One Bowl Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake

An incredibly delicious chocolate chip bundt cake. This is a vanilla cake made in a bundt pan and speckled with mini chocolate chips so you get a little bit in every bite! Perfect for Easter brunch or a quick baking project!

This is dangerous.

Homemade chocolate chip bundt cake has been on heavy rotation in my house since quarantine started, which for us, was five weeks ago. The first time I made this cake, I shared it over on Instagram asking if you guys wanted to see it with cream cheese frosting or on its own. I made boxes and sent them off to family and friends because I didn’t trust myself with a whole bundt cake.

I’m happy to report that this cake can be served frosting-less with a large coffee for breakfast or with the cream cheese icing for Easter brunch or as a quick baking project with kids. The magic of this chocolate chip bundt cake is that you only need one bowl to make the cake portion of this recipe. That makes clean up a breeze.

See what I mean; it’s dangerous.

Since quarantine began, I’ve been trying to come up with more easy baking recipes like my one bowl lemon olive oil pound cake. I know that not everyone is a baker, so having a recipe that doesn’t call for a stand mixer is great to have in your repertoire. It also makes baking a lot easier when you’ve got little helpers around that want to help.

I’ve tested this cake now three times, and every time I’ve made it, I adjusted a little something here and there. I’ve shared slices of this chocolate chip cake with both of our families and close friends (with social distancing I’m doing a ding dong ditch, and they don’t seem to mind.) And unanimously, this cake has been a hit. Tender vanilla cake speckled with mini chocolate chips, so you get a little bit in each bite.

HAVE MERCY!

What do  I need to make chocolate chip bundt cake?

• All-purpose flour
• Baking soda: the reaction between the sour cream and baking soda helps the bundt cake rise.
• Baking powder: is used to lighten the texture of the bundt cake. The carbon dioxide released into the cake helps make it light and airy.
• kosher salt: adds flavor to the recipe
• Granulated sugar: is a source for sweetness
• Oil: you can use canola, vegetable, coconut, or corn oil for this recipe. If you’d like to add a buttery taste, swap half the oil for butter, it works like magic!
• Eggs: eggs play a very important role in this recipe. They add structure and stability in the batter as well as adding moisture to the cake.
• Sour cream: You can swap the sour cream for greek yogurt if you’d like to make this lighter or don’t happen to have any sour cream on hand.
• Milk: any kind that you have will work, be it cows milk, soy, or nut milk.
• Vanilla extract: As always, I suggest using the best quality of vanilla extract that you can. It adds tons of flavor to this cake. And my personal favorite is this one
• Mini chocolate chips: I like to use mini chocolate chips rather than the regular chocolate chips as the little ones disperse better in the cake batter. I used these semi-sweet chocolate chips, but you could even use bittersweet chocolate if you prefer to make this cake less sweet.

What bundt cake pan did you use for this recipe?

You need a 10-inch bundt cake pan for this recipe. Here is one very similar to mine.

How to make the best one bowl chocolate chip bundt cake:

1. Prep your bundt pan. The proper way to prep the bunt pan is to use cooking spray or a tablespoon of softened butter. Spray the pan or rub the butter evenly. Then, dust with 1-2 tablespoons of flour so the bundt cake releases easily from the pan once baked. Dust any remaining flour into the sink; you want just enough to coat the sides of the pan!
2. Make the batter. This is quite possibly the easiest batter to make. Add all the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder + soda, salt, and granulated sugar) to a large mixing bowl. Then, add in the eggs, oil, sour cream, milk, and vanilla and stir until about halfway combined. Then, add the chocolate chips and finish mixing. Be careful not to over-mix the cake batter, or else it will dry out.
3. Bake it to perfection. Then, bake the bundt cake until you can insert a toothpick into the cake and it comes out mostly clean (a few crumbs are fine.) If at any point the cake starts browns too much on top, loosely place a piece of foil on the surface of the cake. Then, allow the cake to cool completely to room temperature. Dust with powdered sugar or frost with the icing if you’d like!

What do I need to make the cream cheese icing?

• softened cream cheese
• softened butter
• vanilla extract
• powdered sugar

How to make cream cheese icing:

This cream cheese icing is straightforward. Allow the cream cheese and the butter to come to room temperature so that it’s easy to make. Then, combine the two in a bowl with a whisk. Stir in the vanilla and the powdered sugar and continue to whisk until smooth! Then, pour the prepared icing over the bunt cake or spread using a cake spatula.

Do I have to serve this bundt cake with icing?

Absolutely not! The first couple of times I made this bundt cake, I focused solely on the cake portion of this recipe. Personally, I don’t think this bundt cake has to have icing, especially if you’re planning on serving this as a chocolate chip snack cake or as a quick breakfast cake. Now, if this is a dessert for a special occasion, then frosting is totally justified. I love it both ways, and wouldn’t frost it unless I’m serving this as an after-dinner kind of dessert.

Overall, this chocolate chip bundt cake is:

• made in one bowl
• sweet but not overly sweet
• has a tender vanilla cake and is speckled with mini chocolate chips
• makes your whole house smell like a bakery
• great to make for when you’re having company (when you can have company again)
• perfect to pair with a warm mug of morning Joe

I say desserts like this one bowl chocolate chip bundt cake should be on heavy rotation during social distancing, it certainly gives you something to do, and when you’re doing a baking project, there’s a dessert to eat afterward 😉

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Yield: 12-14 slices

One Bowl Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

An incredibly delicious chocolate chip bundt cake. This is a vanilla cake made in a bundt pan and speckled with mini chocolate chips so you get a little bit in every bite! Perfect for Easter brunch or a quick baking project!

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Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour (plus a bit more for dusting)
• 1 teaspoon EACH: baking soda, baking powder, AND salt
• 1 ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup flavorless oil (or swap ½ for melted butter)
• 4 large eggs 
• ¾ cup sour cream (yogurt or light sour cream)
• ¼ cup milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup mini chocolate chips
• icing recipe in notes, optional

Instructions

1. PREP: Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350ºF. Grease a 10-inch bundt pan with cooking spray, or rub with butter, and dust with flour. 
2. BATTER: In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, and granulated sugar. Then, add the oil, sour cream, milk, eggs, and vanilla and continue to whisk. When there are still some flour pockets left, fold in the mini chocolate chips using a rubber spatula, until *just* combined. Then, pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan. You could also just add all those ingredients together in a stand mixer and mix until smooth (should take just over a minute or so.)
3. BAKE: the bundt for 47-58 minutes, if at any point the cake starts browning too much on top, loosely place a piece of foil on the surface of the cake. Insert a toothpick in the cake to make sure it comes out mostly clean with the exception of a few crumbs. Let the bundt cake cool in pan on a wire baking rack for 15 minutes before removing from pan. Dust with powdered sugar or you can frost it once it’s completely cooled.

Notes

• ICING: is entirely optional. For it, you’ll need 4 ounces of softened cream cheese, 3 tablespoons of softened butter, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and 1 cup powdered sugar. Using a whisk, combine the cream cheese and butter in a bowl until smooth. Add the vanilla and powdered sugar and continue to whisk until you work out all the lumps from the powdered sugar. If the icing is too thick, add a teaspoon of milk at a time until thin enough to drizzle. I didn't need any milk at all. Drizzle over the cake and spread with an offset spatula.

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Have you made this recipe?

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