Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake Recipe
This Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake recipe makes a super moist pound cake, with a chocolate ganache with a deep chocolate flavor to top. It has a rich chocolate flavor, and it’s the perfect dessert for all those chocolate lovers out there!
How do you make pound cake moist?
There are quite a few variables that determine how to make the perfect moist pound cake, and avoid a dry one:
Measure your ingredients correctly:
Baking is like chemistry, you need the correct amounts of the correct ingredients in the correct order to get the desired results; if you add too much flour to your pound cake, or not enough liquid, it could turn out dry.
Make sure to measure the flour using a spoon, scooping the flour into the measuring cup without compacting it, then using a knife to level it.
For liquids, put the measuring cup on a flat surface to be able to read the measurement more accurately.
Not preheating your oven:
Popping any of your baked goods in an oven that hasn’t reached the needed temperature could turn all of your baking efforts into nothing.
Apart from the baked goods starting to bake at an inappropriate temperature, making them rise more or less than desired, the baking time stated in the recipe is measured when the baked goods are starting to bake at the temperature called for, and they will bake unevenly.
Avoid opening your oven door frequently to check on your cake:
You should check your cake towards the end, not at the beginning and mid baking. Opening the oven door too frequently will let the heat out, making the temperature drop.
Baking with room temperature ingredients:
Using room temperature ingredients makes sure that they mix more evenly in the batter.
Leave out of the fridge the butter, sour cream and eggs 1 hour prior to using.
The addition of sour cream:
And of course, this pound cake is super moist also because of the addition of sour cream. Read below for more details!
What does adding sour cream to a cake do?
Sour cream has a high content of liquid, which makes the pound cake moist.
Also, sour cream has a high fat content. Fat contributes to the tenderness of the baked good because it prevents flour from absorbing the water. Any recipe with low fat content will generally be tougher and drier.
Lastly, the acidity of the sour cream reacts with the baking soda, activating it. When this happens, carbon dioxide is produced, which makes your cake rise and become light and fluffy.
Ingredients you’ll need for this chocolate sour cream pound cake recipe
The ingredients needed for this irresistible cake are found in any big grocery store:
- All purpose flour. Measure it using a spoon and scooping it into your measuring cup.
- Dutch process cocoa powder. You can also use regular cocoa powder, but using dutch processed gives a deeper chocolate flavor
- Baking soda. Gives softness and airiness to your cake
- Salt. Enhances flavors
- Butter. Unsalted and at room temperature
- Granulated sugar. Sweetens your cake
- Eggs. At room temperature. If pressed on time, let them sit in warm water completely covered for 5-10 minutes
- Vanilla extract. Good quality vanilla extract goes a long way!
- Sour cream. Packs your cake with moisture, fat and flavor
- Hot coffee. Preferably strong! Coffee enhances the chocolate flavor. The hot water also helps dissolve the cocoa powder and results in a stronger chocolate flavor. You can also do 1/2 cup of boiling water and a teaspoon of espresso powder.
- Chocolate chips. Dark chocolate chips. You can also use a dark chocolate chopped bar
- Heavy Cream. It will be used to make the ganache to frost the pound cake
- Corn syrup. Makes the chocolate glaze more glossy and luscious
How to make this moist cake
Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Grease and dust a 10×5 inch loaf pan with butter/oil and flour.
On a medium bowl mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt; these will be your dry ingredients. Set aside.
Over a large mixing bowl, cream on medium-high speed the unsalted butter and sugar for 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one by one. Add vanilla and mix.
Turn to low speed. Start adding the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in small amounts, alternating with sour cream, starting and finishing with flour mixture. Scrape with a rubber spatula the bottom and sides of the bowl and mix. Add hot coffee and mix until everything is well combined, but do not over mix.
Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with just a few crumbs. Let cool for 15 minutes, then carefully, remove from the pan and let cake cool completely over a wire rack.
To make the ganache, place the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl and set aside. Heat cream over a small saucepan in medium heat, until just simmering. Do not let the cream boil, or it might be too hot for your chocolate, making it separate or burn. You should heat it until you see simmering bubbles around the edges. Immediately take the cream out of the heat and pour it on top of your chocolate, making sure the chocolate is completely covered with the cream. Cover and let sit for around 7 minutes, then stir until smooth. Let the ganache cool for a few minutes, until reaching a spreadable consistency.
You will have to work quickly before the ganache hardens. Spread it on top of the cooled cake, making waves with the back of a spoon. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or just plain.
How to store this moist chocolate cake
Store this cake in an airtight container at room temperature, away from any heat sources, for 2-3 days.
You can also freeze it, placing a plastic wrap between the lid and the container to better seal the cake and avoid freezer burn, and freeze it for up to 3 months.
Here’s a video of this Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake Recipe so you can see up-close this decadent cake with its moist crumbs.
Take a look at the links below for more chocolate recipes, or click on this link for more Cake recipes.
Easy No bake Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes
If you make this Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake Recipe, please be sure to give it a star rating and leave a comment!
Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Chocolate Sour Cream Cake
- 1 Cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 Cup dutch processed Cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 Cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 Cup granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 Cup sour cream room temperature
- 1/2 Cup strong hot coffee
Ganache
- 2/3 Cup dark chocolate chips or chopped chocolate bar
- 1/3 Cup heavy cream
- 1 Tablespoon light corn syrup
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Grease and dust a 10×5 inch loaf pan with butter/oil and flour.
- On a medium bowl mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt; these will be your dry ingredients. Set aside.
- Over a large mixing bowl, cream on medium-high speed the unsalted butter and sugar for 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one by one. Add vanilla and mix.
- Turn to low speed. Start adding the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in small amounts, alternating with sour cream, starting and finishing with flour mixture. Scrape with a rubber spatula the bottom and sides of the bowl and mix. Add hot coffee and mix until everything is well combined, but do not over mix.
- Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with just a few crumbs. Let cool for 15 minutes, then carefully, remove from the pan and let cake cool completely over a wire rack.
- To make the ganache, place the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl and set aside. Heat cream over a small saucepan in medium heat, until just simmering. Do not let the cream boil, or it might be too hot for your chocolate, making it separate or burn. You should heat it until you see simmering bubbles around the edges. Immediately take the cream out of the heat and pour it on top of your chocolate, making sure the chocolate is completely covered with the cream. Cover and let sit for around 7 minutes, then stir until smooth. Let the ganache cool for a few minutes, until reaching a spreadable consistency.
- You will have to work quickly before the ganache hardens. Spread it on top of the cooled cake, making waves with the back of a spoon.
