Mexican Chocolate Cake

This was my ultimate favorite cake when I was growing up; the recipe came from my Texan grandmother. But in her version, you mixed the flour and sugar in a large bowl, and then heated the margarine, oil, water, and cocoa in a saucepan on the stove. Melt the margarine and bring it to a boil, stir it up and then pour the mixture over the flour and sugar. Then add everything else (beat the eggs a bit before adding them). Bake in a rectangular cake pan. I almost always double the cinnamon because I like it a little stronger. Grandma's version also had a pour-over frosting: melt another stick of margarine and add one quarter cup of cocoa and 6 tablespoons of milk. When it boils and the margaine is melted, remove it from the heat and beat in as much powdered sugar as you can (recipe alled for "1 box", but I always used more), along with 1 tablespoon of vanilla. Pour over the warm cake. YUM!

COOKGIRL is not easy to impress. But this is a very good cake recipe. I made a few revisions and modifications- for example:- I used regular milk instead of soured milk. Almond milk would make an interesting substitution....? Brown sugar and cane sugar in equal amounts give this recipe a richer flavor than boring processed white sugar. Also, I added 1/8 tsp of ground cloves, 1/2 tsp. of ground cardamon, 1/2 tsp. of slightly crushed anise seeds to the mixture. The use of Mexican cocoa mix from the import store gave this cake a really spicy flavor in place of regular cocoa powder. (I made adjustments with the amount of sugar used.) After removing the cake from the oven, sprinkle with powdered sugar for an appealing presentation. This cake earns COOKGIRL'S seal of approval or an A++...take your pick.

This cake is so easy to prepare. It has a wonderful flavor. I used 1/2 c. OJ for the milk like one reviewer suggested. Turned out SO GOOD! Everyone loved it. I did make a choc. buttercream frosting to put on top. A real thin layer.

Oh my G*d yes! A few changes though: I used pineapple/orange juice instead of the milk and added about 1 tsp. chipotle chili powder. Butter not margarine. Also 1/4 cup tequila as part of the water. I used the coffee/cinnamon frosting others recommended but with espresso powder. I had people on low carb diets begging for pieces to take home. This is a keeper--I sent this recipe to my mom.

I've made it three times but I've added to the recipe because the first time I couldn't taste the cinnamon. I also added Kahlua in the recipe and to the chocolate fudge icing I used. Then, I dipped strawberries in the icing and decorated the cake. A huge hit!!!!!

This is a great cake. I also used fresh orange juice instead of sour milk. The cinnamon is the perfect touch. It is not your typical cake.

Everyone in my office loved it. Good with chocolate icing. Can also be made in 2 9" round pans(bake about 22 min). Very moist.

This recipe was a flop. I used hard margarine and this does not work, it should be specified as soft margarine in the recipe if that works. I have never mixed margarine with the liquid, but rather sugar.

Awesome cake. This was my first attempt at ever making a cake and was told by family it was the most moist, best tasting homemade cake they had ever had. Its good with whipped cream on top

Very tasty. Normally I don't change a recipe the first time I make it, but I kept tasting the batter and wanting it to be spicier so I added a bit of cayenne pepper and ground anise and also doubled the cinnamon. I also used only 1/2 of the cocoa power and 1/4 c mexican chocolate and 1 cup brown sugar + 1 cup white rather than using all white sugar. I made a chocolate ganache with cinnamon and cayenne pepper to go on top. Very good. Keeper for sure!

a yummy change from typical American chocolate cake...easy to make, and moist enough without frosting..a hit at our church dinner.

Very moist, nice not-too-sweet flavor. We did change a few things, of course. Used butter instead of margarine, and I used 1/2 c. of milk with vinegar in it for the sour milk. Instead of adding a cup of water, I used 1/3 c. water and about 2/3 c. strong brewed coffee. I did add a little extra cocoa. I had a little trouble getting it out of the pans, I used round cake pans, so maybe next time I'll follow directions to use a 12x18. I'll be making this again and again, it was delicious.

With the exception of the cinnamon, and the addition of a 1/2 tsp. salt, this recipe is a mirror image of my mother's buttermilk brownie recipe. I followed reviewer dreamysweets' directions and used their frosting recipe, and when I tasted the cake, I knew immediately it was my mom's buttermilk brownies. Great recipe, and thanks for the great tips, dreamysweets! Oh, and I baked it in a 13 x 9, and it took, at 350 degrees, about 45 minutes to bake, testing every five minutes after 30 minutes in the oven.

