baked occasionally – dad’s black cocoa bundt cake with whiskey glaze

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Today’s Baked Occasionally comes to you slightly delayed, which is my fault this time. I spent the weekend traveling across the country so it took me a bit to get my bearings. A better-prepared and more organized person would have typed up their post in advance and had it ready to go, but I am not that person.

Baked uses this cake for their “Father’s Day” recipe, which is June 19th this year, for those of you who were wondering. My dad was never big into whiskey, though, so you would do just as well to top this with a non-whiskey glaze if you so choose.

Like my father, I am also not big on whiskey. I was, however, eyeing the black cocoa from King Arthur Flour for probably two years now, waiting for an excuse to finally pull the trigger, so I was actually very excited when Shannon chose this cake. It also re-affirmed my need purchase a new bundt pan as their recipes use a 12 cup and mine must be… well, less than 12 cups. While there was no disaster, once again my baking sheet that I place under my bundt did catch a few drops of batter.

Likes:

Great cocoa flavor – I am IN LOVE with this black cocoa. Seriously. If you’ve ever made homemade Oreos and noticed the flavor wasn’t quite right – black cocoa is what you need to take you the rest of the way.

Gorgeous dark hue – Seriously, LOOK AT THAT SHOW STOPPER.

Texture – The cake was wonderfully tender, although rather crumbly.

Dislikes:

HOLY WHISKEY, BATMAN! – My whiskey-loving co-worker definitely enjoyed this glaze. I, however, thought I might get a buzz just from eating a slice of the cake from all the whiskey that was happening in there. You could make it plain or get creative, Shannon made her own icing with coffee and a hint of salt.

Crumbly – I was worried the cake would be dry based on the crumbs, but it wasn’t at all. It does, however, make the cake a bit messy.

All in all, the cake was delicious and easy to make. Make sure you use a large (12 cup) bundt pan or you’ll risk some spill-over. My solution to this is to place the bundt pan on top of  a baking sheet while it’s in the oven so that it will catch any spill-over. The whiskey in the glaze was very strong and overpowering to me (a non-whiskey-drinker). If you’re a fan of whiskey, follow the recipe as-is. If not, then feel free to omit it altogether and use a plain glaze in its place!

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black cocoa bundt cake with whiskey glaze

Ingredients

    For the Bundt:
  • ½ cup (40 g) unsweetened dark cocoa powder
  • ¼ cup (20 g) unsweetened black cocoa powder*
  • 1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
  • 1 cup (240 ml) hot coffee
  • 2¼ cups (285 g) all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1¼ teaspoons kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • 2¼ cups (495 g) firmly packed dark brown sugar
  • ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons (210 ml) canola oil
  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 1½ cups (360 ml) heavy cream
  • For the Glaze:
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons heavy cream
  • 2½ to 3 cups (280 to 340 g) powdered sugar, sifted
  • 3 tablespoons good-quality whiskey

Instructions

    Make the Bundt:
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and grease the inside of a 12-cup Bundt pan, either using a baking spray or buttering the pan and then cocoa powder and knocking out the excess. Make sure all of the crevices are thoroughly coated.
  2. Place both cocoa powders and the instant espresso powder in a medium heatproof bowl. Pour the hot coffee directly over the powders and whisk until they are thoroughly combined. Set aside to cool.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.
  4. In a separate large bowl, whisk the brown sugar, oil, and vanilla until combined. Add the eggs and egg yolks and whisk again until just combined.
  5. Add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the chocolate mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Whisk each addition gently to combine.
  6. Whip the cream just until it reaches medium peaks. Fold one-third of the whipped cream into the batter to lighten it. Fold in half of the remaining whipped cream until just incorporated, then fold in the rest until no streaks remain.
  7. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake in the middle of the oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with just a few moist crumbs, 50 to 55 minutes, then remove from oven. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely.
  8. Then gently loosen the sides of the cake from the pan and turn it out onto the rack so that the crown is facing up. Place a baking sheet (lined with parchment paper, if you like, for ease of cleaning) underneath the wire rack.
  9. Make the Glaze:
  10. In a small saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Remove from the heat and whisk in the cream.
  11. Add the powdered sugar in three parts, whisking to combine after each addition. Add the whiskey and whisk until uniform. The glaze should be thick and ropy, but pourable—not runny and thin.
  12. If the glaze looks too thin, add the remaining ½ cup powdered sugar and whisk to combine.
  13. Assemble the Cake:
  14. Pour the glaze over the room-temperature cake in thick ribbons; it will slowly drip down the sides. If desired, add a few sprinkles to the top. Let set for about 15 minutes before serving to allow the glaze to set.
  15. Storage:
  16. The cake will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Notes

* For "dark cocoa", Baked recommends Vallrhona, which can be hard to find. Hershey's Dark Cocoa is one I use often without issue.

* You can find black cocoa at Sur la Table, King Arthur Flour, or Amazon, but you can substitute regular dark (Dutch-process) cocoa powder in a pinch.

* Make sure you use a large (12 cup) bundt pan or you'll risk some spill-over. My solution to this is to place the bundt pan on top of a baking sheet while it's in the oven so that it will catch any spill-over.

* The whiskey in the glaze was very strong and overpowering to me (a non-whiskey-drinker). If you're a fan of whiskey, follow the recipe as-is. If not, then feel free to omit it altogether and use a plain glaze in its place!

https://wee-eats.com/2016/06/06/baked-occasionally-dads-black-cocoa-bundt-cake-with-whiskey-glaze/

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2 thoughts on “baked occasionally – dad’s black cocoa bundt cake with whiskey glaze

  1. My dad wasn’t a whiskey drinker either. His love of beer would make him very fashionable these days. That said, I like the idea of whiskey in the glaze, paired with that deep dark chocolate it sounds like a magical combination (especially at work!).

  2. This was a really hot looking cake, i agree: I’m just happy I finally had a (work-related? official business?) reason to purchase black cocoa. I”m super happy we made it: definitely going on my chocolate bundt favorites list.

    I don’t remember this being your fault we posted late? this is ALWAYS my fault, i think. 🙂

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