This Chocolate Chip Cake is 2 layers of moist and delicious cake with mini semi-sweet chocolate chips baked right in, and a sweet vanilla chocolate chip buttercream frosting to boot!
About the Recipe
This chocolate chip cake is 2, 8-inch layers of moist and fluffy white cake that has mini semi-sweet chocolate chips baked right in. It's a super easy recipe to make without using your hand mixer or stand mixer and pairs perfectly with this creamy vanilla chocolate chip buttercream frosting.
Both the chocolate chip cake layers and the chocolate chip buttercream frosting can be made in advance. You can even freeze this cake easily after frosting it too. Just make sure to bring it to room temperature before enjoying it!
A Few Helpful Tips
Prep your cake pans. Whenever I am baking cakes (bundt cakes included), I always use Baker's Joy. It's a flour-based baking spray that just works super well and I've never had any issues getting a cake stuck in a pan. Generously coat both 8-inch cake pans.
I also recommend adding a parchment paper circle to the bottom of the cake pan, then respraying the top lightly with more baking spray.
Coat your chocolate chips. This is just for the cake part of the recipe. Coating them in a little of the whisked dry mixture before adding them to the batter at the end helps to keep them from sinking to the bottom while baking.
I will say, though, that even with flour coating, sometimes your chips will still sink (it's even happened to me), but your cake will still be good, I promise!
Let your cakes cool. Before frosting your cakes, make sure they are 100% cooled.
Storing your cake layers. If you are making your cake in advance, you can keep these chocolate chip cake layers kept at room temperature double-wrapped tightly in plastic wrap for up to 3 days.
You can also freeze them for up to one month, by double wrapping them tightly in plastic wrap and placing them into a large freezer bag.
Wait on the chocolate chips. If making your chocolate chip buttercream frosting in advance, wait to add in the chocolate chips until you're ready actually to frost the cake. If you add them in before, it will make it harder to revive the frosting when you mix it again in the mixer.
Keep the frosting stored in a tightly sealed food container for up to a week in the refrigerator. Bring it out 45 minutes to 1 hour before using, then give it a few whips of the stand mixer and paddle attachment. Then you can add in the chocolate chips.
You can also omit the mini semi-sweet chocolate chips from the buttercream frosting entirely if you would like a smoother look to your frosting, or having them in the cake is perfect enough.
Alternatively, you can try this chocolate frosting recipe.
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Recipe FAQs
I used Wilton brand 8" x 2" cake pans for this chocolate chip cake recipe.
This is totally your call. I do, on occasion, like to use my Wilton bake strips when baking round cakes. They do an excellent job of preventing doming on your cakes. If you don't have any, you can either cool the cakes upside down on the cooling racks or simply cut and level the domes off the top of your cakes. Make sure to use a serrated bread knife and wait until your cakes have cooled completely.
This helps to prevent them from sinking to the bottom during baking. Even with doing this sometimes, they'll still sink, but I promise your cake will still taste just as good!
When fully assembled and frosted, this chocolate chip cake measures approximately 4 ½ inches high (with each cake layer being 2" tall).
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Chip Cake
Author:Ingredients
chocolate chip cake
- 2 ¼ cups All-Purpose Flour
- 2 teaspoon Baking Powder
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ½ cup Unsalted Butter (room temperature)
- 1 ½ cups Granulated Sugar
- 2 Large Eggs (room temperature)
- ¼ cup Vegetable Oil
- 1 cup Whole Milk (1% or 2% can also be used)
- 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup Semi-Sweet Mini Chocolate Chips
chocolate chip buttercream frosting
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter (room temperature)
- 4 cup Sifted Powdered Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- ¼ cup Heavy Cream
- ¼ cup Semi-Sweet Mini Chocolate Chips
Instructions
chocolate chip cake
- Adjust oven rack to the 2nd level position (just above center) and preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- Spray 2, 8 inch cake pans with a flour-based baking spray and set aside. You may also wish to add parchment paper circles and/or cake strips.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. Reserve 2-3 tablespoons of this dry mixture for the mini chocolate chips to be coated in before they're added to the batter.2 ¼ cups All-Purpose Flour, 2 teaspoon Baking Powder, ¼ teaspoon Salt
- In a separate large mixing bowl, beat together the unsalted butter and granulated sugar. Add in the eggs, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and whole milk, mixing until well blended.½ cup Unsalted Butter, 2 Large Eggs, ¼ cup Vegetable Oil, 1 cup Whole Milk, 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract, 1 ½ cups Granulated Sugar
- Add the whisked dry ingredients (minus 2-3 tablespoons for coating the mini chocolate chips) with the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Fold in the coated semi-sweet mini chocolate chips. The cake batter will be on the thicker side, but easily spreadable in the cake pans.1 cup Semi-Sweet Mini Chocolate Chips
- Evenly scoop and spread the cake batter into the 2 prepared 8-inch cake pans and bake side-by-side for 32-35 minutes at 350ºF or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean (my oven took 35 minutes).