Easy and delicious! Followed dreamysweets variatiion, loved the pour on frosting. Decorated with strawberries to set it off ( the first time) The second time, I decided not to use strawberries since even thought beautiful, they don't really tie in with the cake flavors to me. Very moist and rich. I reduced the white sugar by 1/2 cup and rplcd it with brown, also, added a dash of nutmeg. Oh, and I used a bundt pan, which increased the cook time by 15 minutes, and greased and "floured " it with chocolate powder. GREAT! Thanks..this ones a keeper!

Oh my gosh. This was sooooo moist and wonderful!!! I used unrefined sugar and coconut oil. I also added a whole bag of chocolate chips since I wasnt going to frost it (I didn't need to use the whole bag though cuz the cake itself was so good). Next time I make it I will top it with whip cream and crushed Heath bar.

I made this cake exactly as directed and it was delicious, light and rich. I did, however, add dreamysweets recipe for pour-over icing. The cake would be wonderful plain but it's extra good w/ the frosting!

Needs salt. I subbed the milk for OJ as others had suggested. I also use butter not margarine. I put into two 9" pans and had to bake for about 43 minutes. Much longer than I ever have had to for a cake like this, but towards the end of baking it is perfect! Can't wait to have it! I will fill with a chocolate butter cream that I added cinnamon to and topped with a chocolate ganache....should be beautiful!

An excellent, moist chocolate cake...I used half white sugar, half brown, doubled the cinnamon and used a cup of coffee instead of a cup of water. I frosted it with the chocolate cookie buttercream frosting from this website. Very good!

I made this for a Spanish project, and they Flew out of the pan. We used a 9x13 pan as that was all we had, and baked roughly the same amount of time, so they were somewhat like delectable brownies. Just to be silly, I spread chocolate frosting and toffee bits over the cake about 5 minutes after taking it out of the oven, and they melted and melded with the cake deliciously. This was rich, very chocolate-y, very good. I definetly plan on making this again.

Excelent!!! Light,fluffy, easy, different cake. I added pecans and was very good too.

I followed dreamysweets alterations. This was the first cake i have ever made from scratch. I made it for my daughters 1st birthday and added buttercream frosting and thin sliced strawberries. I even got compliments from the pastry chef at the party. So moist and so good. Will never make a different recipes. THanks!

This is a very good cake -- there is something about it that makes you feel that you MUST eat a 2nd peice (beware!). The texture was moist, but not very consistent. The cinnamon is not identifiable as such, but does make it different from other chocolate cakes; if you want to emphasize the cinnamon, try it with the cinnamon/coffee icing on this site.

Great cake recipe. For a bit of difference I substituted half the cup of water with marmalade and added a cup of dried cranberries. The cake turned out brilliantly with a hint of citrus to match the cinnamon. Great recipe!!

This was obscenely delicious!!! chocolate lovers BEWARE, It's irresistibly mouth watering & addictive.

I needed to make a quick Mexican dessert for my daughter's Spanish class fiesta in the morning so I picked this. Bonus points for her and of course, I received no notice. This was not very sweet. I added a lot more cinnamon so that flavor would dominate. Made into a bundt cake.

exceptional, the very best

This cake was delicious! It was very moist. I used real butter and buttermilk instead of sour milk. I made it for a family get together and did not have any to take home......it was all gone!!! I will definitely make it again.

I made this cake using oj instead of sour milk and with the addition of cardomom, ground cloves and a touch of cayenne pepper. It was so moist and dark and wonderful on the inside, but looked a bit of a mess on the outside, a bit like a giant muffin, with a big crack running across the top. It also kind of fell apart when I moved it or attempted to cut it. But being a beginner, this could well have been my own fault, maybe I made a mistake somewhere along the way. And I also found it took much longer to cook than was indicated - I took it out after half an hour and though the top was cooked it actually wobbled, because inside it was still liqiud. However, I must emphasize, when it was finally done, it tasted great!

This cake is a delight and great break from your usual chocolate. It very easy to make and please chocolate and non chocolate lovers alike. I iced the cake with chocolate buttercream frosting which gave the cake extra kick and i added fresh orange (to the milk) instead of using sour milk. Enjoy!!

