Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake
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There are many kinds of Chocolate Cake, but people are most familiar with the traditional two-layer cake like this Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake. Mayonnaise is made up primarily of oil and egg yolks, so it serves as the perfect substitute for those ingredients in chocolate cake! It gives chocolate cake a moist, rich texture without changing the flavor. Watch the video in this post to see how to make this recipe.
January 27th is National Chocolate Cake Day! Celebrate by eating chocolate cake, baking your own cake (like this Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake) or visiting a bakery to sample cake. It seems like we just had Pie Day where I shared a fabulous Lemon Chess Pie with you. Now it’s time to share your chocolate cake experience on social media by using the hashtags #nationalchocolatecakeday and #recipesforholidays.
There are a million ways to make a chocolate cake, and everyone has their favorite recipe. But I think everyone will agree that the best chocolate cake is one that is rich in flavor, super moist and goes perfectly with a tall glass of cold milk. That’s what you’ll find in this Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake recipe!
“Let’s face it, a nice creamy chocolate cake does a lot for a lot of people; it does for me.”
-Audrey Hepburn
The History of Chocolate Cake:
The first known chocolate cake fixings date back to the 1760’s. A doctor teamed up with a chocolate maker to grind up cocoa beans and create cakes in molds.
In 1847, the first chocolate cake recipe was published by Eliza Leslie in The Lady’s Receipt Book.
And the first chocolate cake mix surfaced in the late 1920’s by O’Duff and Sons. Better Crocker cake mixes were sold beginning in 1947- after World War II ended. It was then that chocolate cake really began to take off in America!
How to make Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake:
You’ll be making a typical cake batter for this recipe with one big difference. Mayonnaise will be included as an ingredient. I know this sounds really weird, but don’t let it freak you out. Mayonnaise is used instead of eggs and fat in the chocolate cake. It will give you a moist and delicious cake, and I promise you will not taste the mayonnaise in the cake at all (just like you don’t taste eggs or oil in a traditional cake).
The batter is divided between two round cake pans and those will be baked for about 30 minutes.
The best chocolate frosting recipe:
If you’re ever looking for the best chocolate frosting recipe for a cake or for 24 cupcakes, this is the frosting recipe to use. It’s a simple combination of butter, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, milk and vanilla. It turns out perfectly creamy and chocolatey!
Lay one cake layer on your favorite cake platter. Spread frosting on top of the first layer. Add the second layer and then spread frosting on that layer and all the way down the sides of the cake to cover the entire thing.
Slices of this cake are pure chocolate cake perfection. The recipe for the base of the chocolate cake comes from The Dukes Mayonnaise Cookbook. But this recipe works with any kind of mayonnaise, of course.
You’ll end up with a super tender cake that has great chocolate flavor. It’s the kind of tender where the cake sticks to the fork a little bit. You’ll want to serve it with your favorite vanilla ice cream and a big glass of milk. Enjoy!
10 Popular kinds of Chocolate Cake:
- Chocolate Layer Cake: This is a classic, round 2 or three layer cake separated by layers of frosting and the whole cake covered in frosting too.
2. Chocolate Sheet Cake: A sheet cake is a snack cake made in a sheet pan or a 13×9-inch pan. The frosting is spread on top of the cake.
3. Chocolate Swiss Cake Roll: A very thin layer of cake is baked and then rolled with whipped cream filling to create a cake roll.
4. Chocolate Cupcakes: These are simply the cupcake version of classic chocolate cake.
5. German Chocolate Cake: Having nothing at all to do with Germany, the name comes from Sam German- the inventor of German chocolate. This type of cake is characterized by having a creamy pecan and coconut icing between layers of chocolate cake.
6. Flourless Chocolate Cake: A good, naturally gluten-free option, this cake is made without any flour- resulting in a very rich and decadent cake.
7. Black Forest Cake: This is a chocolate sponge cake with a rich cherry filling.
8. Devil’s Food Cake: A moist, rich chocolate layer cake. This is a richer, darker chocolate cake- usually made with squares of melted chocolate instead of cocoa powder.
9. Molten Chocolate Cake: Also known as Chocolate Lava Cake, this cake combines cake with soufflé. When the cake is cut into, a liquid chocolate center oozes out.
