The Retro Betty Crocker Chocolate Cake I’ve Been Making for Decades

One of my earliest memories is of Mom asking me what kind of cake I want for my birthday. My enthusiastic reply, “Chocolate!” When she said we’d make a devil’s food cake, I had questions. Why is it the devil’s cake? If this is the best cake, why is it named after the bad guy?

She explained that there was angel food cake, which was white, and devil’s food cake, which was dark. She also said people feel that they are misbehaving when they eat chocolate cake. To me, my favorite cake had a bad rap. But by then we made frosting and I got to lick the beaters, and nothing’s bad about that.

Betty Crocker Has the Best Chocolate Cake Recipe to Date

When birthdays rolled around, Mom always used the devil’s food cake recipe from the original Betty Crocker’s Picture Cook Book. I inherited this tattered copy, the cover long gone. It’s foolproof and timeless, and my go-to for when I need a dependable cake.

The cake chapter starts with in-depth instructions for prepping your cake pan, mixing the cake, and baking it. The individual recipes are brief—you just refer back to the introduction to the chapter for the process.

I’ve made many chocolate cakes in the intervening years, and this one has a classic, retro flavor I crave. One thing you’ll notice is the use of shortening in the cake and frosting. This was common back when butter was hard to find and expensive, and it works well. You can use margarine or butter in its place.

The recipe calls for unsweetened baking chocolate and no cocoa powder. This comes from back before everyone ate dark chocolate, and people were accustomed to milder chocolate flavor in desserts.

The Easy Frosting Recipe That’s Perfect for Any Chocolate Cake

Mom and I always made the Chocolate Butter Frosting recipe from the cookbook, which you might be surprised to learn has no butter, only shortening. Of course, it can be made with butter or margarine, like Mom did.

It’s the least complicated frosting ever, with fat, powdered sugar, melted baking chocolate, and cream. The frosting recipe makes enough to cover the layers, but not too much, because they didn’t expect tons of frosting on cakes back then. It’s enough to cover the cake, but you won’t have an inch-thick layer, like some cakes today. 

To this day, when I see a dessert called “decadent,” or “death by chocolate,” I remember my Mom trying to explain the meaning of devil’s food. It’s a sweet memory, for a sweet treat.

How To Make the Cake

Start by preheating the oven to 350°F, and grease and flour two nine-inch round cake pans. You can bake the cake in a 9×13-inch cake pan instead.

Use an electric mixer to beat 2/3 cup shortening (or butter) with 1 1/2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Add three large eggs, one at a time, until thoroughly combined. Melt and slightly cool 2 1/2 ounces of unsweetened baking chocolate (the microwave works, in 30-second intervals) and beat it into the butter mixture. 

In a separate bowl, sift 2 1/8 cups all-purpose flour and one teaspoon each baking soda and salt. Alternate folding the dry ingredients and 1 1/4 cups buttermilk into the butter mixture until combined. Try not to over-mix. 

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans and bake for 30 to 35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The 9×13-inch cake pan will take five to 10 minutes longer to bake.

While the cakes cool, make the frosting by beating 1/3 cup shortening and three cups powdered sugar. Stir in three tablespoons of heavy cream and 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract. Add three ounces of unsweetened baking chocolate that’s been melted and cooled, and beat until nicely combined. Wait to frost until the cakes are fully cooled.

GET THE COOKBOOK: Betty Crocker’s Picture Cook Book