Death By Chocolate Cake
Rich, incredibly moist chocolate cake layers made with REAL chocolate and paired with a silky chocolate frosting. This decadent death by chocolate cake is for every chocolate lover. Inspired from our favorite Costco cake that is now discontinued!
Costco Chocolate Cake Copycat
This death by chocolate cake was inspired by our favorite chocolate cake from Costco that was discontinued recently. We loved the moist rich cake layers with that silky, fudgy frosting. This recipe is now our favorite official replacement and is requested multiple times a year for Father’s Day, birthdays, family gatherings, etc. It’s the ultimate crowd pleaser, so easy to make, and so many simple fun ways to decorate.
How to convert recipe to cupcakes and more
This chocolate cake recipe works for multiple sizes of cakes. The recipe is written for 3 – 8″ cake layers, but could be made into 2 – 9″ cake layers, cupcakes, or sheet cake if you’re feeding a crowd.
CUPCAKES: Line muffin tin with liners and fill about 3/4 way full. Bake for 18-21 minutes at 350 degrees and it makes about 24 cupcakes.
SHEET CAKE: Line a half sheet baking pan with parchment paper, spray and pour batter. You can use it as a large sheet cake, or flip and cut in half to layer like a classic two layer sheet cake.
9X13 PAN: Spray pan or line with parchment paper and fill about half way. You will only need half the amount of frosting for this option. Just remember to alter your baking time to match a different size pan.
Can I make this ahead?
YES! This is a great recipe to make ahead, especially if you don’t want to be making it the day of an event. A lot of readers have told me they enjoy it on day 2 just as much or even more as day 1! To start, you can make the cake layers ahead of time, wrap well in plastic wrap and freeze or leave on the counter for one day.
Alternatively, you can assemble the whole thing with frosting one day in advance and store in fridge. You can also freeze a fully frosted cake for 30 minutes and then wrap well in plastic, giving frosting a chance to set so it doesn’t stick to plastic. Transfer to fridge for slow thawing, remove the plastic wrap, then transfer to the countertop. The cake layers stay fresh in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Decorating Ideas for Death by Chocolate cake
There are endless ways to decorate this classic chocolate cake. Some ideas we’ve done:
- Ganache with chocolate shavings on top
- Rustic offset spatula lines
- Costco chocolate cake copycat (picture below; decorated by my talented niece!)
- Mini chocolate chips covering the whole thing (easy fool proof way to jazz it up!)
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If you make this recipe, make sure you tag @loskitchenco on Instagram and leave a comment below! You can also save for later by clicking the ‘Pin Recipe’ button on the recipe card. Happy baking!
Death by Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour spooned and leveled, NOT packed
- 2 cups sugar
- ¾ cups dutch processed cocoa
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp sea salt
- ½ cup sour cream or greek yogurt
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 4 oz high quality dark chocolate
- 3 large eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk*
- 1 cup hot water or brewed coffee for more enhanced chocolate flavor
Frosting
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter
- 8 oz cream cheese, room temp
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 5-6 cups powdered sugar sifted
- 1 1/2 cups dutch processed cocoa sifted
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 tsp salt
Ganache (optional)
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips
- ¾ cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease three 8" cake rounds, line with parchment rounds (to make it easy to release), and spray again. (You can also make as four layer 6" cake, two 9" cakes, a sheet cake, or cupcakes - just adjust baking time)
- In a large bowl or stand mixer, whisk together the dry ingredients - flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and powdered buttermilk if you're using the powdered form.
- Melt the chocolate in 20-30 second bursts in the microwave. It's done when the chocolate is almost completely melted, but not all the way. Stir together until all of it is melted and smooth. Set aside to cool down.
- Whisk together the wet ingredients (sour cream, oil, eggs, vanilla, buttermilk, hot water, and melted chocolate) in a separate bowl. Then combine with the dry ingredients.
- Mix together well until combined. Just don't over mix as that can lead to a crumbly cake.
- Pour into prepared cake pans. (I did 4 layers above for a thinner and more stacked look). You can also do two 9" pans, four 6" layers, or 24 cupcake liners. Bake for 22-26 minutes. The cake is done when the toothpick comes out with moist crumbs on it. Transfer to cooling racks when done.
