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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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Hot fudge pudding cake look so good by the picture. I think it needs a longer cook time as it cannot be toothpick tested. When I took this out of the oven after 40 minutes, it still came out doughy. The middle just fell through when I cut into it. Other then that, very chocolty and sweet.
Thanks Darlene – Definitely feel free to bake for longer if needed to reach the consistency you’d like.
I have made this three times and cant keep it in the icebox for more thena few hours…….it just seems to fly out of the bowl before I know it. The last two times I made it I mixed 1/4 cup Dark Hershey’s Cocoa powder and 1/4 cup Traditional Hershey’s Cocoa powder before I separated it….. Now I am no chocolate connoisseur and rarely eat chocolate but I can tell you this much ……the savory decadent flavor runs circles around Portillo’s Chocolate cake that I love.
This is absolutely the bomb in my house. Next I am going to try gluten free flour and if it is a success I will let you know. Thanks for posting this reccipe
Thanks so much for your email (I agree-this cake IS the bomb!) and I’d love to hear how it comes out made with gluten free flour Tamra! Please let us know!!
This is soooo delicious. I made it last night because I wanted something chocolate-y. I accidentally messed up and put in too much sugar (whoops) so it’s super sweet but it still tastes so good. I love the fudgyness.
Also, just for the record, it’s just as good cold the next day. I will definitely be making this again. Preferably for a crowd so I don’t eat it all.
Thanks Steph! (I agree – it is pretty fantastic as leftovers!) Glad you enjoyed it as much as we do!
My mom, who is now 82, used to make this for the family when growing up. We all loved it. I’ve made similar recipes, but never has one turned out so perfectly. My husband was craving something chocolate. When he finished inhaling (lol) I asked, ‘so, did this do ya for your chocolate fix?’ I ate it, he replied. I won’t hear how great it was until a ways down the road when he asks, “Why don’t you make that chocolate pudding stuff, again?” 😉
LOL Joy – I’m so glad your family (husband included) 😉 enjoyed the recipe as much as we did! Thanks for taking the time to write to us today!
What a disaster this was!
I made it twice thinking I did something wrong the first time and each time it turned to liquid after about 20 minutes of baking. It looked good at the 15 minute mark and somewhere between that and 20 minutes it liquefied, twice!! I tried it using a le crueset 9×9 pan and again using a regular 9×9 metal baking pan, the results were the same both times.
I followed the recipe perfectly, except I did not read the comments and after seeing someone else had the same problem I am sorry now that I didn’t. I’m not sure what could have went wrong. Definitely a waste of money and time.
I’m very sorry to hear that Robin…I’m afraid I have not idea why the recipe didn’t work for you. I certainly understand your disappointment!
We wanted something warm, sweet, and quick and this was the perfect dessert! Thank you for the recipe, we will be making it again soon!
Thanks for taking the time to write to us Sarah – and we’re so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
I have made the hot fudge cake in a small crock pot many times. I mix the batter and put it in the crock pot, mix the topping just like i would do it in the oven. Turn it on high for a couple of hours. The reason i do it in a crock pot is because i am doing it in my office for parties. Everyone loves it.
Thanks for writing to us Becky – We love that this also worked in a crockpot! (I’ve got to try that too…)
Do you know if anybody has tried using gluten free with this recipe and still get the same texture and flavor?
dear god in heaven…if we could just eat dessert for every meal…
LOL – Thanks Jody (This is a very delicious dessert for sure!) 🙂
can this recipe be doubled into a 9×13 pan?
I think so Ala – the cooking time might change a bit so just keep an eye on it while it bakes!