The Making, Baking and Consumption of the Best Chocolate Bundt Cake ever.
We have a system around here, don’t we?
I bake something every few days, take pictures of it, and post a handful of those pictures in this little wedge of the Internet.
What would it look like if I showed you a whole bunch of everything? The chocolate. The cake. The clock. The hike. The traffic. The indecision. The bourbon. The whole dang day! Well… it would be at least mildly entertaining, but more importantly… it would satisfy my need to over-share. And that’s really why we’re all here, right?
8:18am. What an utterly obnoxious time to wake up. The baker in me… the baker that used to have to wake up at 3:15am is disgusted with my current self.
Like it or not, the first thing I do in the morning is flip on my computer. There’s email and blog comments and… Twitter, duh. It’s important and frankly, I can’t help myself.
You should see this. It’s a view of my bedside and well, under my bed.
One: I have cherry sheets.
Two: I store sprinkles of various colors under my bed. Don’t judge me.
Three: What you can’t see under my bed is the stack of cake pans I also have stored there.
Four: When in need of nighttime reading, I can either reach for The Bible or The Pioneer Woman Cookbook. It’s true. It’s real life.
Let’s hit the road. In a car. This is Los Angeles City Hall. I think it’s a pretty building.
These are my stairs. I took the liberty of naming them after myself. They’re called the Kick Joy the Baker Right in the Arse Stairs.
These are the stairs that tame my cake lovin’ thighs. It’s about 200 stairs in Echo Park that I climb a few times a week. It’s hard every time. It never gets easier. My thighs hate/love it.
The view at the top of the stairs is a combination of beauty and muck. The same can be said for most things in Los Angeles.
Look at that, Los Angeles. You’re lookin’ mighty precious.
But seriously, it’s time to get down to business. There’s a Chocolate Bundt to bake… and it’s not going to bake itself.
Oh wait… I’m really going to need some coffee first.
Cocoa powder and coffee. The beginning of the best Bundt in the world.
Dishes seem to be a byproduct of any kitchen venture. I still haven’t gotten used to that part.
I wanted to drink this batter. It was the consistency of hot chocolate made with heavy cream. Ooooh snap.
Once I stopped myself from bathing in the cake batter I checked my mail.
Jury Duty. Civic responsibility. No comment.
Oh! Did I tell you? My Mom got me a book. A relationship book… by Steve Harvey.
Steve Harvey writes about intimacy and commitment!? Lord help us all.
And just like that… I’m never dating, ever EVER again.
Also, what’s with the awkwardly placed hand Mr. Harvey? Do Not Trust.
My sister sent me a bit of relationship advice as well. Bourbon. Bless that girl. For life.
But back to the chocolate. We have chocolate glaze to make while the cake bakes.
I should mention that this chocolate glaze has sour cream in it. It’s perfect. I’m thinking of using it as an edible face mask in the future.
Yes. This just became quality entertainment.
Now it’s time to hop into some cute clothes, pack up the cake and get off to a dinner party.
This bed tells you several things.
One: I can’t decide what to wear.
Two: I’ve packed up the cake, but if I don’t set it next to equally important personal items, I will… no doubt, forget it as I run out the door.
Three: I make my bed.
Hollywood. Traffic. Always and forever.
This picture is obtuse. Please take note of Asher’s tasteful v-neck shirt. Please also take note of the fact that I was finally able to decide on something to wear.
Jeremy made an aaaaaamazing taco dinner. I should have asked for leftovers to take home, but I was shy. Dangit!
Cake. Generously sliced. Entirely appreciated. Nevermind the salsa still on the table. We just couldn’t wait for cake!
And then we turned to the topic that we always turn to at the end of an evening full of food and drinks: The Biggest Loser… and how amazing that show is… and how it requires a box of tissue… oh the pounds and the tears shed.
And the night ends.
Just so you know… this is about as well as I can see at night. I need new glasses. On the real.
Let’s talk about cake. This is the most moist and delicious chocolate bundt cake I’ve ever encountered. The batter is very loose. It might make you worry. Don’t fret. It bakes up like an absolute dream. The glaze… with unsweetened chocolate, coffee, and sour cream adds that final touch of delicious glamour to an already stellar cake. It’s a Bundt. It’s a dang good Bundt.
The Best Chocolate Bundt Cake with chocolate glaze
makes one 10-inch bundt cake
from The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook (really lovely book)
For the Cake:
1 1/4 cups plus 1 Tablespoon brewed coffee
3/4 cup Dutch process cocoa powder
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 whole eggs
1 egg yolk
1 1/4 cups plus 1 Tablespoon buttermilk
1 cup plus 2 Tablespoon canola oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups, plus 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour, sifted
For the Glaze:
6 ounces unsweetened chocolate
3/4 cup unsalted butter
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
1/4 cup brewed coffee, cooled
Place an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan and set aside.
