Hershey’s Black Magic cake is perfect for chocolate lovers

Saying Hershey’s knows a few things about chocolate is an understatement. Whether you adore the classic Hershey’s Kisses candy or one of their new ice cream-inspired candy bars, Hershey’s offers some of the best chocolate confections in the world.

But why just stick with candy when a cake is an option? Few things cure a chocolate craving better than a slice of dark, rich chocolate cake.

When we came across Hershey’s recipe for Black Magic Cake, which is topped with a cocoa glaze, it made us believe in all sorts of good magic in the world. And bakers who have tried it seem to agree — every single review on the recipe gives it five stars.

Hershey’s Black Magic Cake only takes about 15 minutes to mix together — all in one bowl! — and has easy-to-follow directions that even a novice baker can complete.

The majority of ingredients are pantry staples, but there are two extras you’ll need in addition to the usual flour, sugar and eggs: Strong black coffee or powdered instant coffee, and buttermilk or sour milk. However, if you don’t have buttermilk on hand, Hershey’s recommends using a classic method for creating buttermilk quickly when you don’t have any in the refrigerator: Add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar into your 1 cup measuring cup and filling the rest with regular milk.

You can use either a 12-cup bundt pan, two 9-inch round cake pans or a 13-by-9-by-2 cake pan to make the black magic chocolate cake.

The full recipe gives specific ingredient amounts and detailed step-by-step directions. However, Christine Gallary of TheKitchn recommends a few slight changes to the directions when turning out the cake. First, wait closer to 45 minutes to let the cake cool instead of the 10 minutes suggested. This helps minimize the cake sticking to the pan. She also suggests using a melted butter-coco powder paste to coat the pan to make turning out the cake easier.

Gallary also noted that because she knew her 7-year-old would be eating the cake, she used decaf coffee. Good idea!

Once the cake is cooled, you can make Hershey’s Quick Cocoa Glaze to drizzle on top to complete the chocolate magic.

In just five minutes, you’ll have the perfect glaze to pair with your chocolate cake. But there’s one bit of magic left — watching your cake disappear when you serve it to your family and friends.