If you like the chocolate, coffee, and liquor combination, these chocolate cakes belong in your recipe file. Whether you make mini cakes, one large bundt cake, cupcakes, or loaf, they're easy to make (one bowl) and incredibly moist. The crackly glaze adds another layer of yumminess, but they're also good with a dusting of powdered sugar.
Boozy chocolate cake
Chocolate and coffee is a magic combination that takes a simple chocolate cake recipe to the next level.
The coffee enhances the chocolate flavor without being a cake that tastes like coffee. This recipe gives you a faint coffee flavor from the Kahlua.
I love to use liquor in cakes and baking, especially when they have chocolate like this chocolate cheesecake with Baileys or this glazed chocolate bourbon cake, which is my favorite cake in the whole world.
What is Kahlua?
It's one of the most popular coffee liquors and is easily available in stores and online.
The strong boozy flavor evaporates during baking, leaving behind a coffee caramel tone in the cake. It adds richness and pairs wonderfully with chocolate.
For Valentine's Day, these mini bundt cakes are cute and perfect for celebrating the things we love. An ongoing romance.
- One bowl recipe: the batter is mixed in one bowl. So there's little to wash afterward! It's not only convenient but easy to make.
- Flavor and texture: 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. By the way, these cakes are much fudgier the next day or even the next one. They stay ridiculously moist for many days.
- Oil: this recipe uses oil instead of butter. This is good because it makes for a moister cake, and it's so much easier to mix. There's no bringing butter to room temperature, creaming, or any of those somewhat more laborious steps. Oil makes this recipe simpler and the cake lasts longer.
- Removing it from the pan: 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 very well.
- Storing: these mini cakes keep for a few days at room temperature and can be frozen for up to a month (wrapped separately).
Ingredients
Quantities are listed in the recipe card towards the end of this post. The Ingredients page has more details and lists the brands we use.
- Kahlua: or other coffee liqueur.
- Baking powder and baking soda: make sure they aren't expired.
- Milk: whole makes a richer cake, but reduced-fat or almond milk can also be used.
- Vegetable oil: Sunflower oil is my recommendation or other neutral one.
- Coffee: prepared drip, espresso, instant coffee, or any other type you have.
The Kahlua glaze
This is a simple powdered sugar glaze, where said sugar is mixed with a liquid until creamy.
- Type of liquid to use: using more Kahlua strengthens the flavor and complements the cake wonderfully. Drip coffee is another alternative, as we use in our popular Brown Butter Coffee Cake.
- Consistency: it varies with the amount of liquid you use, so you can have a runnier glaze covering more of the cake or a thicker glaze that drips less down the sides.
Alternative glaze
Use the chocolate ganache recipe from the best chocolate bundt cake, adding a tablespoon of Kahlua for an extra dose of chocolate.
Kitchen notes
- Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, equipment, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
- Baking time: keep in mind that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look the same or very similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as it can be, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer (like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend you keep track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
- Different pans: 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 brush it with soft butter (or use my hands), flouring and refrigerating the pan while you make the filling. Or use a baking spray that comes with added flour.
- Glaze: use the liquor as stated in the recipe, prepared 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 temperature, well covered in plastic wrap. The flavor is fudgier the next day. You can freeze it for a month, wrapped first in plastic and then aluminum foil.
- Alternative liquors: 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.
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Kahlua Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons shortening, soft, to grease the pans
- 4 tablespoons flour, to dust the mini pans
For the cake:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¾ cups sugar
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup milk
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup drip coffee, or espresso coffee (very hot)
- ½ cup coffee liqueur, such as Kahlua
For the glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons Kahlua, or other coffee liqueur
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC).
- Grease 12 mini bundt pans with 3 tablespoons shortening, covering every angle, nook and cranny. Dust with 4 tablespoons flour, shaking off excess. Reserve.
- Sift together 2 cups all-purpose flour, ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder, 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda and ¾ teaspoon salt. Stir in 1 ¾ cups sugar. Reserve.
- In a large bowl, beat 2 eggs, 1 cup milk, ½ cup vegetable oil and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 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 ½ cup drip coffee until almost boiling.
- Mix with ½ cup coffee liqueur (Kahlua) and add slowly to the chocolate batter. The mixture will be thin.
- Fill molds up to ¾ of their capacity. I put the batter in a large jar so it's easier to pour.
- Bake until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 25 minutes for mini bundts.
- Cool on a wire rack for about 15 minutes.
- Invert the pan and release the cakes. You might want to use a smooth-bladed knife first to make sure no bits of cake are stuck to the sides and the center tuve. If cake resists, cool in the pan for 15 minutes before inverting.
For the glaze:
- In a small bowl, mix 1 cup powdered sugar with 2 tablespoons Kahlua or more depending on how runny you want your glaze. It should be smooth and creamy.
- Pour glaze on top of the cakes and let it drip to the sides. Let dry before cutting.
Notes
Adapted from Kiss My Bundt, by Christa Wilson
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