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Mississippi Mud Cake is a decadent, ultra moist chocolate cake that is topped with a layer of gooey marshmallows and a fudge frosting. This is the best recipe for this classic dessert!
Craving a Delicious Chocolate Cake?
This Mississippi Mud Cake is the perfect dessert for you and will quickly become a family loved recipe. It’s chocolatey, moist, and topped with delicious marshmallows and fudge frosting. You won't be able to resist!
You’ll love this recipe because it’s so easy to follow and the end result is always impressive. Your friends and family will be begging you to know how to make it!
What is Mississippi Mud Cake
The name "Mud Cake" refers to the dark chocolate cake that is covered with a layer of marshmallows and finished with a layer of chocolate glaze or frosting. But it's way more than just a cake with marshmallows.
It's very fudge-like and is slightly more dense than your typical chocolate cake, similar to a brownie.
When you bite into the cake, you get fudgy chocolate cake, then a layer of airy and light marshmallows, and a velvety, smooth, creamy chocolate glaze frosting. It is SO good!
This dessert is perfect for any occasion! It is easy to make and will wow your guests. This Mississippi Mud Cake recipe is definitely a crowd pleaser!
It's So Easy To Make
Why is it so easy to make? The ingredient list doesn't require not too much out of the ordinary and you probably have everything in your pantry already.
The homemade cake layer is easy to mix up and uses simple ingredients. You can certainly use your favorite chocolate cake recipe, but the one here works well because it is extra chocolatey and fudgy.
You can also used boxed chocolate cake mix if you're in a pinch!
The cake is made in a 9x13 pan which is great because you only have to worry about one layer of cake vs. making a stacked cake with multiple layers (which is something I dread!)
No Decorating Required
Forget fussy decorations or piping frosting! There are just a few steps to dressing up the base cake layer.
Simply sprinkle marshmallows over the top when the cake comes out of the oven. The hot cake will help bond the marshmallows to the top.
Lastly, drizzle warm frosting immediately over the top of the marshmallows. This frosting is unique because it's not like a buttercream. There is no whipping required and can be made in the microwave. How easy is that?
Ingredients for Mud Cake
What ingredients do you need to make this dessert?
For the cake you'll need all purpose flour, unsweetened cocoa powder (premium cocoa is preferred!), granulated sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder (optional but adds so much flavor).
The wet ingredients include eggs, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, milk, and hot water.
For the Topping
You will also need some marshmallows of course- mini marshmallows are preferred but if all you have available are the large ones, you can use those. You'll just need to cut them in half to place on the top layer of cake.
Next, you will need some chocolate frosting or glaze.
My recipe is simple. Just dark chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate), butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and hot water
How to Make Mississippi Mud Cake
I promise it's really easy!
Combine Dry Ingredients:
All purpose flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and espresso powder.
Add Wet Ingredients:
In a separate bowl, add the oil, eggs, vanilla and milk; stir until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry and partially mix.
Then, Add Boiling Water:
Yes, it's one of those cakes!
Why is it necessary to add boiling water to cake?
Boiling water not only makes the cake smoother and softer, but it also prevents the cake from crumbling too much. It will also help to bloom the flavor of the cocoa powder. My Crazy Chocolate Cake also has this as part of the recipe.
Bake:
Pour batter into greased 9×13” pan and bake for 40-45 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Add Marshmallows.
Remove the cake from the oven and place the marshmallows on top in an even layer, covering all surfaces. Return to the oven for 2-3 minutes until the marshmallows are slightly puffed up.
Cool completely.
Make the Frosting:
I like to make the frosting in the microwave. It's super easy and avoids any mishaps with scorching the chocolate.
To make the frosting, combine the butter, chocolate chips / chopped chocolate in a medium bowl.
Heat in 15 second intervals in the microwave to melt butter and chocolate, stirring in between each, until the mixture is smooth.
Remove from the heat and stir in the powdered sugar and vanilla. Then add the hot water. It will create a very thick but pourable frosting.
Drizzle warm chocolate frosting over cake and miniature marshmallows.
Chocolate, Marshmallow Bliss
The thing that sets this cake apart from regular chocolate cake is the layer of marshmallow and chocolate fudge frosting on top.
Normally, when I think of adding marshmallows to a recipe, I think of desserts like crispy rice treats.
Mississippi Mud Cake is very different because it has an extra-rich chocolate flavor and the marshmallows aren't too sweet; they add a pillowy soft, light texture which pairs nicely with the rich cake and frosting. It's a nice break between the fudgy layers!
