me know if you try it!
Charlene says
Our pudding packets come in 5.1 oz. packs. Do I just use a couple packages? Don’t want to mess up the consistancy
Julie Deily says
Hi Charlene,
Are you talking about for the frosting? The recipe calls only for a 3.4 oz box…so I would increase the other ingredients accordingly. Hope that helps!
christine says
You know your recipe says 13.4oz. right? I did it and was
was thinking…this does NOT look like hers at all it’s yellow and has a rubbery
consistency. :/
Julie Deily says
Hi Christine, I hope you got my email earlier. So sorry for the confusion, I fixed it to read (1) 3.4 ounce box of instant vanilla pudding.
DIane says
I am making this cake for my mother-in-law’s birthday today. It smells divine! Can’t wait to try the frosting. Question…my cakes kind of sunk in the middle in the over. Any idea why that would happen? Not sure if its just my stupid oven or something I did wrong. They are cooked through, just sunk a bit. oh well, more frosting in the middle, right? 🙂
Stephanie Matos-Flores says
This cake looks so yummy and I would love to make it for my mother in law. Sadly she can’t have milk. Would water work as a substitute?
letessha says
omg, this looks soooooooo good
Karen Tannenbaum says
Julie, thanks for sharing the cake. I too have always made my own birthday cake and it is nice to find someone else who does that. I don’t mind doing it and always get the cake I want. Usually my hardest decision is which cake do I want to make this year. I have several favorites. so, maybe this year I will try this chocolate cake recipe. I have one of those cake slicer things and have never used it…maybe this will be my opportunity. Thank you!
Dana says
My MIL makes a cake very similar to this… Except she adds mini chocolate chips into the icing.. Divine!
Kelly Olsen says
Just made this cake, just awesome!! If you love frosting like I do, I do suggest possibly doubling it,, kinda thin between layers, just as the cake is, frosting is awesome. This is now my new And only chocolate cake recipe…
Julie Deily says
My favorite too, Kelly. So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Dani says
I made this today and it was fabulous. Thank you do much for sharing such a great (but easy!) recipe 🙂
Marie says
Happy Fourth Julie,
Wanted to thank you for the WASC suggestion, my friend loved it. He hoarded that cake and ate it for several days! Your advice with the simple syrup was spot on, I added a touch of amaretto to this, and it really gave the cake an incredible moisture and flavor. I’m actually making this again today in the celebration of The 4th, topped it with some raspberries and blueberries to make it patriotic. Yum! Thanks again.
Best,
Marie
S says
Hi Julie,
The cake looks scrumptious! I was wondering, since I live in Finland, I can’t get my hands on Cool Whip. Any suggestions as to what to replace it with? Would regular whipped cream do? How about the instant vanilla pudding, what could I use as a substitute?
Thanks!
Marie says
Hi there,
Thanks so much for your reply, Julie! I found what I think is a great WASC recipe (kakeladi) online, and am very excited to try it. I want to use your icing on it. Question: what’s the purpose of brushing with the simple syrup before icing? Should this be done while the cake is still warm, or after cooling? As you may have surmised I’m not much of a baker. : )
Also wanted to mention I made your chocolate cake for a St. Patty’s Day party and flavored the icing by adding a couple of tablespoons of Bailey’s Irish Cream. It was subtle, but gave it that little extra Irish something-something. Everyone loved it!
I’ll let you know how my WASC turns out!
Have a great weekend,
Marie
San Diego
Julie Deily says
Hi Marie,
I recommend the simple syrup because the WASC cake I have made before was a teeny bit dry for my taste. The simple syrup will ensure the cake is moist. You can even add almond extract to your simple syrup too! I would do it after it’s cool and after torte it or cut it lengthwise (if you’re doing that). Oooh, adding Bailey’s to the icing is an awesome idea…I’ll have to try that! Thank you! Hope you have a nice weekend too!
Marie says
Hi Julie,
I looove this cake! I’ve made it a couple of times now to rave reviews, and adore it myself. I have what may be considered a blashepmous question. I’d like to make this as a birthday cake for someone who does NOT like chocolate…I know, it’s just wrong that these people exist, but they are out there and still deserve our love. I still think this cake would be good even WITHOUT the cocoa, it’s super moist and the buttermilk and coffee would still give great flavor. Can you think of a good substitute for the cocoa? I thought I might give almond flour a try (not sure of ratio, but I could play with this)… Any advice you have would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks for your help,
Marie
Julie Deily says
Hi Marie, so glad you enjoyed it! Gosh I don’t know…it seems like you would have to change the recipe quite a bit. If your friend doesn’t like chocolate, I would do a white almond sour cream cake and brush it with simple syrup before frosting it. If you google that or WASC cake, you should be able to find a recipe for that. Let me know what you end up doing! Good luck!
