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Hot Fudge Pudding Cake is a delicious, vintage recipe that everyone absolutely loves! A fudge sauce forms under a rich chocolate cake as it bakes in the oven.
If you follow us over on Instagram, then you probably know that we just came home from a family vacation at Hershey Park in Hershey, Pennsylvania! This was our second year visiting the park, and we decided that on this trip we would sign up for the Create Your Own Candy Bar at Hershey’s Chocolate World, located just outside the amusement park.
Each of us had the chance to make a custom chocolate bar – choosing the type of chocolate we wanted as the base, additional ingredients to include such as chocolate or butterscotch ships, pretzel bits and more; we designed our own label for our candy bars; and we got to watch it being made right before our eyes! Here are a few photos from our fun production tour:
So all of that wonderful chocolate had us craving a sweet treat when we got home – and we decided to make this fantastic Hot Fudge Pudding Cake from the Hershey’s Kitchen website.
This Hot Fudge Pudding Cake is outrageously good – and it couldn’t be any easier to make! A simple batter (made from Hershey’s cocoa of course) is first spooned into the bottom of a lightly greased pan or baking dish. Then a dry cocoa mixture is sprinkled on top of the batter. Finally – right before baking – hot water gets poured over the top of the dry cocoa mixture. But don’t stir it in – that process creates this fantastic, almost-crunchy topping on this Hot Fudge Pudding Cake as it bakes!
Then – once the Hot Fudge Pudding Cake comes out of the oven, just use a spoon to serve. You’ll end up with a super moist cake with a warm and fudgy pudding center – plus a sweet crunchy topping! Served with some vanilla ice cream – this is one amazingly good dessert that any chocolate lover will enjoy!
Disclaimer: I was not compensated by Hershey’s for this post. We are simply sharing our vacation story with you today as well as the inspiration behind our recipe.
Additional note: We’ve received a few reader comments below complaining that the cake was very runny and not fudgy. We’ve retested the recipe ourselves and can confirm that it is written correctly. But feel free to bake the cake for a few minutes longer if necessary (ovens may vary), and also make sure that you allow the cake to sit for 15 minutes before serving to give the sauce time to set up.
You may enjoy these other Chocolate Dessert recipes:
- Mexican Hot Fudge Pudding Cake
- Double Chocolate Pudding
- No-Bake Chocolate Cheesecake Pie
- Chocolate Ranger Cookies
- Homemade Magic Shell
We love seeing what you made! Tag us on Instagram at @afamilyfeast or hashtag #afamilyfeast so we can see your creations!
Hot Fudge Pudding Cake
Recipe adapted from Hershey’s Kitchens
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar, divided
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened Hershey’s Cocoa powder, divided
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 1/4 cups hot water
- Vanilla ice cream, if desired for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat a pot of water on the stove to very hot (just under a simmer).
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine ¾ cup of the granulated sugar, flour, ¼ cup of the cocoa, baking powder and salt. Stir in milk, melted butter and vanilla and mix until smooth.
- Pour the batter into an lightly greased 2-quart ceramic dish (as shown in our photos) or a 9-inch square baking pan (if it’s a non-stick pan, you don’t have to grease it) and spread evenly.
- In a small bowl, stir together the remaining ½ cup granulated sugar, brown sugar, remaining ¼ cup cocoa and mix well. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over the batter in your dish or pan. Pour the hot water over the top – but do not stir!
- Bake 35-40 minutes if using a glass dish (or 30-35 minutes if using a metal pan) – or until the center is almost set. Remove your dish from the oven and allow it to stand for 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, spoon the cake into individual serving bowls – making sure to spoon the fudgy sauce from the bottom of the pan over the top of the cake. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream if desired and serve immediately.
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Danielle says
I made this cake in a 9×9 but there seems to be too much water because it’s been in the oven for half an hour and it’s still pure liquid on top. Hasn’t even begun to set anywhere. Anyone else have this problem?
Martha says
Hi Danielle – I haven’t heard of any other similar issues. We also used a 9×9 pan. I’ll put this comment through in case anyone else had a similar issue. Martha
Beverlee says
This looks scrumptious!! Being pre-diabetic, what could I use (proportion equivalents) instead of regular sugar? Also, can Cacao be used instead of Cocoa? I love “A Family Feast”!! Keep those great recipes, etc. coming!…Beverlee
Martha says
Thanks Beverlee – We haven’t adapted this recipe with any lower sugar alternatives so I’d really only be guessing! If you try the cacao and/or sugar alternatives, please let us know how it comes out! I’m sorry I’m not much help with your question…Martha
jody says
you can google the equivalent for the sweetener you use – here is the link to the amount of Truvia to sub for sugar: http://truvia.com/recipes/conversion_chart
June byrd says
I have used half sugar and the rest Splenda. It came out very good, but the original recipe is THE BEST. Just use less serving and top with a big scoop of sugarfree ice cream.
Martha says
Thanks for the suggestion June!
Dianne says
I used to make this cake twenty years ago but lost the recipe. It’s so moist, yummy and easy to make. After baking, top with cherry pie filling and cream cheese frosting for a black forest cake.
Martha says
Sounds delicious Dianne!
Terri says
OMG this looks amazing! I am making it right now…. I was craving something chocolate, and this looks like the best dessert to satisfy my craving!! 🙂
Martha says
Hope you enjoyed the recipe Terri!
barbara hill says
Dear Martha, i had this recipe ” years” ago and it was one of my favorites… but,alas, i lost the recipe….Thank you so much for bringing it back to me… I promise not to lose this one…. Thanks again…it is a GREAT recipe…. Barbara
P.S. all of your recipes are great…
Martha says
Hi Barb – Thank you so much! This IS a GREAT recipe and I would have been sad if I lost it too…but now you know where to find it just in case you lose it again! Enjoy!
Sela Amelinda says
I just tried this recipe and the results were amazing. All members of my family loved it (except for my father, he does not eat sweets). This recipe will be one of my favorite recipes!
And I wish I could visit Hershey Park someday~
Martha says
Thanks Sela! I hope you can make it to Hershey Park someday too!
Chelsea says
This was amazing! Thank you 😉 I’ve made it twice already!
Martha says
Thanks Chelsea! It’s one of our favorites!
Morgan L says
This may be a silly question…but do you use Hershey’s UNsweetened cocoa? Or should it be sweetened instead?
Martha says
Hi Morgan – unsweetened! The sugar in the recipe is enough that you wouldn’t want to use a sweetened cocoa powder!
Jennifer says
This sounds like it would be fantastic with some walnuts thrown into the mixture.
Martha says
I think so too Jennifer!
Serena says
What will happen if I have leftovers or can’t serve right away? How would you recomend storing?
Martha says
Hi Serena – I’d recommend reheating it in the microwave just until warm (if you’ve baked it in an oven-safe glass dish – just cover it tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate). If you’ve baked it in a metal baking pan, you’ll need to transfer it to a microwave-safe dish before reheating. Hope that helps!