Saturday, August 7, 2010

Sour Cream-Chocolate Bundt Cake




So, Sour Cream-Chocolate Bundt Cake is the cake for today. In addition to this cake, it's also time to do a review from CSN. A couple weeks ago, I mentioned in my Baklava post that I was approached my CSN to do a review and/or giveaway. Well, here it is! One of the items I was able to obtain to review from CSN was a 10 inch Bundt Pan made by Faberware. I got this pan specifically for this cake and I'm glad I chose it. This pan is heavy duty, non-stick and is super easy to clean! What a great pan! In addition, I love how there's an "extension" of the edges to create a sort of "handle" for easy placing and removal from the oven. It makes life so much easier. Overall, CSN is a great place to buy products. You get your items within a week or so, so the wait isn't bad.

Now, back to food! So Sour Cream-Chocolate Bundt Cake. Let's see. There are a TON of recipes for a Chocolate Bundt Cake out there so how did I decide which one to use? Well, the recipe looked really good. It had a ton of chocolate in it. The amount of cocoa powder was half the amount of flour!! Plus it had required more melted chocolate! Say whaaaa?! Heck yeah! haha. In addition to looking at the recipe for the cake itself, a majority of them used a ganache to top it off. I personally didn't want that. The reason behind this was, many years ago, my mom brought home a slice of a Chocolate Bundt Cake that her co-worker made and it was seriously the best chocolate cake I've ever eaten that didn't have a frosting. It was a simple chocolate cake and nothing more but it was SOOOO GOOD!!. This cake, didn't have a ganache on it. Instead, there was this sort of outer coating of sugar? You know when you make an icing with powdered sugar and milk, it hardens? Well, the coating had the sort of same texture of that but the whiteness from a powdered sugar icing wasn't there. So what was it?! I don't know! haha. This recipe from Williams-Sonoma was the only recipe I was able to find that had a cake recipe that looked good and had a brushing of simple syrup instead of ganache. It seemed like a winner to me.

What was the result? I don't know quite yet. It will be served later tonight. However, I did make mini cupcakes out of the batter to have a taste test and I was disappointed with the flavor. It didn't have a rich chocolate flavor even though it had a ton in it. In addition, it's extremely dry!! I don't know what cake the reviewers of this recipe were eating but this cake wasn't very good unless you like dry, unchocolate-y cake. I'm kind of embarrassed to serve this. I mean, the cake is alright but I was expecting a deeply rich tasting chocolate cake. It was missing that "umphhhh" to really take it to the next level. Maybe the bundt cake will taste better than the mini cupcakes testers.....Here's the recipe and my tips!!

**Update, I sliced a tiny piece to taste and this cake is still dry. I will not be serving this. Thanks Williams-Sonoma for wasting 2 sticks of my butter, a ton of chocolate and 1 lb of sour cream. Ya'll are great.....

**Tips
-Mix the batter well but don't over beat. The ingredients need to be incorporated completely.

-Instead of using flour when buttering and flouring a pan, use cocoa powder for chocolate cakes. It prevents white marks.

-Most Important Of All: Don't use guests as guinea pigs....Make a recipe beforehand!

Sour Cream-Chocolate Bundt Cake (Serves 16)
Ingredients:
For the cake:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
16 Tbs. (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups sour cream
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled slightly

For the glaze:
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
1 Tbs. chocolate liqueur

Confectioners' sugar for dusting
Whipped cream for serving

Directions
Have all the ingredients at room temperature.

Position a rack in the center of an oven and preheat to 325°F. Grease and flour a decorative 10-cup Bundt® pan.

To make the cake, over a sheet of waxed paper, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt; repeat until well blended. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 30 to 45 seconds. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the granulated sugar, beating until blended. Increase the speed to medium-high and continue beating, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl, until the mixture is light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the eggs a little at a time, beating each addition until incorporated before adding more, until the mixture is thick and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes; stop mixer occasionally and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat in the vanilla.

Reduce the speed to low and fold in the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the sour cream and beginning and ending with the flour, until just blended and no lumps of flour remain. Then gently fold in the chocolate.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spreading the batter so the sides are about 1 inch higher than the center. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 1 hour. Transfer to a wire rack and cool the cake upright in the pan for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the glaze: In a small saucepan over low heat, combine the granulated sugar and water and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate liqueur.