To make the cake batter: Put brewed coffee and cocoa powder in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Remove from the heat and let come to room temperature.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fit with a whisk attachment, mix together sugar, salt, baking soda, eggs and egg yolk on low speed for about 1 minute. Add the buttermilk, oil and vanilla extract and mix on low again for another minute.
Add the flour and mix on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add the cooled cocoa mixture and mix on medium speed for 3 minutes. The batter will be very loose. Pour into the prepared cake pan and bake for 1 hour, or until a cake tester inserted in the cake comes out clean.
Let the cake cool completely in the pan and then invert onto a cooling rack.
To make the icing: Chop the chocolate into small pieces, put them in a heatproof bowl (or a double boiler), and set the bowl over a pot of barely simmering water. Be sure that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the boiling water. Remove the bowl from the heat when all of the chocolate bits have melted.
Melt the butter in a separate pan or in the microwave. Whisk the melted butter into the melted chocolate until thoroughly incorporated. Sift in half of the powdered sugar. Add the sour cream and whisk to combine. Sift in the remaining powdered sugar and whisk until smooth. The glaze should be thick and shiny. Lastly, add the coffee and whisk to create a glossy glaze.
Pour the glaze over the Bundt cake, covering it completely. Leave at room temperature until ready to serve.
261 Comments Add A Comment
Joy- You are killing me here! Made this cake! Amazing!
It also got better and better each day. Thank you!
it’s in the oven as i type this. my apartment smells like heaven!
ps .. no camera zone, it’s next.
I made this for my brother’s birthday dinner. Heaven. I baked the cake the night before and glazed it the day-of. I transferred my glaze batter to the stand mixer once I started to add the powdered sugar. Mine still looked dull and slightly crumbly before adding the coffee at the end. I added a few tablespoons more coffee to get the desired “pourable” consistency. There was WAY more glaze than I needed, so I had some leftover. I could have bathed in it. Thanks for another fabulous recipe!
THIS CAKE IS FABULOUS!!!! I made this weekend for a gathering and we all were floored! Thank you for sharing this great recipe. This is in the top five of my favorites:)
I made this for my boyfriend’s birthday party. Oh. My. God. Absolutely Amazing!
Everyone had seconds. Thanks!
HELLO JOY!
Well – I am a crazy busy person, almost made crazier when I couldn’t find your site….guess the capital “T” is critical. I do love your site and the recipes are outstanding. I have been able to sometimes substitute oat and brown rice flour for the white processed flour and have such great results I keep coming back. I have made a number of recipe’s including the cornmeal and molasses pancakes which are a weekly staple here. They are sweet and delicious without any sugar, it’s hard to believe – though I’ve been known to add a few chocolate chips when guests are over.
I am back onto your blog today – because I am looking to try a CHERRY BUNDT cake (with of course the deep, fudgey chocolate glaze……buzzzzz. Got anything in the deep recesses of your library or is it just so obvious….simply substitute cherry flavoring and a jar of cherries for your fav vanilla bundt cake? I will patiently await your response understanding your life is full perhaps with a touch of the crazies too. Hoping in Hope, Maine. ox
Hi Aimee.
I’m afraid I don’t have a cherry bundt recipe on my blog. Sounds delicious though!
I’d start with a vanilla bundt, add cherry extract and chopped can cherries, drained of the juice.
http://www.foodista.com/recipe/HJ2T4B3W/vanilla-bundt-cake
Happy Baking!
joy the baker
LOVE this blog! I bought a bundt pan from the flea market this past weekend — could not wait to use it! I searched for an “awesome bundt cake” recipe and your blog came up!! The cake is in the oven, and will be out in about 2 minutes! I am hoping it comes out — it is scheduled to be eaten in the school lounge tomorrow. Thanks for your entertaining blog! Peace and Love!
I made this for a friend’s birthday — it turned out really well!
I just finished the glaze and had to stop myself from eating the whole bowl. That combination is killer – I hate coffee, but I took your word on it adding depth to the chocolate flavor, and you were right! The sour cream too makes such a difference – this glaze has LAYERS of flavor to it, and I never knew I could do that myself! I’m learning so much from you, Joy! The bundt is going to a cookout today – I have a feeling it will be a memory by about 5pm.
Dude. All I can say is. Dude. This cake was OFF THE HOOK. I made two, one for home and one for work. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
This was hands down the best chocolate cake EVER!! I thought my recipe was the best until I tried this one. The frosting was to die for and my husband and I have eaten a big slice every night! We LOVE it!
