Chocolate Bourbon Cake

When Sam & I decided to host another dinner get together this last Friday, I wanted to follow up my last cake with one that involved waaay less frosting and more class.  One that was attractive with less work, but sexy with the hint of some robust flavor.  Then, I saw what Elise Bauer referred to as

"Chocolate. Bourbon. Cake. I think the moment my father spied this recipe in the New York Times he was a goner. ("You had me at chocolate.") Nothing was going to stop him from making this cake. When he found out I possessed a 10-cup bundt pan, that was it, he was half-way to the store getting chocolate and instant espresso for the recipe." 

As you can see, we foodies take our recipes very seriously.  Elise's father went on a shopping rampage with the suggestion of the recipe, and I too, went on a similar cooking rampage.  Not nearly as humorous, but certainly as delicious.

The below cake is the moistest of dark chocolate cakes I've ever made.  It's rich without being decadent and quite literally "melts" in your mouth.  Although one of my food fans said the cake was a little too "boozy," I think the best way to articulate the bourbon's mix with dark chocolate is that some bites are richly chocolatey and others remind you of a nice shot of bourbon.  With these two lingering tastes, this cake is clearly delicious!

Chocolate Bourbon Cake
This recipe, like many of mine, comes from Master Foodblogress Elise Bauer over at Simply Recipes and can be found here.  As the recipe's legend has it, her father saw the below recipe in the New York Times food section and could hardly contain himself with the idea of baking up a dark, moist, chocolatey cake infused with the magic of Bourbon.  Well, upon reading this recipe, I too was similarly impressed.  Follow the recipe to a "T" as it is very difficult to alter.  The one area in which moderation is possible is the "instant coffee" or "espresso" option.  I used a 1/4 cup of coffee and skipped the steeping instant coffee alternative.  I'd suggest doing the same as no one likes instant coffee...not even when it's snuck into the deep recesses of a cake batter.

Ingredients
* 2 sticks butter, slightly softened
* 2 cups all purpose flour; or, for my version: 1 cup wheat flour, 1/2 cup cake flour, and 1/2 cup bread flour (I was feeling daring and the result was delicious!)
* 6.5 ounces dark chocolate, the nice variety, melted
* 1/4 cup brewed coffee
* 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
* 1 cup bourbon whiskey, I used Jim Beam as I had it leftover from the Bourbon ham recipe
* 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
* 2 cups granulated sugar
* 3 large eggs
* 1 tablespoon vanilla extract + 1 teaspoon almond extract
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 cup confectioner's sugar for dusting

Special Equipment Needed:
* 1 10 cup capacity bundt pan
* 1 sifter

1.) Preheat oven to 325F and grease and flour a large bundt pan.  Set aside.

2.) Begin by preparing the coffee, bourbon, + cocoa mixture.  Pour coffee, Bourbon, & Cocoa into a 2 cup glass measuring cup.  Add salt and stir.  Set aside and allow to "cool" if necessary.

3.) Chop up 6.5 ounces of dark chocolate and add to a microwave safe bowl.  Sprinkle with water and heat on high for 30 seconds.  Stir after 30 seconds and continue these two steps until chocolate is fully melted.

4.) Beat softened butter until fluffy (about 2 minutes in the Kitchenaid Mixer) and add sugars.  Mix to integrate and scrape down sides of bowl to fully incorporate ingredients.  Add eggs one at a time, allowing for each one to be fully integrated.  Mix in baking soda, vanilla extract, and melted chocolate.  Scrape down sides and proceed to step 5.

5.) Now, add the bourbon and flour mixtures.  Begin by adding 1/3 of the bourbon mixture and mixing to fully integrate.  Add 1/2 of the flour mixture to fully integrate.  Add half of what's left of your bourbon mixture.  Then, add the last of the flour mixture, mix to integrate.  Finally, add the remaining bourbon mixture.  This process may seem tedious, but it's the best way to properly integrate both the wet and dry components of this cake.

6.) Scrape down sides of bowl to make sure your batter is fully mixed up.  Your batter will be a creamy almost pudding-like consistency and this is good! Scrape batter into prepared bundt pan and smooth on top.  Pop into oven and cook for 45 minutes or longer.  Cooking times vary on this recipe.  I checked my cake at 40 minutes and it was almost done, whereas Elise calls for an hour and fifteen minutes.  The best rule of thumb here is to check at around 40 and see what your oven's cooking temperament is.

7.) Remove from oven when a knife comes out clean.  Allow to sit for five minutes, and then, carefully, loosen the cake from the pan.  I like to scrape along the perimeter with a knife and then tap the bundt pan all around the outside with the handle. This scraping and taping procedure seems to loosen a cake nicely and decrease risk of sticking.

8.) Place a plate over the top of your bundt pan and with the help of oven mits, luck, focus, and charm, quickly flip the pan & plate upside down.  Set plate on a level surface and slowly lift up the bundt pan.  If you do this last step too quickly, you risk the cake sticking and tearing.  So, as you're lifting up the bundt pan, check to feel if the cake pulls at all.  If it does, set the pan back down on the plate and proceed to tape all around the bundt to loosen the cake some more.  It will eventually, but you must be patient!

9.) Once cake is fully loosened, allow to cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar right before serving.  I use a sifter for an even snow-fall effect.  Enjoy!

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