NB: I was so glad to have read the comments too, my cake took longer to bake, 50mins vs. the 35mins in the recipe (gas oven, super low elevation). Also, my little trick — via America’s Test Kitchen — for greasing the pan is 1 Tbs melted butter + 1 Tbs Dutch Processed cocoa powder (we use Hershey’s Special Dark), blend into a paste then use a pastry brush to brush onto the pan, making sure to coat every nook and cranny. Perfect release and a nice crust on the cake.

There are so many great food blogs, I hadn’t gotten around to checking this one yet but now it’ll be part of the rotation, thank you!

I discovered your website not too long ago, courtesy of a girlfriend who served some AMAZING food at a party and gave you all the credit. I’ve already made several recipes, and both my boyfriend and myself are big fans.

I made this recipe last weekend using a chocolate stout. I ended up using 3 times the amount of sour cream called for (I was making the Chocolate-chip sour cream cake at the same time and mixed them up–oops!) and it still turned out amazing. I’m looking forward to making it correctly.

As a law student, I’m stressed out a lot of the time, and your website has provided some much needed cooking relaxation, so THANKS!

(Hint for college students who don’t have a double broiler: the ganache can be made in the microwave. Start with 30 secs, then stir, and go on until it’s perfect. Drizzling works best when it’s still HOT.)

I brushed the mold with melted butter; let the cake cool in it completely; had no problem getting it out – slid right out after about 3 hours.
After 35 minutes of baking it was nowhere near done; took about 50 minutes to bake through, while remaining perfectly moist.
I used Belgian double chocolate stout – worked fine. (Would have used regular Guinness, but they only sold it in 6-packs, and there are no stout drinkers in the household at present).

Like many other readers, I have to preface the review by saying that I am NOT a chocolate cake fan. But this, this was out of this world. I loved the texture of the crumb – so rich and moist and sinful.

I followed the recipe exactly for this one addition:

Highly recommend – add rum (or beer) soaked raisins to the batter. They elevate this cake to a truly sublime level.

I soaked a cup of raisins in rum overnight. They become so soft and plump that they almost dissolve in the baked cake; but what they add is beyond magic.

My only gripe with the cake is the ganache: the 6 tablespoons of cream were not enough for me to dissolve the chocolate. But that was easily fixed by adding a couple of tablespoons more. What I do suggest, however, is a different method to add coffee flavor. This cake is so good, that it deserves real, not instant, coffee. Crush whole coffee beans, preferably mocha java, and soak them for 30 minutes in 1/3 cup scalded heavy cream. Drain the cream through a cheese cloth. Add the rest of the cream, bring to a boil; poor the cream over the finely chopped chocolate (oh, by the way, use good chocolate, not cheap chocolate chips); whisk vigorously, until chocolate is compeletely melted.

Thank you for this recipe. Definitely a keeper!