Mom’s Chocolate Pudding Cake
I impulsively made my mom’s chocolate pudding cake for dinner tonight. My dad was coming by to eat with us, and his presence triggered a memory of my mom cobbling together some sort of dessert at the last minute when there wasn’t a little something sweet in the house, as he opened all the cupboards in search of a square of chocolate. She had a few standbys and this was one of them. Since chocolate is his thing, I mixed it together and slid it into the oven alongside the pork tenderloin. (At the table, W asked me how long it had taken me to make it. About ten minutes, I said. ‘Well,’ he said, ‘I absolutely must have this recipe!’)
This request was followed by a handful of others on twitter, so I thought I’d post it. Partly in order to bookmark it myself.
What I love about it is that it’s not quite cake, not quite a brownie, but a cross between the two, irresistibly crunchy-chewy on top, with a layer of thick chocolate pudding underneath. I wished I had vanilla ice cream in the house, but then again not, as I’m sure I’d have polished off the entire pan.
Mom’s Chocolate Pudding Cake

Preheat the oven to 350?F.
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder and salt. In a small bowl or measuring cup, stir together the milk, oil and vanilla; add to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined. Spread into a greased or parchment-lined 9-inch square pan.
In the same bowl, stir together the sugars and cocoa, then stir in the hot water or coffee; pour over the batter but don’t stir it. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the cake is springy to the touch and there is a thick chocolate sauce underneath. Serve warm, with vanilla ice cream. Serves 6.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350?F.
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder and salt. In a small bowl or measuring cup, stir together the milk, oil and vanilla; add to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined. Spread into a greased or parchment-lined 9-inch square pan.
In the same bowl, stir together the sugars and cocoa, then stir in the hot water or coffee; pour over the batter but don’t stir it. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the cake is springy to the touch and there is a thick chocolate sauce underneath. Serve warm, with vanilla ice cream. Serves 6.
This was a popular childhood dessert of mine, from a book called “Magic Spoon Cookbook”, and was called “Way Too Rich Hot Fudge Upside-Down Cake”, and the page itself had modelling-clay koala bears eating it. Oh, memories.
Love that!!
Oh, Julie, I’ve just found your blog! Everything looks so good and your writing is very entertaining. You’re bookmarked!????
Aw, thank you Candice!
Sorry, my iPad changed a happy face to 4question marks. Grr.
This would be super easy to make vegan and so I AM GOING TO DO THIS. Delicious! Mmm.
Brownie, yes! Chocolate pudding, yes! A bit of both? Please gimme here 😀 I think I would just serve that in the tin accompanied with bunch of spoons and milk to drink 😀 Looks and sounds wonderful 😀 x
Awww, this cake looks so tasty. I believe it’s really delicious! It’s definitely worth a try to bake this masterpiece.
Thank you for posting this recipe.
I ?? W.
Darn emojis. That was I “heart” W.
Uh oh this didn’t come out quite right for me–the flavor was kind of bland and the sauce was a little too soupy. I wonder if I accidentally used too much liquid? I used hot water. Maybe coffee would be better.
This looks and sound delicious. Would there be a suitable alternative fat for the oil in this recipe. I have a bit of an aversion to oil being used in most cake, muffin and quickbread type recipes. I know a quarter cup is not a lot but I always find the oiliness bothersome. Maybe it’s just me lol. Enjoying your blog.
Love this, it is one of my go -to desserts when I need a sweet/chocolate fix. Should there not be 1/4 cup of cocoa powder in the sauce also??
Ooh that extra 1/4 cup of cocoa would explain my issues with it!
I agree, I think that 1/2 cup sugar in the sauce is meant to be cocoa powder instead…
Crap, so sorry guys! I just missed the 1/4 cup of cocoa in the sauce. Added it to the recipe! So sorry about that!
Julie – have you tried this with a Gluten Free flour?
I haven’t, sorry!
So my cake didn’t turn into a thick pudding.. it’s very liquidy 🙁 cake looks done though
Doesntthere h
Needto be something in the puddongto thicken?
Hey Julie.
Love all your recipes.
Could you please tell me how much is your 1xup flour in grams?
I’m from India and seems my measurements could be slightly different.
I’m not quite sure if there are any measurement differences in India, but 1 cup = 236.6 grams when I use my conversion app
I’d love to make this for Mother’s Day, but I oddly don’t have any square pans. With the quarantine, it’s kinda best to use what I already have.
What would the bake time be for a 9″ round pan or a doubled recipe 9″x13″ rectangle pan do you think?
I just made this and it was great! However, it did need an extra 15 minutes (total: 35 mins) to bake. I served it with fresh whipped cream.
My question is how to store the leftovers…is it best left out or should I refrigerate?
Thanks!