Amy says
I love this cake and the frosting sooo much! The only difficult part for me was cutting the cake to make multiple layers-do you think it would work if you put half of the half of batter into the pan then put another piece of wax paper over it then pour the rest? Sorry if that was confusing, I just meant that separate the halves of cake batter by wax paper. I don’t know if this would work and of course I thought of it when I was cutting the cake-so it was too late. But just a thought if anyone else had as much trouble as I did 🙂
Angie says
How long do you boil the coffee for? And do you drain the grinds out or throw the whole thing in??
Julie Deily says
Hi Angie, I use a coffee maker so I don’t boil the coffee. And definitely no grinds go into the cake. I hope that helps!
Tami Weir says
that’s so funny!
LesLee says
This recipe sounds amazing! Do you think the frosting would work well with chocolate pudding instead of vanilla? I usually make one with just the cool whip and pudding, but I like the idea of adding the cream cheese.
Julie Deily says
Hi LesLee, ooh chocolate pudding sounds like a great idea!! If you try it, will you please let me know how it turns out? I would love to know!
Maria says
Hi Julie,
I made this cake yesterday for my little brother’s birthday! Actually, I had to make it into a trifle because I had a bit of a problem with a broken cake when I tried to turn it out while it was still a bit warm. Silly me! My brother and daughter said it tasted amazing anyhow! Thanks for your receipe and great website!!
Alysha @Shesontherun says
Is it just me or would the frosting make an awesome pie filling 🙂
shelly (cookies and cups) says
That frosting sounds amazing! I could eat it with a spoon!
Marie says
Did The cake last night and it was sooo good! It wasm’t dry and my family loved it! Thank u for the recipe!
Just the Icing wasn’t perfect, i think we don’t have the same ingridients here in Vienna.
Julie Deily says
So glad you liked the cake! So sorry the icing didn’t come out though. I really appreciate you coming back & letting me know you tried it! 🙂
diane says
Oh my goodness. Made this yesterday for my mother’s birthday lunch. It was delicious and we all gobbled it up. I made it with a simple cream cheese frosting. I sent the leftovers home with the family, as I can not be trusted with it! Thanks for sharing and it is truly the best chocolate cake and very easy to make!
joy says
Interesting recipe for frosting. I will have to give it a try!
Valerie says
This cake looks fabulous! I love chocolate cake with a non-chocolate frosting, and your vanilla pudding, cream cheese, Cool Whip recipe sounds amazing! 🙂
Kylie says
Can this frosting be put into a frosting bag and used to decorate a cake? i would love to use this frosting recipe but am wanting to do frosting roses all over the cake like at http://iambaker.net/rose-cake-tutorial
Julie Deily says
Hi Kylie,
I love that cake from Amanda’s site! Unfortunately, this frosting is not as stable as a buttercream icing and the designs you pipe won’t stay. If you want, give it a try on a plate before trying it on an entire plate but I don’t think it will hold. 🙁 On the other hand, the frosting tastes amazing which I think more than makes up for the fact that we can’t decorate with it. Good luck with your cake!
Csilla says
Happy Birthday!! 🙂 It is definitely not sad that you make your own cake! I always do mine! And everyone else’s as well 😛 This cake looks so delicious that I’m saving the recipe for the next occasion I’m in need of a cake! 🙂
Memoria says
That cake recipe is very similar to my go-to recipe on the back of the Hershey’s box (I, too, use buttermilk and coffee instead of milk and boiling water, respectively). Anyway, I never ever use parchment or wax paper at the bottom of my cake pan even with the liquid-heavy batter; the cake release or Baker’s Joy spray is all I use. You use less paper and less time. 😀
I may have to try out that frosting. I have never heard of frosting with pudding. Have you tried using homemade whipped cream instead of Cool Whip? It is so quick and easy to make (just heavy cream, sugar, and optional vanilla extract).
Julie Deily says
This cake is actually from Ina Garten, maybe Hershey’s got it from her? The wax paper works just fine for me, just plain Baker’s Joy doesn’t work for me. I don’t use non-stick baking pans, maybe that’s the difference? I use either Wilton or Magic Line straight-sided pans and they aren’t non-stick.
Nope, I haven’t tried it with homemade whipped cream although I know how to make it. 🙂
Mandy says
I just made this in cupcake form and in half a cupcake with no frosting I completely agree that it lives up to its name as the best chocolate cake recipe ever!!! This is a keeper and I will be taking your advice to have the dry ingredients mixed up and ready to go at any time.
Julie Deily says
Hi Mandy, so glad you enjoyed it! That frosting is amazing, isn’t it?? 😀 Thanks for letting me know that you enjoyed it!!!
Kelly Senyei says
HOLY MOLE! This looks insanely delicious! There’s something about a four-layer cake that just makes me weak in the knees. I’d have five slices 😉 COUNT DOWN TO ORLANDO IS ON!
Kristen says
That is our favorite chocolate cake as well – by far! This frosting looks amazing.
I hope you had a most wonderful birthday, Julie!
katie says
Julie–this looks amazing and perfect just like you! I’m so glad to hear you got the job!!! 🙂 P.s. I also need some of this wilton cake release stat! lol. My cakes always stick to the pan! Thank you once again for an amazing recipe & tips!
