These Chocolate Cake Truffles are moist chocolate cake balls mixed with a fudge frosting and dipped in dark chocolate. They are fun, impressive, and easily decorated for any occasion!
Obsessed with all things chocolate? Me too. That's why I have an entire dreamy section devoted to chocolate desserts. Some of my favorites are these Triple Chocolate Cupcakes filled with ganache and topped with fudge frosting or these Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars for a fudgy and soft oatmeal cookie in bar form.
If you're interested in cake rolls and balls, these Funfetti Cake Balls are one of the most popular recipes on the blog, and this German Chocolate Cake Roll stands up there right with it!
Why You'll LOVE This Recipe
- one-bowl chocolate cake recipe
- fudge frosting made without a mixer
- easy to customize based on season or occasion
- fun, unique, and impressive to serve
Moist Chocolate Cake Ingredients
- Granulated Sugar: Granulated sugar adds sweetness and moisture.
- Vegetable Oil: Vegetable oil is the base the recipe. It’s used instead of butter for a moister and fluffier cake. It can be substituted for another unflavored oil.
- Eggs: 2 large eggs at room temperature add to structure.
- Vanilla Extract: Pure vanilla extract rounds out the flavor of the cupcakes.
- Sour Cream: Sour cream creates moist and tender cupcakes.
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk interacts with the leavening agents and creates light, tender cupcakes.
- All Purpose Flour: Regular, plain all purpose flour that is measured properly by using a kitchen scale or using a spoon to carry and level the flour into your measuring cups creates a soft texture.
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: Cocoa powder is how this cake gets its chocolate flavor. I use natural cocoa powder.
- Baking Powder + Baking Soda: Together, both of these leavening agents help this cake rise. Do not exchange one for the other.
- Salt: Salt brings out sweetness and enhances flavor.
Cake Process
STEP 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, spray an 8x8 inch baking pan with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper to help the cake come out of the pan cleanly.
STEP 2: In a large bowl, whisk granulated sugar, vegetable oil, room temperature eggs, vanilla extract, room temperature sour cream, and room temperature buttermilk together. Whisk until smooth.
STEP 3: Pour your properly-measured all purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl. Mix with a whisk only until you see the dry flour pieces disappear.
STEP 4: Transfer your batter to the prepared pan. Bake the cake for 35-40 minutes or until the top of the cake looks slightly shiny, the center looks set, and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with moist crumbs. Allow the cake to fully cool before moving forward with assembly.
Fudge Filling
STEP 1: In a medium bowl, mix melted butter, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar together with a whisk or spoon.
STEP 2: Add milk, slowly, and stir until smooth and dispersed throughout.
Assembly
STEP 1: Transfer your cooled cake to a large bowl and break it into fine crumbs using your hands.
STEP 2: Massage 1-3 tablespoons of frosting into the cake crumbs using your hands. Start with one tablespoon and add additional tablespoons of frosting as needed until the mixture is no longer dry and is able to stay in a formed ball.
STEP 3: Roll balls into 1 ½ tablespoon-sized balls, about 30g of mixture per ball. Stick the balls on a parchment or wax piece of paper on a plate or baking sheet. Freeze the balls, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes until firm and chilled. Do not skip this step.
STEP 4: Microwave chocolate chips in 45 second increments in a heat-proof bowl, heavily stirring between each round.
STEP 5: Dip each ball, individually, into the chocolate. I prefer to stick a toothpick into each ball, dip it into the bowl of melted chocolate, and carefully use a fork to transfer the ball to a sheet of wax paper.
STEP 6: Top the cake truffle with sprinkles. The chocolate will begin to harden after being dipped in the chocolate, so do not wait to add the sprinkles. You can also drizzle chocolate over the top of the balls or use other decoration as desired.
Expert Tips
- Chilling: Freeze your cake balls, uncovered, on a baking sheet or plate lined with wax or parchment paper for 25-30 minutes. If you are not decorating immediately after the 25-30 minutes, cover the balls and keep them in the freezer.