You have Pioneer Woman’s cookbook?! We will definitely be friends, I just know it.
Also, once I retrieve my bundt pan, I will be making this cake.
(On a side note, whenever I hear or see the word bundt I think of the movie “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” and it makes me laugh).
Brilliant…love your posts.
Made it for my friends birthday, turned out SO delicious (though it did take a little longer than expected to bake, especially since I started baking it at 11pm the night before). Everybody loved it! The store bought vanilla cake someone else brought was no competition. Great writing, great recipe as always Joy! :)
Well it has been a minute since I visited. But BOY OH BOY this cake is so moist. The overall texture is so smooth it feels cool in my mouth. I passed on the glaze but you don’t even miss it. Joy Oh Joy for this chocolatty explosion the envelopes every tastebuds until you feel the need to just dance. I’m putting in chocolatty chips next time. Make this cake and just take your man to bed.
definitely making this for a dinner party on saturday! thanks for the inspiration!
I just served this cake at an office baby shower. The glaze did really well in a container in the fridge all day. I just warmed it up right before I served the cake. Everyone really enjoyed the cake and said that the coffee added a really nice complexity to the chocolate. I would definitely make this cake again!
hi joy, the pictures look amazing. i wanted to ask if i could use instant coffee instead of brewed as your recipe said.am really looking forward to baking this for my friends
Hi Joy! I am making this cake over the weekend as a Father’s Day/ Mom’s birthday cake (they are 2 days apart). All your recipes make me CRAVE a stand mixer (and chocolate, of course), but I couldn’t bring myself to spend the money, at least not right now. Is there anything different about just having a hand mixer, other than the do-it-yourself aspect?
Anyway I am looking forward to devouring this monster of a cake! :) Thanks!
Joy – this cake is phenomenal! I made it yesterday and I can’t put my fork down! Thanks for sharing.
Made it for Father’s day, and everyone was SHOCKED at how amazing it is! I’ve never made anything from scratch, so thank you so much for this recipe. It was easier than I thought it would be, and so much fun!
You weren’t kidding! Made it 3 days ago, and between just me, my husband and daughter, it’s almost gone!
Hi, I love your blog … I am looking for recipes for diabetic friendly cakes to bake for my Dad’s birthday… Will be grateful if you can give me some advice, Thanks!
hmmmmmm. i just baked this cake for my friends and they could barely stop themselves from having another piece and yelling and thanking me for making such a tempting cake. the only thing bad about this cake is what it will do to your waistline.
Kemmy you are a star!! :) Thanks, Joy, for providing her with all these brilliant recipes, so she can feed us! :)
Made this cake last night – OMWow! It’s the prettiest bundt cake I’ve ever made – normally can’t get the glaze to work. You could easily cut the glaze recipe in half – but then you wouldn’t have any left in the bowl to eat with a spoon – Make sure you have plenty of milk in the house….
This cake is crazy good! I may have told the birthday boy that other guests had seconds after I attacked it while he was sleeping it off. I may also have a cake hangover now, but it was totally worth every crumb! Thank you, Joy!
Since I printed this recipe out, maybe a month ago, I have made this cake probably 8 – 10 times.
I used to make Dorie Greenspan’s mocha walnut bundt cake monthly, but this has replaced it.
Thanks
Hi Joy!!!
I would love to make this yummy looking recipe but I don’t have a coffee grinder nor do I have a coffee brewing machine (not a big coffee person as you can tell)… So, I was wondering if the cake would suffer in flavor if I used instant coffee? And would vegetable oil work in place of the canola oil? What are the differences & would the cake still turn out yummy & all if I used the substitutes? Thanks!!
You can always just go to a local roastery/caffe and buy a 12-16 oz coffee to go…:-)
Real coffee is always better!
Joy, I made this last week for my friend’s birthday at it was absolutely AMAZING! We couldn’t stop stuffing our faces…. hands down the best chocolate cake i’ve ever made. Cheers mate!
I made this yesterday. I used yogurt thinned with milk instead of buttermilk and all I had was grape seed oil. I also baked it in two loaf pans. So sorry for changing everything, BUT this was freaking delicious. This cake is so moist and light, not heavy at all like a lot of chocolate cake can be. Thanks for posting such a great cake!
sounds amazing!
girl, help. i want to make this for my husbands birthday. but is dutch process cocoa powder same as normal hersheys cocoa powder?!
go with the hersheys. i think that might be what i used too!
THANK YOU JOY!
I made this cake for my mom’s birthday…everyone LOVED it!!! I probably could’ve cut the glaze in half…ended up filling the entire center of the bundt with it and outside plating…nonetheless SO DELICIOUS!! thanks again :)
I am the new favourite person at work. Took this yesterday and everyone wants the recipe. Already have plans for two more. See how much love you have created?!
