Moist, fluffy and fudgy, this chocolate walnut cake is the perfect snack sized cake! It’s topped with decadent dark chocolate ganache and sprinkled with chopped walnuts.
Chocolate Walnut Cake
About This Recipe
- This cake is made with an oil based chocolate cake so no need for butter!
- This chocolate cake recipe yields a super moist and fudgy cake. Plus we add chopped walnuts before it’s baked to give it an extra nutty flavor.
- The topping on this cake is a decadent dark chocolate ganache which compliments the chocolate walnut cake really well.
What You Need to Make This Recipe
Ingredients for the chocolate cake
Ingredients for the ganache topping
- Oil : use a neutral oil like vegetable or canola, this will make the cake super moist!
- Coffee: adding hot coffee to the batter will bloom the cocoa giving the cake an extra chocolatey flavor
- Heavy cream: make sure you’re cream has at least 35% fat this will make the ganache nice an rich.
- Dark chocolate: the better quality the chocolate the better the ganache will be!
- The vanilla is optional, so you could leave it out if you wish but I find it still tastes great without it. Now, we’re not starting a debate on whether chocolate cake should have vanilla in it! 🙂
How to make this Recipe
For the Cake
Step 1: Combine all your dry ingredients in a bowl. Make a hole inn the middle and add all your wet ingredients and mix well.
Step 2: Fold in the chopped walnuts and pour into an 8×8 baking tray. Bake for 30 min at 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius).
Step 3: Melt the chocolate and cream and cool for 10 min in the refrigerator. Spread on top of the cooled cake and sprinkle with chopped walnuts. Slice and enjoy!
Pro Tips
- Make sure your ingredients are at room temperature before making the cake, this will ensure even baking of the cake. So take your ingredients out of the fridge about an hour ahead.
- Don’t have buttermilk? No problem, just fill up your measuring cup with milk until almost full (leave just a little space for the vinegar) then add vinegar till the cup is full. Let it sit for a while before using it. ( 1 1/2 tbsp. vinegar for every one cup of milk)
- Chop your walnuts very finely this will help them not sink to the bottom of the cake while baking. You could also use a food processor for this.
- Don’t overmix your cake batter this will result in a dense and tough cake!
- If the cooking time is over and your cake still isn’t baked through, cover it with tin foil and bake for another 5 minutes or as needed. This will prevent the top of the cake from burning.
Storing the Cake
Store this chocolate walnut cake in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days at room temperature. Then transfer to a refrigerator if needed to keep the cake fresh in humid temperatures .
FAQ’s
What can I substitute for buttermilk?
You could use full fat yogurt or sour cream instead, or use this tip to make it at home in just 5 minutes.
Can I make this in a round pan?
Of course! Just use an 8 inch pan and bake it for the same amount of time.
Can I use a different type of nut?
Yes you could use any nuts you like. Some great options are almonds, hazelnuts, pecans etc.
Can I frost the cake with a different frosting?
Of course you can do what ever you like, here are some other frosting you could use: whipped white chocolate ganache frosting, chocolate buttercream, salted caramel buttercream(<–I don’t have a recipe for this one, but here’s one that I love!)
Recipe Card
Chocolate Walnut Cake
Moist, fluffy and fudgy, this chocolate walnut cake is the perfect snack sized cake! It’s topped with decadent dark chocolate ganache and sprinkled with chopped walnuts.
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 30 min
Total Time: 45 min
Course: Dessert
Servings: 12 pieces
Calories: 330 kcal
Ingredients
For the cake
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup buttermilk room temp.
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 tsp vanilla *optional
- 1/3 cup hot brewed coffee
- 1 egg room temperature
- 3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
For the dark chocolate ganache topping
- 1 cup dark chocolate (175g)
- 1/2 cup heavy cream (120ml)
Instructions
- Preheat you oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius). Grease your baking tray with some butter or oil then line with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl sift together your flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Make a hole in the middle of the dry mixture and add in the buttermilk, vegetable oil, egg , hot coffee and vanilla. Mix until just combined.
- Lastly fold in the chopped walnuts.
- Pour the batter into your baking tray and bake for 30 min or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool completely.
- For the ganache, in a medium sized bowl add your chopped dark chocolate and heavy cream. Melt in a microwave in 30 second bursts until smooth. You could also melt it using a double boiler.
- Let the ganache cool down in the refrigerator for 15 min. ( or 5-7 min in the freezer)
- Spread the ganache on the cooled cake and sprinkle with some more chopped walnuts.
- Slice it up and enjoy!
Notes
All oven are different so the bake time may vary, start checking on the cake at 25 minutes.
If you don’t have a microwave you could melt the chocolate using a double boiler. bring some water to a boil in a small pot. Place a bowl on top of the pot and melt the chocolate and cream in it while stirring occasionally. Also make sure the bowl doesn’t touch the hot water, this could burn the chocolate.
Make sure to cool the ganache before spreading onto your cake otherwise it will get really messy.
Nutrition
Calories: 329.76kcal Total Fat: 20g Carbs: 35.56g Sugars: 23.06g
Proteins: 4.68g Sodium: 205mg Fiber: 2.68g
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