- When done, allow the cakes to cool for 10 minutes before inverting the cakes onto wire cooling racks. Make sure the cakes have cooled completely before frosting.
- Cakes can be double wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and kept at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up 3 days. If planning to freeze, double wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and place them in a large freezer bag. Cakes can remain in the freezer for up to a month. When ready, take the cakes out of the freezer and frost.
chocolate chip buttercream frosting
- Using your hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the unsalted butter on medium-high speed until completely smooth (about 2-3 minutes).1 cup Unsalted Butter
- Switching the speed to low, add in the sifted powdered sugar one cup at a time until blended. Then add in the vanilla extract and heavy cream. Stir the mini chocolate chips using a spatula. If making the frosting in advance, wait to add the chocolate chips until you're ready to frost the cake.4 cup Sifted Powdered Sugar, 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract, ¼ cup Heavy Cream, ¼ cup Semi-Sweet Mini Chocolate Chips
Video
Recipe Notes
- This cake when assembled and frosted measures approx. 4 ½" high (with each cake layer being 2" tall).
- When spraying the cake pans with baking spray, you can also add an 8" circle of parchment paper to the inside bottom of the pans.
- While I didn't test the recipe this way, you can make this Chocolate Chip Cake as cupcakes. The baking time stays the same, but you will reduce your baking time to 18-20 minutes. The recipe will yield 18-24 cupcakes.
- 9/30/22 - The recipe has been retested/updated after hearing issues with chocolate chips sinking to the bottom.
Nutrition
Nutritonal information provided above is an estimate only and will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Jennifer Preston says
Jenn!! I just LOVE how you decorate this cake. That chocolate chip swirl is just gorgeous!
Jennifer says
Oh my gosh Jennifer, thank you so much! I had fun making it!
Sky says
What's the flavor resemble? A vanilla cake with chocolate chips? Or more of a cookie dough? Been looking to find a recipe for cupcakes that taste like cookie dough and this might be it?
Jennifer says
This cake resembles a vanilla cake with chocolate chips, sorry! You should check out The Scran Line. I bet he will more than likely have what you're looking for with a cookie dough taste!
Meghan says
Hello, how can I use the same recipe to make eggless cake..
Jennifer says
I'm sorry, I don't know as I did not test the recipe with any egg substitutes.
Amanda says
I am making this tomorrow and I can. not. wait!
Jennifer says
Yay! I hope you love it as much I do!❤️ If you take an pics, send some my way via Insta @beyond.the.butter / #beyondthebutter) so I can share them!
Giustina says
This looks yummy! Can I make these into cupcakes instead of cake?
Jennifer says
I haven’t tried it, but yes! Keep the oven temp the same, but bake them for about 18-20 minutes. I’d love to see how they come out!
Elena says
Hello! My first language is not English. But I don’t understand the frosting part like what we do between the 2 cakes I don’t understand:(
Jennifer says
Hi! No problem. You add a layer of frosting between the two cooled chocolate chip cakes then frost the entire outside of the cake. I hope this helps!
Jessica says
This cake was SO yummy and my son loved it for his birthday! All the chocolate chips fell to the bottom of the cakes. Did I do something wrong? I thought they would be more mixed into the cake.
Jennifer says
Oh I’m so glad he loved it! You didn’t do anything wrong, sometimes that can happen. If you coat the chocolate chips with some flour in a ziplock bag that can help keep them from sinking.
Charlie M says
How about using buttermilk in the cake?
