Crockpot Molten Lava Cake

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How to make a delicious Crockpot Lava Cake. It is easy to make and even easier when you prepare the mix ahead of time and have it ready in your pantry with this recipe!

How to make a delicious Crockpot Lava Cake. So easy to make and even easier when you prepare the mix ahead of time and have it ready in your pantry with this recipe!

Crockpot Chocolate Lava Cake

I love cake. I also really love things that I can mix up and forget about until supper time, especially on busy days! This is an easy Molten Lava Cake you can quickly whip up and throw in the crockpot.

I’ve also included instructions on how to make the ingredients into a ready-made mix that you can keep in your pantry to make it an even easier throw-together dessert!

Tip: This Crockpot Chocolate Cake is egg-free! Find more Egg Free Recipes on Little House Living.

homemade hot chocolate mix

Ingredients in Crockpot Chocolate Lava Cake Recipe

What you need:

  • Sugar. Just plain white sugar is all that is needed in this recipe.
  • All Purpose Flour. This recipe calls for regular flour. You can also use all purpose gluten free flour to make this gluten-free.
  • Unsweetened cocoa. This is plain cocoa powder, not hot chocolate, and nothing sweetened since you are adding in sugar as well.
  • Baking powder. This will help our cake rise and be nice and cake-like.
  • Salt & Vanilla. These will improve the flavor of your cake. I use Homemade Vanilla Extract.
  • Milk & Butter. You can use salted or unsalted butter; either will work. For milk, use what you have on hand. For a dairy-free cake, use coconut or almond milk and vegan butter (or shortening).
  • Chocolate chips. I really like milk chocolate chips in this recipe, but any kind (white chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate, or dark chocolate) will work. Try peanut butter chips for a new flavor!
  • Hot Water. You need this to help form that yummy, gooey center of the cake!

Made this yummy cake last night for valentines day! Cake was very gooey on the bottom and dense on top, had a great amount of chocolate sauce! I cooked my cake in a 5 quart slow cooker and it only took 2 hours exactly! Yummy!

Caitlyn, Little House Living reader
Dry ingredients for chocolate lava cake.

Step By Step Instructions for Making Crockpot Lava Cake

In a small bowl, mix together 1 cup of sugar ( I used turbinado), flour, 3 tablespoons of cocoa, baking powder, and salt.

Melted butter and milk in a white bowl.

In another bowl mix together the milk, butter, and vanilla extract. Then combine the 2 bowls and mix well.

Chocolate chips on top of a molten lava cake in the crockpot.

Spray the inside of your crockpot with cooking spray or oil and pour the batter mixture in the bottom. Top with a cup of chocolate chips.

Liquid ingredients for molten lava cake.

Mix together the remaining cocoa, the water, and the rest of the sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved.

Pouring liquid mixture into the molten lava cake.

Pour the liquid mixture on top of the batter and the chocolate chips. Cook on high in your slow cooker for about 2 hours. (But make sure you watch the sides for burning and turn it down if it gets too well done too fast.)

Chocolate Lava cake baking in the slow cooker.

After 2 hours turn it down to low and cook it about another 2 hours. The times and temps will vary depending on your crockpot and the size of your crockpot.

Closeup of chocolate molten lava cake in a glass dish.

When it’s done, serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream, or just enjoy it plain!

I’m making this tonight to take to Bible study fellowship tonight. I doubled the recipe because there are a lot of us!! I also used half dark chocolate chips and half semi-sweet chocolate chips. I can’t wait to try this, just wish I had time to stop at the store to get some vanilla ice cream!!

Grammi Tammi, Little House Living reader
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Print this Crockpot Chocolate Cake recipe to add to your Recipe Binder below:

Crockpot Chocolate Lava Cake Recipe

Indulge in ooey-gooey chocolate bliss with the ease of a slow cooker. This hands-off Crockpot Chocolate Lava Cake transforms basic pantry ingredients into the ultimate decadent dessert. Just toss everything into the crockpot, let it bake, then delight in chocolatey molten cake ready with zero effort thanks to the magical slow cooker.

Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword Crockpot Chocolate Lava Cake
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours
Total Time 4 hours 10 minutes
Servings 8 servings
Calories 382 kcal
Creator Merissa

Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cups sugar
  • 1 cup flour
  • 6 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 2 Tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1 cup chocolate chips
  • 1 3/4 cups hot water

Instructions

  1. In a small bowl, mix together 1 cup of sugar ( I used turbinado), flour, 3 tablespoons of cocoa, baking powder, and salt.
  2. In another bowl mix together the milk, butter, and vanilla extract. Then combine the 2 bowls and mix well.
  3. Spray the inside of your crockpot with cooking spray or oil and pour the batter mixture in the bottom. Top with a cup of chocolate chips.
  4. Mix together the remaining cocoa, the water, and the rest of the sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved.
  5. Pour the liquid mixture on top of the batter and the chocolate chips. Cook on high in your slow cooker for about 2 hours. (But make sure you watch the sides for burning and turn it down if it gets too well done too fast.)
  6. After 2 hours turn it down to low and cook it about another 2 hours. The times and temps will vary depending on your crockpot and the size of your crockpot.
Nutrition Facts
Crockpot Chocolate Lava Cake Recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 382 Calories from Fat 81
% Daily Value*
Fat 9g14%
Saturated Fat 6g38%
Trans Fat 0.2g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.2g
Monounsaturated Fat 1g
Cholesterol 13mg4%
Sodium 299mg13%
Potassium 99mg3%
Carbohydrates 74g25%
Fiber 2g8%
Sugar 59g66%
Protein 4g8%
Vitamin A 163IU3%
Vitamin C 0.1mg0%
Calcium 114mg11%
Iron 2mg11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Molten Lava cake in a glass dish with a pink striped placemat in the background.