10. Chocolate Decadence Cake: This is a silky, rich, flourless cake made popular in the 80’s. It usually has a whole pound of chocolate in the cake.
Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake
This chocolate cake is super moist because of the secret, magical ingredient of mayonnaise!
Ingredients
CAKE:
- 6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 cups granulated white sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups cold water
FROSTING:
- 1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 1/3 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
- 6 cups powdered sugar
- 2/3 cup milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
PREPARE THE CAKE:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two 8-inch cake pans.
Sift the cocoa, flour and baking soda into a medium bowl. Stir in the sugar and salt.
In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to combine the mayonnaise, vanilla and water and mix until smooth. Add in the dry ingredients a little at a time, just until all is combined.
Don’t over-mix.
Divide the batter between the two cake pans; bake for 30 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool on wire racks.
FROST THE CAKE:
Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Stir in the cocoa. Use an electric mixer to alternately add the powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency. Mix in the vanilla. Frost as you would traditionally frost a 2-layer cake.
Notes
- I recommend using Best Foods/Hellmans or Duke's brand of mayonnaise.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1 sliceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 804Total Fat: 38gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 22gCholesterol: 53mgSodium: 665mgCarbohydrates: 112gFiber: 3gSugar: 79gProtein: 6g
Nutritional information is estimated and is not likely to be 100% accurate.
Does this work as cupcakes?
I haven’t tried baking them into cupcakes, but I would imagine it would work fine!
My aunt used to make thee cakes all the time. They are good.
In the oven!
Enjoy!!
Do you think Miracle Whip could be substituted for the mayonnaise?
Hmmm, I’m not so familiar with Miracle Whip, so I’m not sure. Is Miracle whip made from oil and eggs? Those are the two ingredients that make this cake turn out so well.
@Denise Thomas, miracle whip will change the flavor, but if you don’t mind that then yes you can. Remember though miracle whip is not mayonnaise it is salad dressing so that’s why it has a tart taste and real mayonnaise doesn’t. Look at ingredients on back of real Mayo and miracle whip and you will see the added ingredient.
@Lori Lange, yes Miracle Whip can be used. It’s all I use for the Mayo Cake. My grandmas and mom made the cakes and I continue to do so. My husband’s favorite cake. I use cream cheese icing.
@Denise Thomas, you could use Miracle Whip as a sun for mayo, but you will have a different taste to the cake as MW is tarter than mayo
Can this be made with a bundt pan?
I haven’t tried that yet!
@Valerie, I’ve made this with a Bundt pan and drizzled icing made of white chocolate/peanut butter
@Lisa,recipe for your icing please
FORGOT HOW LONG TO BAKE IT IN A 13’9″PAN???
Probably 3o to 35 minutes.
Thank you for sharing this recipe. What kind of mayonnaise is recommended? Store bought or homemade?
Regards,
Juliana
Just regular, store-bought mayo!
I’m just wondering if could use a bunt pan, I don’t have the round tins. I suppose this would call for a longer baking time???
Can you use Lite mayo?
I haven’t tried it!
Hello there, I will give this a try. Thanks for negating. I just wanna ask if this is very moist cake? That is what I’m looking for. Please reply. Thank you so much.
Yes, it should turn out moist for sure!
My Grandma always make this with peanut butter in it
It was fun to make! But….the cake turned wet and it fell apart very fast.
@Gordie Tamayo, you did not bake it long enough. Perhaps you need to check the temperature of your oven. Ovens need to be regulated sometimes, especially gas ovens 🙂
no eggs ?
No, the mayonnaise is made of oil and eggs.
I will NEVER make this cake again. First off, there is way too much batter for 8 in pans. It therefore, took longer than the time in the recipe to cook and the edges burnt. When I took them out of the pan they cracked. I let them cool overnight before frosting. When I tried to frost the cakes they literally were crumbling and fell apart. This is a terrible waste of ingredients, time and effort. What a disappointment. And, I am a seasoned baker, so don’t try to tell me I didn’t follow the recipe properly.
Well, there are over 100 4 1/2 star reviews, so something must have gone wrong somewhere! Sorry the recipe did not work out for you.
Perfect Every time I make it. This is my favorite chocolate cake recipe. Thank you for sharing