Chocolate Sponge Cake with Chocolate Buttercream is one of the best easy treats. This air fryer chocolate cake recipe is super simple and absolutely delicious. Perfect whether you want an easy weekend bake with the kids or the base for a special occasion cake.
Once I’d cracked an air fryer Victoria sponge cake, I had to have a go at an air fryer chocolate cake!
The kids love chocolate cake, and simple chocolate sponges like this often form the base of our occasion cakes, especially for the kid’s birthdays.
This air fryer chocolate sponge cake is moist, soft and deliciously chocolatey. It’s also a super simple air fryer chocolate cake recipe that’s the perfect alternative to oven-baked cakes if, for any reason, that isn’t an option.
Why I Love Air Fryer Chocolate Cake
It took me a while to get used to air fryer baking. It’s not as subtle as the oven, and you are less likely to get a perfectly even top. But once you get used to it, you can make fabulously moist sponges. I love this one because:
- If you’ve got an air fryer but don’t have access to an oven, you can still make cake! Air fryer chocolate cake recipes mean you never have to miss out.
- It’s a beautiful sponge cake that always tastes amazing.
- Air fryer chocolate sponge is great for baking with kids.
- You can add decorations to make it a little fancier.
- It’s an easy bake, perfect for weekend baking.
- The top might be a little uneven, but the inside is always light and fluffy, and you can always level the top off so that it looks neater.
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Ingredients For Air Fryer Chocolate Cake
When I bake this air fryer chocolate Victoria sponge recipe, I use:
Caster Sugar
Margarine – You can use room-temperature unsalted butter, too.
Eggs
Self Raising Flour – If you only have plain flour, add a teaspoon of baking powder.
Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
Milk Chocolate
And for the chocolate buttercream frosting, I use:
Unsalted Butter – I don’t recommend using margarine for buttercream. It’s liquid-based and so much runnier.
Icing Sugar
Milk Chocolate
You’ll Also Need
As well as an air fryer (and while I’m sure a ninja air fryer chocolate cake is great, you don’t need a fancy expensive machine), you’ll need a large mixing bowl, a sift, a wooden spoon, a whisk (hand or electric hand mixer), and two 6-inch loaf tins.
I use silicon moulds. I find metal works best in the oven, but for some reason, I always get better results in silicone in the air fryer.
Remember, you’ll need to adjust the recipe and bake times if the size of the tin that fits in your air fryer isn’t the same as mine. It might also need adjusting if your machine has more or less empty space once the tin is added. So don’t be surprised if yours takes a little longer to bake than mine.
Then, I use a metal, ovenproof saucepan lid to cover my cake. You can use foil, but you’ll need to wrap it tightly to stop it from blowing around, and I find that a lid that fits your cake tin perfectly works better.
How to Make Air Fryer Chocolate Cake – Step-by-Step Instructions
Full, easy-to-follow instructions and quantities are available in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step One
Melt the chocolate for the sponge and leave to one side to cool. It doesn’t need to be cold, and it needs to stay pourable, but it shouldn’t be hot either.
I do this in a pan on the hob. You can also use the microwave or a Bain mare/double boiler.
However you usually melt chocolate is fine, just be careful.
Step Two
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the butter and sugar.
Step Three
Whisk in the eggs one at a time.
Step Four
Sift in the flour and cocoa.
Step Five
Whisk in until the mixture is smooth.
Step Six
Preheat your air fryer to 160 degrees C and set for 25 minutes. If it has a preheat setting, use this; if not, just heat it at 160 degrees C for 2-3 minutes before adding the cake batter.
If you are using metal tins, grease them.
Step Seven
Fold through the cooled melted chocolate.
Step Eight
Divide the cake mixture between two six-inch tins.
Step Nine
Place the first cake in the air fryer basket and bake for 10 minutes
Step Ten
Open the basket and cover your cake.
I prefer to do this with a heatproof pan lid. You can just pop it on and close the drawer immediately, reducing temperature fluctuation as much as possible.
If you don’t have a lid, carefully wrap it in foil, making sure it’s secure so it doesn’t blow off in the air fryer.
Step Eleven
Bake for another 15 minutes.
Step Twelve
Open the drawer and use a skewer to check that the cake is baked in the middle. If not bake, covered for a further 5 minutes.
Step Thirteen
Once the cake is baked, remove it from the air fryer and cool fully in the tin or mould before removing it to a wire rack.
Repeat with the second cake.
Step Fourteen
For the icing, melt the chocolate and leave to one side to cool. Again, it should be pourable but not hot.
Step Fifteen
Beat the butter until it’s soft. I do this with a wooden spoon.
Step Sixteen
Add the icing sugar and beat until the mixture is smooth and there are no lumps of butter.
