The secret to flawless bundt cake removal featured in my Christmas recipe for a delightful chocolate bundt cake with chocolate frosting and topped with festive sugar cranberries and rosemary.
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Every weekend when I was growing up in Russia, my mother would make these wonderful mini bundt cakes that were just amazing! She could make them come out perfect every time and they were always so good. Fast forward to my own married life when I decided it was time to bring some of those happy cake memories into my own kitchen. Having grown up watching my mom make them, I thought it would be easy and that there was just no way to mess it up. So I prepared my ingredients, mixed my batter, and baked. To my dismay, when I tried to remove the cake from it’s pan, it stuck! My cake stuck right to the pan and completely fell apart. What?! Why?! At first, I thought that perhaps it was just a fluke. Unfortunately, I was about to find out that this was only the beginning of the war between me and the bundt cakes.
Try and Try Again…
After my first few attempts, it became my personal mission to make the perfect bundt cake. Don’t get me wrong, the cakes were delicious but they just kept on sticking to the pan no matter what. I tried greasing my pan with butter, melted butter, non-stick oil spray but nothing worked. Then, I started thinking that maybe the pan was the problem. So I tried a few different pans but still, I faced the same problem. After my 3rd or 4th attempt, my husband was so tired of bundt cakes that he threatened to leave me (yeah, right!). But I was determined to get it right so I ended up imploring the help of my friends to eat my test cakes. It did not last long before they too could not eat anymore. I probably baked a dozen cakes before the answer finally came to me!
The Secret to a Perfect Bundt Cake
So, how do I now get my bundt cakes to flawlessly pop out of the pan every time? Vegetable shortening and flour.
Bundt Cakes
I cover my hand with a little plastic bag and spread a coat of vegetable shortening over the inside of my bundt cake pan. After, I sprinkle flour over the coating until completely covered then shake out the excess. Once my cake is finished baking, I let it cool in the pan for exactly 10 minutes. Then, I use a butter knife to separate the edges of the cake from the pan before flipping it over onto my cooling rack. Ta-da! A gorgeous and solid bundt cake. When I discovered this neat trick I was overjoyed! My cake had finally come out in one piece and ever since I have used this method. Okay, maybe I do have a few more tips to ensure I always make the absolute best bundt cake.
Ingredient Substitutions
In my recipe ingredients, I list all-purpose flour because this is what is most commonly found in household kitchens. However, I much prefer to use cake flour in my own kitchen because it produces a softer, lighter texture in the final cake. Using all-purpose flour is fine but the results are way better with cake flour. If needed, the sour cream in this recipe can also be substituted using buttermilk, a milk mixture, or a heavy cream mixture. Since the buttermilk is so much thinner, it is recommended to use ¾ cup buttermilk in place of 1 cup sour cream. You can also try mixing a tablespoon of lemon juice into 1 cup of milk or into 1 cup of whipping cream to make a ‘homemade sour cream’.
Bundt Cake Prepping and Baking Tips
- Important Kitchen Tip: Use a timer when letting your bundt cake cool in the pan to keep it at exactly 10 minutes. If you do not let it sit long enough or if you let it sit for too long, then the cake will still stick to the pan.
- When combining ingredients, most people rely solely on a blending whisk or a fork to do all the mixing. This makes the task way more time-consuming and way tougher on hands so I suggest reaching for an electric hand mixer instead. I promise it is totally worth it for a smooth and well-mixed batter.
- In my prep, I also prefer to use glass mixing bowls. Not only do they seem to be easier to clean but they allow me to see my batter around all sides to ensure I have everything mixed well.
- Also, when it comes to coating the pan you can try using food-friendly gloves if you are running low on little plastic bags.
Bundt Cake Decorating Tips
Make the cake as festive as you want! Obviously, there is not a lot of surface area on the top of a bundt cake to do fancy icing work. Do not let that stop you! Take advantage of embellishments and garnishes to make sure your cake is eye-catching and picture perfect! Because this chocolate bundt cake can be decorated in a wide range of toppings it makes for a gorgeous Christmas dessert, a fun birthday cake, or just as a delightful treat to celebrate making it through another busy day.
For a lovely frosting, drizzle try using a measuring cup with a spout or something similar. This gives you control to evenly distribute the frosting over your cake. When coating the fresh cranberries and rosemary in sugar, try using a pair of tongs. This helps both with evenly coating and with keeping your hands from getting sticky.
Safe Bundt Cake Storage
A bundt cake can be stored up to 3 days on the counter, 1 week (wrapped) in the fridge, or you can wrap and freeze individual slices for up to 3 months. To avoid freezer burn, your cake slices must be wrapped in cellophane, then in aluminum foil, and placed in an air-tight container before going into the freezer. Use a permanent marker to write the date on the outside of your wrapped slices to ensure the best taste and quality of the cake.
Now you have the secrets to master a flawless and mouthwatering bundt cake that will leave your family and friends speechless every time! Trust me, I’ve been there and done that. I fought my war against the bundt cakes so that you can skip all that and go straight to wowing everyone with your top-notch dessert. My tips and tricks are sure to take your cake baking to the next level. If you would like to try a lemony-twist on this delicious bundt cake recipe, check out my Lemon Cranberry Bundt Cake With Sugar Cranberries.
Christmas Chocolate Bundt Cake with Chocolate Frosting
Ingredients
- 3 Cups All-purpose flour
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Baking soda
- ½ cup Unsweetened cocoa powder
- 6 Eggs
- 2 tsp Vanilla extract
- ½ Cup Milk
- 1 Cup Sour Cream
- 1 Cup Butter room temperature
- 2 Cups Sugar
Bundt cake pan coating
- 2 tbsp Vegetable shortening
- 2 tbsp All-purpose flour
Chocolate frosting
- ½ cup Heavy cream
- 2 tbsp Butter
- ½ cup Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 ½ tbsp Unsweetened cocoa powder
Sugared cranberries and rosemarry
- 1/2 cup Fresh cranberries washed
- 1 package Fresh rosemary washed
- ¼ cup Sugar
- ¼ cup Water
- ½ cup Sugar for the final coat
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and pale with a mixer.
- Whisk together the eggs in a separate bowl.
- Add in the vanilla, milk, and sour cream.
- In another medium bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt.
- Add egg mixture ⅓ at a time into a bowl with butter and sugar alternating with ⅓ of dry ingredients, mixing between each addition.
- Mix the batter together until combined.
Bundt cake pan coating
- Grease bundt cake with vegetable shortening.
- Sprinkle over with flour. Shake off access flour from the bundt cake.
- Pour cake batter into bundt pan evenly.
- Bake for 50-65 minutes or a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan.
- Remove cake from the pan and allow to cool completely before drizzling chocolate frosting.
Chocolate frosting
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine butter, chocolate chips, cocoa powder, and heavy cream.
- Stir until chocolate chips melt.
- Let chocolate frosting entirely cool before drizzling over the bundt cake.
Sugared cranberries and rosemary
- Line baking sheet with a paper towel.
- Put 1/2 cup of sugar into a large bowl.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine water and 1/4 cup of sugar.
- Stir until combined.
- Let sugar syrup entirely cool.
- Dip cranberries and rosemary into the sugar syrup and transfer them back on the tray with a paper towel.
- Roll cranberries and rosemary in the sugar to coat, a few at a time. Once they are coated, transfer them to a baking sheet to dry.
Bundt cake decoration
- Drizzle chocolate frosting over the bundt cake.
- Decorate the top of the chocolate bundt cake with rosemary and cranberries.
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