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Value This Life

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Homemade Mocha Chocolate Cake

Chocolate Cake Slice on white dish.For those of us who grew up on cake mixes, it can be hard to find a homemade cake recipe that isn’t dense or dry compared to a mix. This recipe for Mocha Chocolate Cake is the best of all worlds: easy to make, very moist and tender. The coffee flavor is subtle rather than strong, so if you have someone who is not a coffee fan it won’t be an issue.

It’s also nice that you mix the dry ingredients, throw in the moist stuff and mix it up. No complicated steps or delicate baking techniques!

Mocha Chocolate Cake

2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups flour
3/4 cup cocoa
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 cup strong black coffee or
2 tsp. instant coffee plus
1 cup boiling water
1 TBS white vinegar plus milk to equal 1 cup
1/2 cup oil
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 13x9x2-inch pan (or spray with non-stick coating). In large mixer bowl, blend sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add eggs, coffee, sour milk mixture, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed for 2 minutes (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. (My oven took 32 minutes). Cool completely and frost as desired.

(adapted from a 1991 Hershey’s Homemade cookbook, our favorite dessert cookbook!)

Leave a comment and let us know how your cake turned out!

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About Charlotte

I'm a grateful wife & mom of 12 amazing persons. I love to inspire & teach busy women to find beauty in everyday life by caring for themselves, creating comfortable homes with their families and living out ordinary days with grace and gratitude. I'd love to encourage YOU!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Mai Bateson says

    February 28, 2013 at 5:04 am

    Yummy! Perfect for snacks! 🙂

    Reply
  2. Amity says

    April 24, 2013 at 10:35 pm

    I made this in a gluten-free version and using coconut sugar and oil and it turned out fabulous! I’m making this for a girlfriend for her birthday. She is going to love it! Thx Charlotte!

    Reply
    • Judy Vandiver says

      May 29, 2013 at 6:56 pm

      Amity… I’d love to know what flour you used in your gluten-free version. Did you have to adapt amount of coconut sugar and oil? I’m also wondering how this would do with stevia instead of the sugar?

      The cake sounds like something Mom use to make and that I would love to eat. Thanks Charlotte for posting it.

      Judy

      Reply
  3. Amity says

    May 31, 2013 at 9:46 am

    Tom Sawyer Gluten Free flour is what I used. I’ve been using this sugar for over 2 years and my husband likes it even thought he isn’t gluten free. I like using it since it is one cup of regular flour to one cup Tom Sawyer GF. I can use regular recipes and use this GF instead and it typically turns out great! It already has the zanthum gum in it so there isn’t anything to add. I’ve been using it for years. I’m not sure how to use stevia since I have never used it. I know it is very sweet so maybe try using half of what the recipe calls for regarding the sugar. I used the same amount of coconut sugar and oil the recipe called for

    Reply
  4. nik says

    April 19, 2014 at 1:43 pm

    wat about the boiling water!! can we replace curd with vinegar!?

    Reply
    • Charlotte Siems says

      April 20, 2014 at 7:06 am

      Nik, I’m not sure about curd. The vinegar helps “sour” the milk so a better replacement might be buttermilk. And the boiling water helps dissolve everything (that’s my guess anyway!).

      Reply

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I'm a grateful wife & mom of 12 amazing persons. I love to inspire & teach busy women to find beauty in everyday life by caring for themselves, creating comfortable homes with their families and living out ordinary days with grace and gratitude. I'd love to encourage YOU! Read More…

