Easy Chocolate Fudge Cake with Chocolate Ganache

Chocolate fudge cake is a super easy, decadent bundt cake recipe that starts with a box of cake mix and ends up as a delicious, moist chocolate cake topped with a fudgy chocolate ganache frosting.

 

This is the ultimate chocolate fudge cake and it’s the perfect answer for that chocolate craving because it’s super easy to make!

Believe it or not the best chocolate cake recipe starts with a boxed chocolate mix. Skip the recipe on the back of the box and instead doctor it up with sour cream, oil, pudding mix, water, and eggs.

You end up with a super moist cake that isn’t dense. Top it with a homemade ganache frosting and it is absolute fudgy perfection!

Note: This post may contain affiliate links. That means if you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Thank you!

Ingredients You’ll Need

You’ll need ingredients for the cake and for the frosting. A lot of it you probably already have on hand. Here’s what to gather together:

• Boxed Chocolate Cake Mix – You can use your favorite brand or even the store brand if you prefer.
• Box Instant Chocolate Pudding Mix – You can use Jello’s pudding or anyone that you prefer. Just make sure it is not the kind you cook. This enhances the rich chocolate flavor of the cake and adds moisture to the cake.
• Sour Cream – When baking a cake, make sure you use regular, full fat sour cream. This will give your cake the moist, soft texture you want in a cake.
• Vegetable oil – You could use another lighter tasting oil. Try not to use olive oil or coconut oil since the flavors can bleed through.
• Eggs – Make sure you use large eggs, either white or brown will work.
• 60-80% Cacao chocolate – I highly recommend a quality brand of chocolate instead of chocolate chips. I use Ghirardelli chocolate baking bars. 
• Heavy Cream – Heavy cream or whipping cream will turn that chocolate into a creamy ganache. 
• Vanilla extract – This gives a very subtle background flavor to the frosting.

You guys already know we like a good doctored up cake mix recipe. Our coconut cake (and sheet cake) starts with a box mix and it is one of our most popular recipes. We also use cake mix to make our pumpkin bundt cake, sock it to me cake, and triple chocolate cupcakes.

You can play around with flavors by using different cake mixes and pudding combinations like we did with our pistachio cake and lemon cupcakes.

How to Make a Moist Chocolate Cake

Step 1 – Prep the oven and pan. Before getting started, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. As it starts to warm, rub softened butter all over the inside of your bundt pan, making sure to get all the corners. Once the pan is well-buttered, add in 2 tablespoons of flour and shake the pan until the flour covers all of the buttered surfaces. Tap the pan into the sink to pour out all excess flour. 

Step 2 – Combine the cake ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, mix the boxed cake mix, chocolate pudding mix, sour cream, vegetable oil, and eggs until cake batter comes together. This will take about 2 minutes. 

Step 3 – Bake the cake. Once the batter has come together, pour it into the prepared bundt pan. Place the pan in the oven and bake for about 40 to 45 minutes. You can check to see if it is done by inserting a toothpick into the center to see if it comes out clean with only a few crumbs on it. If it does, it is done.

Remove cake from the oven and let it cool for 20 minutes. Turn the bundt pan over and remove the cake from the pan. Once it is out, allow it to rest on a cooling rack and let it cool completely. 

Step 4 – Make the icing. Finely chop the chocolate (the smaller pieces the better!) and place it in a bowl. Heat the heavy cream in a microwave safe dish starting with 1 minute and adding 15 seconds at a time until it begins to boil. Remove and pour over the chocolate immediately. Let sit for 3 minutes and then add the vanilla extract and stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth.

Step 5 – Ice the cake. When the cake is cool but the icing is still warm, pour it all over the top of the cake. Allow it to cool and firm up completely before slicing and serving the cake.

Want to Make More Chocolate Cake Recipes? Try our Chocolate Turtle Cake and Brownie cake.

Rich Chocolate Ganache

Oh, let’s talk about chocolate ganache, a luxurious concoction that’s as versatile as it is delicious! Imagine taking the rich, indulgent essence of chocolate and combining it with creamy, silky smoothness to create a mixture that can transform any dessert from ordinary to extraordinary. That, my friends, is chocolate ganache in a nutshell.

