This Chocolate Chiffon Cake is incredibly light and billowy soft, with a deep chocolate flavor that will knock your socks off! Top it with a simple dusting of powdered sugar, and you have a year-round showstopping dessert your guests will love!
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
This chocolate chiffon cake recipe was adapted from a 1983-84 PA State Grange cookbook my neighbor gave me a few years ago.
I love this cake because it’s easy to make, it’s light and airy, super chocolatey, and is a dessert that’s perfectly served plain or with a dusting of powdered sugar and a dollop of fresh whipped cream.
And fun fact, this chiffon cake is in the same family as the sponge cake and angel food cake, with a few minor differences. Like my Chocolate Pumpkin Cake Roll, which has a chocolate sponge cake base, it calls for using whole eggs and uses butter instead of oil. And my Homemade Angel Food Cake, uses neither butter nor oil and uses only egg whites. No matter the slight variations, they’re delicious, and I recommend trying them all!
Table of Contents
Ingredients
The ingredients shown in the image below are used to make this soft and fluffy chocolate chiffon cake recipe. Items noted in the bulleted list are key ingredients that need more explanation.
- Eggs. Make sure you separate the eggs. With the egg whites, ensure no traces of the yolk (or fat) are present.
- Cream of Tartar. Helps to give the egg whites their stability when beating them to stiff peaks.
- Cake Flour. Using cake flour gives this chocolate chiffon cake a soft and tender texture and a much lighter crumb than all-purpose flour. Make sure this ingredient, as well as the following one, are sifted.
- Dutch Process Cocoa Powder. This gives this chocolate chiffon cake its rich, chocolatey flavor!
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda. It’s important to ensure that both are fresh and haven’t expired.
- Vegetable Oil. A neutral oil, like vegetable oil, is best for this chiffon cake recipe. You can also use canola oil or coconut oil. Just ensure they haven’t expired because the rancid smell will affect the taste and smell of your cake.
- Espresso Powder. This helps to amplify the chocolate flavor. It gets dissolved into the warm water.
For quantities and instructions, please see the recipe card below.
Substitutions
Below are a few 1:1 substitutions that can be made to this recipe.
- Espresso Powder. You can use instant coffee as a substitute, or you can leave this ingredient out entirely, as it’s there solely to enhance the chocolate flavor.
- Water. In place of the water, you can use milk. During testing, I used whole milk, but you can also use skim, 1%, or 2% as well.
- Dutch Process Cocoa Powder. You can use unsweetened cocoa powder as a substitute in a pinch, but it won’t be as chocolatey.
Please note that I did not test this recipe using any additional flour or sugar substitutions.
How to Make the Recipe
Below is a quick overview of how to make this homemade chocolate chiffon cake. For the full printable recipe, which can be made using US customary or metric measurements, visit the recipe card below.
Quick Tip: Before starting, separate your eggs into two bowls. This will help ensure you don’t mistakenly get any yolks into the egg whites and vice versa.
Step 1. Dissolve espresso powder in warm water (Image 1). Set to the side to cool. In a separate large bowl, sift the cake flour and dutch process cocoa powder (Image 2).
Step 2. Add the baking powder, baking soda, salt, and granulated sugar. Whisk it all together, then make a well in the center. Add to the well the egg yolks, water with espresso powder, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract (Image 3). Whisk together until blended (Image 4).
Step 3. Whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar. Mix on high speed until stiff glossy peaks have formed (Images 5 and 6). This takes roughly 4 minutes with a hand mixer or about 2 minutes in a stand mixer.
Step 4. Fold in the beaten egg whites. Do this in thirds, ensuring it is fully blended and no streaks remain (Images 7 and 8). You want to make sure you retain some of the air that was created from the egg whites. The batter will be light and foamy. Pour the batter into the ungreased tube pan.
Step 5. Bake the chiffon cake, then cool. Bake at 325°F for 55-60 minutes (Images 9 and 10). An inserted cake tester or toothpick should come out clean, and the top should spring back when gently pressed. Invert the tube pan onto soup cans (even if it has the tube pan legs) and cool completely (takes about 1 1/2-2 hours).
Quick Tip: To release the chiffon cake from the pan, run a flat or offset spatula along the sides, around the center cone, and the bottom. Carefully invert onto a serving plate and dust with powdered sugar.
Recipe FAQs
An aluminum tube pan or angel food cake pan with a removable bottom is best. Some tube pans have legs attached to help cool the cake upside down.
No. You do not grease the tube pan for chiffon cake.
Yes, absolutely. Chiffon cakes, like my Homemade Angel Food Cake, should be cooled inverted over soup cans (even if your tube pan has legs) or a cooling rack. Some people use a wine bottle. Cooling the cake upright would cause the cake to collapse.
A few things can contribute to a cake falling out of the pan when inverted. One is that the meringue may not have been fully incorporated into the rest of the cake batter. Ensure no meringue streaks remain before you pour the batter into the ungreased tube pan. Another possible issue was that the cake was underbaked. It’s always a good idea to use a cake tester or toothpick to test this.
If you tried this Chocolate Chiffon Cake Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know what you thought in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Chocolate Chiffon Cake
Equipment
- Hand Mixer or Stand Mixer
Ingredients
- 1/2 tsp Espresso Powder, optional
- 3/4 cup Warm Water
- 7 large Eggs, separated
- 1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar
- 2 cups Cake Flour, sifted
- 1/2 cup Dutch Process Cocoa Powder, sifted
- 2 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/4 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 1/2 cups Granulated Sugar
- 1/2 cup Vegetable Oil
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 325ºF. Place your ungreased tube pan with a removable bottom to the side.
- Dissolve the espresso powder in warm water. Set aside to cool slightly.1/2 tsp Espresso Powder, 3/4 cup Warm Water
- Sift the cake flour and Dutch process cocoa powder into a large mixing bowl. Add the baking powder, baking soda, salt, and granulated sugar. Whisk it all together, then make a well in the center.2 cups Cake Flour, 1/2 cup Dutch Process Cocoa Powder, 2 1/2 tsp Baking Powder, 1/4 tsp Baking Soda, 1 tsp Salt, 1 1/2 cups Granulated Sugar
- Add to the well the egg yolks, water with espresso powder, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Start by beating the center wet ingredients, then incorporate the dry ingredients as you work your way outwards, mixing them all together until blended. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure all the dry ingredients have been fully incorporated.1/2 cup Vegetable Oil, 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar on high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form (about 4 minutes). Set to the side.7 large Eggs, 1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar
- Gently fold the beaten egg whites (stiff peaks) into the cake batter in thirds, making sure it is fully blended and no streaks remain. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl again to make sure it is well blended.
- Pour the chocolate chiffon cake batter into an ungreased tube pan. Bake at 325°F for 55-60 minutes. An inserted cake tester or toothpick should come out clean, and the top should spring back when gently pressed.
- When done, invert the tube pan onto soup cans (even if it has the tube pan legs) and cool completely (about 1 1/2-2 hours).
- Run a flat or offset spatula along the sides, around the center cone, and bottom to release the cake from the pan. Carefully invert onto a serving plate and dust with powdered sugar.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information provided above is an estimate only and will vary based on specific ingredients used. See Nutritional Disclaimer for more info.
Mine came out tasty but quite dry. Perhaps my oven runs a little hot and I should have taken it out earlier?
I’m glad you enjoyed it, thanks! To answer your question, yes, next time you make it I would take it out a bit earlier. Ovens that run hot can definitely dry a cake out. I would recommend getting an oven thermometer too.
Amazing results
Thank you for making it, Noelin!