Kentucky Butter Bundt

Is there anything more elegant than a bundt cake?

They're round, dense, and not overly sweet.

This bundt cake is my absolute favorite. It's a simple vanilla bundt cake soaked with a butter glaze throughout the entire cake. The glaze goes on while the cake is cooling in the pan, and it creates a moist soaked cake with a slightly sugar crisp on the outside of the cake.

Bundt cakes have frustrated me in the past, because parts always seem to stick in the pan. I can't stand that! For this recipe, the cake didn't stick at all. The secret?

You have to let the bundt cool all the way in the pan before inverting it. 

This cake is great, because it's even better on the second and third days. This means you can make it the night before, and it will be even more moist the next day! This cake will still be great if you can't resist it on the first day, but I recommend waiting if you can! 

Kentucky Butter Bundt

Yields: approximately 12 servings 

Cake

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 tbsp vanilla

3 cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 cup buttermilk

Glaze

1/3 cup butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 tbsp water

2 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees fahrenheit. Grease a bundt pan liberally with butter or shortening, getting into every nook and cranny. Lightly sprinkle with flour and tap out the excess.

2. Place all the cake ingredients in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a bowl with a hand mixer). Mix on low for 30 seconds, then up to medium (about a 4) for 3 minutes. 

3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 55-75 minutes (it totally depends on your oven and altitude), or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

4. Prepare the glaze by combining all of the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan over medium low. Stir until everything melts and dissolves together, but make sure you don't boil it. 

5. Right when the cake comes out of the oven, poke holes in it with a knife. Keep the cake in the pan! Slowly pour the glaze over the cake, letting it soak in as you go. 

6. Let the cake cool completely (I covered it and left it overnight) before inverting. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired. 

Note: Cake is best if you make it the day before so it can cool in the pan overnight. 

Banana Bundt

Old mushy bananas are the best!

Last night I went to an orchestra concert, and for some reason I was craving banana bundt cake the whole time, but I've never had it before. Story of my stinking life. I crave things all the time that I've never had. I set out to find a delicious recipe for a moist banana bundt. At first I was searching for something with sour cream to make sure it was moist, but I decided to go with a recipe I found on Pinterest. I'm so glad I did! It was so unbelievably moist. 

Today was definitely a baking day. I woke up to a fresh blanket of snow covering the ground. It's LATE MARCH! Utah is crazy!

Tweaked from Hungry Couple NYC.

Banana Bundt

4 tbsp melted butter
1 tbsp flour
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 banana, peeled and sliced

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 (8 tbsp) stick butter, softened
3/4 cup light brown sugar
3 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk (1 cup milk + 1 tsp vinegar)
2 bananas, mashed

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Butter and flour a bundt pan. Lightly tap the pan to release the extra flour. Line the pan with the brown sugar and then the banana slices.

2. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, beat the softened butter and brown sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat. Add the buttermilk and mix. Scrape the bowl. Add the mashed bananas and mix. Slowly add the dry ingredients until it's fully incorporated.

3. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool for about an hour before inverting it out of the pan.

Also, yes, in case you were wondering, I do always sing the Gwen Stefani song in my head to make sure I'm spelling "B-A-N-A-N-A-S" correctly. 

Happy Saturday, y'all!

Best Chocolate Bundt

Here's a new and improved photo from when we had a potluck "Break-the-Fast"

So I know I've said in past blog entires that I'm not the biggest chocolate cake fan, so it's a pretty big deal for me to say that I loved this chocolate cake. Y'all, seriously. This cake is the moistest, most deliciously chocolate cake. It is AWESOME!

My "family" group at BYU has dinner pretty much every Sunday night. It's always so fun to cook together and spend time with our group.

Look how beautifully awkward we look!

So anyway, I made this delicious cake and I am so excited to share this recipe with you!

Moist Chocolate Bundt Cake

Yield: 15 servings

Recipe adapted from Neighbor Food Blog.

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups water
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 large eggs
1 egg yolk
1 1/4 cups milk
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 cup plus 2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups flour

For the glaze:
3/4 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup unsalted butter
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup half and half or cream

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Generously butter and flour a bundt pan, making sure to coat every crevice. Tap the excess flour out and discard. 

2. Whisk the water and cocoa powder in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring it to a boil and let it boil for about 30 seconds. Stir continually. Remove from heat and let it cool for about five minutes.

3. Measure out the milk and add in the vinegar. Let it sit for five minutes.

4. Beat sugar, salt, baking soda, eggs, and egg yolk until really well-incorporated. Add the milk mixture, along with oil and vanilla and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the flour and mix until it's thoroughly incorporated. Next, add the cocoa powder/water mixture and beat until there are no more lumps (about 2 minutes). 

5. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

6. Let the cake cool completely before adding the frosting.

Frosting

Melt the chocolate chips. Melt the butter separately and then beat the butter with the melted chocolate. Add half the powdered sugar and whisk until smooth. Add the sour cream and the other half of the powdered sugar and beat. Add the sour cream and the water and beat until it's smooth. Pour over cooled cake and enjoy!

I didn't wait for mine to cool, so my frosting was all melty, but that didn't stop anyone from eating it. 

The way I frosted it caused the center hole to be filled to the top with frosting, so when I cut into it, it made a huge mess... but we cleaned that up really fast with spoons. 

Enjoy!