Nice and moist! This recipe is great, I doubled the cinnamon because we love cinnamon!

It was very good. I made some cupcakes for a church pot luck and added cinnamon& semi-sweet chocolate chips to them. It had alot of cinnamon, but it tasted great.

I use a recipie similar to this one but needed to make some adjustments to get the same taste as the 1st mexican chocolate cake I had. I added a pinch more cinnamon and replaced the water with brewed coffee. It is very moist and perfect for a sweet tooth. would be great with hot fudge. Also soured milk is just milk with a teaspoon of vinegar not actually bad milk.

I like this because it is moist enough you don't need any frosting! I took this to work on Cinco De Mayo to serve to the residets. One of the staff members (a Mexican woman) just had to have the recipe. I forgot and she kept asking me for it. Finally I went into the office and used the computer to get her the recipe. She says her family loves it.

Good texture. I used coffee instead of water (almost always do with chocolate cake) Covered it with chocolate ganache and served it at our staff bbq with great results!

A very moist cake! I iced it with a whipped cream topping and it was great

Very good and moist.

This cake was just as moist as the description and the reviews promised. As some reviewers recommended, I used OJ in place of the sour milk and used 1/4 c. tequila and 3/4 c. water in place of the 1 c. water. At least doubling the amount of cinnamon is a must. I might even put more in next time. I also added a couple hand fulls of semi-sweet chocolate chips, which gave the cake some yummy texture. Great cake recipe!!

Very easy recipe. I've made this both as a cake and cupcakes. Cut the recipe in half to make 12 nice size cupcakes. It's a mild chocolate flavor, nicely accented with the cinnamon. Make sure the margarine (or butter, which I used) is very soft, and it will incorporate into the batter much easier. Used the cinnamon coffee icing, also on this site, as recommended by others.

I cut the sugar to 1 1/2 cup. On the dry side but has a nice flavor.

This cake is delicious! I used a melted cocoa icing and poured it over top! My family ate every crumb!

Very tasty. I had a very hard time getting it out of the pans though. Both parts of the cake broke in half as I was trying to get them out. Maybe I should have floured the pans first.

I followed the recipe exactly...twice...and both times this cake completely fell apart when it came out of the oven. I don't understand what went wrong. I want to like this recipe very badly, so I may try again in the near future.

This recipe was wonderful and INCREDIBLY moist. The only changes I made/recommend is adding more spices. I added a little allspice, nutmeg and chili powder, and it was sooooo amazing. I also topped it with the coffee cinnamon frosting from this site and used chocolate frosting on the sides and inbetween layers. (used two 9X9 cake pans for 24 minutes). Wonderful, thank you!

Awesome, spongey, super moist, pudding like cake! I followed other reviewers: orange juice for milk, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon (still hardly tasted it)

I made half of a recipe today for just two of us...FORGOT to add the sugar, made a nice coffee-cinnamon glaze and served it with a scoop of ice cream. He didn't miss the sugar in the cake at all.

Wonderfull recipe. Very simple!

My family loved this cake. It was was moist and fluffy. Exceptional, but next time, I would put some sort of icing on the cake. but otherwise, I will definitly make this again.

I would have rated it a five, except that it was a bit thin, and I even made it in a 9 x 13 pan. It was so easy, the flavor was delicious and the texture was great. A bit of a cross between a brownie and cake, but I like it that way. I frosted it with the recipe for Cinnamon Coffee Frosting from this site an it was a huge hit at Thanksgiving dinner!

I used DreamySweets suggestion for putting this together. Made her frosting recipe. I added about 1 tsp cinnamon to the frosting too. Such a moist flavorful cake. Amazing! Oh I made it in the bundt cake pan. Baked at 325 for about 40 min then up to 375 for an addditional 15 minutes. I think at 350 it would have been done in 40-45 min.

I have made this cake twice now. It is DELICIOUS! I used 2 tsp of cinnamon because I just love it so I don't mind it being more noticeable in the cake. I definitely used the shortest amount of cooking time, then went up by about 2 minutes and kept checking it. Take it out AS SOON as it shows virtually nothing on the toothpick, because it will be so moist and yummy. One question for Valerie though....I want to make a "blue velvet" cake....do you think I can add the food coloring to this and have it show? Also, because this cake is truly one of the best, can I opt for flour in lieu of the cocoa to make a white cake? I'm just getting my legs with scratch cakes, so I'm simply not sure. Thanks so much for the recipe, and for your answer on the coloring/flour/cocoa question(s).

