Delicious Matilda’s Cake – Fudgy & Moist Chocolate Cake

If there’s one dessert I can never say no to, it’s chocolate cake and this Matilda’s cake really tops any other chocolate cake recipe you have ever tried, rest assured! I had chocolate cake for my birthday since I was a kid. It was the spongy, moist kind, slathered with icing sugar on top and it was honestly always a hit.

But then growing up and moving away from home i started trying different things and chocolate fudge cake kinda took the back burner. But this Matilda’s cake recipe from Bake with Zoha made me fall in love with it all over again. Okay, surely very far from what I used to have as a kid, but rest assured that my dreams of , rich, scrumptious and fudgy chocolate cake have hit all the boxes with this!

Who is Matilda? What is all the fuss about Matilda’s cake?

Matilda is the main character of the book Matilda by Roald Dahl and its 1996 screen adaptation ‘Matilda’. In this particular scene, Bruce gets punished by Ms Trunchbull for stealing her cake. He has to eat the most gigantic, three-layer, scrumptious, fudgy and decadent chocolate cake in front of the school. This scene has been so infamous that people have started to recreate this delicious matilda chocolate cake, no punishment needed though!

What ingredients do I need to make a Matilda’s cake?

The ingredients for this Matilda’s chocolate cake are quite a lot, but then you would expect it from a three-layered chocolate cake, let’s start with the ingredients for the base:

• all-purpose flour: it forms the structure of the cake and gives it its body;
• baking powder: helps the cake rise and keeping it light and soft;
• baking soda: helps create a more tender texture and mixing with the acidic ingredients it makes the cake rise;
• granulated sugar: sweetens the cake while keeping it moist too;
• brown sugar: adds extra moisture to it and gives it a slight caramel tone;
• salt: enhances the chocolate flavor and balances the sweetness;
• eggs: bind all the ingredients together while adding richness and helping with the structure of the matilda’s chocolate cake;
• vegetable oil: keeps the cake soft and moist;
• buttermilk: adds a slight tang and mixed with the baking soda it helps the cake rise;
• sour cream: makes the cake extra moist and rich, giving it a soft crumb;
• cocoa powder: provides the flavor and the color;
• instant coffee: helps enhance the chocolate flavor;
• boiling water: helps to dissolve the cocoa powder and instant coffee, creating a smoother batter.

Now for the chocolate fudge frosting of your Matilda’s cake, you will need:

• dark chocolate: this is the base of the fudge frosting and the main ingredient that will give it this special, decadent flavor and texture;
• light honey: you will use this to melt it with the dark chocolate to keep the mixture glossy and slightly softer;
• cream cheese: adds creaminess and a slight tang to the chocolate frosting, helps make it more spreadable too;
• cocoa powder: helps enhance the flavor of chocolate while keeping the frosting light;
• powdered sugar: sweetens the matilda’s cake frosting and gives it a smoother finish;
• salt: balances out the sweetness of the cake;
• heavy cream: makes the frosting lighter and fluffier, adding richness.

How do I make Matilda chocolate cake?

To start your matilda’s cake, preheat the oven to 180°C and line three 20 cm cake tins with baking paper, greasing the sides lightly. Then in a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, brown and granulated sugar and salt until smooth and lump-free.

In another bowl, whisk the eggs with the oil, buttermilk and sour cream until silky. Add the dry ingredients to the wet in two additions, gently whisking and folding just until combined. Stop as soon as the batter comes together; overmixing is the enemy of a tender crumb.

In a small bowl, mix the cocoa powder and instant coffee. Pour over the boiling water and whisk until it’s glossy and smooth. Fold the mixture into the main batter until it’s combined.

Now divide the chocolate cake batter between the three pans and bake for 22-24 minutes, or until a skewer comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging to it. Let the cakes cool in their tins for 20 minutes before letting them cool completely on a wire rack. Then refrigerate them for an hour.

Now onto the chocolate fudge frosting. Place the chocolate and honey in a small saucepan and melt gently over the lowest heat, stirring until smooth and then set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the cream cheese with the sifted cocoa powder, powdered sugar and salt until creamy and smooth. Add the heavy cream and whisk until light and fluffy.

Slowly pour in the warm melted chocolate while mixing on low speed. The frosting will loosen and turn glossy. Let it sit at room temperature until thick and spreadable, about 30 minutes. If it sets too firm, warm a small portion briefly and whisk it back in.

To assemble your Matilda cake, trim the domes of the cooled cakes, so that you have flat layers. Then layer them on top of each other with generous frosting. Cover the whole cake with a thin layer of frosting and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Then slather the rest of the frosting all over the cake in swoopy layers. Serve at room temperature and enjoy your Matilda’s cake!

Can I make this matilda cake recipe in advance?

You can indeed make the cake layers in advanceand after baking them, you can refrigerate them for a couple of days before frosting. Just cover them in plastic wrap and you will still have a very moist cake. Make sure, though, not to go over the two days.

Can I freeze the matildas chocolate cake?

Yes! And you actually have two ways to do it. Either when the cake is all frosted and finished, or just the cake layers.

In the former method, you can freeze it in individual slices for easy access, just wrap them in plastic wrap and then place them in a freezer-safe container. Or if you prefer, you can freeze the whole cake, place it in the freezer uncovered for an hour so that it starts to firm up. Then wrap it in plastic wrap and then aluminium foil to keep it safe from freezer burns. Make sure to date them. In this case, the moist chocolate cake can last in the freezer for up to three months. To thaw, put the slices or whole cake in the fridge overnight.

To freeze the chocolate cake layers, follow the same method, so wrap them in plastic wrap and freeze for up to two months. To thaw, keep the cake layers at room temperature for a couple of hours or in the fridg overnight before frosting.

Do you have more cake recipes on the blog?

Must admit that cakes haven’t had much space on the blog, we usually make a lot of cookies and smaller sweet treats, but some of our favourite cake recipes are:

• strawberry cake pots: this is a smaller version of what we have every time for Simona’s birthday since she was 2-3 years old, a classic so tasty you can’t get enough;
• mini carrot cakes: did I mention we are obsessed with one-person mini cakes? You might have realised and my other obsession has been carrot cake since I tried it first in the UK and let me tell you, I am a harsh judge of it and these are superb, moist and so tasty;
• torta tenerina: from our sister blog, this delicious fudgy chocolate cake with a nice crust on top;
• no bake cheesecake: okay, not a cake as you would traditionally put it, but five ingredients and endless ways to garnish is always a yes from me;
• pistachio lemon cake loaf: I love a good loaf, and a combo of my favourite ingredients its yet another plus;
• carrot cake pound cake: a delicious dense, moist and spiced carrot cake with a tasty cream cheese frosting;
• matcha sponge cake: light, fluffy and so delicious, matcha flavoured, this is the it cake for every matcha girl around;
• swiss almond cake: delicious, more dense than your usual cake but the texture will only help you taste better the almonds;
• burnt basque cheesecake: I know, another cheesecake? This was a big hit years ago and it’s actually coming back, simple and extra tasty;
• ricotta hotcakes: these are to die for, fluffy and the perfect breakfast treat that can get anyone out of bed;
• hazelnut and cold brew bundt cake: I took this from the very very old recipes we used to share in the beginning and still can remember we made this when I spent my summer holidays in London, working on the blog and savouring what the life of a teenager could do in a new city, drink too much coffee and eat the whole town while reading;
• chocolate cake: this is such a delicious chocolate cake with a sour cream frosting.

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