Raspberry Fudge Pudding Cake

This post contains affiliate links and may earn commissions on recommended products. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Fresh raspberries add tart flavor in this rich and fudgey chocolate pudding cake.

This recipe has been retested and updated since first publishing January 2015.

Pudding cake is one of the desserts I remember most fondly from my childhood. I’ve always loved chocolate, so as a kid there was nothing better than a warm cake with rivers of gooey chocolate going through it.

If you’ve never had it before, pudding cake (also sometimes called chocolate cobbler) is incredibly easy to make. With only a little bit of flour, tunnels of rich chocolate sauce form as it bakes, running through the cake. 

My version features fresh raspberries, eliminating the need for hot water as the juices work to create the fudgy tunnels. The tart flavor of the raspberries helps cut the rich sweetness of the chocolate and make the dessert feel even more special.

Whether you’re serving this for a dinner with friends, the endcap to family night, or as a sweet addition to Valentine’s Day with your sweetie, you’ll love this twist on the Midwest classic.

Ingredients for pudding cake

Full list of ingredients including quantities is located in the recipe card.

You’ll need:

• Raspberries
• All-purpose flour
• Cocoa powder – I recommend Dutch-processed.
• Baking powder
• Fine sea salt
• Unsalted butter – If you use salted butter, eliminate the added salt in the recipe.
• Light brown sugar
• Vanilla extract
• Milk

Fresh or thawed frozen raspberries will work for this recipe, though in my experience fresh work best, as some of the juices of the frozen raspberries are lost during the thawing process. 

Do not be tempted to swap in raspberry jam. This has already been cooked down with sugar and will end up sticky when baked, without fudgy cake.

How to make this recipe

Making raspberry fudge pudding cake is much like making a standard cake batter at first, save for the fact that it only uses ½ cup of flour.

Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 2-quart baking dish with nonstick cooking spray or butter. I usually use an 11×7-inch pan, but an 8×8 or 9×9 square pan will work, as will a 9-inch cake pan or pie plate.

Mash the raspberries with a fork and set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, 2 tablespoons of the cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. 

In a medium mixing bowl, beat together the melted butter, 3/4 cup brown sugar, and vanilla until smooth. 

Stir half of the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, then mix in the milk. Finish with the remaining flour mixture, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl and mixing until the batter is smooth. It will be thicker than a standard cake batter and be more like a brownie batter.

Pour the batter into the pan and use a spatula to spread it to the edges of the pan. Scatter the mashed raspberries over the top of the batter.

Mix together the remaining brown sugar and cocoa powder, then sprinkle it evenly over the top of the cake.

And that’s it. Walk away.

Ok, don’t really walk away. Put it in the oven, but do not mix the raspberries or the brown sugar-cocoa mixture into the batter!

It’ll feel weird and like you’re forgetting a step, but this unusual assembly will result in a deliciously fudgy pudding cake. 

Bake the cake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the cake portion comes out clean.

Don’t tell your sweetie, but this is all you really need for Valentine’s Day.

More sweet dessert recipes

If you adore chocolate, make a batch of double chocolate muffins (trust me, they’re decadent enough for dessert!) or chocolate chess pie.

Prefer bright flavors? My lemon tart is always a hit!

For more pudding cake recipes, check out chocolate peanut butter pudding cake or instant pot pumpkin pudding cakes.

Dollop this raspberry pudding cake with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream and dive in!