This cold-oven Chocolate Pound Cake has
a perfect crunchy top and rich
flavor.
Chocolate Pound Cake
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons hot water
- 2 teaspoons espresso powder
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs
- 1 1⁄2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1⁄2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1⁄4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3⁄4 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 1⁄2 cups semisweet chocolate chunks
- Sweetened whipped cream, sliced fresh strawberries, to serve
Instructions
- Spray a 9-inch tube pan with baking spray with flour.
- In a small bowl, stir together 3 tablespoons hot water and espresso powder. Let stand for 5 minutes. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar with a mixer at medium speed until fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, stopping to scrape sides of bowl. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with cream and espresso mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture, beating just until combined after each addition. Stir in chocolate. Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Place in a cold oven. Bake at 325° until a wooden pick inserted near center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 40 minutes. Let cool in pan for 15 minutes. Remove from pan, and let cool completely on a wire rack. Serve with whipped cream and strawberries, if desired.
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 16
Find more great recipes like this one in Taste of the South’s January/February 2017 issue!
What is the 3/4 cup whipping cream and chocolate chunks for???? They are mentioned no where in the recipe.
Hi Katie! You can find whipping cream and chocolate used in Step 3. You add the cream into the butter mixture alternately with the flour mixture, and then add in the chocolate. Thanks!
I dont bake I am curious about the butter is it real butter
Yes! Use real, unsalted butter for this.
Always use real butter
I always use salted butter.
What do you do with the chocolate chips! Melt the chips or just put them in hole!
Hi Libby, Add in the chocolate chunks unmelted.
Do you melt the chocolate chunks or add them in chunk form?
Hi Elaine, Add the chocolate chunks in unmelted, in chunk form.
Can you see self rising flour and leave out the salt and backing powder. What about the espresso, could you use something other than that. I don’t use that, hate to buy it and never use again.
Sorry can you use not see self rising flour.
Each brand of self-rising flour has its own ratio of leaveners mixed in so a 1:1 substitution may not work. We recommend sticking to the written recipe, but you can certainly leave out the espresso powder.
Can you leave out espresso- we don’t like coffee or coffee flavors
Sorry for the delay in getting back to you about this question. You can, of course, omit the espresso. It should not impact the rest of the recipe.
What is espresso powder?
Espresso powder is very intensely dark and concentrated instant coffee. It’s not just coffee beans ground fine. It’s actually coffee crystals that dissolve quickly in liquid.
Can I leave espresso out
Hi Debbie, Yes you can leave the espresso out if you’d like. If you’re worried the espresso gives the cake an intense coffee flavor, it doesn’t! It just adds nice, complementary flavor to the chocolate.
The recipe does not mention using the heavy cream anywhere……
Hi Jan, in step 3 it says “Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with cream and espresso mixture…” This is where you’ll use the heavy whipping cream.
Must you use the chocolate chunks
Hi Rahima, You can leave the chocolate chunks out if you’d like.
Are the chocolate chunks supposed to be melted
Hi Keith, No, they are not. Add in the chocolate chunks whole and unmelted.
Do you use cake flour?
Hi, Use all-purpose flour for this recipe.
Can’t wait to try this I make the same cake minus the chocolate I make a yellow one with the whipping cream my yellow one looks identical to your chocolate one so I’m going to check it out this week thank you
Are the chocolate chunks melted?
Hi Amanda! No, do not melt the chocolate chunks before stirring them into the batter.
Is the espresso powder the same as instant coffee espresso?
They sure are!