If you’ve ever wondered how Bundt cakes came about, this column will satisfy that curiosity.
A Bundt cake is baked in a pan that gives the cake a distinctive ring shape.
The shape was inspired by a traditional European yeasted cake known as a Gugelhupf (also called bund cake) that was often prepared to serve at a gathering of people.
Many recipes have been developed over time for cakes made in Bundt pans.
You could say that the Bundt cake’s history in North America began back in 1950, when David Dalquist created the pan, added the “t” to trademark the name, and started producing the unique cast aluminum pans in Minnesota.
The popularity of the pans took off in 1966 when there was a cook-off and an ooey-goey chocolate cake made by Ella Helfrich from Texas won second place in the contest, inspiring other cooks across the country to give the pan a try.
Sales sored throughout the ’60s and ’70s, and the pans evolved — taking on different shapes and sizes. There’s the traditional pan, as well as the rose, jubilee, pine forest, vintage star, blossom, mini-Bundt and so on. They come in 1-cup, 6-cup, 10-cup and 12-cup sizes.
With each new design, the Bundt cakes seem to surge again in popularity.
Despite its ebbs and flows, the Bundt cake has staying power.
It truly is one of the great American cooking traditions.
There are six or more different pan designs to delight today’s cooks, and it’s estimated that more than 60 million of the pans can be found in kitchens across the United States.
I have collected several of these pan designs over the years and still manage to impress people when I take them to meetings and family gatherings.
Of course, I have my all-time favorite pound cake recipe that has been used to bribe/reward many family, friends, and co-workers into doing favors for me, but I still love to experiment, as new recipes keep coming out in magazines and cookbooks.
The recipe included today is an adaptation of the original 1966 contest winner – Enjoy!
(Note: One of the original ingredients — a frosting mix — was discontinued in the ’70s, so it had to be replaced with cocoa powder and confectioner’s sugar.
Betsy Crisp, MS, LD/N is a professor emeritus for the University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension – Family & Consumer Sciences
Recipe
1966 Bake-Off 2nd-Place Winner: Tunnel of Fudge Bundt Cake (Adapted from the original recipe)
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 3/4 cups sugar
- 1 3/4 cups unsalted butter (or margarine), softened
- 6 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose unbleached flour
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
- 2 cups walnuts, chopped
Glaze
- 3/4 cup 10x powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
- 4 teaspoons to 6 teaspoons milk
Instructions
Cake
- Heat oven to 350°F.
- Grease and flour 12-cup fluted tube Bundt cake pan (or 10-inch standard tube pan).
- In large bowl, combine sugar and butter; beat until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Gradually add 2 cups 10x powdered sugar; blend well.
- By hand, stir in flour and remaining cake ingredients until well-blended.
- Spoon batter into greased and floured pan; spread evenly.
- Bake at 350°F. for 45 to 50 minutes, or until top is set and edges are beginning to pull away from sides of pan. (Be very careful not to over-bake)
- Cool upright in pan on wire rack 1 1/2 hours.
- Invert onto serving plate; cool at least 2 hours.
Glaze
- In small bowl, combine all glaze ingredients, adding enough milk for desired drizzling consistency.
- Spoon over top of cake, allowing some to run down sides.
- Store tightly covered.
Published May 30, 2018
