Dark Chocolate Wacky Cake with Broiled Peanut Butter Frosting

Wow, my last post here was more than a month ago. Sometimes life just happens, you know? But one of the really exciting things that has been taking up my time is real estate hunting. Yes, Big Man and I are close to choosing a great piece of land to buy so we can start building our home! We are so excited to be moving forward with our dream and amazed by the blessings God has poured out upon us. I’m looking forward to getting back to blogging more often and including posts about the progress of our home-building adventure! But in the meantime, I do have a fantastic chocolate-and-peanut-butter treat to share with you.

When I made this cake I didn’t really intend to post about it; I just wanted an easy recipe that didn’t require lots of ingredients or steps. I figured I’d get a tasty dessert, but it since it wasn’t really creative or beautiful it wouldn’t end up on the blog. But then Big Man and I ate some and agreed that it is possibly that best cake I’ve ever made, so I knew I had to share it here.

This cake is the perfect example of two good things coming together and creating something outstanding. The cake is simple and mixed right in the baking pan, so there is almost no cleanup. I used dark cocoa powder to add a deep chocolate flavor, and the cake’s light texture is a perfect complement to the rich frosting. Speaking of frosting, what happens when you take simple peanut butter frosting and broil it? Magic happens. Pure magic. The flavor takes on great complexity and the top gets a crispy sugar shell reminiscent of creme bruleé. Plus watching the frosting in the oven as it bubbles like sugar-lava is really fun!

If you are a chocolate and peanut butter fan, I hope you’ll try this version of the classic combination. The balance of dark chocolate cake and decadent peanut butter frosting is really spectacular. Plus, this recipe is simple, fast, and full of inexpensive staple ingredients. It’s definitely at the top of our favorite desserts list and I know I’ll be baking this cake again in the very near future.

Dark Chocolate Wacky Cake (adapted from Big Red Kitchen)

1-1/2 cups flour

1/2 tsp. salt

3 rounded Tbs. dark cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s Special Dark)

1 cup sugar

1 tsp. baking soda

1 Tbs. white vinegar

5 Tbs. butter, melted & cooled

1 Tbs. vanilla extract

1 cup cold milk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a 9-inch-square pan, whisk together the flour, salt, cocoa powder, sugar, and baking soda. Make three evenly spaced wells. Pour the vinegar into one well, the butter into another, and the vanilla into the third. Pour the milk over the entire pan and stir until everything is well combined and there are no dry spots.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20-30 minutes, until the center is set and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely before frosting.

Broiled Peanut Butter Frosting (adapted from Tasty Kitchen)

1 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1/4 cup coconut oil*

*I used refined coconut oil because I didn’t want any coconut taste to compete with the peanut butter. You could substitute vegetable shortening for the coconut oil

Combine the ingredients in a stand mixer and mix until extremely smooth (we’re talking no lumps at all). I used the paddle attachment on medium speed for about 3 minutes.

Pour/spread the frosting onto the cooled cake.

Set the oven to broil and place the cake on the middle rack. Broil for 2-4 minutes, or until deep golden brown, watching very closely to prevent burning. I actually stand next the oven and hold to door open a crack so I can watch the whole time. The frosting can go from perfectly broiled to burnt in about 10 seconds.

Let cool at least 20 minutes before serving, otherwise the frosting will be too runny.

Enjoy!

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Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake with Salted Caramel Glaze

I know, I know, it’s December. The month where cookies have a monopoly on all baking. If it’s not a cookie, chances are you won’t see it in any food magazines or blogs. And Christmas cookies are great; I definitely bake and eat my fair share of them. But sometimes you just don’t want to spend hours in the kitchen rolling and shaping and decorating cookies. Sometimes you want to make an easy mix-bake-glaze recipe that will still look impressive and taste amazing. And for those times, there is no better choice than this fantastic cake.

Honestly, I’ve never been a huge fan of bundt cakes. Most of the ones I’ve had before were a little dry and pretty bland. But then I found this recipe from Joy the Baker and decided to give the bundt cake another try. And I am so glad I did. This cake is amazing! Full of dark chocolate flavor and perfectly tender. Then I decided to add a salted caramel glaze because salted caramel is one of the greatest flavors ever and goes really well with dark chocolate. Dark Chocolate + Salted Caramel = Best. Decision. Ever.

