Velvety and rich chocolate cake with just 3 ingredients? It can be done and you don’t even need a mixer. The cake comes out so rich, with a very tender crumb.
I really enjoy baking and even though I like making more complicated cakes and desserts sometimes creating really easy recipes is more satisfying. Making something taste really good without all the work is very rewarding. So, I’ve been experimenting a lot and recently make this 3-ingredient chocolate cake.
I was inspired to make it after I shared my 3-ingredient mug cake. I thought I could take the same ingredients and scale them up to make a full-sized loaf cake. It worked really well and it was so easy to make. You don’t need a mixer and the cake comes out very rich with a tender crumb.
How to Make a 3-Ingredient Cake
What makes this cake so easy is ice cream. Yes, premium ice cream that you melt and mix into the batter. The ice cream already has the chocolate, eggs, and dairy you need for a cake so it works perfectly.
All you do is mix together the melted ice cream with cake flour and baking powder.
I made loaf cakes using my disposable loaf pans* that I get on Amazon. They look nice, are great for gifts, and you can toss them when you’re done.
The cakes only need about 25 minutes to bake making this a really great recipe if you’re short on time and need a quick dessert.
The cake is silky soft and intensely chocolate – no one will guess you made it with just three ingredients!
Baking Tips
- Make sure you use a full-fat ice cream with a rich flavor for this recipe. Don’t use low-fat or non-fat kinds because your cake won’t turn out right. The recipe depends on the fat from the ice cream which is why you don’t want to use low-fat. The ice cream also flavors the bread so you want to choose ice cream with a rich chocolate flavor.
- You definitely want to use cake flour and not all-purpose flour. All-purpose will make the cake too dense.
More Easy Recipes
*Some of the links contained in this post are affiliate links. Much like referral codes, this means I earn a small commission if you purchase a product I referred (at no extra charge to you).
3 Ingredient Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups full fat chocolate ice cream or gelato about 1 pint (see note)
- 1 cup cake flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare and spray with oil two 6 x 2.5 loaf pans.
- Heat ice cream in the microwave for about 30-40 seconds until almost fully melted. Pour into large mixing bowl. Add in flour and baking powder. Either by hand or using a stand mixer, mix until no flour lumps remain (use a whisk if mixing by hand). Pour into two loaf pans. Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Notes
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
How many carbs?
The nutrition value will vary greatly depending on the ice cream you use. You can use an online nutrition calculator to help you calculate the carbs
Hey Kirbie,
I tried this two days in a row and on both the days it turned out perfect! I baked it in the microwave in a large bowl, silt it after cooling and filled the centre and top with Oreo and Nutella. It tasted great and my family loved it. Thank you for sharing this interesting recipe.
Anjali.
so glad you like it! your variation sounds delicious!
What if we use strawberry or vanilla ice cream? would that equal to a tasty cake as well?
It technically works, but I don’t know if you will love it as much. I’ve experimented with a few flavors and the mild ones like vanilla and strawberry don’t transfer as much flavor into the cake. More powerful flavors like chocolate, pumpkin pie spice, tend to do a lot better.
Is it possible to use this recipe to make cupcakes instead? I don’t have a bread tin atm but I really want to try this recipe for a party this Saturday.
I have not tried as cupcakes. I think it should work but I think the cake is more dense than what you would usually expect for cupcakes.
Can I use a cake mix or does it have to be cake flour?
Cake flour. I have no idea what will happen if you use cake mix. Cake mix already has other stuff added to it, it’s not just flour
My local stores [aldi safeway gaint ] dont have Ciao Bella Belgian Chocolate Gelato . Will any chocoalte gelato work ?
There are many asian and hispanic stores so I know they may hve something native to those countries.
I think other brands should work.
This looks so rich and chocolatey. Love it!
It’s so easy and yummy!
Oh and THANKS for sharing! <3
This looks absolutely fantastic. I’m amazed by the idea of using ice cream to bake a cake!! Now, since it’s microwaved/melted prior to mixing, does that mean that I could technically use the ingredients found in the ice cream, rather than having it pre-made(for example, regular heavy cream + chocolate, etc.)? Does the mix have to be chilled for it to work?
I’m just wondering how the recipe ends up the way it does, and also kind of hoping I can have my cake and eat my ice cream too… 😀
Yes you definitely can make a cake using the ingredients from the ice cream, though I don’t know how you’ll figure out the measurements. The reason why the cake works is because ice cream has butter, eggs, etc, which is why you don’t need all that extra stuff if you use ice cream instead.
From the photos it looks rather dry. Is it?
Nope, it’s not dry.
Wow!
This cake looks amazing!
So easy and with chocolate ice cream as the basic ingredient.
I’ll definitely try this, thanks for sharing!
It is super easy! And I’m sure you can make a bigger version if you don’t want mini loaves.