At its heart, chocolate ganache is a blend of chocolate and cream, often in equal parts, but the ratio can vary depending on how you plan to use it. Here’s the simple magic behind it: you heat the cream just until it’s about to boil, then pour it over chopped chocolate. Wait a moment for the chocolate to melt into the warmth of the cream, then stir it together until it becomes smooth, glossy, and utterly irresistible.

The beauty of ganache is in its simplicity and versatility. With just two basic ingredients, you create a mixture that can serve multiple roles in the dessert world:

• Pourable Ganache: A liquid dream that can be poured over cakes, cupcakes, or pastries for a shiny, smooth finish that sets as it cools, giving your desserts a professional touch.
• Whipped Ganache: Let it cool, then whip it up into a fluffy, light frosting perfect for filling cakes or topping cupcakes. It’s like a cloud of chocolate that melts in your mouth.
• Truffle Filling: Cool it to a firm consistency, and you can scoop and roll it into decadent chocolate truffles, often coated with cocoa powder, nuts, or even more chocolate.

For this recipe we use a pourable ganache that creates a rich, decadent frosting for our cake.

How to Store It

You can make this cake ahead of time. To ensure you maintain the moist crumb and the cake doesn’t dry out follow a few simple instructions. Follow the directions and let the icing cool on the cake completely before placing it in a cake carrier or covering it tightly in another container. It will stay fresh at room temperature for about 4 to 5 days.

Looking for More Easy Cake Recipes?

• Sock It to Me Cake
• Apple Spice Cake
• Tres Leche Cake
• Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream Frosting
• Coconut Sheet Cake
• The Best Coconut Cake You’ll Ever Make
• Pumpkin Bundt Cake
• Lemon Pound Cake
• Sour Cream Pound Cake
• More Cake Recipes…

Like this recipe?
Make sure to follow us on Instagram and Pinterest for more recipes like this.

Servings: 12

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 45 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr

Chocolate Fudge Cake

Created By: Kat Jeter & Melinda Caldwell

This is the ultimate chocolate fudge cake recipe! It starts with a box of cake mix and ends with a fudgy chocolate ganache frosting.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Ingredients

Cake:

• 15.5 ounces. Boxed Chocolate Cake Mix
• 3.4 ounces Box Instant Chocolate Pudding Mix
• 3/4 cup Sour Cream
• 3/4 cup Vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup Hot water
• 3 Eggs

Fudge Icing:

• 8 ounces 60 – 80% cacao chocolate, finely chopped
• 8 ounces Heavy Cream
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract

Instructions

Cake:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Prepare a bundt pan by rubbing softened butter all over the inside making sure to get into all of the corners. Add 2 tablespoons of flour and shake pan until the flour covers all of the buttered surfaces. Tap the pan into the sink to pour out all excess flour.
• In a large mixing bowl combine boxed cake mix, chocolate pudding mix, sour cream, vegetable oil, water, and eggs. Mix until ingredients come together, approximately 2 minutes.
• Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan.
• Bake for 40-45 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center. If it comes out clean, or with just a few crumbs it is done.
• Remove cake from oven and let it cool for 20 minutes. Then turn bundt pan over and remove cake from pan. Sit cake on a cooking rack and let cool completely.
• While the cake cools make the icing.
• Pour the fudge icing over the cake and let it cool and firm up.
• Slice and serve.

Fudge Icing:

• Place the finely chopped chocolate in a bowl.
• Heat the heavy cream in a microwave safe dish starting with 1 minute and adding 15 seconds at a time until it begins to boil.
• Remove from the microwave and pour over the chocolate immediately. Let sit for 3 minutes and then add the vanilla extract and stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice, Calories: 393kcal, Carbohydrates: 46g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 23g, Saturated Fat: 11g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 8g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 74mg, Sodium: 455mg, Potassium: 245mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 30g, Vitamin A: 428IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 95mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition Disclaimer: We are not certified nutritionists. Nutrition facts are an estimate and are provided as a courtesy. They are generated by an online API which recognizes ingredient names and amounts and makes calculations based on the serving size. Results may vary.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American