- Dipping: Stick a toothpick deep into your frozen cake ball. Dip and swirl ball in melted chocolate, using a spoon to help cover the ball in chocolate if needed. Hold the cake ball above the bowl and carefully twirl it and shake it to remove excess chocolate. Then, holding the truffle upright from the toothpick, place the fork below the truffle and gently push up on the truffle to remove the toothpick from the dough ball. Use the toothpick to push the truffle off of the fork onto a piece of parchment paper.
- Decorating: You’ll want to top the balls with sprinkles immediately after they are dipped. Do not dip all of the balls and then top with sprinkles, as the balls will likely already have hardened chocolate shells.
Related Recipes
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Chocolate Cake Truffles
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Yield: 28 cake balls 1x
- Category: Cake, Chocolate, Truffles
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
These Chocolate Cake Truffles are moist chocolate cake balls mixed with a fudge frosting and dipped in dark chocolate. They are fun, impressive, and easily decorated for any occasion!
Ingredients
For the Chocolate Cake
- ¾ cup (105g) all purpose flour
- ½ cup (40g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (210g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (50g) vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs (100g), room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup (85g) sour cream, room temperature
- ½ cup (120g) buttermilk, room temperature
For the Filling
- ¼ cup (55g) unsalted butter
- ¼ cup (21g) cocoa powder
- 2 cups (240g) powdered sugar
- ¼ cup (60g) milk
For the Decoration
- 2 ½ cups (450g) chocolate chips
- sprinkles or other decoration, as desired
Instructions
For the Chocolate Cake
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray an 8×8 inch baking pan with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper to ensure the cake comes out cleanly.
- In a large bowl, whisk granulated sugar, vegetable oil, room temperature eggs, vanilla extract, room temperature sour cream, and room temperature buttermilk together with a whisk until smooth.
- Pour properly-measured flour, unsweetened cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl and whisk. Mix only until you see the dry ingredients disappear into the batter, as overmixing could lead to dense cake.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 27-35 minutes or until the top of the cake looks slightly shiny, the center looks set, and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with moist crumbs. Allow the cake to fully cool before moving forward with assembly.
For the Filling
- In a medium bowl, mix melted butter, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar together with a whisk or spoon.
- Add milk, slowly, and stir until smooth and dispersed throughout.
For Assembly
- Transfer your cooled cake to a large bowl. Break cooled cake up into crumbs using your hands. To do this, simply crush the cake together to create fine crumbs.
- Massage about half of the frosting into the cake crumbs using your hands. You’ll want to be able to roll a smooth ball without it breaking apart. Add additional tablespoons of frosting as needed until the mixture is no longer dry and is able to stay in a formed ball. Adding too much frosting will create wet balls that will not stay together. This cake is incredibly moist, so it will not require too much frosting to hold the balls together.
- Roll balls into 1 tablespoon-sized balls. Stick the balls on a parchment or wax piece of paper on a plate or baking sheet. Freeze the balls, uncovered, for about 25 minutes until firm and chilled. Do not skip this step.
For Decoration
- Microwave chocolate chips in 45 second increments in a heat-proof bowl, heavily stirring between each round.
- Prepare a plate or baking sheet by putting a clean piece of parchment or wax paper on top of it.
- Dip each ball, individually, into the chocolate. I prefer to stick a toothpick into each ball, dip it into the bowl of melted chocolate, and carefully use a fork to transfer the ball to a sheet of wax paper. You can use the toothpick method, a spoon and fork, or a dipping tool.
- Immediately after dipping the ball into the chocolate, top the ball with sprinkles. The chocolate will begin to harden after being dipped in the chocolate, so do not wait to add the sprinkles. You can also drizzle chocolate over the top of the balls or use other decoration as desired.
- Let the balls cool at room temperature or in the fridge until the chocolate is set.
Keywords: Chocolate Cake Balls, Chocolate Truffles, Cake Pops
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