Moist, rich, soft, and decadent, Chocolate Buttermilk Bars is the most delicious cake with a rich and creamy frosting on top. Buttermilk, Cocoa Powder and Brown Sugar make for a moist and delicious Chocolate Buttermilk Cake.

This Moist and Buttery Chocolate Buttermilk Cake is easily one of the best desserts ever! It's just like our Southern Favoruite Texas Sheet Cake. Crackle top cake topped with a rich and creamy whipped cream and the cocoa frosting is something that every Chocolate lover is going to love for sure!
💬The inspiration to make a Buttermilk Cake
Buttermilk is the best thing about these Chocolate Bars. Buttermilk has a strong milky taste to it and hence it makes this cake super moist and creamy. Buttermilk has been used for ages for baking cakes.

It was only on my recent encounter with my Grandmas's dairy, which I found while cleaning my closet. I have this one box which I never opened.
I got it long back from home and it was tucked away in a corner in my closet. Yesterday, while cleaning my closet, this old box caught my attention.
It's one of that old trunk-like boxes.
I opened it and I found many of my old books, diaries, my favorite clothes and amongst all of them was a diary which was of my Grandma's.
Glancing at her writing after so many years, got me welled up. However, flipping through pages, I saw how she had written about monthly grocery lists, lists of bills she needed to pay, and then there was this one recipe of Chocolate Buttermilk Cake!
I read the recipe and thought it was so simple and yet I just had to make it, to relive the taste of that cake, to relive the memories of my Grandma and to enjoy it all with my family and tell them all about her, again!
Yes! I talk about her and how she's my inspiration for cooking almost ALWAYS 😅
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🥘 Ingredients needed to make

- Flour
- Baking Soda
- Baking Powder
- Salt
- Cocoa Powder (dark unsweetened)
- Brown Sugar
- Pure Vanilla Extract
- Melted Butter
- Buttermilk
See recipe card for quantities. Also, watch the video for a quick visual.
👩🍳 Instructions
STEP 1: COMBINE ALL THE INGREDIENTS
- Combine all the ingredients in a bowl
- Fold until combined and creamy
- Transfer this to a lined square baking dish

STEP 2: BAKE
- Bake @350F for 20-25 min
- After the cake gets baked, allow it to cool down for 10 minutes to room temp.
STEP 3: MAKE FROSTING
- Combine Heavy Cream and Cocoa Powder in a bowl using a stand mixer or hand held mixer
- Beat until the mixture gets thick, creamy and rich
STEP 4: DO THE FROSTING AND SERVE
- Slather the frosting over the baked cake
- Dust Cocoa Powder and Non-Parelis over it
- Cut into slices and serve.
Remember that if your cake has not been baked, then you need to bake for a few more minutes.
Hint: Allow the cake to cool down completely before you do the frosting, or else the frosting will melt over the hot cake.

HOW TO DIY Buttermilk at Home?
If you do not have Buttermilk at home, then you can make it.
Add 2-3 tablespoon of White Vinegar or Lemon Juice in a Cup
Now, fill it with Milk until you fill the cup
Stir and let it sit for 5-10 minutes before you use it.
More recipes with Buttermilk
- Baked Buttermilk Biscuit Wreath Dip
- Crispiest Air Fryer Southern Fried Chicken Recipe with Buttermilk
- Southern Buttermilk Ranch Mashed Potatoes
- Southern Buttermilk Biscuits
- Sweet Corn Casserole {5-ingredient} with Jiffy Mix in the Crockpot
- Summer Blackberry Cornbread
How to store these Chocolate Buttermilk Squares
Refrigerate: You can store the leftovers in the refrigerator for up to a week. You might want to just let it sit out on the counter for 10-15 minutes before you serve it.
Freeze: You can store the leftovers in the freezer. Place them in an air-tight container in the refrigerator. Wrap with Plastic wrap and then again with foil and then freeze this. You can freeze this for up to 3 months.
Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before you serve this.

Top tips
Chocolate Chips - Make these extra chocolaty, by including Chocolate Chips in the buttermilk and cocoa powder batter
Nuts - You can add chopped nuts in the cake batter or top over the frosting for decoration and a wonderful nutty taste. You can use Chopped Almonds or Pecan Nuts
Frosting - You can make a Buttercream Frosting with softened Butter, Granulated Sugar, and Cocoa Powder. You can also make a Cream Cheese Frosting with Cream Cheese, Granulated Sugar, and Cocoa Powder.

OTHER EASY CHOCOLATE DESSERT RECIPES
- Almond Flour Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars (Gluten-Free | Vegan)
- No-Bake Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bars (Gluten-Free) | (No Condensed Milk)
- White Chocolate Matcha Ice Cream | Vegan Ice Cream Recipe (3 ingredients)!
- Mexican Chocolate Tres Leches Cake
- Healthy Zucchini Muffins with Chocolate Chips
- Mini Peanut Butter Cheesecakes with Chocolate Ganache
- Chocolate Cinnamon French Toast
- Chocolate Coconut Bars
Chocolate Buttermilk Bars
INGREDIENTS
- 1 CUP AP Flour can replace with Oats flour for GF Version
- ½ CUP Dark Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder can use GF
- ½ teaspoon Baking Soda can use GF
- ⅛ teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1 cup Buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup Dark Brown Sugar packed
- 1 stick Melted Unsalted Butter at room temp.
for the frosting
- 1 cup Heavy Cream
- 2 tablespoon Cocoa Powder more to dust on top
- ½ cup Granulated Sugar
- Non-Parelis for decoration (optional)
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line a Baking dish with Parchment Paper. Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Fold until combined. Transfer to a lined baking dish and bake @350F for 20-25 minutes.
- To make the frosting, beat Heavy Cream with Granulated Sugar and Cocoa Powder. Beat using a handheld mixer, until you get stiff peaks. Frost over the cake using an offset spatula.
- Decorate by dusting some more Cocoa Powder on top and some non-pareils. Cut into squares and serve
Lisa says
So delicious. Dense but light. My new favorite dessert. It was a huge hit. I didn’t have a mixer for the frosting, so I added confectioner sugar and peanut butter and it thickened up.
Anjali says
so glad you liked this recipe!!!
Tibs says
So what size baking pan? All this stuff to wade thru and no pan size!
Anjali says
You can use a square baking dish or even a sheet pan. I have used a 9x9 inches baking dish for this recipe!