Bunkycooks says
This does look like one of the best chocolate cakes ever and even if you had to make it, I am sure it was worth it! 🙂 I know you had a happy birthday, so yay for you! I can’t wait to hear about the new job once you get started AND I can’t wait to see you in March!!
Paula says
I hope you had a wonderful birthday. Your cake looks amazing and I agree, there is nothing wrong with baking your own birthday cake. Some may think it is wrong however it you eat it all yourself. LOL
naomi says
Happy Birthday, Julie! Love the cake. I hope youre having a good one!!
Averie @ Love Veggies and Yoga says
I have two questions (and I pinned this b/c it looks so amazing)
1. do you think brand of flour matters, i.e king arthur, gold medal, generic, etc. I am posting about this tomorrow.
2. dumb question perhaps but in making the frosting, when you make the pudding packet + milk and beat, are you saying beat until it turns into pudding, wait and has set up before adding the other ingredients, or just mix it somewhat. Then add the pudding/milk + the cream cheese and cool whip..
This is a frosting I could use SO often, so just want to be clear about whether I need set-up pudding, or not essential…
Julie Deily says
Hey, Averie! I have used Gold Medal & King Arthur unbleached all-purpose flour.
Yes, beat the pudding until it thickens into pudding. I need to add that! Let me know if you have any other questions.
Averie @ Love Veggies and Yoga says
where to even begin…
congrats on your new job
buttermilk powder – new to me, that’s a hot tip for me b/c I usually need like 1/4 c of it and then i have a whole jug!
you have a cake decorating instructor from wilton? – that’s awesome!
the precision of your layers is…amazing!
sweetsugarbelle says
Happy birthday!!! I hope its amazing!!!
jaclyn says
congratulations on the new job, Julie! will you be doing the same type of work you currently do, or are you branching out into a new field?
oh, and HAPPY EFFING BIRTHDAY! i always make my own birthday cakes, too! that way i get exactly what i want because i am the pickiest girl in all of the land 😉
love you lady! i cannot wait to see your face soon!
Krissy's Creations says
Happy Birthday! And congratulations on the new job! If you say this is the best chocolate cake then I definitely gotta try it! And the pudding frosting? YUM!!
Elizabeth @ Chronic Venture says
first off: HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!
and this does look like the best chocolate cake ever. Enjoy your day!
Kathryn says
This really does look like the best cake ever! Happy birthday and big congratulations on the new job.
tami says
so much good news. congrats on the new gig. hope you are having a wonderful birthday 🙂 xox
Lauren at Keep It Sweet says
I hope you are having a wonderful birthday! This cake looks amazing on so many levels and I can’t wait to try the pudding frosting!
Melissa // thefauxmartha says
Happy Birthday and congrats on the new job! Double whammy!
Amy's Cooking Adventures says
This looks wonderful! Love the contrast!
Rhonda says
wow, happy birthday and congrats on the new job!!
Jessica says
Happy Birthday pretty lady! I am so proud of everything you do and I am so lucky to call you a friend! 🙂
Kimmy @ Lighter and Local says
Oh I love the idea of adding the pudding mix to the frosting! It reminds me of the icing on nanaimo bars!
Eliana says
Happy Happy Happy Birthday! What a great way to celebrate. This cake looks heavenly.
Julie @ Table for Two says
congrats on the new job (haha we both gave our 2 weeks the same week too) and happy happy birthday! can’t wait to see you in March 🙂
the wicked noodle says
1. Chocolate cake with PUDDING FROSTING is never, ever sad.
2. Sorry…I forgot what I was going to say for number 2. I was still dreaming about PUDDING FROSTING.
3. Congrats on your new job! And good for you for leaving somewhere that’s comfortable for something that will stretch you and help you grow.
4. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
xo,
Kristy
Glory/ Glorious Treats says
Happy birthday Julie! This cake looks so delicious!
christina @ ovenadventures says
this cake looks fantastic. i’ve never thought about pudding mix in frosting.
Happy Birthday and congrats on the new job!
Diane (Created by Diane) says
Happy birthday Julie!!! That is an awesome looking cake, so wish I was enjoying a piece right now. Hope you made a wish 🙂 and they all come true!
Bev Weidner says
A) Um, YUM.
B) Happy BIRTHDAY!
C) New Job – Wa-hoooo!
D) I miss you!
Rachel @ Baked by Rachel says
Happy birthday Julie!! This is a delicious way to celebrate. Boy does it look moist! 🙂
Ken G. says
Thanks for sharing. Happy birthday!
Mal @ The Chic Geek says
This looks like the most perfect cake!
Cassie says
The frosting sounds perfect. I love the addition of coffee too. YUM. and HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I hope it’s wonderful!
Lori @ RecipeGirl says
Congrats on the new job, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! Hope you have a wonderful day 🙂