If you like the combination of chocolate and coffee, these chocolate Kahlua cakes will blow your recipe file!
Easy to make (one-bowl!) and incredibly moist, they can also be made in one big cake, cupcakes or loaf.
They are deep in flavor, a one-bowl recipe which is always a plus, and they unmold like a dream.
Chocolate and coffee are a magic combination, and these mini bundt cakes are just cute and perfect for this time of year when we want to celebrate the things we love, and I find that chocolate Kahlua cakes fall under that category. An ongoing romance.
Why this recipe works.
- Flavor: the combination of chocolate and coffee is one for the books. Coffee brings out the best qualities of the cocoa powder used in this recipe and deepens the flavor.
- One-bowl: this recipe requires only one bowl for mixing it. So there's little to wash afterward! One bowl recipes are not only convenient but easy to make usually.
- Oil: this recipe uses oil instead of butter. This is good mainly for two reasons, it makes for a moister cake and it's so much easier to mix. There's no bringing butter to room t° or creaming or any of those somewhat extra laborious steps. Oil makes this recipe simpler and the cake lasts longer.
- Unmolding: a huge deal breaker with bundt cakes is the unmolding. Pans with intricate patterns can be tricky and it's beyond frustrating to make a recipe and have it stick to the pan when unmolding it. This recipe unmolds like a dream.
- Keeping: these mini cakes can be frozen up to a month (wrap in plastic separately), and keep for a few days at room t° if well wrapped in plastic.
About the coffee glaze.
This is a simple powdered sugar glaze, where said sugar (or confectioners sugar as it's also called) is mixed with a liquid until creamy.
- Liquid: you can use whatever liquid you want, from lemon juice to milk, to liquors to olive oil.
- Consistency: it varies with the amount of liquid you use, so you can have a runnier or thicker glaze.
We used Kahlua (a coffee liquor) as the liquid part in this recipe. And it is amazing! Regular coffee works really well too, the proof is in our popular Brown Butter Coffee Cake.
Tips & tricks for making this recipe:
- Pan size - I love mini bundts, but you can use a regular large bundt or 2 medium loaf pans. I never tried this recipe as a layer cake and I think it would be a bit too tender to fill. But it would work baked as a sheet cake.
- Preparing the pan - I use baking spray and fine dry breadcrumbs. I know it's not traditional but it works. An alternative to this is using a brush with soft butter, flouring and refrigerating the pan while you make the filling. Or use a baking spray that comes with added flour.
- Liquor - a coffee liquor is what complements best this chocolate cake, but it works well with orange liquor (Cointreau, Grand Marnier), with almond liquor (such as Amaretto). And probably others I never tried. I use Kahlua because it's my favorite one, but there are other coffee liquors you can use.
- Glaze - use the liquor as stated in the recipe, prepared liquid strong coffee, or a tablespoon of each. They all work great.
- Keeping - this is a very moist cake recipe and it keeps very well at room t°, well wrapped in plastic. The flavor is fudgier the next day. You can freeze it for 1 month, first in plastic and then aluminum foil.
And if the glaze and cake have my absolute favorite coffee liquor in it the appeal grows exponentially. So do my thighs.
By the way, these cakes are much fudgier the next day or even the next one. They stay ridiculously moist for many days. Even when left uncovered.
With easy recipes like these, I make them all the time. There's something about a glazed mini bundt that just appeals to me every time.
Other recipes you might like:
Glazed Brown Butter Cake
Bourbon Chocolate Bundt Cake
Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake
Chocolate Coconut Bundt Cake
Walnut Loaf Cake with Coffee Glaze
Vanilla Poppy Seed Bundt Cake
Let me know if you make this recipe! I’d love to hear what you think about it.
Thank you for being here, I appreciate it! Let’s connect via Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Coffee Chocolate Mini Cakes
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 12 mini cakes 1x
- Category: Cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
If you like the combination of chocolate and coffee, these chocolate Kahlua cakes will blow your recipe file! Easy to make (one-bowl!) and incredibly moist, they can also be made in one big cake, cupcakes or loaf.
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 ¾ cups (350g) sugar
- 2 cups (280g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup (100g) cocoa powder
- 1 ¼ (5g) teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ¼ (6g) teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ (5g) teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs (room tº)
- 1 cup (240g) milk
- ½ cup (120g) of vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup drip (or espresso) coffee (very hot)
- ½ cup Kahlua or other coffee liqueur
For the glaze:
- 1 cup (160) powdered sugar
- 1 or 2 tablespoons Kahlua or other coffee liqueur
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350ºF /180ºC.
- Butter and flour or spray well with cooking spray, 12 mini bundt molds.
- Sift together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. I measure everything and sift it directly over the wet ingredients.
- In a large bowl beat eggs, milk, vanilla, and oil for 1 minute.
- Add dry ingredients to the wet, ½ cup at a time, while beating on low speed. Do this slowly so the batter doesn't develop clumps.
