When Bundt Pans Go Bad -- But the cake is good!

Rumor has it that the cupcake craze is "out" and bundt cakes are "in". I love a good cupcake, but I'm not very talented when it comes to icing and decorating. In fact, I'm artistically impaired.

If you have not visited "The Food Librarian" baking blog, I have been a voyeur of her beautiful baked goods for months. Her creations, and photography, are stellar-- I can only hope to become 1/3 as good as she is. She's also very funny.

Last week, I caught the posting for a Cinnamon Chocolate Bundt Cake. I noticed that the recipe was very similar to the Pioneer Women's Chocolate Texas Sheetcake that I blogged about-- no mixer needed. I liked the idea of adding cinnamon and I have a bundt pan...somewhere... hmmmm, I haven't baked a bundt since... well, let me tell you...

First, here's how I got off to a good start:

Butter, water, oil and Dutch Cocoa Powder are brought to a boil on the stove...

In the meantime, I've organized the flour, sugar, buttermilk, vanilla and eggs as the wet ingredients...

Just like the Texas Sheetcake, I pour the hot mix into the dry...

Give it a good stir, and it thickened up nicely...

Then I added the buttermilk and baking soda, and then the lightly beaten eggs and cinnamon.
I didn't photograph my pouring the batter into the bundt pan.

"Why?", you ask...

Because my bundt pan is older than most of you food bloggers! It's ugly. It's harvest gold and dates back to 1976, when I was 21 years old. Yes, I'm almost as old as Methuselah (for those of you who are familiar with the Old Testament). Well, maybe I'm not that old. II wondered if non-stick from that era is what it is today. Ha! Stay tuned...

The cake smelled wonderful at 27 minutes in the oven. My poor bundt pan... I cooled the cake, as instructed... well, it was pretty darn cool. Not stone cold. Cool... tepid...whatever!



Ta da! My husband, with the best of intentions, grabbed the pan to shake it out-- much to my horror. There I sat, with my new foodie guest (my brother's lady friend) trying to think of how to patch this mess. Do I make a ganache? Susan suggested that I flip the cake over.

Taps fingers on table....

What do you think? I'm going to buy a bundt pan. This weekend. Silicone or non-stick, folks? What's your favorite?

The bundt pan is going into the landfill-- well, maybe. Somehow, Harvest Gold isn't part of my color decor. I'm a mossy green kinda gal. It's my favorite color, by the way.

Know what? The cake is wonderful! It's moist, it's quick and I'd make it again. Only, next time-- move over old bundt pan! You're through. There's a new kid on the block, coming soon.

My brother has a digital camera that is to die for! I got caught, in the act of photographing my recipes, with my Fuji Fine Pix 3800 Digital Camera. There I am! Hello!


I drive my husband and (20 year old) son nuts with my "foodography". You fellow food bloggers understand. We can't help it. It's a sickness.

...and it's fun!