Jennifer says
I only tested it with the 3 types of milk I mention in the ingredients list, but I don't see why you couldn't try buttermilk.
Linda says
Can you make this as a snacking cake without frosting it? Will it be moist enough on its own?
Jennifer says
I didn't test the recipe this way, but I don't see why not! It's definitely moist enough on its own.
Annamarie says
Just made this for my daughters 14th birthday and it was delicious!! It was a big hit with the entire crew!!
Jennifer says
So happy it was a hit, thank you, Anna Marie!
Jill says
Can I use 9 inch cake pans??
Jennifer says
I didn't test this in a 9-inch cake pan, but I don't see why you couldn't! The layers will just be a little thinner. Be mindful of your baking time too.
Jenny C says
Is there any way to sub the milk for almond milk or soy milk and make it dairy free
Jennifer says
I'm sorry, I don't know as I didn't test the recipe this way.
Daria says
I used canned coconut milk for this, and it was delicious!
Olive says
I just made it with almond milk and it worked very well
Jordan says
This cake was delicious and easy to make!
Jennifer says
Thank you, Jordan! And thank you for sharing your beautiful cake on Instagram!
Monica says
I made this cake for my husband’s 50th birthday yesterday. We all loved it! It was very moist and the frosting was fantastic!
Livi says
Can I make this gluten free?
Jennifer says
I didn't test the recipe with a gluten-free flour, but you could try it out. I would recommend a 1:1 gluten-free flour though if you do.
Joy says
Can you use cake flour as a substitute for the all purpose flour?
Jennifer says
I'm sure it can be used as a substitute, but I did not test the recipe this way so I can't say how it will turn out.
Collette Ricks says
Should I sift the powdered sugar before measuring the 4 cups? Or sift after?
Jennifer says
Yes, that's correct You should sift it before measuring.
Ceci says
I loved the ease of making this cake so I decided to try it. My husband enjoyed it, but I thought it was just okay. I halved the frosting recipe because the cake didn't rise two inches. I also stirred chocolate chips into the frosting but I would not do that again as it made it difficult to spread the frosting. It's probably best to just sprinkle some chocolate chips on the cake after it's frosted as it appears in your pictures.
Jennifer says
I'm sorry it wasn't a hit for you, but I certainly appreciate you trying the recipe! If your cakes didn't rise properly it could possibly be your baking powder. With the frosting, I did frost the cake with the chocolate chips mixed in with a few added after. Frosting them with the chips mixed in can make it kind of bumpy and not smooth when applying, so you can definitely leave them out and add them on after if you prefer.
Mara says
Can I bake this as a sheet cake or would it be too much batter?
Jennifer says
Hi! I'm sorry I didn't test this in a sheet pan, so I can't say for certain how it would come out. I think it would be too much batter unless you maybe split it up into two sheets pans.
Collette Ricks says
This cake was a beautiful success! I make it for a Sunday school teacher appreciation event at our church, so I wanted to make something that everyone would enjoy. I make 3 layers (just used 1.5x the ingredients), so that it would be more substantial in order to serve more people. Everyone loved it - it was striking and "different" looking than most cakes - so definitely an attention grabber. Thank you for the inspiration!
Collette Ricks says
Oops - typo -
I made 3 layers.....
I'll add - It was rich and delicious - but also light and moist! Yum!
Jennifer says
Thank YOU for making it! I'm glad it was a big hit!
Amy says
Made this for my son’s birthday! It was delicious! My chips did sink to the bottom-but it didn’t matter! I also used a brown sugar frosting instead which made it almost resemble chocolate chip cookies!!
Jennifer says
Thank you so much for making it—the brown sugar frosting sounds wonderful! And...the chips sometimes happen to me too (even when coating them)...it's okay!
Lisa says
Can you make this in a 9x13 pan?
Jennifer says
I haven't tried it in this pan, but I don't see why not!
Mignonne Silva says
Lovely, very simple cake. I had some left over buttermilk and used that instead of water. I only have dark chocolate chips and 100 percent cacao chips so I used the dark chocolate inside and the cacao chips in the frosting and it really helped balance the sweetness while delivering the intense chocolate I need. Very quick and easy to make.
Jennifer says
I love the substitute of buttermilk and dark chocolate!
