The Hill Country Cook » Tunnel of Fudge Cake

Thursday, January 31, 2013

Tunnel of Fudge Cake

Posted by katieb / 7 comments » / Recipes, sweets

Y’all know it. Old timey recipes are my favorite, my FAVE I’m telling you!

The real old recipes that at some point were scribbled in that old-fashioned cursive that I can barely read on some old faded index card.

Or TYPED on a TYPEWRITER!

I used to have a typewriter. In fourth grade, I said I was going to write a book.

Just like Angela Lansbury in Murder, She Wrote.

I think mine had 7 pages. But my grandma said those were the best 7 pages of short stories she had read in her whole life!

Which brings us to, Tunnel of Fudge Cake. Tunnel. Of. Fudge. Greater words could not have been spoken.

Tunnel of Fudge Cake is purportedly what made the bundt pan famous.

The traditional cake uses ingredients that are no longer around, and then there’s always the box mix, but who wants to use a box to make this? Then some recipes call for a can of frosting in the batter, or a box of Jell-O, but this, this my friends, is the real deal.

Real, made from scratch, honest to goodness, the best chocolate cake ever.

When you cut into the middle, you have this gooey center, like a mix between pudding and brownie, but not in a weird “I’m eating cake batter” way. Yes, there ARE folks out there that don’t like eating cake batter. Weird, I know.

So with a molten center, and a chocolate glaze to top, the cake is pretty rich. I even decided to forgo the chocolate glaze, and it was spectacular with a cold glass of milk.

I had family in town last week and this ended up being the best surprise gift to bring over. Much better than a new Swiffer 360 I thought they’d enjoy for the travel trailer. *Wink.*

While this might seem like more work for those of you who prefer box mixes, it’s most definitely, absolutely worth it. For those of you who are strictly cake from scratch bakers – this you will find a pleasant break. The only complaint I had from this recipe is to gather the ingredients in three separate bowls – I HATE to create extra dishes! But, the batter is to be “just” combined, so you need everything ready, and on hand.

Try this cake for Super Bowl, and please all the wives that were dragged along and have no idea what’s going on, or who’s even in the Super Bowl for that matter (Go Niners!), and I promise you’ll have yourself a crowd pleaser.

Now, I’m going to do it. I’m not going to be afraid. I’m going to show you an imperfect picture, taken with a cell phone. I’ve decided to keep writing from my heart and stop worrying about how crazy life is right now and how it’s affecting my blogging time! Here’s a picture taken while in my parents’ Airstream, about to eat this deliciousness of heaven.

See that delicious, fudgy center? SO WORTH IT.

Back to the reasons why you need to make it.

This cake is super rich, even without the chocolate glaze, so just a skinny slice will do, which means there is a lot to go around. In closing, I raise my cold glass of milk to you Ms. Bundt Pan inventor, or inventor of Tunnel of Fudge Cake with strange no longer found ingredients. Thank you for giving me a reason to stay on the elliptical an extra 30 minutes. Well worth it, my friends!

~Peace, Love, and Tunnels of Fudge y’all!

Tunnel of Fudge Cake

Yield: serves 10-12

Borrowed from Cook's Country, 2009

Ingredients:

Cake:
3/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder, plus extra for dusting pan
1/2 cup boiling water
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 cups pecans, chopped fine
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon salt
5 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

For the glaze:
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

For the cake:
Adjust an over rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 350ºF. Grease a 12-cup Bundt pan and dust with cocoa powder. Pour the boiling water over the chocolate in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth. Cool to room temperature. Whisk the cocoa, flour, nuts, confectioners’ sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Beat eggs and vanilla in a large measuring cup.

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and butter until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. On low speed, add the egg mixture until combined, about 30 seconds. Add the chocolate mixture and beat until incorporated, about 30 seconds. Beat in the flour mixture until just combined, about 30 seconds.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the batter and bake until the edges are beginning to pull away from the pan, about 45 minutes. Cool upright in the pan on a wire rack for 1 1/2 hours, then invert onto a serving plate and cool completely.

For the glaze:
Cook the cream, corn syrup and chocolate in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until smooth. Stir in the vanilla and set aside until slightly thickened, about 30 minutes. Drizzle the glaze over the cake and let set for at least 10 minutes. Serve.