Very good cake - instead of milk or oj, I used a small jar of orange marmalade which I melted down with the butter and I only put in a cup of sugar. The scattered orange pieces add a nice element. I also doubled the cinnamon, added a touch of cardamom and cayenne. Final product is not too sweet, which I like but for others, I topped with powdered sugar and added decoration ("happy birthday" wish) with the vanilla buttercream icing on this site.

This took way longer to cook than it said on the recipe.

While the cake was tasty and moist, it was very difficult to remove from the pan. Rather than greasing and flouring the pan it should be lined with parchment if the layers are to be removed. Mine fell apart while taking it out of the pan. A little disappointing.

I absolutely love this cake. I've made it 3 times now and it always come out fantastic - moist and flavorful It's ridiculously easy to make - you sort of can't mess it up. I did tweak the recipe (of course, everyone does on this site :). I cut the sugar to 1 1/4 cups and it was plenty sweet. I doubled the cinnamon because I love cinnamon. And I did the traditional blend the wet ingredients, slowly add the dry ingredients method. I topped it with a chocolate sour cream frosting I found on this site, to which I added cinnamon and cayenne (cause I love heat). This is a go-to cake for me!

I tweaked this recipe with a couple of the suggestions! It was phenominal!

Very moist cake, love the taste. In order to get sour milk take 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice and a cup of milk or the amount of milk needed for the recipe. 30 mins was just the right amount of time for this cake.

Love it. Took it to a work potluck. Everyone love it. So moist. I'll be making it again.

Great cake. I love the cinnamon flavor but also disolved a rounded teaspoon of instant coffee in hot water and added that as well. I find coffee and cinnamon both compliment chocolate very well. I also topped it with a caramel sauce made from scratch. It was a hit. My son has requested it for his birthday. Thanks for submitting it.

I love to bake and this is truly the most moist chocolate cake I have ever made. All my friends raved about it. I did not have sour milk so I used a mixture of full fat milk and sour cream which worked fine. I put the mix in two round tins and iced it with dark chocolate fudge icing. I am going to try it without the cinnamon for a chocolate fudge cake. I will definitely be using this often.

This was light, moist and delicious. I also replaced the sour milk with orange juice and it came out perfectly. I halved the recipe and made it in one round 9" tin and baked for 20 mins in the oven. The cake mixture was so liquid going into the tin and so thin when it came out of the oven I was a bit worried - but it was perfect. That's how it is supposed to be. A thin layer of frosting on top added and extra bit of sweetness.

I am not much of a baker, but when my daughter asked for a choclate cake for her 19th birthday I wanted something a little more grown up than the usual. This cake turn out wonderfully. As some suggested I added a bit more spice, a few shakes of cloves and cayenne pepper. I also used almond milk instead of sour milk and used brown sugar for half of the white. I topped it off with a choclate glaze where I added a bit of cinnamon and raspberry liqueur. The cake was a big hit with her, all her friends and the older adults there. I will be making it again.

I really enjoyed this cake. Like a lot of posters, I used OJ, and bummped up the cinnamon. Very nice.

excellent recipe. moist cake. after reading reviews, used 1/2 cup tequilla, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup orange juice as the 'liquid' ingredients along with the butter and vanilla. my only problem is that the cake 'stuck' really bad to both of the 9/9 pans, and they were two different brands. Remedy: lots of icing :)

Beware of the pan size stated. When I tried to scale down the recipe I noticed that the pan size doesn't change; big problem.

cool

Very good recipe and a fun addition to a margarita cupcake recipe on the dessert menu for a Cinco de Mayo weekend gathering. I doubled the cinnamon per another reviewer's suggestion, and also added cayenne pepper to give it an extra kick. Then I topped it with ganache. My SO and friends really liked it. I thought the flavors were great, but I would have liked the cake to be more moist (this might be a cooking error somewhere, vs a recipe problem) and more chocolatey (personal preference).

This is wonderful, husband loved it! I can't wait to make it again.

This cake tasted awful, it was really fatty and all I could taste was the oil and margarine. Don't make it!

this was delicious. got lots of compliments. I used buttermilk. for sugars used 3/4 c. white sugar, and 3/4 cups brown sugar. butter instead of margerine. I also added a tsp of cayanne pepper, 1/2 cup chopped pecans, and 1/2 cup coconut. frosted with a cinnamon vanilla butter cream.