Step Seventeen
Pour in the cooled chocolate and fold through until even.
Step Eighteen
Level one cake if you just want icing in the middle, and both if you want to ice the top too.
I use a cake leveller, but you could do this very carefully with a sharp knife. You don’t have to level completely; just take the top of the dome off.
Step Nineteen
Spread icing on one half and sandwich the cakes with the chocolate buttercream in the middle. Add a layer on the top, too, if desired.
I spread roughly, but you could also pipe in neat stars.
Top Tips
For the perfect air fryer chocolate cake:
- Use a lid if you have one. Covering with foil is easy in the oven, but in the air fryer, you have to scrunch it around tightly to stop it from blowing off, which takes time.
- Don’t over-mix the batter.
- The air fryer doesn’t lend itself to perfectly even bakes. The middle of your cake should be brilliant, so don’t worry too much about a cracked or domed top. Just chop it off or cover the cracks with a dusting of icing sugar.
Serving Suggestions
I serve my air-fried chocolate cake in nice thick slices with a hot drink as a pudding or sweet snack.
You could add a dollop of cream or ice cream or even serve it with lashings of custard for a super comforting treat.
Variations
This basic chocolate sponge is a fantastic start, but there’s so much that you can do with it.
Fill with Vanilla
I love chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream, but if that’s a bit too much chocolate, you could fill it with vanilla buttercream instead. You could also add some jam for a fruity twist.
Add Some Nutella
My kids love this cake with a layer of Nutella as well as chocolate buttercream.
Add Cream
My son doesn’t like cream, so we never fill our sandwich cakes with cream. You can do if you prefer though.
Leftovers
There’s no such thing as leftover chocolate cake!
Storage
Store your chocolate air fryer cake in a lidded tub or stand for 2-3 days. After that it will be edible, but it won’t stay as moist.
You don’t need to keep it in the fridge unless your kitchen is very warm.
FAQ
You can use any tin that’s suitable in the oven in your air fryer as long as it fits comfortably.
If you’ve got two drawers, you can bake both sponges at the same time but don’t be tempted to put one on top of the other.
Yes, you can use dark chocolate to make this cake. It will have a richer flavour, which lots of people prefer.
Other Recipes
If you like this recipe for air fryer chocolate cake, you might also like some of my other air fryer recipes.
- Air Fryer Cake
- Perfect Air Fryer Jacket Potatoes
- Air Fryer Cottage Pie
- Chicken Pasta Bake
- Air Fryer Crispy Chicken Burgers
- Air Fryer Carrots and Parsnips
- Apple Crumble with Oats
- Ary Fryer Lemon Drizzle Cake
- Air Fryer Carrot Cake
Recipe Card
Air Fryer Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
For the Chocolate Sponge
- 175 g Caster Sugar
- 175 g Margarine
- 3 Large Eggs
- 150 g Self Raising Flour
- 25 g Cocoa
- 100 g Milk Chocolate
For the Chocolate Buttercream:
- 100 g Unsalted Butter (at room temperature)
- 100 g Icing Sugar
- 100 g Milk Chocolate
Instructions
- Carefully melt the chocolate for the cake and leave it to one side until it’s cool but pourable.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the butter and sugar.
- Whisk in the eggs one at a time.
- Sift in the flour and cocoa.
- Whisk in until the mixture is smooth.
- Preheat your air fryer to 160 degrees C and set for 25 minutes.
- Fold through the cooled melted chocolate.
- Divide the cake mixture between two six-inch tins.
- Place the first cake in the air fryer basket and bake for 10 minutes
- Open the basket and cover your cake with an ovenproof metal lid or foil (secure tightly).
- Bake for another 15 minutes.
- Open the drawer and use a skewer to check that the cake is baked in the middle.
- If not bake, covered for a further 5 minutes.
- Once the cake is baked, remove it from the air fryer and cool fully in the tin or mould before removing it to a wire rack.
- Repeat with the second cake.
- For the icing, melt the chocolate and leave to one side to cool.
- Beat the butter until it’s soft.
- Add the icing sugar and beat until the mixture is smooth.
- Pour in the cooled chocolate and fold through until even.
- Carefully level one or both cakes (if you want to ice the top and middle).
- Spread icing on one half and sandwich the cakes together with the chocolate buttercream in the middle.
- Add a layer on the top, too, if desired.
Notes
- If you are using metal tins, grease them.
- If your air fryer has two baskets, cook both cakes at the same time.
- Read the post above for more tips and advice.
Any nutritional information is given as a general guide only and may not be accurate. The information is provided using an online calculator and is specific to my ingredients. Please make your own calculations if you want precise information.
