Candy Cane Bundt Cake - #BundtaMonth

It is time for Bundtamonth!  The theme for this month was to bake a bundt that captures the holiday theme.  I immediately thought of candy canes and how I could incorporate them into a cake. Peppermint alone may have a little overwhelming so I decided to go with a ribbon of peppermint through the middle of the cake, and crushed candy canes on top.

It's always said that it is the most wonderful time of the year right now, but it is the also the busiest time of the year, so for my bundt this month I took a shortcut and used a boxed cake mix.  Don't get me wrong, I love to bake from scratch but there are those times where having a cake mix in the cupboard can be a life saver. This cake can be put together and in the oven in about 15 minutes, and while it is baking you can make the icing.  From start to finish this cake should take you no more than two hours, and you will have an impressive treat to share.  You could even make it as mini bundt and give them away to family and friends as holidays gifts.

Sticky Toffee Bundt Cake with Cranberry Jelly Glaze #BundtaMonth

When I found out that the theme for this months #Bundtamonth was Jam I was really surprised, not by the ingredient but by the fact that I immediately knew that I wanted to make a bundt version of a Sticky Toffee Pudding.  Considering that this is a very sweet dessert I thought that a cranberry jelly glaze would be the perfect foil for that sweetness.

The flavors in this cake are perfect for this time of year.  To me the sticky toffee flavor is such a comfort  food, especially if you make a little vanilla custard to go with it.  Also, I just love cranberry season and always end up with multiple bags in my freezer so that I can continue to enjoy them throughout the year.

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Bundt Cake #BundtaMonth

I was definitely excited when I found out that the theme for this month's #BundtaMonth was candy. Who wouldn't be thrilled to be asked to "bake us a bundt using your favorite candy"? Now my only problem was that I have two favorite candy bars - one from Australia and one from the US.  Which one should I use to make my bundt?

A mix of chopped cherries and coconut, smothered with Cadbury dark chocolate, the Cherry Ripe has always been from favorite chocolate in Australia.  It is also the oldest chocolate bar in Australia. However, I can't seem to resist little cups of chocolate filled with peanut butter - the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup - that has always been my favorite chocolate in the US.  In the end it was an easy decision because I did not have enough Cherry Ripes in my secret stash, and Reese's Peanut Putter Cups are more readily available for the majority of people.  The Cherry Ripe bundt will have to wait for another day.

I wasn't sure if I should just wing it, but then I found this recipe at Wee Eats and it seemed to be just what I was looking for. After a few slight changes I was ready to bake.  To get a deep, dark chocolate color and flavor this recipe uses Dutch-process cocoa.  This type of cocoa is produced from beans that have been treated with an alkali that neutralizes the acidity.  It therefore it does not react with baking soda and needs to be used in recipes that contain baking powder, or a recipe that has other acidic ingredients in proportionate amounts, hence the sour cream. For a more detailed breakdown I found that David Lebovitz has an excellent explanation on his website, which can be found here.

Banana-Caramel Bundt Cake #BundtaMonth

I am so excited that I have been able to join the BundtaMonth group.  This group formed out of the love of bundt cakes and, seriously, who doesn't love a good cup of coffee and a slice of bundt cake? It would seem that I joined right at the right time as they are celebrating their anniversary so the theme is "fancy". I look forward to both baking along with the group and getting to know everyone a little better.

To be honest I was a little nervous about what I should bake to celebrate this occasion. You know, kind of like the first day of school or a new job where you want to make a good impression and fit in with everyone?  Since I had recently purchased a new cookbook, The Australian Women's Weekly 100 Classic Cakes, and I am originally from Australia, I thought it would be fun to see if I could find something there that might work.  There were a couple that caught my eye but I finally settled on the Banana-Caramel Bundt Cake. Splitting a bundt into three layers and smothering each one with banana and dulce de leche seemed to suggest a special occasion.

If you have not had the pleasure of tasting dulce de leche I suggest you immediately go out and find it, and then try not to just stick your spoon in and eat it straight from the can.  Dulce de leche has only recently become available in my area, but if you cannot find it there is a method to make it from a can of condensed milk.  One time I even made it without even knowing as I left a can of condensed milk in the back of a warm cupboard and when I opened it I found it had become dulce de leche.