How do you make that awesome looking icing? I will be making this cake this weekend and would LOVE to have that icing on it as well!

This is a great recipe I reduced the sugar by 1/4 cup. It is a very moist cake.Very easy to make.

I added a little more cinnamon, but thought it was still a little boring.

I read through several of the other reviews and took a few tips from them (coffee instead of water, extra cinnamon) and I cut down the vegetable oil (1/3 cup instead of 1/2) and the cake came out moist and delicious. I didn't have any trouble with getting it out of the pan, the way some other reviewers mentioned. I would definitely make this cake again. Though it was not "chocolatey" enough for my husband (I tried explaining that was on purpose but he didn't seem to get it) I really like the flavor!

Love that first taste

I added fresh nutmeg, juice of 1 small lime, 1/4 c. Mayo, 1/8 c. Dark molasses, 2 T Sriracha. Increased flour by an add'l 3/4 cup. Very nice option for a twist.

This cake is awesome! I used vanilla frosting in the middle and chocolate frosting on the outside - it got rave reviews at a recent Fiesta birthday party!

This is a simple and fool proof cake. I use buttermilk instead of sour milk which is essentially the same thing. I used melted butter rather than margarine. Its a tad oily so I've tried it with slightly less oil/melted butter and its turned out fine. Hard to go wrong with this cake. I've laso just baked a vanilla version so I didn't include the cocoa.

I also subbed orange juice for sour milk and used coconut oil instead of vegetable oil. This recipe made two 9 inch round cakes nicely. Very moist, great flavor and easy to make. I topped mind with caramel sauce for a dinner party, went over very well. Will definitely make again, possibly subbing coffee for water.

This cake was great. I halved the recipe and made it in a 9x11 pan. I put chocolate icing on it and I used the OJ instead of sour milk. It was fantastic! :) Very tasty.

I used the OJ instead of sour milk, added 1 tsp cayanne pepper,1 tsp cardamon, increased the cinnamon to 1 tbsp and added 1 tsp cinnamon extract. I bake this regularly for many different people.

It needed an additional egg, because the cupcakes had holes in the middle. After making the adjustment they were perfect.

I like it

I made this over Christmas and my Father-in-law wants me to make it all the time.

good! I substituted 1/2 cup coffee & 1/2 cup of water and reduced sugar by 1/4 cup . Loved it!

Awesome tweak to our family favorite, chocolate cake. I took on some suggestions, used strong coffee in the place of liquid and used a bunt pan. Tasty!

I had never heard of Mexican chocolate cake until a coworker requested it for his birthday (I make a requested treat for everyone on their birthday). I had no idea what the flavor or texture was supposed to be like so after searching several recipes and reading reviews I chose this one - including some of the suggestions from other reviewers. I followed "dreamysweets" instructions of boiling the butter, cocoa, oil, and water mixture before adding it to the dry ingredients. I like a lot of flavor in my recipes so I doubled the cinnamon, added 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of crushed cloves, and added a pinch of cayenne pepper. The key is to remove the cake when it is JUST cooked or it will overbake and be dry. This is the moistest cake I have ever made and my coworker said it was perfect. This is a fantastic recipe and next time I will try the recommendation of using orange juice (to see the difference) and I'll add frosting. However, the cake is perfect standing alone with powdered sugar sprinkled on top. Great recipe and easy to make!

As an addendum to me first review, when I doubled this recipe, I replaced the veg oil with applesauce and used butter instead of margarine. I also used plain milk. The cakes took about 45 minutes to bake under this condition, but are no less delicious.

I had to make this for my class and thought it would be easier to make them cupcakes instead of one big cake. They LOVED them!!I was able to make 24 cupcakes and I baked them for 15 minutes. Also, 1.5 teaspoons is equal to one half of a tablespoon. I learned that when making the sour milk. I didn't want to mix my liquid ingredients and my dry ingredients in one bowl from the start. So, I had my dry ingredients in one bowl and the liquid ingredients in the other. I poured about half of the dry into the liquid, mixed, and added the other half then mixed until completely smooth.

This is so light and delicate. I halved the recipe and used an 8” pan. Perfect with a dusting of powdered sugar on top. I used regular milk instead of sour it otherwise no changes. It would be great for cupcakes too.