Where can I get a good, simple cake recipe?

Try allrecipes.com or if you can get a book The Joy of Cooking.

www.allrecipes.com

tasteofhome.com

Pick up a tin of Hershey’s Cocoa. There’s a recipe on the back for a chocolate cake and frosting that is very easy to make and tastes fabulous. You can make it a layer cake like the recipe says, or use a 9X13 inch pan to make a single layer sheet cake. I’ve made this cake many times, and you can’t go wrong with it.

Other than that, I’d second (third?) the suggestion for www.allrecipes.com or suggest you just buy a cake mix and container of frosting. It doesn’t get any simpler than that (unless you just buy a cake) and the mixes do turn out moist cakes.

Simple can’t get any better when it’s Betty Crocker.

For those who haven’t done much (or any at all) baking, the absolutely easiest type to make that look and taste incredible are UPSIDE DOWN CAKES.

These are very simple, can use almost any kind of fruit and are as goof-proof as you can get.

Ignore any directions involving making caramel. That’s not necessary. Brown sugar works just as well.

There’s an excellent PLUM UPSIDE DOWN recipe at the link below. Just put those words into search and there it is.

Few ingredients, simple directions. Use another fruit if you want. This is a great time of year for fruit.

www.realsimple.com

I’ve always found the easiest recipe is on the back of the cake mix box.

Might not be what you’re looking for, but if it’s an emergency, try this 3 minute cake in a mug recipe i found on 4chan (100% SFW)
http://cl.ly/1wkm

Epicurious is my favorite website for recipes in general. They have many cake recipes ranging from easy to not quite so easy. If you read the directions and the comments others have left, you won’t go wrong. The comments are often tips on how to make the recipe in an easier or just better method.

If you don’t mind complicated recipes that are also step by step (if you do everything it says, the result is lovely—just sometimes there are a lot of steps), you can look at America’s Test Kitchen. Right now they have an apple upside down cake and a triple chocolate mousse cake.

Whenever I am making cake, this is my cake of preference. It’s delicious and fairly easy.

I also like epicurious.com. Also, there’s a site dedicated solely to chocolate baking, it’s called cacaoweb.net. I haven’t baked a real chocolate cake myself, so i am not able to give you an easy recipe, but between these 2 sites you should find something! I do have a microwave chocolate cake recipe, which is very delicious and as simple as a cake recipe can ever get, however it’s only a small serving (for 2 people at most).

Like @Austinlad for a quick easy recipe for beginners go and buy a cake mix in the box and follow the directions exactly. You can even buy frosting for the cake already prepared.

Plus making it yourself is more personal than buying from a bakery.

I agree with @janbb , The Joy of Cooking is your best source for “scratch’ recipes and techniques. If this is your first attempt, you’re probably better off going with a major brand-name mix; follow the directions and most are foolproof, just pay careful attention to baking time and oven temperature.

But mix cakes taste so fake and scratch cakes are so good!

Betty Crocker