Mini chocolate cake for two; perfect for celebrating anniversaries, date night, or just because: chocolate. 
The last time I made this mini chocolate cake for two, we ate it in the car on the way to dinner. And if I remember correctly, we had burgers and fries.
It's not that this cake is 'light' or 'not too sweet' or whatever it is that people say about dessert to make them feel less badly about eating it. It's a solid, rich chocolate cake.
The cake has a crumb that is one notch closer to pound cake than boxed cake mix, which I love. The ganache on top is my obsession. I almost never remember to put butter on the counter to soften for cake frosting, and a 2-minute chocolate ganache solves that problem.
The pomegranate seeds are just, well, pretty. And crunchy. And tart. And very welcome.
It's just that, I always have room for dessert, even if it's at the beginning of a meal. As it turns out, my grandma was wrong: eating dessert before dinner does not spoil your appetite. Just like how going to bed with wet hair won't give you pneumonia. (She always said that).
I'm going to help you out with all of your Valentine's Day dessert for two needs, but first: you're going to need a 6" cake pan. They're adorable. And once you buy one, you can make allllll of my small cake recipes. (Plus, I even use it to make a small batch of fudge, too!).
When you bake small desserts, you can have more desserts in your life. <--I think I'm going to run for office on that slogan.
If you're looking for something even fancier, can I suggest my chocolate mousse cake?
And to win the votes, I'm going to let you put your face under that cup of warm, melted chocolate. Sound good? Quick note: You want this exact --> 6" cake pan with the 2" sides, not 3" sides.
The folks at The Hershey Company asked me to make a quick little video about this cake, since the recipe is based on their 'Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Cake' recipe on the back of their cocoa can. So, I channeled Giada, put on a hot pink shirt, matching lipstick (is it ok to match your lipstick to your shirt? I have no idea), and baked you a cake! Enjoy :)
Mini Chocolate Cake
A small chocolate cake that serves just two people.
Ingredients
For the cake:
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅓ cup neutral oil (like canola or grapeseed)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup full-fat sour cream
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon warm coffee
For the ganache:
- 3 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- splash of light corn syrup (to keep the frosting smooth, optional)
- pomegranate arils, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350, and position a rack in the lower third of the oven.
- Line a 6" round cake pan (with 2" sides) with parchment paper on the bottom, and lightly grease the sides with oil.
- Next, in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, sugar, sour cream, egg, vanilla and coffee.
- Combine the two bowls, mixing just until combined.
- Pour the batter into the cake pan, and bake for 29-32 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. If you under-bake the cake, it will slightly sink, so check it! It will also start to pull away from the sides when it's done.
- Remove the cake from the pan by carefully tilting it into one hand, peel off the parchment from the bottom, and then place it on a small cake stand.
- In a double boiler, or bowl fitted over a pan of simmering water, combine the chopped chocolate, cream, and corn syrup (if using). Stir over medium heat until melted and smooth. *Alternatively, you can melt the chocolate and cream in the microwave in 25-second pulses on LOW power. Stir between each pulse.
- Pour the chocolate over the cake, and garnish with pomegranate arils.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1252Total Fat: 73gSaturated Fat: 22gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 45gCholesterol: 149mgSodium: 387mgCarbohydrates: 146gFiber: 11gSugar: 103gProtein: 15g
Flora says
Marvellous! Thank you. It was moist and rose very well indeed, baking times spot on. I made this for my birthday today since I live alone and I happen to have exactly the right cake tin. I substituted the cream for the milk, I used slightly less oil and more espresso coffee. I used a tsp of baking powder instead of the baking soda. Instead of the ganache on top I made a coffee cream butter icing.
Maithili says
Hi Cristina! Love your blog. Just wanted to check can I use sunflower oil instead of canola oil? Thanks!
Christina Lane says
Yes :)
Patti says
I was so happy to find this mini version of the Hershey's Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Cake. That cake is my family's go-to cake for family gatherings. I have had a 6" cake pan for a few years, but this was my first time using it. I needed a small cake for a small bday celebration and this was perfect. I did have to cook it about 15 minutes longer, my oven probably was not properly preheated. I used a scaled down version of the ganache that my sister uses for the full-size cake: 3⁄8 cup chocolate chips, 1 1⁄2 teaspoon light karo syrup, 4 1⁄2 teaspoon butter, 1⁄8 teaspoon vanilla extract. I also "floured" the greased pan with cocoa powder, which is something I do when I make the full-size cake. The birthday girl was very happy. The 3 of us had half the cake after our bday dinner, everyone got a small slice for later. Thank you so much for this great recipe.
Joanna says
Can this be made into a layer cake by dividing the dough between two pans? Or will it be too thin? I want to use this recipe to make a German Chocolate Cake, with the coconut pecan filling. I could double it? I only need to feed 2 adults and 1 child so don't want to go overboard.
Christina Lane says
It will be too thin. The best thing is to make the recipe as-is, and then cut it in half to make 2 layers.
Karen says
I bought 6” cake pans so I could start baking your cakes!
I love to bake but it’s just the two of us, so we really don’t need huge cakes. This one is in the oven as we speak! Looking forward to making my way through all your 6” cake recipes! And your dinner recipes too!
Karen S says
Any chance I could substitute buttermilk for the sour cream?
Jasmen says
Hi! Thanks so much for your recipe. I don’t have any canna oil and where I am it’s way to frigid to go outside and buy some. All I have is Olive Oil…Will it be fine if I use olive oil as a sub?
Christina Lane says
Sure, you can use olive oil. It has a strong flavor though. I'd really recommend something neutral and flavorless so the flavor of the chocolate shines.
Dorothy says
I was craving chocolate and was about to make a batch of brownies when I saw this "just the right size cake." The smallest pan I own is a 7in springform. The oil I used was homemade ghee topped off with EVOO to meet the oil measurement. I made a white cream frosting to top it. The texture is nice, although the cake is not as sweet as the brownies, (which is a good thing). This is a quick, tasty cake that I will make again. Thanks, Christina!
Clare says
For the metric users I made this and weighed as I went. There's always going to be small gram differences but the cake turned out beautifully with the following measurements:
65g flour
30g cocoa
2.5-3g baking soda (better to use 1/2 teaspoon though)
116g sugar
1 large egg
73g oil
81g plain/greek yoghurt (I didn't have buttermilk, turned out fine)
Also measured the coffee (15ml) and vanilla (2-3ml) by volume so I don't have the weight for that unfortunately.
Jacki says
Is this recipe easy to double or triple? My girls love this chocolate cake and for the birthday party, I would like to make a larger cake. Looking at the ingredients, it looks possible, but just want to make sure. :-)