Slow Cooker Hot Fudge Chocolate Cake

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Crockpot Lava Cake — This is an easy, no-mixer cake that’s super soft, gooey, moist, rich, and fudgy. As the cake cooks, it creates its own hot fudge sauce! For the full experience, serve with ice cream or whipped cream!

Crockpot Lava Cake — This is an easy, no-mixer cake that’s super soft, gooey, moist, rich, and fudgy. As the cake cooks, it creates its own hot fudge sauce! For the full experience, serve with ice cream or whipped cream. 

My Favorite Crockpot Dessert

This is only the second dessert I’ve made in my slow cooker and it certainly won’t be the last. It’s an easy, no-mixer Crockpot lava cake that’s super soft, gooey, moist, rich, and fudgy.

It’s a unique cake in that there’s no butter or eggs (an accidentally vegan cake) and you pour boiling water over the cake batter before turning on the slow cooker. It’s the boiling water that creates rich hot fudge while the Crockpot cake bakes.

There are other non-slow cooker recipes that utilize the same boiling water technique, including the decades-old infamous Hershey’s cake, but it was a first for me. It reminds me a bit of my Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes because it’s so fudgy and gooey.

I loved the hot fudge that formed and that was waiting for me underneath the slow cooker cake. Who can resist chocolate cake studded with chocolate chips, dripping with hot fudge, and a scoop of vanilla ice cream?

My family raved about this Crockpot lava cake and said it’s better than any you’d get in a fancy restaurant. Despite how fudgy the cake is, the texture of the crumb is surprisingly soft and light.

It’s a perfect party cake that you can easily make at the beginning of a dinner party or event and when you’re ready for dessert, the Crockpot chocolate lava cake is done and everyone can dig in. It’s a new go-to cake that will both impress guests and is a cinch for me to make. Set it and forget it.

Crockpot Lava Cake — This is an easy, no-mixer cake that’s super soft, gooey, moist, rich, and fudgy. As the cake cooks, it creates its own hot fudge sauce! For the full experience, serve with ice cream or whipped cream. 

What’s in Crockpot Lava Cake? 

To make this Crockpot hot fudge cake, you’ll need: 

  • All-purpose flour
  • Granulated sugar
  • Unsweetened cocoa powder
  • Baking powder
  • Salt
  • Milk
  • Vegetable oil
  • Vanilla extract
  • Semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • Boiling water
Crockpot Lava Cake — This is an easy, no-mixer cake that’s super soft, gooey, moist, rich, and fudgy. As the cake cooks, it creates its own hot fudge sauce! For the full experience, serve with ice cream or whipped cream. 

How to Make Crockpot Lava Cake

  1. To make this easy Crockpot cake, first stir together the dry ingredients and then mix in the wet.
  2. Turn the batter into your slow cooker. 
  3. Then, whisk together a mixture of sugar, cocoa powder, and boiling water and carefully pour it into the slow cooker. 
  4. Cover and cook on high for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until a toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean.

Can I Cook This Crockpot Lava Cake on Low for More Time? 

I have not tested the Crockpot chocolate lava cake recipe using the low heat setting and can’t speak to baking time or results.

Can I Make Hot Fudge Cake Without a Crockpot? 

If you want to make a similarly gooey chocolate cake recipe, I recommend making my Easy Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes instead. 

Slow Cooker Hot Fudge Chocolate Cake - Super soft, gooey, rich, and fudgy!! The cake makes its own hot fudge sauce while cooking in the slow cooker! The easiest cake you'll ever make and it tastes amazing!!

Tips for Making Crockpot Lava Cake

You can use any type of milk you’d like in this Crockpot dessert recipe. I used cashew milk, but regular milk can be used as well. For an even richer cake, use chocolate milk. 

Once you whisk together the cocoa powder and boiling water mixture, pour it over the cake batter already in the Crockpot but DO NOT stir. If you stir the sauce into the cake batter, you won’t wind up with a proper hot fudge cake. 

Lastly, note that all slow cookers vary so cook just until the Crockpot lava cake is done. Start checking at just over one hour to ensure you don’t overbake the hot fudge cake. My cake was done at 90 minutes. 

Crockpot Lava Cake — This is an easy, no-mixer cake that’s super soft, gooey, moist, rich, and fudgy. As the cake cooks, it creates its own hot fudge sauce! For the full experience, serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

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4.28 from 100 votes

Slow Cooker Hot Fudge Chocolate Cake

By Averie Sunshine
This is an easy, no-mixer cake that’s super soft, gooey, moist, rich, and fudgy. As the cake cooks, it creates its own hot fudge sauce! For the full experience, serve with ice cream or whipped cream. 
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
Servings: 8
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Ingredients  

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup granulated sugar, divided
  • ¼ cup + 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, divided
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
  • ¾ cup milk, I used cashewmilk; chocolate milk may be substituted
  • cup vegetable or canola oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1 ½ cups boiling water
  • ice cream and/or whipped topping or whipped cream for serving, optional but recommended