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valuethislife
Have you ever procrastinated about doing something Have you ever procrastinated about doing something, with thoughts of dread and overwhelm?😬And then done the thing,  finding that it was easier and faster to get done than you thought it would be?🥴Yeah, me too. Note to self: The dreading and putting off costs a whole lot more emotional energy than just doing the thing. 😊
In our busy ordinary lives there is a tendency to In our busy ordinary lives there is a tendency to get by with the barebones of running the household—but we skip the joy, comfort and encouragement part.   We trade an artful arrangement of beautiful things on the coffee table for a stack of newspapers and mail. The TV takes the place of a board game. Irritation with our family flavors our speech.   Sometimes this happens so slowly that we barely notice it, and then one day we realize that our home life is out of sorts.  With that realization comes the choice to fix those little things. Tidy up the clutter, get the laundry caught up, read aloud to children, and set a pretty table for an ordinary supper.  Look around your home with fresh eyes to see if it needs a reset. Even 20 minutes of tidying can make an amazing difference.❤️
Unexpected October ice storm in Oklahoma. Power ha Unexpected October ice storm in Oklahoma. Power has been out for 2+ days, grateful for a generator and hot water. I figured out that complaining doesn’t make electricity come back on. 😊
Always wanted a “mother’s ring” with birthst Always wanted a “mother’s ring” with birthstones of our children but we never found a design with 12 stones. 💍 It was a forgotten wish until I received this bracelet as a sweet gift. I can rattle off their birthdates like a boss but sometimes the size of our family still surprises me. It grew one baby at a time and I grew along with them, like all mothers do. There’s no rewind button, and we can’t go back and have a do-over. But we can be grateful during EVERY season for what we have, and I am!❤️
“They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.” Not “they that complaineth much” or “they that talk about their issues all day long.” I’m guessing that “not waiting” means sucking the life out of strength instead of renewing it. But waiting can begin in this very moment. 
•
(pic from my kitchen window)😊
Sometimes it’s a struggle getting started on a t Sometimes it’s a struggle getting started on a task, but we all love how it feels when the task is done. Maybe it would help to think about how good the result will feel before we start!
Yeah, I had to run to the store to get eggs before Yeah, I had to run to the store to get eggs before 14yo could mix up cookie dough. 
👉🏻Note to self:
Don’t wait until it’s time to do a task to check whether you have what you need to do it. Realizing you’re short on supplies or information at the last minute costs time and causes stress! Knowing that you’re prepared eases the pain of getting started. Put “check for ingredients” on your to-do list!
How much life do we waste worrying and fretting an How much life do we waste worrying and fretting and dreading....when the thing we’re upset about IS GOING TO GET DONE?! It’s going to happen, it’s all going to work out, and we probably won’t even remember it by next week. Sometimes it helps to remember that!💕
We bought a house built in the 80’s and have bee We bought a house built in the 80’s and have been doing that fixer upper thing. Sorry for the blurry “before” but just think “black hole” and you’ll get the idea.😂 Amazing what paint and decor can do for a space. Sold the old mantel on FB Marketplace for $60 and bought the unfinished new one for $45. Found the print in my garage, lol. Mirror from Hobby Lobby. Sorta reminds me of my life pre-Jesus. Dark to light. Old to new. Same basic human, transformed with light and love.❤️
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valuethislife

valuethislife
Have you ever procrastinated about doing something Have you ever procrastinated about doing something, with thoughts of dread and overwhelm?😬And then done the thing,  finding that it was easier and faster to get done than you thought it would be?🥴Yeah, me too. Note to self: The dreading and putting off costs a whole lot more emotional energy than just doing the thing. 😊
In our busy ordinary lives there is a tendency to In our busy ordinary lives there is a tendency to get by with the barebones of running the household—but we skip the joy, comfort and encouragement part.   We trade an artful arrangement of beautiful things on the coffee table for a stack of newspapers and mail. The TV takes the place of a board game. Irritation with our family flavors our speech.   Sometimes this happens so slowly that we barely notice it, and then one day we realize that our home life is out of sorts.  With that realization comes the choice to fix those little things. Tidy up the clutter, get the laundry caught up, read aloud to children, and set a pretty table for an ordinary supper.  Look around your home with fresh eyes to see if it needs a reset. Even 20 minutes of tidying can make an amazing difference.❤️
Unexpected October ice storm in Oklahoma. Power ha Unexpected October ice storm in Oklahoma. Power has been out for 2+ days, grateful for a generator and hot water. I figured out that complaining doesn’t make electricity come back on. 😊
Always wanted a “mother’s ring” with birthst Always wanted a “mother’s ring” with birthstones of our children but we never found a design with 12 stones. 💍 It was a forgotten wish until I received this bracelet as a sweet gift. I can rattle off their birthdates like a boss but sometimes the size of our family still surprises me. It grew one baby at a time and I grew along with them, like all mothers do. There’s no rewind button, and we can’t go back and have a do-over. But we can be grateful during EVERY season for what we have, and I am!❤️
“They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.” Not “they that complaineth much” or “they that talk about their issues all day long.” I’m guessing that “not waiting” means sucking the life out of strength instead of renewing it. But waiting can begin in this very moment. 
•
(pic from my kitchen window)😊
Sometimes it’s a struggle getting started on a t Sometimes it’s a struggle getting started on a task, but we all love how it feels when the task is done. Maybe it would help to think about how good the result will feel before we start!
Yeah, I had to run to the store to get eggs before Yeah, I had to run to the store to get eggs before 14yo could mix up cookie dough. 
👉🏻Note to self:
Don’t wait until it’s time to do a task to check whether you have what you need to do it. Realizing you’re short on supplies or information at the last minute costs time and causes stress! Knowing that you’re prepared eases the pain of getting started. Put “check for ingredients” on your to-do list!
How much life do we waste worrying and fretting an How much life do we waste worrying and fretting and dreading....when the thing we’re upset about IS GOING TO GET DONE?! It’s going to happen, it’s all going to work out, and we probably won’t even remember it by next week. Sometimes it helps to remember that!💕
We bought a house built in the 80’s and have bee We bought a house built in the 80’s and have been doing that fixer upper thing. Sorry for the blurry “before” but just think “black hole” and you’ll get the idea.😂 Amazing what paint and decor can do for a space. Sold the old mantel on FB Marketplace for $60 and bought the unfinished new one for $45. Found the print in my garage, lol. Mirror from Hobby Lobby. Sorta reminds me of my life pre-Jesus. Dark to light. Old to new. Same basic human, transformed with light and love.❤️
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