Review: Eating Well's Died-And-Went-To-Heaven Chocolate Cake

[jliah]

I copied this recipe off of this BB a few days back and tried it this weekend. (This was the "ancient but amazing chocolate cake" that Peeps was looking for.)

This was a WONDERFUL recipe and quick to prepare, too. I made it for our family and for a family that always eats full-fat foods. We couldn't believe how rich and moist it tasted. YUMMMM. This will definitely be a family favorite.

I didn't have a Bundt pan, but it worked well in my 9 x 13 pan with good results.

Here it is for all who are interested:


Eating Well's Died-and-Went-to-Heaven Chocolate Cake

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whtie sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup hot strong black coffee

Icing

1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1-2 Tbsp buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly oil a 12-cup Bundt pan or coat with cooking spray. Dust with flour and shake out excess.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, white sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add buttermilk, brown sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla; beat with electric mixer on medium for 2 minutes. Whisk in hot coffee until completely incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake 35-40 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Cool in pan on a rack for ten minutes; remove from the pan and let cool completely.

To make icing:
in a small bowl, whisk together confectioners' sugar, vanilla, and enough of the buttermilk to make a thick but pourable icing. Set the cake on a serving plate and drizzle the icing over the top.

16 servings

222 calories per serving:
3 g protein
4 g fat
43 g carb
247 mg sodium
27 mg cholesterol

[This message has been edited by jliah (edited 03-25-2001).]

[This message has been edited by jliah (edited 03-25-2001).]

[chefandi]

Does this cake a have strong coffee flavor? I am not a fan of coffee nor do I like coffee flavoring in my sweets, but I would love to try it if not. Thanks

[Searcher]

Chefandi,
I've made this cake twice now, at my husband's request (he just loves it although he eats far more of it than he should). Yesterday, I decided to try using really strong coffee. I'm using instant so I added nearly a tablespoon of the coffee crystals and I couldn't believe how chocolate-y it made the cake taste! No coffee flavor at all, if there was I'd hear about it, my husband isn't fond of mocha flavored anything.

[jliah]

I don't drink coffee and just grabbed some coffee that was out at the grocery store for people as they come in. I believe the recipe called for one cup of strong coffee, but I only had taken home about 3/4 cup and so added 1/4 cup of water to the coffee. I don't know if it was strong coffee or not. But anyway, there was no strong coffee taste to our cake. Our family doesn't like "mocha" things either. I think the recipe would be fine adding the full 1 cup of strong coffee, but that's just my guess.

[valchemist]

chefandi,

There was an ongoing discussion about the coffee flavor (or lack thereof) in the original post on this recipe.

val

p.s. the thread is called "ISO ancient but amazing chocolate cake"

[MrsReber]

Have to add my review to the list! I made this for dh's birthday yesterday. I decided to make it into a layer cake using 2 8-inch round cake pans. Aside from it being a little lopsided (okay, it's been a while since I made a layer cake), hubby loved it and said it was "dangerous". It is surprisingly moist.

[SHERRY]

I also want to express my thanks for introducing me to this great cake! I copied it last week off the board and made it...EVERYONE loved it...it was so moist...even a coulple days later http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

I added cocoa to my frosting...chocolate on chocolate.....yum!

[Susann]

As if discovering a low fat and amazing chocolate cake recipe wasn't enough, the added bonus is it freezes well. I wrapped the pieces individually in plastic wrap and then put them in a freezer bag. The only tough part is waiting for the piece to defrost!

[MrsReber]

My husband said to me last night that the cake must be loaded with fat and calories because it's so moist! With the size portions he eats, though, it does add up! We still have a little less than half less. I was so happy with the way it turned out.

[Luv to Cook]

Susann,

I freeze mine too...and I can never wait for it to defrost...I just pop it in the microwave for 15 seconds!

Anita

[AvrilH]

I happen to have some Eating Well recipe books, and had been planning to make this recipe for some time. I finally did, and topped with cool whip, everyone loved it (Oh all right, I added some commercial hot fudge sauce to be really impressive).

It tastes EXACTLY like "The Best Ever Chocolate Cake" recipe of my mom's, however hers calles for 2 cups of sour cream.

[Katie-pie]

I was just thinking about baking a chocolate cake for my mom and her boyfriend when they visit this weekend. Perfect timing!

I'm not big on baking but this sounds so easy. Right? This will be the third cake I've ever made. The first two were so-so. Is this fool proof?

I'd like to add cocoa to make the icing chocolatey...how much do I add?

[philamark]

I'm not sure if it's proper to go on a bit of tangent in this particular folder, but just seeing the words Eating Well makes me nostalgic. I used to subscribe to this magazine and was very sad when it ceased publication! Does anyone else have such memories of this magazine? I really liked the articles and some of the recipes too, but I think Cooking Light's recipes are better (which has to go with that ongoing topic of whether Cooking Light's recipes are truly that light anymore). Anyhow, does anyone know whatever happened to that Patsy Jameson (I think that was her name) who was the main editor to Eating Well?