Instructions 

  • Line a 6-quart slow cooker with a liner if using one. Tip – I prefer to use liners for easy cleanup and storage, see step 8. Spray liner, or base and sides of slow cooker, very well with cooking spray; set aside.
  • To a medium bowl, add the flour, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, and whisk to combine.
  • Add the milk, oil, vanilla, and stir until just moistened.
  • Turn batter out into prepared slow cooker and spread it into a smooth, even, flat layer.
  • Evenly sprinkle the chocolate chips; set aside.
  • To a medium bowl (the same one you already used is fine, just wipe it clean with a paper towel), add 1/2 cup sugar, 3 tablespoons cocoa powder, the boiling water, and whisk to combine.
  • Carefully pour the hot cocoa-water mixture over the batter in slow cooker. Do not stir. This mixture turns into hot fudge while the cake bakes; do not stir.
  • Cover and cook on HIGH for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until a toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean. Start checking at just over one hour to ensure you don’t overbake (no raw egg issues to worry about). My cake was done at 90 minutes. All slow cookers vary so cook until cake is done.
  • Remove the top portion of the slow cooker (the ceramic bowl the cake is cooking in) from the base (heating element) to allow cake to cool momentarily before serving. I recommend serving with ice cream and/or whipped topping or whipped cream.

Notes

  • I have not tested the recipe using the low heat setting and can’t speak to baking time or results; nor have I tested it using smaller-sized slow cookers.
  • Cake is best warm and fresh but will keep in an airtight container for up to 5 days at room temp, noting the sauce absorbs into the cake by the second day. Storage is much easier if you use a liner because you can lift the entire liner out, cake and all, and place in an airtight container.
  • Adapted from BHG and Betty Crocker

Nutrition

Serving: 1, Calories: 336kcal, Carbohydrates: 58g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 11g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 10mg, Sodium: 225mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 41g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Originally posted February 19, 2016 and reposted on February 2, 2024 with updated text.

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Please note: I have only made the recipe as written, and cannot give advice or predict what will happen if you change something. If you have a question regarding changing, altering, or making substitutions to the recipe, please check out the FAQ page for more info.

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Comments

  1. My husband and eight year old daughter made this for me for Mother’s Day and it was AMAZING!!!  It was so moist, delicious,  and fool proof for a novice.  My old cake recipe for the slow cooker has been replaced.  I think this would be prefect for those hot days of summer when you want a goey fudgy cake but do not want to turn on the oven.  I can’t wait to have it again.  

    1. Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! I had never made many slow cooker cakes until just recently and love them and as you said, perfect for hot summer days and you don’t want to crank the oven!

  2. I have made this twice and it is amazing, I have been wanting to try a slow cooker for cake for ages but never saw one I really liked the look of any that I’ve seen before but this looked so good and it was. Amazing recipe Averie :D

  3. Wow, it looks so tasty on the pictures… I feel like going home immediately and starting preparing this cake… but, I’m going to wait until tomorrow. haha

  4. I want to jump into that slow cooker and eat the whole thing. Is that bad? I hope not, because that’s what I’m going to do. :)

  5. Man, oh, man! I’ve never thought about making a slow cooker cake before, but now I really want to. Ooohhh what about a slow cooker gooey butter cake? I’d love to see you whip up something like that!

    1. Not sure since I’ve only made it with one. Try the Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes instead, which I linked in the post, that don’t require a slow cooker.

    2. Made the slow cooker Chocolate fudge cake yesterday in a conventional  oven at 325  F  or 170 C . Cooking time 1 hour 10 mins as I used a smaller dish than  recommended. Turned out perfectly and yummy. Next time will try it out using melted butter in place of the oil. 

      1. Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you in a regular oven! Oil keeps cakes softer and more tender than butter does.

  6. This would be amazing for a casual dinner party. I bet it smells heavenly while it is baking (cooking? I’m never quite sure what the proper term is when you cook something in a crockpot).

    1. It would be so good for a casual dinner party, yes! It has the crowd appeal factor too because that sauce that’s on the bottom of the cake just begs for people to dig right in with a spoon!

  7. I had no idea a chocolate cake could turn out looking so heavenly when baked in a crock pot….all while making its own fudge sauce! Funny you posted 2 crock pot recipes this week because I am buying a new one today so I can make your orange chicken for dinner?

    1. I went on a slow cooker rampage about a month ago after hearing what that’s what people wanted and am now trying to space them out as much as possible but this week ended up with two :) Enjoy your new slow cooker and LMK what you think of the chicken!

  8. Self-saucing cakes are the best. With ice cream, even better! I’m really loving this slow cooker cake kick you’ve got going on!

    1. 5 stars
      Came out great. Made it in my 3.5 litre slow cooker and it was cooked in 75 min. Was appreciated by all and it’s a no fuss recipe. Will make again. Thank you for a great and easy dessert idea.

      1. Thanks for the 5 star review and glad it was well appreciated and that you’ll make it again!