Set the rack over a sheet of waxed paper, invert the pan onto the rack and lift off the pan. Generously brush the warm cake with the glaze. Let the cake cool to room temperature, then dust with confectioners' sugar just before serving. Top slices with a dollop of whipped cream.

Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake on Foodista
-Aaron John
My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure
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19 comments:

  1. I am so sorry AJ. I didn't expect that at all after all of those butter, cocoa and sour cream which usually gives moistness to cakes.
    I'm sure you'll find the perfect chocolate cake recipe one day; or you may create one yourself. :)
    Enjoy your weekend. Michael

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  2. Great review of CSN's bundt pan! Bummer the cake turned out dry. That really bites! I found a recipe here that was very moist. It is a strange recipe though but saved my Halloween. I highly recommend it for next time. So sorry AJ!

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  3. Great looking blog! I adore sour cream cakes, this one looks particularly delicious and what a perfect shape!

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  4. I really like the tips here. I would never have thought of using cocoa instead of flour.

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  5. Oh my goodness, all your recipes look delicious. And thanks for the tip on using cocoa instead of flour! I can't believe I never thought of that. Love the blog!

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  6. Stumbled upon your blog. Lovely pix & nice recipes! The Bundt Cake looks delicious

    Looking fwd to sharing @ Luxury Indulgence!

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  7. Ummm how did you know I've been searching for a chocolate bundt cake!? YES! Thank you :)

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  8. OH no! I just read the very last part of the post with your extra tips.. I will continue the search and let you know what I find! It still looks pretty if it's any consolation??

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  9. Michael: I know right?! I thought that with all the sour cream, it would be the moistest cake ever! I'm definitely back on the search.

    Suzie Ridler: No problem! I'm going to give that cake a look see! :)

    Maria: Thanks!! The cake wasn't great though! :(

    Rick: Thanks! I always use cocoa to dust the pan when making brownies too!

    Kerry: Thank you!! I don't know where I came up with using cocoa powder but it's really great to use!

    Blackswan: Thanks so much!! I'll check out your blog! :)

    Kim: Thank you!! :)

    Evan: Haha. Yeah. It looking great is a good consolation! Let me know when you find a great recipe though!! :DD

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  10. that cake looks terrific, AJ! chocolate makes my day anytime!

    and by the way, I'm no longer in taiwan..i was there for the hols. :D

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  11. Hannah: Thanks! I hope Taiwan was really fun! :)

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  12. Wow, A.J., your blog has had such a fantastic face-lift (not that it needed one!). It looks incredible, as does this cake. I hope the full-size cake met your expectations when you served it. You know, though, this seems to me it might be one of those cakes that only reach their full taste potential a couple of days after being baked. Rich cakes are peculiar that way. Takes a while for all those particular ingredients to mingle and settle down.

    :) Jane

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  13. Jane: Thank you!! Thanks for the tip about rich cakes as well!! I never knew that! :D I just wish that this cake was moist.

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  14. I'd be disappointed in a Williams Sonoma recipe as well. Usually they are very reliable. And I would have guessed that the sour cream would have moistened this a bit more...hmmm...

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  15. Baking.Serendipity: I'm confused myself. I followed this recipe exactly, went over what I did about 3 times and even cooked it for less time than stated. I'm guessing that's why this recipe needed the simple syrup. I'm guessing it's supposed to be dry and the syrup was supposed to moisten it.

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  16. love the idea about cocoa powder instead of flour.... love it! Great thinking and lovely cake!

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  17. I made this cake just as the recipe said (except I used creme fraiche instead of sour cream) and it was fantastic. (I used a similar glaze which I already had made but only on the very top as to not make it too sweet.

    Nice suggestion to use cocoa instead of flour to flour my silicone bundt pan.

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  18. foodulation.com: It's definitely a great tip!! :D

    Anonymous: I'm glad it was great for you! Maybe the creme fraiche did something different. I mean, the cake wasn't bad. It just wasn't moist at all for me.

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Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment! :)

-Aaron John

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