Lori Murray says
I've baked many chocolate chip cakes but was never 100% thrilled with them. So I tried this recipe for a birthday party. It was a huge hit! Best chocolate chip cake that I have ever baked. I will be using only this recipe from now on. Thank you!!
Lee says
Made this over the weekend. I may have overmixed the batter a little and my flour-coated chips sunk like stones, but this cake was AMAZING!!!! Everything about it, from the cake to the frosting delivers. Will for sure be making this again - soon!
Anita says
Could I make this in a bunt cake pan? I only have 1 round pan right now so was hoping I could do it in the bunt pan instead.
Jennifer says
I only tested it using the 2, 8-inch cake tins so I can't say for certain how it would come out, but I don't see why you couldn't.
Brit says
This was actually the first cake I have every made from scratch. It was absolutely delicious. Hands down the best cake I have ever eaten. The only thing that I did differently was use lactose free 2% milk in the cake. That’s just because that’s what I had in hand.
Corinne says
Tried this and it came out totally flat. The batter was super super thin, chips all sank, and it came out super dense and not at all cakey. Wasn’t the baking powder either- we tested it before we baked with it. Too much liquid compared to the dry ingredients I think.
Jennifer says
I'm sorry it didn't work out for you, but I appreciate you trying the recipe and for the feedback!
Sue says
Made this for Easter/birthday celebration. It came out perfect and received compliments and clean plates! I just made a little less icing - just over half the recipe and canola oil instead of vegetable oil since I didn’t have any.
Jonathan says
This was a fantastic recipe! I used double the amount of heavy cream for the frosting, and half of the amount of chocolate chips. That was pretty much it for the tweaks. Excellent recipe!
Ben says
I haven’t rated it yet because I haven’t tasted it yet. Question. Is it supposed to be as loose as it is? Just curious because it wasn’t as thick as most cake recipes. Thanks in advance.
Jennifer says
Hi! I'm sorry, do you mean the consistency of the batter? The batter is not a super thick batter if that is what you mean.
Kelly says
I made this with almond milk and in a 13x9 pan. It turned out great!!! New follower here and can’t wait to try other recipes from your site.
Jennifer says
That's so wonderful Kelly, thank you for being here and for making the recipe!
Sonia says
Flavor wise cake was decent. Chocolate chips fell to the bottom even with coating in flour which has never been an issue before.
Bailey says
Any way I can get a copy of the old recipe? I tested a bunch of recipes to make my own wedding cake and we decided on that one but I never printed it. I haven’t tried the new one yet.
Jennifer says
Hi! Yes, I can email it to you!
Jean says
Just took my cakes out of the oven. They turned out very well. I baked them for 32 minutes and they were a lovely golden color. I'm waiting for them to cool down so I can frost them. I used white chocolate chips instead of the dark chips and will be making a chocolate icing from the back of a Ghirardelli dutch process cocoa bag.
Also, thank you for the detailed instructions. I like the way you put the measurements in bold letters along with the step by step instructions. This was perfect for my 2 sided printer!
Jennifer says
Would love to hear how it turned out with the white chocolate chips! That sounds lovely! And thank you (regarding the ingredients/instructions). I know what a pain it is having to scroll up or look up each time for the ingredient amounts, so I decided to include them below.
absinthe says
turned out great!! the addition worked well, none of the chocolate chips sank. also, writing the measurements needed under each step is SUPER convenient, thank you so much 😀
Jennifer says
You're so welcome! I'm glad the cake was a hit!
Daisy says
Hi !!! I'm going to make this recipe today. It looks so good and we love chocolate chips in almost anything dessert ☺️ I wanted to ask, Is it needed to sift the flour or you don't sift for this recipe ?
Jennifer says
Sorry for the late reply to your question! It's totally not required, but it does help break up any possible lumps of flour.
Ginnie says
Haven’t made this yet, but looking at non chocolate cakes for a mint chocolate chip cake base! I see this cake has 1 tablespoon of vanilla. How would you incorporate peppermint extract into this recipe??
Thanks for your help!
Jennifer says
Without having tested this, I would say to keep the vanilla extract amount as is, then add 1/2 tsp of peppermint extract. A little goes a long way when it comes to peppermint extract, so I wouldn't go too much more than that. The other alternative would be to leave the chocolate chip cake part as is and add the peppermint extract to only the frosting. Hope this helps!
