This Mississippi mud cake is perfect for the chocolate lover in your life! With a layer of tender, chocolatey cake topped with marshmallows, pecans, and chocolate icing, this cake practically bursts with chocolate flavors. You will love how moist and rich this cake is. It will melt in your mouth.
Even better, you only need a simple 9×13-inch baking pan to make this cake. You don’t need a mixer or anything fancy at all. Simply whisk together the batter and bake! It will come out perfectly every single time and everyone will be asking for seconds. Want another delicious chocolate cake? Try my Texas sheet cake recipe, chocolate lava cake recipe, or better than sex cake.
What You Need to Make This Recipe
Cocoa powder — this recipe calls for unsweetened cocoa powder for its strong and concentrated chocolate flavor. Do not use Dutch-processed cocoa powder for this cake recipe, as it won’t properly react with the baking soda.
Leavening agents — make sure the baking soda and baking powder are fresh. Expired leavening agents will leave you with a flat cake.
Sugar — you will need granulated sugar to sweeten the cake and powdered sugar or confectioners’ sugar to make the icing. If you do not have powdered sugar, see my guide on how to make your own powdered sugar with granulated sugar.
Oil — using oil makes the cake so incredibly tender and moist.
Milk — make sure you buy whole milk and not low-fat milk. Whole milk will give you the best flavor and add moisture to the cake.
Mini marshmallows — you will need a 10-ounce bag of mini marshmallows to top the cake for its classic sweet flavor and spongy texture.
Pecans — to contrast the spongy and chewy texture, the pecans add a wonderful crunchy texture.
How to Make Mississippi Mud Cake
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, milk, eggs, and vanilla.
3. Add the flour mixer to the sugar mixture and stir until well combined and smooth.
4. Spray a 9×13-inch baking pan with baking spray. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the center of the cake is springy to the touch.
5. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in the cocoa powder and milk until smooth.
6. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla, and whisk until smooth. Remove from the heat and keep warm.
7. Remove the cake from the oven and immediately top it with marshmallows and pecans.
8. Drizzle the icing over the marshmallows and pecans. Let the cake cool completely before serving.
Pro Tips for Making This Recipe
- The cake will have the texture of a fudgy brownie. It will puff around the sides but will fall a little during cooling.
- If you’re not a fan of pecans, you can swap them for walnuts.
- Make sure to use room temperature ingredients so the ingredients mix smoothly into the batter. Overmixing the batter will lead to a tough, dry, and dense cake.
- I highly recommend using a kitchen scale to measure your flour as it’s the most accurate method and will prevent you from ending up with a dense cake. If you don’t have a scale, fluff your flour with a spoon and spoon it into your cups before leveling it off with a knife. This method prevents you from overpacking the measuring cup.
- Similarly, use a scale to measure the powdered sugar for the icing, as you do not want the icing to be too thick. If you add too much powdered sugar, your icing will be more like frosting and won’t drizzle the cake over as smoothly.
- As this Mississippi mud cake is a fudgy brownie-like texture, you must allow for it to cool before slicing into it. This ensures you get perfectly clean slices and that they hold their shape.
- If you only have jumbo marshmallows, you can cut them into smaller pieces to mimic mini marshmallows.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can store this Mississippi mud cake at room temperature for up to 4 days. Make sure to cover it with plastic or foil tightly.
You sure can! While the marshmallows don’t freeze solid and lose a bit of their fluffiness in the freezer, they will fluff back up when you defrost the cake. Make sure you tightly wrap the cake with plastic and a layer of foil to prevent freezer burn. You can freeze the cake for up to 3 months.
If you are not a fan of marshmallows or pecans, you can skip them. The cake with the icing will still be delicious!
While the cake’s origin is unclear, some believe its name comes from its resemblance to Mississippi River mud with various rock layers.
If you love this recipe try these out!
If you’ve tried this recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Mississippi Mud Cake
Equipment
- Mixing Bowls
- 9×13-inch cake pan
- Saucepan
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour (210g)
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (60g)
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 cups granulated sugar (400g)
- 1 cup vegetable oil (240mL)
- ¾ cup whole milk (180ml)
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 (10-ounce bag) mini marshmallows (283g)
- 1 cup chopped pecans (113g)
For the Icing:
- ½ cup unsalted butter (113g)
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 5 tablespoons whole milk
- 3 cups confectioners’ sugar (360g)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×13-inch baking pan with baking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, milk, eggs, and vanilla. Add the flour mixer to the sugar mixture and stir until well combined and smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the center of the cake is springy to the touch.
- Meanwhile, after the cake has been baking for 15 minutes, make the icing.
For the Icing:
- In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in the cocoa powder and milk until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla, and whisk until smooth. Remove from the heat and keep warm.
For the Assembly:
- Remove the cake from the oven and immediately top with marshmallows and pecans. Drizzle the icing over the marshmallows and pecans. Let the cake cool completely before serving.
Notes
- The cake will have the texture of a fudgy brownie. It will puff around the sides but will fall a little during cooling.
- If you’re not a fan of pecans, you can swap them for walnuts.
- Make sure to use room temperature ingredients so the ingredients mix smoothly into the batter. Overmixing the batter will lead to a tough, dry, and dense cake.
- I highly recommend using a scale to measure your flour as it’s the most accurate method and will prevent you from ending up with a dense cake. If you don’t have a scale, fluff your flour with a spoon and spoon it into your cups before leveling it off with a knife. This method prevents you from overpacking the measuring cup.
- Similarly, use a scale to measure the powdered sugar for the icing, as you do not want the icing to be too thick. If you add too much powdered sugar, your icing will be more like frosting and won’t drizzle the cake over as smoothly.
- As this Mississippi mud cake is a fudgy brownie-like texture, you must allow for it to cool before slicing into it. This ensures you get perfectly clean slices and that they hold their shape.
- If you only have jumbo marshmallows, you can cut them into smaller pieces to mimic mini marshmallows.
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