Frosting
- Beat the butter and cream cheese for about 2 minutes.
- Slowly add the sifted powdered sugar and cocoa powder intermittently with the heavy whipping cream. Add the vanilla and salt. Add more cream as needed to get a soft consistency.
- Beat the frosting for about 2-3 minutes.
Ganache (optional)
- Heat up the heavy whipping cream in the microwave for about 30-45 seconds till hot. Pour over the chocolate chips. Cover and rest for a couple minutes to let it begin to melt the chocolate.
- Whisk together the chips and ganache until smooth. Pour it into a drip bottle or use a spoon to add a drip to the cake.
- If the ganache is too runny, let it cool longer. If it's still runnier than desired, you can add additional melted chocolate. If it's thicker than desired, add a little more warm heavy cream and whisk together.
Assembly
- Trim cake layers if needed to help achieve nice even layers.
- Spread a small amount of frosting on a cake board (this will act like a glue for your first cake layer). Then place your first cake layer down.
- Add an even layer of frosting, top with a cake, layer, add the layer of frosting, then add your last cake layer.
- Apply an even, thin layer of frosting around the entire cake. Leave as is if frosting a semi-naked cake. Otherwise, place the cake in the freezer for about 15 minutes to create your "crumb coat".
- Spread remaining frosting around the cake and garnish, drizzle ganache if desired, and pipe as desired.**
Loved this cake! It was so moist. It was to die for, Made it for Father’s Day and my husband loved it.
This is the best chocolate cake I have ever made and ever tasted! I made it for my dad’s 70th birthday celebration, and every single person raved about it. They wanted to know where I got it. Not only did it taste amazing, but I have also been working on my cake decorating skills which most of them did not know about, so when they saw and tasted this cake, they all kept talking about how it is the best cake they ever had. They didn’t believe I had made it. Heehee! So good! It’s the perfect chocolate and sweet, not too sweet, just perfect! I think this is a combination of the coffee in the cake batter,as well as the cream cheese in the frosting. It counters the sweetness just perfectly to give you a variety of flavor and the perfect sweet richness without being overpoweringly sweet. Make this now!
Ah thank you so much joy! That is such a kind compliment! So glad you enjoyed it!!
Hi there! I want to make this for Christmas. If I halve the recipe would you make the batter with 2 eggs instead of 3? What are your thoughts on that? Thanks!
I made a 3 layer 8 inch one with 2 eggs and worked perfectly! It’s an amazing cake
Hi Christi! Sorry for the delayed response! It will change the consistency a tad by adding more egg ratio to it. I have not tried the exact combo you described on this cake, so I can’t say the results for sure, but I would decrease the liquid by 2-3 TBSP to compensate. I think you’d be just fine! If you tried it, let me know how it went! Happy baking!
One of the best chocolate cakes I’ve ever made!! The frosting was amazing and the cake super moist! I added a tsp of Pero with the hot water and added raspberry filling in the frosting layers!
Thanks for sharing your experience, Beth! And love that you added a raspberry filling. Yum!! Happy baking!
Where did you get your cake stand?
This one was a gift, actually. I love it and use it all the time! I have found almost identical ones at Home Goods though!
What kind of chocolate do you use for the sides if you want it look like the Costco cake?
I melted a high quality chocolate like ghirardelli (just so it melts and tempers well). Then I spread it thin on parchment paper on a baking sheet, let it set, and then broke it into pieces! Really easy! and hides any frosting mishaps 🙂
I made this for dessert last weekend for guests coming over. It was dense, moist and chocolatey. Absolutely loved it!
My cake turned out absolutely perfect – moist, nice crumb, even top, just gorgeous. I used a different frosting but this cake is dead-on to the Costco version.
By far the best chocolate cake I have ever made. It always gets rave reviews!
Thank you for taking the time to share!! Means a lot! So glad it’s a favorite for your family.
This cake was amazing. I get to Costco cake every year for my birthday and this was just as good. I love how she wrote this recipe and included the different pants sizes, that was so helpful! I will say this cake was 1000 times better after being refrigerated. I felt like the layers and texture were better instead of just kind of being all the same. Such a good recipe, thanks for sharing.
So glad it was a hit for you! YES! I love that this cake tastes even better on day two because then we can make in advance! Thanks for sharing!