Ginnie says
Thanks! I’ll test it out for ya! 😊 can’t wait to try this!
Jennifer says
I appreciate that, thanks! Have a great weekend!
Ginnie says
Delicious! Made twice the amount of batter to ensure I had enough for 3 8” pans. Trimmed it up and added a little green to go with the peppermint extract; which I doubled for this recipe and it was great! Moist cake and the peppermint was a subtle compliment! Thanks!! Will make again! 😄
Jennifer says
Awesome, Ginnie! Thank you so much for sharing your results. I'm glad it was a hit!
Kellie says
I have this cake in the oven right now!! Is it normal for the wet ingredients to separate when you add the cold milk to it?? Should I have set the milk out for awhile before I added it? It seemed to mix ok when I added the dry ingredients to it but it looked chunky and weird before that. Just wondering if I did something wrong?? Thanks.
Jennifer says
So happy you're making this; thank you! To answer your question, I don't think you did anything wrong. It's quite possible that was just some bits of the butter that maybe weren't fully mixed in when you had added the milk. Have a great weekend, and hope you enjoy the cake!
Michelle says
I made this cake for my husbands birthday and it was a hit! Super yummy and beautiful! Will keep this recipe for another occasion!
Jennifer says
So glad you and your husband enjoyed this cake, Michelle! Thank you for making it!
Heather S says
excellent recipe. classic cake. very sweet. I made it with 2 - 8" cake pans and would like to try my hand at making it into a tiered cake as a gift for my friends anniversary party. Amateur baker here and am trying to work the math out for how to adjust the recipe for 6" and 10" cake pans. Do you have any suggestions?
Jennifer says
I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe; thank you for making it! I never tested this recipe using another cake pan, but it might work if you double the recipe and divide it between the 6, 8, and 10-inch cake pans (assuming one of each). If you make it as a tiered cake, I would love to see how it turned out!
Robin says
I have been wanting to make this cake forever! And today I finally did. It was absolutely delicious. Cake was tender. I added cream cheese to the frosting because that’s what we love most lol. Served with vanilla ice cream and homemade hot fudge sauce. Still sooo full lol. Thank you for a recipe that tastes as good as it looked. Your directions are always so easy to follow and your backstories are great. Thanks again.
Jennifer says
I'm so glad you had the chance to make it, Robin, and that you enjoyed it too! Thank you for your review and for noting the addition you added to the frosting. I will have to try that next time!
Stephanie says
Tried the recipe - while the taste was great, it was super dense, with a coarse crumb. Followed the recipe exactly. We might try again in case something went awry. 🙁
Jennifer says
I'm so sorry this recipe was a miss, Stephanie, but I appreciate the feedback!
Lisa C says
Just made this recipe today for my husband's birthday. The only change I made was baking it in a 9x13 pan. Took about 37 min in my convection oven. Followed your excellent instructions including tossing the mini chocolate chips in some of the flour mixture before folding into the batter. And they didn't sink! I found this recipe to be simple to follow and written well. Greatly appreciated the ingredients at the end of each section too. Cake was super moist and quite delicious! I posted some pics on Insta and tagged you. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
Jennifer says
Thank YOU for making it! Love that you made this cake as a 9 x 13 and appreciate the feedback on the instructions too!
Aubrey says
Can this recipe be converted to cupcakes?
Jennifer says
While I didn't test it this way, my chocolate chip cake recipe can definitely be made as cupcakes! The baking temperature will remain the same, but reduce the bake time to 18-20 minutes. Hope this helps! Happy baking!
Allison says
I've made this cake at least 3 times now and it's always a winner. Thank you for the recipe!
Erin says
So easy & looks delicious! Made for my MIL birthday & my first time ever making a cake.
Cake pieces turned out beautifully & I used a standard mixer. I did take out 3tbsp of the dry mix and totally forgot to add it back in. I added the chocolate chips directly to the mix and they didn’t fall at all!
I am waiting for the cake pieces to cool but already made the frosting. Once I frost, can I put in the fridge for a couple hours before our celebration? Or would room temperature be best?
Jennifer says
Yay! This is awesome Erin, thank you for making it and for your feedback! Once you frost the cake, with enjoying it that same night, you can do either, it's up to you!