Seriously, this IS the best chocolate bundt cake ever. You can check it out on my blog, if you’d like http://www.thecollegecupcake.blogspot.com
Thanks for the recipe and I LOVE your blog!
Joy – your blog about this Chocolate Bundt cake was a joy to read…. beat ya never heard that?
I’m working on a cake for bake for my mom’s 73rd birthday (this Sunday)… It’s a BRUNCH with a bagels, lox, smoked white fish, salty Greek olives and all the trimmings – Do you think Chocolate cake is overkill?
Also, thanks for including the photo of the stairs – I’m a neighbor (Los Felliz), and a lover of food… perhaps them stairs could tame my little pasta-paunch?
i don’t think chocolate cake is overkill at all. do it!
the baxter stairs are insane! they’re a great workout!
Hi Joy! Cake is in the oven for the Thanksgiving meal tomorrow. My sisters and I were each tasked with bringing a dessert and I’m psyched to finally be making this recipe – it’s been on my list for a while. Cheers!
If my mom got me Steve Harvey’s book I would die laughing. That is hilarious.
I just finished making this cake for Thanksgiving tomorrow but I couldn’t wait and had a slice while everyone is sleeping.
IT’S SO GOOD!!!
I’m 16 and this is the first cake I’ve ever baked from scratch and I couldn’t be happier with the results.
I’ll be making this again in a week for my friend’s birthday…and probably the week after that…and the following week…and the week after that…you get the picture. :)
Thanks Joy, I love your blog!
Joy – I love love love your blog. I made this cake last week for Christmas and OMG it was fantastic…. I definitely just used Hershey’s cocoa powder, and it was perfect…. so for everyone out there – I’d go out on a limb and say you don’t need to fret over the difference between unsweetened cocoa powder and dutch process cocoa powder for this particular cake. Actually – (fun fact time) – David Lebovitz makes the point that “You can substitute natural cocoa powder (i.e. Hershey’s) for Dutch-process in most recipes (though not vice versa). Flavor and texture can be affected, but generally only in recipes calling for 3/4 cup or more.” http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2010/02/cocoa-powder-faq-dutch-process-v/
This recipe also makes a bathtub full of chocolate glaze…. which I suppose is one of those “is that a good thing or a bad thing?” conundrums, but really, if you think a big container of leftover chocolate glaze is a bad thing, why are you reading this blog??!! ;-)
Cheers to 2011!!!
I’d make it if I had a stand mixer.
Jan
I am making this cake for, like, the fifth time since you posted it. (And have given all but one or two away, for the record!!!) Thanks Joy-you’re the best!
proud of you, boo!
mmmm sounds simply delicious! just reading about it makes my mouth water i can see it now yum
i always have had this question dutched process cocoa powder vs the regular stuff. big difference?
AGH! I get made fun of (ruthlessly) for crying at the Biggest Loser. I thought I was the only one! You validate me, Joy.
I made this for the second time last night. It’s luscious, decadent and perfectly scrumptious.
HOLY CHOCOLATE CRACK CAKE JOY! I made this for my mother-in-law’s b-day. I just finished putting the glaze on, fighting my husband and daughter to keep them out of the bowl. My hubby says it’s like liquid brownie! GREAT TIMES ON A SUGAR HIGH!
This cake is soooo yummy!! IT is the best chocolate Cake Ever!! and the icing takes it to a whole nother level!! I <3 this cake!
it s funny after reading all of your comments i thought i m gonna love this cake..i did everything exactly as said..but i find this cake not chocolately at all, the frosting too sweet, texture looks yummy though, but cake is without any good taste, despite the fact that i used really good quality ingridients..
i expected it to be sort of like nigella s quadruple chocolate loaf cake is..that one is the best of all i ve tried so far..
but love your blog anyway,
Ana
OK, made this at 3am this morning (terrible insomniac) and by noon my fiancé consumed half of this cake. It is, in fact, the best chocolate bundt cake ever! Thanks so much for another wonderful recipe!
Joy,
I am interested to know what products if any can be used to substitute for sour cream…I want to make the “Best Chocolate Bundt Cake” but have Ricotta cheese…would that work? Thanks! Sue
ricotta cheese has a different consistency… so that’s not the best bet. sour cream is perfect for this recipe. i’m not sure there is a suitable substitute.
I realize this recipe has been around for awhile but I am new to your blog and boy am I happy I found it! This cake is fantastic! I have made it twice in the past month per my kids request. The only change I made was create a mild chocolate glaze instead of dark chocolate because my kids haven’t learned to appreciate good dark chocolate yet! Thanks and keep ‘em coming.