- Heat coffee until almost boiling.
- Mix with liqueur and add slowly to the chocolate batter. The mixture will be thin.
- Fill molds up to ¾ of its full capacity. I put the batter in a glass measuring cup so it's easier to pour.
- Bake until tester inserted in center comes out clean, about 25 minutes for mini bundt and 45 minutes for a big bundt.
- Invert cake onto cooling rack. If cake resists, cool in the pan for 15 minutes before inverting.
For the glaze:
- In a small bowl mix a cup of powdered sugar with 1 Tbs or more of coffee liqueur, depending on how runny you want your glaze to be.
- Pour glaze on top of cakes and let it drip to the sides.
Notes
Pan size - I love mini bundts, but you can use a regular large bundt or 2 medium loaf pans. I never tried this recipe as a layer cake and I think it would be a bit too tender to fill. But it would work baked as a sheet cake.
Preparing the pan - I use baking spray and fine dry breadcrumbs. I know it's not traditional but it works. An alternative to this is using a brush with soft butter, flouring and refrigerating the pan while you make the filling. Or using a baking spray that comes with added flour.
Liquor - a coffee liquor is what complements best this chocolate cake, but it works well with orange liquor (Cointreau, Grand Marnier), with almond liquor (such as Amaretto). And probably others I never tried. I use Kahlua because it's my favorite one, but there are other coffee liquors you can use.
Glaze - use the liquor as stated in the recipe, prepared liquid strong coffee, or a tablespoon of each. They all work great.
Keeping - this is a very moist cake recipe and it keeps very well at room t°, well wrapped in plastic. You can freeze it for 1 month, first in plastic and then aluminum foil.
Keywords: coffee bundt cakes, chocolate kahlua cake, kahlua cake
- slightly adapted from Kiss My Bundt, by Christa Wilson
Can I bake the bundt cakes one day and glaze them the next or should they be warm when glazed? I want to make these for Father's Day
Hi Tamara! The cakes need to be cold when you glaze them. So it's perfect to do it the next day. Simply keep them wrapped in plastic do they don't lose moisture.
I would like to make these 4 days before my event, could I just keep them at room temperature? or should they be refrigerated or put in the freezer and then thawed?
Hi Doreen! I recommend wrapping them well and freezing them. Four days is a long time and they will start to dry out at room temperature.
I'm excited to try this recipe, however I live in Australia and I'm aware that our teaspoon and tablespoon measurements are different to the US. ie: in Australia 1 tablespoon is 20ml (or g) and is equivalent to 4 teaspoons; which means that a teaspoon measurement here is 5ml (or g). What are your teaspoon measurements?
Also, what size eggs should I use?
Thank you!
Hi Cherie, I added the measurements in grams for easier conversion. Hope that helps!
Oh wow!! Thank you so much
I've made these as mini bundt cakes and also as one big bundt cake (two weekends in a row!) and this recipe is fabulous! I didn't change a thing and used kahlua in the cake and the glaze. Rave reviews all around and it's super moist. I will make this again and again. So easy too!
★★★★★
SO glad you all liked it Sallie! I tend to agree
Have a great week.
Hi, I’ve been looking for a coffee Bundt recipe without the chocolate – is there anything you can recommend when knitting the cocoa? Or does the cake still taste predominantly of the coffee? Thanks!!
Hi Cara, this recipe has coffee liquor so it's a different flavor. This would be a much better recipe I think https://vintagekitchennotes.com/brown-butter-cake-coffee-glaze/ You can add some coffee extract or a tablespoon of very strong coffee to the batter.
Oops, I meant omitting* the cocoa! I’ve just tried that other recipe now (cooking as I type) but I can’t get my mind off this recipe – using Kahlua and actual brewed coffee. Am looking for that coffee taste which I’m scared might be overpowered by the chocolate in this recipe. Might still give it a try this weekend!
Thanks so much for the quick response 🙂
I never tried it but it should work, substituting more flour for the cocoa powder. I do love a coffee-flavored cake too, so I might try it this week if I have the time.
Amazing! Used Harvey's Bristol Cream instead and it worked great! Best Bundt cakes I've ever made, my family loved this recipe Thank you!
★★★★★
So happy you all loved them! I never heard about that liquor but I think they work with all of them, lol!
I want to try this but without the liquor. Is there an acceptable substitute? Thanks:)
Hi Angelique, you can use all coffee (1 cup total), or water for the liquor part.
Do you use sweetened cocoa ?
I use unsweetened, always.
So cute and delicious. The glaze is amazing and having individual desserts are the best! Your hint about the bread crumbs in the molds is awesome to have them release easily! A great dessert!
★★★★★
These are irresistible! Not only was the flavor combination outstanding but everyone loved getting their own mini cake. A total hit at our party!
★★★★★
So glad you liked them Demeter!