Hershey's (vs. Beatty's) chocolate cake

I'll begin this post by saying that I love chocolate.  I may have mentioned it once - or a million times - already.  So obviously, I love chocolate cake.  Years ago (before starting this blog), I discovered what I consider the ultimate classic chocolate layer cake: Beatty's chocolate cake, or what I also think of as "Ina's cake" because it was brought to us by Ina Garten.  I have made that cake many times.  My extended family loves it - even those who are not big cake or dessert lovers.  I could very happily just eat that cake all by itself (it is so moist and chocolaty) but the chocolate buttercream that goes with it is an ideal pairing.  I'm not a big fan of buttercream frosting usually but it just works perfectly with that cake, and I've tried other pairings.

Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake

Aside from Beatty's/Ina's cake, I have also heard plenty of raves about Hershey's chocolate cake. Many people say that is the ultimate chocolate layer cake (this testimonial, for example) and I've long wanted to compare the two but never wanted to take on the opportunity cost.  Apologies to Hershey's but I've been reluctant to try their recipe because I was pretty sure Beatty's cake would be the better version.  

Compare the ingredient list between the two cakes and Beatty's just seems to be the evolved - dare I say, "improved", - version of the Hershey cake.  The two recipes are very similar but whereas Hershey's uses milk and water, Beatty's cake uses buttermilk and coffee.  I was betting on buttermilk and coffee for the win.  But how can you be sure without actually trying both?

Beatty's Chocolate Cake, via Ina Garten (I've made it many times)

Which is better?

So now...let me try to get to the point before I lose you completely.  I finally made Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" chocolate cake so I can give you an informed opinion.  Taste is subjective so this is purely our opinion   We didn't do a simultaneous comparison of the two cakes but believe me, we have eaten many slices of Beatty's chocolate cake for it to be indelible in our minds.

And after tasting the Hershey's cake, I can tell you, definitively...that my family and I do, in fact, prefer...Beatty's chocolate cake!  The Hershey's cake is good - it's really good - but it lacks the depth of chocolate flavor and fluffiness of Beatty's cake.  The Hershey cake, particularly the frosting made with cocoa powder and a generous amount of confectioners' sugar, was pronounced "too sweet" by my taste-testers. We happen to have 3 family birthdays just a few weeks apart so this Hershey cake became the vehicle for a 3-way birthday celebration, resulting in plenty of taste-testers.  

The frosting on the Hershey's cake is easy to make and goes on smoothly.  The surface does dry out/crust given the generous amount of confectioners' sugar in it.

In particular, the kids (my son and his eldest cousin, in particular) kept saying the other cake is better because this one is too sweet.  Kids complaining about something being "too sweet" took me by surprise.  I mean, this coming from children who devour neon icing on cupcakes at birthday parties!  When did children become so critical, I thought!  In all fairness, maybe they wouldn't have been so vocal about this if they hadn't had Beatty's cake often in the past and were doing a direct comparison.  Everything is relative.

Speaking for myself now, I might have liked Hershey's cake more than the kids did.  Yes, it is sweeter than Beatty's cake.  Three cups of confectioners' sugar in the chocolate icing can't help but leave an aftertaste of sugar in your throat.  But I didn't find it too overbearing.  I thought it was a very good chocolate layer cake, reminding me of the kind I ate and loved as a child (apparently, children's tastes have evolved).  If there's a cake you'd eat with a tall glass of milk, this is the one.  It's just got that old-fashioned flavor to it, and I mean that in a good way.  Interestingly enough, it reminded me of Brooklyn Blackout Cake, which I really like and attempted once.  This cake is far simpler to make than that one.

The inside of the Hershey cake.  It's very moist but not quite as fluffy as Beatty's cake.

And one important point going for the Hershey cake is how easy it is to make! There's no fresh coffee to brew or chocolate to melt.  It is most definitely the easier of the two cakes to make by far.  And to its credit, the Hershey cake is very moist though heavier and denser than Beatty's cake, which is not only really moist but also delicate - airy, almost.  The buttercream in Beatty's cake uses melted chocolate instead of cocoa, and with more fat than confectioners' sugar, it stays soft and creamy instead of crusting on the surface like the Hershey's cake does.

Making this cake and frosting, much like making those cocoa brownies, gave me a renewed appreciation for cocoa powder.  It's the driving force behind this cake and created far more chocolate flavor in itself than I would've thought possible.  I think the cake really could use a boost of coffee to heighten that chocolate flavor even more.  That, alas, brings me right back to Beatty's cake. You know which I'll be making in my house whenever we get the craving for a chocolate layer cake.  

If anyone has tried both these cakes, I'd be very interested in your take on it!


This cake gets serious bonus points for how easy it is to make! 

The recipe is listed right in the back of a container of Hershey's unsweetened cocoa powder.  I've gotten into the habit of using Pernigotti cocoa when baking at home but making Hershey's chocolate cake, I think using Hershey's cocoa is a must!  Also, the Pernigotti cocoa is Dutch-processed while Hershey's is a natural cocoa powder.  I'd always assumed that Dutch-processed cocoa makes for stronger chocolate flavor in the end product (probably because it's darker in color) but I've learned that's actually not the case.

To make the cake batter, you literally mix all the dry ingredients together before adding the wet.  Stir it all together in your stand mixer and add a cup of boiling water at the end.  I was very tempted to use coffee or add some espresso powder like I normally would for most chocolate recipes but the whole point was to try the Hershey recipe, so I followed it precisely.  The batter is very thin, even looser than Beatty's chocolate cake.  

I used the same 9x3 inch cake pans I use to bake Beatty's chocolate cake.  I noticed that the Hershey cake didn't rise as much and the sides were a bit uneven.

The frosting is also real easy to put together, too.  It starts mixing a stick of melted butter (love not having to plan ahead to soften butter) with 2/3 cup of Hershey's cocoa.  It smells awesome - so chocolaty - at that point!  Then, 3 cups of confectioners' sugar are mixed in, alternating with about 1/3 cup or so of milk, to reach a thick, smooth, spreading consistency.

It doesn't take a lot of effort to put together this classic chocolate layer cake. It's a great choice when you're under a time crunch.  I would recommend using hot coffee in place of the water in the cake batter, or reduce the amount of sugar in the batter.  I think that would ease up on some of the sweetness and bring the chocolate flavor out even more.

The texture of this cake lends itself well to eating cold, or chilled.  But, at the same time, I thought the cake actually tasted sweeter chilled than at room temperature so I'm a bit torn as to which I prefer.

Recipe:

Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake
- One two-layer 9" cake - 

The recipe is listed right on the back of a container of Hershey's unsweetened natural cocoa powder. It is also available at Hersheys.com.