Double Chocolate Bundt Cake

I was thinking about what would be a good dessert after a light summer meal, and fruits and light & polite-colored sweets kept getting pushed out of my brain by that alpha-confection, CHOCOLATE.  "No," I told myself, "No!" -- it's summer and we must keep things light.  Well, my intuitive baker side said, "Wait, chocolate knows no season!  Chocolate is universal.  Chocolate is always welcome!"  This recipe, from Good Housekeeping, does something no mix can ever do -- it makes a moist, rich, scratch cake that can't be duplicated by any manufactured dessert.  And nothing's easier, really, than baking a cake in a bundt pan. Once it's in the oven, your work is basically done.  If you want to make the simple glaze to top it off,  that's no work, really.  If you want to keep things simpler, just sprinkle this already-moist-enough cake with confectioners sugar, as the original recipe suggests.  So have your grilled chicken, corn on the cob, and a nice green salad. Then slice up this cake as a perfect ending to a summer day.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE BUNDT CAKE

2 1/4 cup(s) all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoon(s) baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon instant espresso-coffee powder
3/4 cup hot water
2 cup(s) sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large egg whites
1 large egg
1 ounce (1 square) unsweetened chocolate,, melted
2 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract
1/2 cup buttermilk (or 2 teaspoons vinegar and 1/2 cup milk, let sit for 5 minutes)

Mocha glaze, (optional)


DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 12-cup Bundt pan.

On sheet of waxed paper, stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

In 2-cup measuring cup, mix cocoa, espresso-coffee powder, and hot water until blended; set aside.

In large bowl, with mixer at low speed, beat sugar, oil, egg whites, and whole egg until blended. Increase speed to high; beat until creamy, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low; beat in cocoa mixture, chocolate, and vanilla. Add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat just until combined, scraping bowl occasionally with rubber spatula.

Pour batter into prepared plan. Bake 45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes. With small knife, loosen cake from side of pan; invert onto wire rack. Cool completely.

Meanwhile, prepare Mocha Glaze. Place cake on cake plate; pour glaze over top of cooled cake, letting it run down sides. Allow glaze to set before serving.

Mocha Glaze: In medium bowl, combine 1/4 teaspoon instant espresso-coffee powder and 2 tablespoons hot water; stir until dissolved. Stir in 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa, 3 tablespoons dark corn syrup, and 1 tablespoon coffee-flavored liqueur until blended. Stir in 1 cup confectioners' sugar until smooth. Makes about 1 cup.
 
Recipe and photo source: http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/recipefinder/double-chocolate-bundt-cake-2567

Simple and Elegant Flourless Chocolate Cake

One of my favorite desserts when dining out is a flourless chocolate cake. Its truffle-like consistency paired with a bit of whipped cream and berries is truly an elegant way to end a meal.  You don't need to wait for your next night out to enjoy such a fine dessert.  I found this great recipe with a Google search, and it comes from yesterday's edition of the Dallas News (link below).  Their recipe relies heavily on a food processor, but if you have a blender and a good mixer you can do the same thing.  Make sure you prepare your pans well.  Use a baking spray (it comes with the flour already in it) or to be truly flour-free, spray pans with vegetable spray or brush with melted butter and then "cocoa" (as you would flour) very well.

Flourless Choclate Cake

1/2 cup sliced almonds
2 tablespoons sugar
12 ounces dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
4 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spritz a 6-inch cake pan or muffin tins with baking spray (a cooking spray containing flour).

In a food processor (or blender), pulse the almonds and sugar until finely ground. Set aside.

In a glass bowl or measuring cup, combine chocolate chips and butter. Microwave on High (100 percent power) in 15-second bursts, stirring between, until melted and smooth.

With the processor running (or mixer), pour the chocolate mixture in and process until combined. One at a time, add the eggs, processing between each to combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and process one last time.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 15 to 25 minutes (depending on pan size), or until the cake is puffed and no longer glossy. Let rest in the pan until the top sinks back down, about 10 minutes. Invert onto a plate. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 6 servings.

Photo credit and original article: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/taste/easyrecipes/stories/DN-nf_flourless_0210gd.State.Edition1.24bf2bf.html

CHOCOLATE CAKE! with Cocoa Frosting, the old-fashioned way

Chocolate cake gets attention. Whether you’re in a restaurant and the server saunters by with the layered confection for another table, or you’re in a check-out line at the grocery store and an in-your-face magazine features a chocolate cake on the cover (the same cover that says you can lose 25 lbs. in three weeks by walking), you notice. You might think, “I could go for a slice of that right now!” Chocolate and cake are a marriage made in heaven. Many of us have happy memories of family celebrations where some form of this popular dessert was the star. As a cake baker, I’ve made many, many chocolate cakes: frosted with vanilla buttercream, or filled with ice cream and frozen, or portioned in little paper cups, even stacked in tiers for a wedding cake. The recipe that follows is adapted (notice how many bloggers “adapt” recipes) from Bon Apétit, but don’t fret; this one’s easy, almost as easy as a cake mix, but sooooo much better! It uses AP flour and is mixed up in a flash. It’s a moist, dense, old-fashioned cake, with, surprisingly, no eggs. Reviewers of this recipe note that this is their go-to chocolate cake, and they make it over and over again. One note: line your pans with wax or parchment paper. It just takes a second and eliminates any chance of the cake sticking. I never bake a cake without lining the pan. It’s like cake insurance. Try this recipe and let me know how you like it!

For Cake:

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup cold water
1 cup cold coffee (can be made with instant)
¼ cup canola oil
¾ cup buttermilk (substitute: ¾ cup milk soured with 1 tbsp. vinegar – let stand for a minute)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract


For Frosting:

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 ¼ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
5 cups powdered sugar
8 tablespoons (about) whole milk
1 ¼ teaspoons vanilla extract
¾ cup plus 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

Cake:

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Butter and flour two 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1 ½ inch-high sides. Cut two circles of parchment or wax paper to line the cake pans (just a bit smaller than the pans). Line the pans with paper and spray the paper lightly with cooking spray.
Sift first five ingredients into a medium bowl.
Mix water, oil, buttermilk, and vanilla in large bowl, then whisk in dry ingredients.
Divide batter among pans.

Bake cakes until tester inserted in center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on racks 15 minutes. Cut around pans to loosen cakes. Turn cakes out; cool completely, for at least a few hours but I recommend overnight.

Frosting:

Beat butter in large bowl until fluffy. Gradually beat in 3 cups sugar. Beat in 6 tablespoons milk and vanilla. Add cocoa and remaining 2 cups sugar; beat until blended, thinning with more milk if necessary.

Before frosting, level cake layers if necessary by shaving off any "dome" with a sharp knife. Place 1 cake layer on platter, top side up. Place a few strips of wax paper just underneath the perimeter of the cake to keep frosting from getting on the platter. Spread 2/3 – 1 cup frosting over. Top with second cake layer, top side up. Spread frosting over sides and top of cake. Remove wax paper strips.

Recipe adapted from epicurious.com which credits Bon Apétit and Sweet Dreams Bakery in Memphis, Tenn.

Photo image: http://www.sodahead.com/question/288785/what-kind-of-cake-are-you-quiz/?link=ibaf