Thursday, February 28, 2013

Chocolate whiskey Bundt cake

Chocolate whiskey Bundt cake / Bolo de chocolate e whiskey

“Beasts of the Southern Wild” premiered here last week and a couple of days ago I finally watched it – the movie is absolutely beautiful and moving and I could then understand all the awards. Quvenzhané Wallis is lovely and very talented – kids in movies are cute but to me not all child stars have an actor’s aura, so to speak, but Quvenzhané certainly does; I believe she’s that kind of person who was born to act (something I thought of Tom Holland while watching “The Impossible”).

My sister, a.k.a. “my partner in crime for all things cinematographic”, also loved “BotSW” – which was a relief, since she hadn’t liked my previous choice – and for the first time in over four years of watching movies together I saw her crying, and to me that was pretty intense.

I don’t drink coffee – I don’t like the flavor despite loving its smell – and therefore I never bake with it, but I guess that there’s a first time for everything in life and to me this delicious, moist and chocolatey cake – not to mention boozy – was a first for liking coffee flavor in desserts.

Chocolate whiskey Bundt cake
slightly adapted from the great Gourmet Today: More than 1000 All-New Recipes for the Contemporary Kitchen

1 cup (90g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder + 3 tablespoons for dusting pan*
1 ½ cups (360ml) brewed coffee
½ cup (120ml) American whiskey – I used Johnny Walker
1 cup (226g/2 sticks) unsalted butter, coarsely chopped
2 cups (400g) granulated sugar
2 cups (280g) all-purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
whipped cream, for serving (optional)

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 160°C/325°F**. Generously butter a 12-cup capacity Bundt pan, then dust with 3 tablespoons cocoa powder, knocking out excess (1 ½ tablespoons of cocoa were enough to dust my pan).
Heat coffee, whiskey, butter, and remaining 1 cup cocoa powder in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, whisking, until butter is melted. Remove from heat, then add sugar and whisk until dissolved, about 1 minute. Transfer mixture to a large bowl and cool 5 minutes.
While chocolate mixture cools, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Add the eggs, one at a time, to the cooled chocolate mixture and whisk until combined well. Whisk in the vanilla. Add flour mixture and whisk until just combined (batter will be thin and bubbly). Pour batter into prepared pan and bake until a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center comes out clean, 40-50 minutes.
Cool cake completely in pan on a rack, about 2 hours. Loosen cake from pan using tip of a thin metal spatula, then invert onto a plate.
Serve with whipped cream, if desired.

* the original recipe called for natural cocoa and baking soda; since I only had Dutch-processed cocoa at home, I adapted the recipe to use it and replaced the baking soda for baking powder following the instructions on this link

** I baked my cake at 180°C/350°F for 45 minutes

This cake improves in flavor if made at least 1 day ahead and kept, in a cake keeper or wrapped well in plastic wrap, at cool room temperature. It can be made up to 5 days ahead and chilled. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Serves 10-12

14 comments:

Abby said...

This cake would go perfectly with the skinny vanilla latte I have in my hand right this moment. :)

The only Oscar movie I've actually seen this year is Lincoln. And that award was definitely deserved!

Sue/the view from great island said...

I love the simplicity of this cake, no fancy glazes or drizzle, just the real deal, chocolate and whiskey---perfect!

Laura (Tutti Dolci) said...

What a deliciously rich bundt cake! You can never go wrong with chocolate :).

Jodi @Garlic Girl said...

Oh wow, this looks so moist and rich! I may have to give this one a go this weekend!

Holiday Baker Man said...

Bet this waa the perfect flavour combo!

Anonymous said...

Can you substitute another liquid for the alcohol so children can have it?

Unknown said...

As a baking addict, chocoholic and old (young?) soak, you have just succeeded in sending me to heaven. :)

Laura said...

I love bundt cakes and holy cow this one is a doozy. It's gorgeous. Pinning now...

Patricia Scarpin said...

Abby, I haven't seen "Lincoln" yet. :S

Anonymous, I think it would be better for you to look for a recipe that doesn't call for alcohol. The appeal of this cake is the booze, it's not worth it removing it from the recipe.

SP 25504 said...

I also loved BOtSW. Discovered it by accident browsing Vodu. I'm going to make this cake for a friend who requested a chocolate whiskey cake. But I'm using Jack Daniels cause Johnny Walker is scotch! Hope I get good results. I like scotch, preferably single malt and no less than 25 years old, but with one nice quality short, heavy glass, no chocolate.

Patricia Scarpin said...

Hey, there,
I used what I had at home, which was Johnny Walker. :)

Magda said...

Was your cake kind of brownie sticky? Looking at your cake photo it looks dense, but the crumb is there.
I have a feeling that mine didn't turn as it should. It's baked, and edible, well it was edible raw as well and wonderfully boozy, but something went wrong and I wanted to check if by any chance it's the way it was supposed to be.

Patricia Scarpin said...

Hey, Magda,
I'm sorry to hear your cake did not turn out the way you expected. The cake I baked was moist, indeed, but it wasn't as fudgy as a brownie and certainly not raw. :(

Magda said...

No, it wasn't raw. I didn't express myself clearly. I meant it was delicious when I was licking the bowl out of the batter.
I still think I did something wrong, but on positive side it was all eaten by my friends and they said it was good.
Anyway I wanted to say I really like your blog, I've just never comment.

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