It's a Wicked Good Life!

National Bundt Cake Day: Root beer Bundt Cake

Did you know that today is National Bundt Cake Day? I found out about this auspicious day from Mary, The Food Librarian shortly after I missed last years National Bundt Day. So this year I was determined to make a bundt cake on Nov. 15. Now I’m not crazy like Mary, (she’s good crazy…just love her!) so I didn’t make 30 bundts for the 30 days leading up to today. Since the whole job loss thing happened I would never be able to go through that much cake! And the little munchkins would probably not let me have the time to do that much baking. I was very tempted to make the Vanilla Bundt Cake with Strawberries that she made this year on day 19, but figured that I could make that later and try a bundt recipe that she didn’t have listed.

This may seem like a major “squirrel” aside (forgive the “Up” reference) but Robert has been wicked into root beer lately. Not just the AW root beer either but Virgil’s or The Maine Root (which is my fav and not because it’s from Maine). So when I saw a recipe for a Root Beer Bundt Cake in Food Network Magazine (that I checked out from the library) I figured I would have to try it. Now this cake is a bit more chocolate the root beer, but overall quite good. It was WICKED easy to make…no mixer needed.

For once I didn’t fiddle with the recipe other than the glaze where I cut down on the sugar and amount by 1 cup.

One thing about the bundt pan…My mom got this for me when she was visiting. Don’t you just LOVE it? I have been lusting after it for some time when I saw it used on Baking Bites and the Food Librarian. It is the Heritage Bundt from NoricWare.

Root Beer Bundt Cake from Food Network Magazine

Ingredients

1 stick unsalted butter, plus more for the pan
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
2 1/2 cups root beer (I used Virgil’s)
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon salt, plus a pinch
3 large eggs, beaten
2 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and flour (I used Pam with flour) a 12-cup Bundt pan; tap out the excess flour.

Heat 2 cups root beer, the cocoa powder, chocolate and 1 stick butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until the butter melts. Add the granulated and brown sugars and whisk until dissolved. Remove from the heat and let cool.

Combine 2 cups flour, the baking soda, allspice and 1 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Whisk the eggs into the root beer mixture, then gently fold in the dry ingredients (the batter will be slightly lumpy).

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean, 55 minutes to 1 hour, rotating the pan halfway through. Transfer to a rack. Gently poke the cake all over with a skewer and pour 1/4 cup root beer over the cake; let cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then invert the cake onto a serving plate and let cool completely.

Meanwhile, make the glaze: Whisk the remaining 1/4 cup root beer, a pinch of salt, the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla in a bowl until smooth. Drizzle over the cake.