Today is a very special day! It is Jason's 32nd birthday! For his birthday Cassie knew that she needed to make him a special treat. She looked around and found some stuff that looked pretty good, but when she finally found this recipe for a root beer bundt cake she knew she has found her cake. Jason is a big fan of root beer so she knew he would totally love this cake. We made it to bring to a family birthday celebration because Cassie's family has 4 birthdays all in the same week. The cake was a huge hit with Jason and with the rest of the family...Well everyone except Cassie's mom who is weird and doesn't like root beer. If you like root beer then we definitely recommend this recipe.
One thing we do recommend when making this cake is to purchase a good quality all natural root beer. Don't go for one that is full of just chemicals, coloring and high fructose corn syrup. Get the stuff made with actual sugar and real ingredients that you can recognize to flavor it. It really does make a world of difference. We used Hansen's brand Natural Soda, but Blue Sky also makes a really good all natural root beer.
Root Beer Bundt Cake
Adapted from Pink Parsley
2 cups root beer
1 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 c. unsalted butter, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 1/4 c. evaporated cane juice
3/4 c. sucanat
2 c. whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/4 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
2 large eggs
for the frosting:
2 oz. dark chocolate, chopped
1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
1 t. salt
1/3 c. root beer, plus more as needed
2/3 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/2 c. organic powdered sugar
1) In a small sauce pan combine the root beer, cocoa powder and butter. Heat over medium heat until the butter is melted. Stir in the evaporated cane juice and the sucanat and mix until dissolved. Remove from heat, pour the mix into a mixing bowl and let them cool for about 10-15 minutes. While this is cooling preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2) In a medium bowl whisk together the whole wheat pastry flour, baking soda and salt.
3) Whisk the eggs until just beaten and then add them in to the cooled root beer mixture. Mix until well combined. Gently fold in the flour mix. It is ok if it is still somewhat lumpy. You don't want to over mix.
4) Pour the batter into a 10 inch bundt cake pan that has been liberally sprayed with non-stick spray and then dusted with cocoa powder. Bake the cake for about 35-45 minutes until a small knife inserted into it comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack and let the cake cool completely. Invert the cake to remove it from the pan.
5) To make the frosting place the dark chocolate in a double boiler over medium low heat. Stir until the chocolate is melted. Let the chocolate cool slightly before using it in the frosting. In a mixing bowl cream together the butter, salt, organic powdered sugar, and cocoa powder. Slowly add in the root beer and the melted chocolate to the mix. Beat until the mixture comes together adding more root beer if necessary. The finished frosting should thick enough to spread and shiny.
6) Spread a thick layer of frosting over the crown of the cake and let it set before serving.
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