Crockpot Molten Lava Cake Mix

To make this recipe into an easy mix that you can store in the pantry, follow the directions below. This is a great way to store this frugal dessert on your pantry shelves or you could even give it as a special gift.

This recipe stores well in a pin size jar or will fill half of a quart mason jar.

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Print this Crockpot Chocolate Cake Mix and Recipe to add to your Recipe Binder below:

Crockpot Molten Lava Cake Mix Recipe

How to make a mix version of your favorite molten lava cake for the crockpot!

Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword Molten Lava Cake Mix Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings 8 servings
Calories 356 kcal
Creator Merissa

Ingredients

For the dry mix:

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup flour
  • 3 Tablespoons  unsweetened cocoa
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspon salt

Ready to Make Cake:

  • 1 jar of Lava Cake Mix
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 2 Tablepoon butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup Chocolate Chips
  • 3 teaspoons of cocoa
  • 1 3/4 cups hot water
  • 3/4 cup sugar

Instructions

For the dry mix:

  1. In a bowl mix together the ingredients: Keep this mixture in a jar until ready to use (it is a perfect fit for a pint-size jar).

Ready to Make Cake:

  1. Add 1/2 c. milk, 2 T. butter, and 1/2 t. vanilla to your jar of lava cake mix to make your batter.  Spray the inside of your crockpot with cooking spray or oil and pour the batter mixture in the bottom and top with a cup of chocolate chips.
  2. In a separate bowl, mix together 3 teaspoons of cocoa, 1 and 3/4 cup of hot water, and 3/4 cup of sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved.
  3. Pour the liquid mixture on top of the batter and the chocolate chips. Cook on high in your slow cooker for about 2 hours. (But make sure you watch the sides for burning and turn it down if it gets too well done too fast.) After 2 hours turn it down to low and cook it about another 2 hours. The times and temps will vary depending on your crockpot and the size of your crockpot.
Nutrition Facts
Crockpot Molten Lava Cake Mix Recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 356 Calories from Fat 63
% Daily Value*
Fat 7g11%
Saturated Fat 4g25%
Trans Fat 0.1g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.3g
Cholesterol 6mg2%
Sodium 157mg7%
Potassium 75mg2%
Carbohydrates 73g24%
Fiber 2g8%
Sugar 59g66%
Protein 4g8%
Vitamin A 81IU2%
Vitamin C 0.1mg0%
Calcium 111mg11%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Cooked Crockpot Chicken and Wild Rice soup on a bowl with bread beside

More Easy Crockpot Recipes

Have you ever made Chocolate Lava Cake in your Crockpot?

Me and Kady

Merissa Alink

Merissa has been blogging about and living the simple and frugal life on Little House Living since 2009 and has internationally published 2 books on the topic. You can read about Merissa’s journey from penniless to freedom on the About Page. You can send her a message any time from the Contact Page.

This Crockpot Lava Cake was originally published on Little House Living in January 2012. It has been updated as of January 2024.

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25 Comments

  1. Yum! If I may..for those who are Dairy Free or Vegans: use dairy free milk, sub Earth Balance vegan butter, sub a gluten free flour blend for gf, too!

  2. You just did 3 of my very favorites ALL in one shot! molten lava is my alltime fav (hard to get a good recipe for it too!) AND the crockpot (l-o-v-e mine!) AND a make ahead, keep it in the jar for extra ease?? this post ROCKS!! Thanks!

  3. Tricia, I used a smaller one ( I can’t remember the size for sure) but it would work in any size.

  4. This is definitely going on my meal plan for next week. It was my birthday last week and I didn’t get a cake… but I will be eating this next week as my belated birthday cake!

  5. That looks great. I love that your recipe does not use a boxed cake mix. I have made the one using a boxed cake mix and was not impressed. I may have to give this one a try! – Yum!

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  7. I’m making this tonight to take to Bible study fellowship tonight. I doubled the recipe because there are a lot of us!! I also used half dark chocolate chips and half semi-sweet chocolate chips. I can’t wait to try this, just wish I had time to stop at the store to get some vanilla ice cream!!

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  9. Made this yummy cake last night for valentines day! Cake was very gooey on the bottom and dense on top, had a great amount of chocolate sauce! I cooked my cake in a 5 quart slow cooker and it only took 2 hours exactly! Yummy!

  10. This looks delicious. I can’t wait to make this cake for my daughter, lava cake is her favorite. Thanks for the recipe.

  11. Has anyone doubled his recipe in a 5 qt cooker? Est time it would take or about the 2 hr high then 2 hr slow? I have 12 women to feed

    1. Theresa, did you try doubling the recipe? If so, how did it come out in your 5 Qt. cooker? I was going to try doubling it in a 3 qt. cooker.

  12. Made this for a bday party and was delicious! I too am wanting to double the recipe and curious how long to cook. Any idea?

    1. I would cook it for the same amount of time and then just watch it, it may need slightly longer but it may work for the same amount of time.