Baking & Pastry > Baking at High Altitude > Adjusting Recipes for High Altitude > Adjusting Baking Temperatures and Times at High Altitude

High Altitude Adjusted Chocolate Cake

This recipe adapts a classic chocolate cake for baking at high altitude, ensuring a moist and perfectly risen cake even at elevations above 3,000 feet. Learn how to modify your baking temperatures and ingredient ratios for success.

Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
30-35 minutes
Servings
12
Ingredients
  • 1 3/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
  • 3/4 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
  • 1 teaspoon Salt
  • 1 3/4 cups Granulated Sugar
  • 1/2 cup Vegetable Oil
  • 2 large Eggs
  • 1 cup Buttermilk
  • 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
  • 1 cup Hot Coffee

Preheat and Prepare

Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a 9-inch round cake pan. At high altitude, it's often beneficial to reduce the oven temperature by 25°F (15°C) to prevent the cake from drying out too quickly. Consider baking at 325°F (160°C).

Combine Dry Ingredients

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Ensuring these are well combined helps with even rising.

Combine Wet Ingredients

In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla extract until well combined.

Combine Wet and Dry Ingredients

Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until just combined. Do not overmix. Overmixing develops gluten, which can lead to a tough cake.

Add Hot Coffee

Slowly pour in the hot coffee and mix until the batter is smooth. The hot coffee helps to bloom the cocoa powder, intensifying the chocolate flavor.

Bake

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. At high altitude, the cake may bake faster, so start checking for doneness around 25 minutes. Reduce baking powder by 1/4 tsp. This helps prevent over-rising and subsequent collapse.

Cool

Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting it onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

← High Altitude Chocolate Cake →

FAQ

  • Why do I need to adjust recipes for high altitude?

    At higher altitudes, there is less air pressure. This affects leavening, moisture evaporation, and baking times. Without adjustments, cakes can rise too quickly and then collapse, become dry, or bake unevenly. Also boiling points of liquids are lowered.
  • How do I know if my cake is over-rising?

    An over-rising cake will often have a large dome in the center that cracks or splits during baking. It may also collapse after being removed from the oven.
  • Can I use this method for other cake recipes?

    Yes, the principles of adjusting baking temperatures, reducing leavening agents, and increasing liquid can be applied to most cake recipes. Always monitor the baking progress closely.