Last night we were invited to dinner. Our friend and neighbor Ms. F, an accomplished cook and fellow foodie, off from work for the day, was celebrating her new All-Clad Slow Cooker's "Maiden Voyage" with a recipe for Beef Burgundy from Lynn Alley's The Gourmet Slow Cooker - Simple & Sophisticated Meals from Around the World
I promised to bring dessert and this was it. Mind you, my cake came from a box. I had it in my pantry, ready for a lazy day, when I was too tired to bake from scratch. I used my lovely Rose Cake Pan and crossed my fingers.
The Burgundy Beef (page 50) was the best I've ever had and the cake was quite good too. The Double Chocolate all natural mix is made with Guittard artisanal cocoa and Nielsen-Massey vanilla. Dense, with delectable Belgian chocolate bits. Moist but not fudgy. We had it with cold milk and were happy as clams. :-) These mixes (they also have Double Lemon, Strawberry and Vanilla) should be in everyone's pantry. Just in case.
Williams Sonoma Bundt® Chocolate Cake
You will need:
A box of Williams-Sonoma Bundt® Double Chocolate Cake Mix
A Bundt® Cake Pan
16 Tbs. (2 sticks) unsalted butter
4 eggs
Follow the instructions on the box for buttering and dusting pan and to prepare the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spreading the batter so the sides are about 1 inch higher than the center. The recipe says to bake at 325F but I prefer baking it at 350F, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 60 to 65 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool the cake upright in the pan for 10 minutes. Set the rack over a sheet of waxed paper, invert the pan onto the rack and lift off the pan. Use confectioners’ sugar for a simple dusting or make a glaze of 1 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup water and 1 Tbs. chocolate liqueur. Or try a Kahlua Glaze made of 2 Tbs. Kahlua, 3 Tbs. water and 3/4 cup (185g) granulated sugar. Serve with whipped cream or crème fraîche and garnish with berries (red currant or red raspberries are especially lovely now) Serves 16.