[MrsReber]

I used to get Eating Well, too, and I have some issues at home. I agree that the majority of CL's recipes are much better, though. I couldn't believe it when Eating Well stopped publishing. CL has gotten much better over the years.

Katie-pie, this cake was very easy. I don't know how much cocoa to add for the frosting, though. I didn't use the frosting in the recipe. I just used a regular vanilla frosting because I was getting extremely tired and it was right there in front of me! As far as the cake being foolproof, it sure was easy and it seems you can use just about any size or shape pan. Just keep an eye on it while it's baking.

[jliah]

I just wanted to mention that I made this to go with our Easter meal and served it with Cool Whip. After having had a big meal, the topping seemed to make the cake a little more refreshing.

I liked the idea I just read here about pouring a little fudge sauce on top. I'll bet that looks elegant. I did buy a bundt pan this time, and I liked the beautiful shape.

Katie-Pie, I would have no idea about how much cocoa to add to the frosting. Sorry.

[chefbec]

This looks like a real keeper. Thanks for the recipe. I must try it! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/wink.gif

[lschroth]

Am I the only one who has had trouble with this recipe? It didn't seem right to me when I was mixing it, because it has SO MUCH liquid, and the batter was very thin. Then I had to bake it for twice as long as called for, and even then the toothpick didn't come out clean. It came out tasting OK, but not great. Could someone who has made this before please check the ingredients amounts for me or comment on my problem? Thanks.

[JJeannette]

Katie-Pie, to add cocoa to the frosting you might try 2 tablespoons to start with---with such a small amount of confectioner's sugar it won't take much cocoa to give a nice dark color and flavor.

Ischroth, I haven't tried this recipe yet, but looking at it, it seems like it would be a thin batter(similar to the original Texas Sheet cake).

[funnybone]

Originally posted by lschroth:
Am I the only one who has had trouble with this recipe? It didn't seem right to me when I was mixing it, because it has SO MUCH liquid, and the batter was very thin. Then I had to bake it for twice as long as called for, and even then the toothpick didn't come out clean. It came out tasting OK, but not great. Could someone who has made this before please check the ingredients amounts for me or comment on my problem? Thanks.

I found the batter to be on the thin and liquid side as well, but it baked really well. You oven may have not been working well - other than that, I don't know why you would have to bake it twice as long. That seems extreme.

[This message has been edited by funnybone (edited 04-18-2001).]

[KimKelly]

Iscroth... I had trouble as well. I baked the cake for longer than called for (and I do have an oven thermometer!) and it puffed up beautifully. After I took it out it fell nearly flat as a pancake. I did add all the ingredients. I think I baked it in a pan that was not as big as it should have been. Might have been my problem. I will try it again though as it has had so many good reviews.

Kim

[jliah]

This recipe does seem really watery when you pour it in the pan, but I had excellent results twice with it. I baked it for 40 minutes. I'm sorry others have had problems.


[This message has been edited by jliah (edited 04-19-2001).]

[Katie-pie]

Thanks for the advice girls! It's so great to get responses--I love it! I'll be baking it tonight...I'll let you know how it goes!

[Chels]

I made this cake last night and it was great. I only used 1 TBS of canola oil and it was as good at the full 1/4 cup.

[S]

Excellent to know, Chels! Thanks.

[JJeannette]

This is now my favorite cake recipe!!! Because I share a lot of recipes with my Weight Watcher group, I made a few changes to lower the calories and it still turned out wonderful and with two thumbs up from my anti-low anything guys! The changes I made were to substitute 1 cup splenda for the white sugar, lower the oil to 2 tablespoons, used 1 cup regular flour and 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour, and 1 tablespoon vinegar and 1 1/4 cup evaporated skim milk (for the buttermilk and, of course, 1/2 cup egg substitute for the 2 whole eggs. That lowered it to 137 calories, 3 grams fat. For point watchers that came out to 2 points per serving.

[AD]

This cake has quite a bit of sugar. Is it very sweet? Has anyone reduced the sugar?

[bossy]

Yes AD I just made this cake today and did reduce the sugar a bit. But I can't tell you exact measurements; just cut down a bit of all the sugars - white, brown and powdered. Probably about 3/4 cup each instead of the 1 cup and it turned out great. It was nice and moist, not too sweet and a big hit!

[Peggy]

I finally got around to making this recipe this weekend. It was fantastic...very moist with an intense chocolate flavor. The only problem was it seemed alittle "fragile" when I took it out of the bundt pan. It had a few cracks which I just filled in with the icing! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

Peggy

[Jen]

I have a question for those who have made this - do you use regular buttermilk, or low-fat? It looks like the recipe calls for regular, but I hate to buy a whole container of it when I know I won't use it again.

[valchemist]

Jen I think I used lowfat. I am quite sure you could use either with great results.

But as a side note, have you ever compared the lowfat buttermilk to the regular? If I am not mistaken, the fat content (and nutritional info overall) is quite similar.

Regular buttermilk is naturally low in fat.

Val

[Jen]

Thanks Val - something else I want to make calls for low-fat buttermilk, so I'll try the low-fat.