The original recipe for this Banana-Caramel Bundt Cake did include whipped cream in the layers too, but I was not intending to eat the cake the same day so I omitted this. After slicing a small piece I will say that I found the cake a little on the dry side.  To alleviate this problem I will probably substitute the milk for some buttermilk to see if it can add some moistness to the cake. Other than that it was quite decadent.

Here’s how you can be a part of Bundt-a-Month:

• Simple rule: Bake us a fancy bundt
• Post it before September 30, 2013
• Use the #BundtaMonth hashtag in your title. (For ex: title could read – #BundtaMonth: Fancy Bundt)
• Add your entry to the Linky tool below
• Link back to our announcement posts

Even more bundt fun! Follow Bundt-a-Month on Facebook where we feature all our gorgeous bundt cakes. Or head over to our Pinterest board for inspiration and choose from hundreds of Bundt cake recipes.


And don't forget to check out the wonderful "fancy" bundts baked by my fellow BundtaMonth bakers in celebration of our anniversary.

• Banana-Caramel Bundt Cake by Felice at All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Caramel Latte Bundt Cake by Heather at Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
• Chocolate and Wine Bundt from Holly at A Baker's House
• Cinnamon Chocolate Bundt Cake by Alice at Hip Foodie Mom
• Devil's Food Bundt Cake with Caramel Glaze by Lora at Cake Duchess
• Funfetti Pudding Cake by Kate at Food Babbles
• Hong Kong Chiffon Mini Cakes by Kim at Ninja Baking
• Lemon Frangipane Bundt Cake by Paula at Vintage Kitchen Notes
• Little Bundt Pound Cakes by Renee at Magnolia Days
• Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Bundt Cake by Anuradha at Baker Street
• Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Bundt by Anita at Hungry Couple
• Rose Mini Bundt Cakes by Veronica at My Catholic Kitchen
• Simple Orange Bundt Cake by Kathya at Basic N Delicious
• Streusel Apple Bundt Cake by Laura at The Spiced Life
• Triple Chocolate Mini Bundts by Stacy at Food Lust People Love
• White Chocolate Bundt with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting by Sandra at Sweet Sensations

Banana-Caramel Bundt Cake
(Printer Friendly Recipe)

Ingredients

• 6oz butter, softened
• 1¼ cups sugar
• 3 eggs, at room temperature
• 2¼ cups self-rising flour
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1¼ cups mashed banana
• ⅓ cup milk
• 1 13.4oz can dulce de leche
• 1 large banana, thinly sliced
• powdered sugar to dust

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350℉.  
2. Spray a bundt pan with baking spray.
3. In a large bowl place flour, baking soda, and salt and whisk to combine.  Set aside.
4. In the bowl of stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
5. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. 
6. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the milk in two parts, beginning and ending with the flour.
7. Using a spatula, gently fold in the banana.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it evenly. Rap the pan firmly on the counter to release any air bubbles. 
9. Place the pan in the center of the oven and bake until the cake is a deep golden color and a wooden skewer poked in the middle comes out just barely clean, about 50 minutes.
10. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then remove and place on a wire rack to cool completely.
11. To assemble the cake thinly slice the banana.  Split the cake into three layers and spread the bottom layer of the cake with half of the dulce de leche and top with half of the banana slices. Place the middle layer of the cake on top and repeat with the next layer using the remaining caramel and banana slices.  Top with the remaining layer and dust with icing sugar before serving.

Recipe slightly adapted from The Australian Women's Weekly 100 Classic Cakes.

Brandied Peach Crumble Bundt with a Spiced Glaze - #BundtAMonth

I am a little late to the BundtAMonth party, but better late than never. The good news is that I won't be late in the future because I have joined the group so you are guaranteed at least one bundt a month from me.  I am super excited to be bundting-along with the other members of the group and getting to know everyone.  Special thanks to Laura from The Spiced Life for introducing me to the group.

This months theme was peaches.  I really wish that I was able to say that I used fresh peaches just purchased at the Farmers' Market, but the truth is that every peach available here is imported from thousands of miles away.  Each time I go to the store I see the boxes of peaches with the slogan "I'm Ripe", but I know that they are just pretending to be ripe.  One gentle squeeze told me that the peaches were rock hard, and having been fooled once or twice before, I have found that most of the time they do get soft but they have a mealy texture.  I decided not to tempt fate and used canned peaches.  At least this way I knew what I was getting and I wasn't paying $10.99 for inedible peaches.

