I found this recipe on Pinterest, but apparently it’s originally from the Hershey’s Cocoa can. I altered it by substituting coconut oil and butter for the shortening. This cake is easy and super delicious. Scratch cake is NOT hard, you have nothing to fear! Go forth and bake!

2 cups white sugar

1 3/4 cups flour

3/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1/4 cup coconut oil (solid like shortening)

1/4 cup butter (if you use salted butter, decrease the salt above to 1/2 teaspoon)

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup boiling water

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans (if you use a 9×13 increase cooking time to about 40 minutes)

Combine dry ingredients in a medium size mixing bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil, butter, and vanilla and blend for three minutes with an electric mixer. Pour in the boiling water and mix gently by hand, taking care to ensure the batter gets well combined (you will know it’s well mixed when there is no longer water sitting on top of your batter). At this point you are going to be thinking that I totally screwed up this recipe and you are going to have to start over because cake batter couldn’t possibly be this thin and watery. TRUST ME. Pour the batter into your prepared pans and bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cakes in the pans for 5 minutes or so and then run a knife around the edges to loosen.  Place a wire cooling rack on top of the cake pan and turn over. Your cake should come nicely out of the pan.  Let cool completely before frosting or serving (unless you are being crazy and serving this wonderful cake warm with hot fudge sauce and vanilla ice cream. YUM).  ** if you use the 9×13 there is no need to remove the cake from the pan. Simply cool and then dress up as you see fit.

You can serve this cake with fresh homemade whipped cream, butter cream frosting, canned cherry pie filling and cool whip….just about whatever your mouth has a hankering for. 

Enjoy!