I made a couple minor changes to the original recipe to compensate for the high altitude here. The changes are noted in the recipe below. I hope you’ll try this cake soon.  It is a nice change from the usual December-overload of cookies and is a wonderful flavor combination. It’s a great choice to bring to a party, or to keep and savor with your sweetie while watching a Christmas movie. Whatever you do, I hope you enjoy this spectacular cake!

Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake (adapted from Joy the Baker)

1-1/3 cups brewed coffee

3/4 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s Special Dark)

2 cups* sugar

1-1/4 tsp. sea salt

2-1/2 tsp. baking soda

2 whole eggs

1 egg yolk

1-1/4 cups plus 1 Tbs. buttermilk

1 cup plus 2 Tbs. canola oil

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2-3/4 cups* all purpose flour

* These measurements are for high altitude. If you are not at high altitude use 2-1/4 cups sugar and 2-1/2 plus 2 Tbs. flour

1. In a small saucepan, whisk together the coffee and cocoa powder and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour (or spray generously with “For Baking” cooking spray) a 10-inch bundt pan.

3. Fit a stand mixer with the whisk attachment. Add the sugar, salt, baking soda, eggs, and egg yolk to the bowl and mix on low for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the buttermilk, oil, and vanilla and mix on low for another minute.

4. Scrap down the sides of the bowl again and add the flour. Mix on low for 2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl, add the cooled coffee mixture, and mix on medium speed for 3 minutes. Pour the (very thin) batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

5. Keep the cake in the pan until it is completely cool. Then invert the bundt pan onto your serving platter and the cake will come out cleanly. Drizzle with glaze (recipe below).

Salted Caramel Glaze (adapted from Better Homes & Gardens)

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 tsp. sea salt

In a small saucepan, melt the butter. Whisk in the sugars and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Whisk in the whipping cream (it may bubble a lot) and return to a boil, stirring often. Boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and whisk in sea salt. Let cool slightly (about 5 minutes) and pour over cooled cake, allowing excess to run down the sides.

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PPQ: Berry Pie Bars

It’s my week to host Project Pastry Queen and I picked the Blackberry Pie Bars recipe. Little did I realize that this is nearly identical to the Berry Pie Bars recipe I have already posted, which I adapted from Joy the Baker. I guess this whole pie-in-bar-form idea is popular! Oh well, these bars are a fantastic dessert so I didn’t mind repeating the recipe. You can click here to see how the other PPQ members fared with the recipe.

I actually love to bake pie, but it’s a time- and labor-intensive process so I only bake pies for holidays. These bars, on the other hand, are really easy to make and serve, so they are great for a casual weeknight dessert. (Just make sure you leave enough time to defrost the berries if you are using frozen ones). I made the recipe as directed except for a couple small changes:

~ I used salted butter (all I had in the fridge) and omitted the additional salt in the crust.

~ I used a combination of frozen blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries (again, what I had on hand).

These bars are awesome. The crust has a bit of sweetness and nice texture, and the filling is that perfect blend of sweet and tart. Add a crumb topping and the result is perfection. I hope you’ll try these out soon and enjoy them as much as we do!

Berry Pie Bars (slightly adapted from The Pastry Queen, Rebecca Rather)

Crust/Topping

3 cups flour

1-1/2 cups sugar

1-1/2 cups (3 sticks) chilled butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Filling

4 eggs

2 cups sugar

1 cup sour cream

3/4 cup flour

Pinch of salt

2 (16 oz.) packages frozen mixed berries, thawed and drained

Crust/Topping: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×13-inch pan with butter or cooking spray. Using either a food processor with the metal blade or stand mixer with the paddle attachment, combine the flour and sugar. Add the chilled butter cubes and process/mix until the butter is evenly distributed and the mixture is crumbly. Reserve 1-1/2 cups of the mixture for the topping. Press the rest into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake the crust for 12-18 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool at least 10 minutes.

Filling: Whisk the eggs in a large bowl, then add the sugar, sour cream, flour, and salt and combine. Gently fold in the berries. Carefully pour the mixture over the crust (you might have to even out the berry distribution). Sprinkle the reserved crust mixture over the top. Bake for 45-60 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned (I baked mine for 60 minutes and I probably could have let it go another 5). Cool at least 2 hours before cutting into bars.

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