As soon as I saw the theme peaches I immediately thought of peach crumble.  It just seemed like a good combination to translate into a bundt.  I also knew that I wanted some sort of glaze to drizzle over the top of the bundt.  It seemed natural to use a combination of powdered sugar, the syrup left behind after the peaches had been mixed with the sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and brandy, and a little of the peach juice from the can.  Yep, that definitely worked.  I may have used my fingers to scoop out what was left in the bowl after spooning the glaze over the bundt, but I'm not telling.  The cake itself was delicious too.  Do make sure that you drain the peaches well before you layer them in the cake, or you will have a problem with the cake splitting.  Mine was a little closer than I would have liked to this scenario.

There were so many great bundts this month featuring the wonderful peach, so please take a look at the list here.  I know I am going to be saving quite a few of the recipes to try out soon. The BundtAMonth group also has a Facebook page featuring all of the wonderful bundts made each month and a Pinterest page with so many amazing recipes (and gorgeous pictures).

Brandied Peach Crumble Bundt with a Spiced Glaze
(Printer Friendly Recipe)

Ingredients ~ 

Bundt

• 3 cups flour
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter, room temperature
• 1½ cups sugar
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract)
• 1 cup sour cream

Brandied Peaches 

• 1 15 oz tin peaches, diced and drained (reserving the liquid), about 1cup
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons brandy (optional)

Crumble

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cubed
• ½ cup flour
• 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar, packed
• 1 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg

Spiced Glaze

• ¾ cup powdered sugar
• reserved liquid from brandied peaches & drained peaches

Preparation ~ 

Brandied Peaches

1. Dice the peaches and place in a medium bowl. 
2. Toss with sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and brandy. 
3. Set aside until ready to use.

Crumble

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugars, cinnamon and nutmeg.
2. Using a fork, press the cold butter into the mixture until it's the consistency of a course meal.
3. Set aside until ready to use.

Bundt

1. Preheat oven to 350℉ degrees. 
2. Generously grease and flour the inside of a bundt pan, shaking out any excess flour.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
5. One at a time, add the eggs, mixing thoroughly after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl.
6. Add the vanilla and combine.
7. In three additions, add the flour alternating with sour cream.
8. Fill the pan about ⅓ of the way with batter.
9. Using a slotted spoon to drain the liquid, layer the peaches on top of the batter evenly (reserve the liquid from the peaches). 
10. Sprinkle the crumble over the peaches.
11. Scoop batter on top of the peaches and crumble and smooth out using an offset spatula. Make sure you leave about 1 inch of room from the top of the bundt pan.
12. Bake for 60-80 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
13. Allow to cool for ONLY 5 minutes in pan before removing a a plate/rack to cool.

Spiced Glaze

1. Place powdered sugar in a small bowl.
2. Gradually whisk in the reserved brandied peach liquid, and if needed some of the drained peach liquid, until you reach the desired consistency.
3. Drizzle glaze over the bundt so it covers the top and drizzles down the edges.

Recipe by ATLATC, adapted from Java Cupcake.

Vanilla Twinkie Bundt Cake with Raspberries - #BundtaMonth

Who doesn't love a good bundt?  There are so many different flavors and absolutely beautiful bundt pans to choose from, that it is always exciting to make one.  It would be very easy for me to start a bundt pan collection if only I had the room to store them all.  They can be classic or extremely intricate, but all produce beautiful cakes.

Over the past few months I noticed that Laura from The Spiced Life participates in a blogging event called #Bundt-a-Month, which is the of creation of Baker Street and Cake Duchess. Each month a theme or a particular ingredient(s) is chosen for the month, and then everyone gets to create a beautiful bundt.  I went to check out some of these cakes and I realized two things - I have been seriously missing out by not participating, and gosh some of these bloggers make beautiful cakes.

