Easy & Decadent Chocolate Pound Cake Using Cake Mix
Velvety soft chocolate pound cake is easier to make than you think, especially when using a doctored-up cake mix.
You’ll love the moist, tender crumb and rich, decadent flavor of this easy chocolate pound cake. Nobody will guess you used a cake mix!
Note: This post may contain affiliate links for your convenience. If you make a purchase, this site may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. You can read my full disclosure policy here.
I’m always a sucker for a slice of an indulgent chocolate cake.
It’s one of those classic desserts that can be dressed up or down, is pretty enough to be served at a birthday or holiday celebration, and is always a crowd-pleaser.
And although I love making chocolate cakes from scratch, sometimes you just need a good shortcut recipe to save some time.
That’s where this chocolate pound cake made with cake mix comes in! It’s similar to my scratch-made chocolate cream cheese pound cake, but easier.
With a few strategic additions to a devil’s food cake mix, you can achieve the dense, moist texture that sets pound cakes apart from other cakes.
Cake Mix Chocolate Pound Cake
Cake mixes are designed to be pretty foolproof, simply by following the instructions on the box. They consistently yield light, fluffy cakes, so you don’t have to be an experienced baker to get great results.
That reliability one reason why cake mix desserts are some of my readers’ favorites!
But for a pound cake, we don’t want it to be light and fluffy. It’s supposed to be velvety soft, moist, and more dense than a regular box mix cake.
Using some of the same tweaks from my cream cheese pound cake from a mix and my red velvet pound cake recipe, I doctored-up a box of devil’s food cake mix.
Once you try it, I’m sure you’ll agree it’s one of the easiest and best pound cake recipes.
How to Make Chocolate Pound Cake with Cake Mix
It’s really easy to whip up this dessert,
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Cream Cheese
- Butter
- Sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla Extract
- Devil’s Food Cake Mix
- Flour
- Cocoa Powder
- Water
How to Make It:
Find the full printable recipe available below
Combine wet ingredients. First, you’ll cream together the butter and cream cheese until nice and smooth. Then beat in the sugar until well-combined.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Then mix in the vanilla extract.
Add dry ingredients. Then, you’ll add the cake mix, cocoa powder, and all-purpose flour. Mix on low speed just until combined.
With the mixer still on low speed, gradually add some warm water, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. The batter will be fairly thick, but should be nice and smooth.
Bake. Then, you’ll spread the batter evenly into a bundt pan sprayed with baking spry (such as Baker’s Joy).
Bake in a preheated oven for about 60-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then run a knife along the edges of the cake to loosen it from the pan. Invert the cake onto a serving platter and cool completely before slicing.
Notes and Adaptations:
- I most often serve this cake with berries and whipped cream, or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and drizzle of hot fudge sauce. If you prefer to have a chocolate glaze topping for the cake, use the glaze recipe from my triple chocolate bundt cake recipe.
- Store cake covered at room temperature for up to 3-5 days.
Recommended Equipment:
Chocolate Pound Cake (From a Mix)
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese (softened)
- 1 cup butter (two sticks, softened)
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 eggs (at room temperature)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 15.25 ounces Devil's food cake mix
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup warm water
- powered sugar (optional, for dusting top of cake)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F and spray a 12-cup bundt pan with baking spray (such as Baker's Joy). Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large mixing bowl with an electric hand mixer), beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth.
- Add the sugar to the mixture and mix until well-combined.
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add vanilla extract and mix to incorporate.
- Add the cake mix, cocoa powder, and flour to the bowl. With the mixer on low speed, mix just until the dry ingredients are incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- With the mixer on low speed, add the warm water and mix until combined.
- Pour batter into prepared bundt pan. Bake in preheated oven for 60-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then run a knife along the edge of the cake to ensure it's separated from the pan. Invert the cake onto a serving plate and allow to cool completely. If desired, dust with powdered sugar before serving.
Notes
- I most often serve this cake with berries and whipped cream, or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and drizzle of hot fudge sauce. If you prefer a chocolate glaze for the cake, use the glaze recipe from my triple chocolate bundt cake recipe.
- Store cake covered at room temperature for up to 3-5 days.
Nutrition
Did you try this recipe?
Don’t forget to leave a rating below and make sure to follow on Instagram and Pinterest for more easy recipes!
More Chocolate Cake Recipes:
- Old-Fashioned Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake
- Easy Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake
- One-Bowl Chocolate Cake
- Chocolate Angel Food Cake from a Mix
- Decadent Chocolate Fudge Cake
Don’t forget to save this recipe to your desserts board on Pinterest!
Easy family-friendly recipes in your inbox!