Recipe: Root Beer Bundt Cake

First of all, let me just say how much I LOVE the Food Network and the Food Network Magazine! Prior to this recipe, I haven't made any dishes that have been posted in the magazine usually because I don't have all the ingredients and eventually I forget about using the recipes. For some reason though, I had every single ingredient for this cake. Call it fate if you want. All I know is that this recipe was easy and delicious. Oh and my first chocolate cake from scratch! Here's to trying new things!

This picture right here is my second attempt at the cake. I made the first cake for my neighbor's 4th of July picnic, which I posted a picture on one of my Project 365 posts. The 1st attempt wasn't a fail by any stretch of my imagination, I just messed up the glaze a little. I thought the glaze was too thick so I "thinned" it out with a little more root beer. Not the best idea as the glaze then got soaked into the cake instead of laying on it as it is in the pic below. This time around, I followed the directions to a 'T'. Baking really is a science and not art. Fudge around with the ingredients and you can get a whole new dish entirely.

Well since the hubs and FIL did not get a piece of the 1st cake and again I had enough ingredients, I decided to do a second cake. Also, when I had posted the picture of the Root Beer cake I made for the 4th of July picnic, I received a few requests for the recipe. So here it is. My 1st chocolate cake and my 1st recipe post on The Roddy Bride Blog. Hope you like it! 

P.S. Thank you Chef Sidoti :)

Root Beer Bundt Cake

ACTIVE: 45 Mins | TOTAL: 2 hours | SERVES: 8 to 10 people

Original Recipe: Food Network Magazine July/August 2011 issue - Chef Claudia Sidoti (Food Network Kitchens)

Ingredients

Cake:

2 cups root beer soda, plus 1/4 cup for soaking

1 stick of unsalted butter, plus more for the pan

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

3 large eggs, beaten

2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1 1/4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground allspice

Glaze:

2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1/4 cup root beer soda

1 tsp vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

Directions:

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

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

3. Combine the flour, the baking soda, salt and allspice in a bowl.

4. Once cooled, whisk the eggs into the root beer mixture, then gently fold in the dry ingredients. Expect the batter to be lumpy.

5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean, 55 minutes to an hour, rotating the pan halfway through. Transfer the pan to a rack.

6. Gently poke holes all over the cake with a skewer and pour 1/4 cup root beer all over the cake; let cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then invert the cake onto a serving plate and let cool completely.

5. Meanwhile, make the glaze: Whisk the 1/4 cup root beer, a pinch of salt, the confectioners' sugar, and vanilla in a bowl until smooth. The glaze will be a little thick, this is OK. Drizzle over the cake.

Last but not least... ENJOY!