The theme for the month of May is berries which was perfect.  I have been on a real raspberry kick at the moment, having recently made some Razzleberry Crumbs Bars, and I still had some in the fridge ready for my next baking adventure.  Making a bundt seemed meant-to-be since I had recently borrowed Pure Vanilla from our local library and bookmarked the Vanilla Twinkie Bundt Cake as something I really wanted to try.  Pairing raspberries with it seemed the natural thing to do for this month's Bundt-a-Month theme.

A tunnel of marshmallow cream runs through the middle of the bundt - #BundtaMonth

Whilst I loved the tartness of the raspberries against the sweetness of the cake, I did have a few problems with this cake.  I thought that 2 cups of sugar was quite a lot considering the cake has a marshmallow filling, so I cut it back to 1½, but I honestly think that you could easily remove another ½ cup and it would still be sweet enough. Also, after I added the oil I had a lot of trouble getting the mixture to get to the stage of "light and fluffy".  I finally settled for incorporated and creamy, but this did not seem to have an adverse effect on the cake.  Finally I had problems with filling the cake, part of which was my fault for not waiting for it to fully cool.  I used a cupcake corer to make the holes, but maybe I should have used an apple corer to make smaller holes because there was no way that I had enough filling for the cake.  I quickly made up a second batch of marshmallow filling and this seemed to be perfect - note that I have doubled the quantity in the recipe below. The only other change I made was to use vanilla bean paste, rather than extract, because I really love vanilla and I like the little flecks it gives to baked goods. The first time I ever tried a Twinkie was when they were supposedly disappearing forever, and I thought it was now or never.  If you are a Twinkie fan then this is the bundt for you, as it perfectly mimics the flavor profile - well maybe it did a little better before I added the raspberries - but I really did like the addition of them in the cake.

The best part is that you could be part of the Bundt-a-Month fun too!  Please take a moment to visit The Spiced Life to check out Laura's amazing Lemon Mint Rhubarb Bundt and there you will find more details on how to become part of the group.  There is also a Facebook page that features all of these beautiful cakes, and as if that isn't enough there is also a Pinterest board to further inspire you - I had a quick peek and my first thought was I'll have a slice from of each one.

Vanilla Twinkie Bundt Cake with Raspberries - it is hot here so the filling started to puddle

Vanilla Twinkie Bundt Cake with Raspberries
(Printer Friendly Recipe)

Ingredients 
Cake ~

• 3 cups cake flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
• 1½ cups granulated sugar
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• 3 large eggs plus 4 large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
• 2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries

Filling ~

• 2 (7.5 ounce) jars marshmallow creme
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla bean oaste
• Confectioners' sugar, for dusting (optional)

Preparation
Cake ~

1. Position rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat oven to 325°F. 
2. Coat a 12-cup Bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray and dust it lightly with flour.
3. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and vanilla extract on medium speed until smooth and creamy. 
5. Add sugar and beat until evenly mixed, about 1 minute. 
6. Slowly pour in oil. Beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. 
7. Add eggs and egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition.
8. Reduce mixer speed to low and add flour mixture and buttermilk in three alternating additions, ending with the buttermilk, and continue to mix on low speed until the batter is smooth and no lumps remain. 
9. Turn off mixer and fold batter several times by hand to ensure everything is well incorporated.
10. Add raspberries and gently fold until incorporated, and then add to prepared pan.
11. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, until the cake is golden, the top springs back when lightly pressed, and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. 
12. Place pan on a wire rack and let cool completely, about 2 hours.

Filling ~

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together marshmallow creme, vanilla, and butter until smooth. Transfer to a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip.
2. With the cake still in the pan, use a paring knife or apple corer to cut 6 or 7 deep holes into the bottom of the cake, each about 3/4 inch in diameter; be careful not to cut through top of cake. Discard (i.e., nibble) cake scraps. With your fingers, gently burrow a horizontal tunnel around the center of the cake, connecting the vertical holes.
3. Insert the tip of the pastry bag into each hold and squeeze in filling, tilting pastry bag back and forth as you work to encourage filling into the horizontal tunnel through the cake. When cake is filled, use a spatula to scrape away excess filling from the bottom of the cake. Quickly and carefully invert cake onto serving platter. Dust with confectioners' sugar, if desired, and serve.

Recipe adapted from Pure Vanilla by Shauna Sever.