One of the Best Chocolate Cake Recipes
With the marshmallow and chocolate frosting, this Mississippi cake is a decadent, fudgy dessert that has been around for years. It is the perfect treat for any occasion or just because! It's definitely the best chocolate cake I've ever had.
It is also slightly more dense than other cakes which gives the marshmallows and fudge frosting a sturdy layer to be on.
Mississippi Mud Cake is a Dessert That Will Make Any Chocolate Lover Happy!
If you love chocolate, this dessert is chocolate heaven.
The chocolate flavor shines through in each bite of chocolate goodness.
The cake has a very rich chocolate taste, which is even better if you opt for a premium cocoa powder, such as Guittard Cocoa Rouge, Valrhona Cocoa Powder, or Callebaut Cocoa Powder which can be found on Amazon. These are my favorite brands for making any chocolate dessert. Using a premium cocoa powder will take your chocolate cakes and desserts to the next level.
Make Ahead and Storage
Mississippi Mud Cake can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge. The cake will last for up to four days when covered tightly with plastic wrap.
It can also be frozen for two months; just thaw it out at room temperature before serving.
More Chocolate Cake Recipes
Mississippi Mud Cake
This Mississippi Mud Cake is made with layers or rich chocolate cake, gooey marshmallows, and chocolate fudge frosting. This is the best recipe. Serve this cake at your next party and watch it disappear in minutes!
- Total Time: 65
- Yield: 1 cake 1x
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 ¾ c all purpose flour
- 1 ¾ c granulated sugar
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- ¾ c unsweetened cocoa powder (a premium brand like Callebaut cocoa powder or Valrhona cocoa powder will take this cake to the next level!)
- 2 tsp espresso powder (optional, but recommended)
- ½ c vegetable oil or canola oil
- 2 eggs (lightly beaten, room temp)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ c sour cream (at room temp)
- ½ c water + 1 c water (measure out and set the 1 c aside)
- 1 (10oz or 283g) bag of mini marshmallows (for after the cake is baked)
For the Frosting
- 1 c dark chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
- 8 Tbsp unsalted butter (cut into cubes)
- 3 c powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 6 Tbsp hot water
Instructions
To Make the cake
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13 size pan with shortening or cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and espresso (if using) powder. Set aside.
- In a separate large bowl, add oil, eggs and vanilla until combined on medium-high speed using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or electric hand mixer. Add the sour cream and ½ c of water. Mix again until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until they've just begun to combine.
- Using the stove or microwave, heat up the remaining cup of water until boiling.
- Then, add about ¼ of the hot water and mix. Stop to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl well.
- Stop mixing and add more of the hot water (about half of the remainder). Mix again, and scrape the bowl down.
- Add the remainder of the water and repeat the mixing process until batter is completely combined. It will be very thin.
- Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until the center of the cake comes out clean when a toothpick is inserted. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on the cake at the 40 minute mark.
- Remove cake from the oven and turn the oven off.
- Add all of the mini marshmallows to the top of the hot cake in one even layer, completely covering the top. Place back into the oven for 2-3 minutes until marshmallows have puffed. They should not be completely melted marshmallows.
- Allow cake to cool completely.
To Make the Frosting
- Prepare the frosting by placing the chocolate chips or chopped chocolate and butter in a microwavable bowl. Microwave on high in 15 second intervals, stirring in between, until the chocolate and butter has melted.
- Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and mix. The mixture will be very thick at this point.
- Add the hot water to the bowl and mix frosting smooth. If you see any separation of butter, continue to mix until it's combined. Sometimes pulling out the hand mixer helps here!
- Pour the warm chocolate frosting over the cooled cake.
- Allow icing to set for 30 minutes or refrigerate cake. Note, the frosting will firm up when the cake is chilled so if you want the icing to still be soft, do not refrigerate.
Notes
Recipe by Owlbbaking.
- 1 cup of buttermilk can be substituted for the ½ cup of sour cream and ½ cup water. You may also substitute full fat Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream. I also like to mix the sour cream and ½ cup water in a small cup before adding it to the egg/oil mixture.
- Avoid pouring all of the hot boiling water in at once (I made this mistake in my video!). It's best to temper the water in slowly.
- For some crunch, feel free to add chopped pecans to the frosting!
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 45
- Category: Cake
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
JB
I made this cake for my friend’s birthday and it came out great! I used Guittard Cocoa Rouge for the cocoa powder and used hot coffee instead of espresso powder/water. Thanks for the recipe!
Liz
So glad you enjoyed this recipe JB! Guittard Cocoa Rouge is one of my faves!
monika
How many GRAMS of marshmallows?
We all use different bags/brands...
Liz
Sure! The bag I used is 283g . I updated the recipe as well.