A Cake For the Weekend: This One Is Not For the Kids (or young at heart)

I’m in love with this cake. Can you tell? I think I already had 3 pieces today. And it’s only 8:26 pm… The night is young.
Pphhh, forget about new-year’s-dieting- resolution.

The first time I saw the recipe for this cake was a few weeks ago on Orangette blog, and then a few days ago I found it on Over the hill and on a roll blog. Every now and then there’s this thing with food bloggers when somehow many of us are making the exact same recipe, like back when many bloggers baked the NY times chocolate chip cookies. It’s like a plague. What I like about it though is to see the different approach each blogger brings to the recipe – the story, the adaptations, the photos. This is the awesomest part about blogging. I think.

Anyway, this cake is a good one. Trust me. You know I bake a cake every weekend, so I’m getting bored with the usual stuff because I probably have baked it before, and am always looking for something special, or different, unfamiliar, or terribly creative, but not too rich, and I like to keep it casual and simple, and, of course, easy and quick to make, so I can recommend it to you. Right?! Right?!
And you may ask yourself – is she drunk or what?
Well, eye jast mite bea. This ees mye thirddd peace after oll.
‘cos this cake is soaked with cognac!

So don’t share it with your kids. Enjoy it by yourself or with another grown up.

Whiskey-Soaked Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake

Yield: 10 to 12 servings.
Originally By Melissa Clark from The New York Times
My adaptation in (bold)

2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
5 oz. unsweetened chocolate
¼ cup instant espresso powder
1 cup bourbon, rye, or other whiskey, plus more for sprinkling (I used cognac)
½ tsp. kosher salt
2 cups granulated sugar
2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pan*
3 large eggs
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. baking soda
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan
Confectioners’ sugar, for garnish (optional)

1. Grease and flour a 10-cup-capacity Bundt pan (or two 8- or 9-inch loaf pans). Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In microwave oven or double boiler over simmering water, melt chocolate. Let cool.

2. Put espresso and cocoa powders in a 2-cup (or larger) glass measuring cup. Add enough boiling water to come up to the 1 cup measuring line. Mix until powders dissolve. Add whiskey and salt; let cool.

3. Using an electric mixer, beat 1 cup butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract, baking soda and melted chocolate, scraping down sides of bowl with a rubber spatula.

4. On low speed, beat in a third of the whiskey mixture. When liquid is absorbed, beat in 1 cup flour. Repeat additions, ending with whiskey mixture. Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth top. Bake until a cake tester/toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes for Bundt pan (loaf pans will take less time, start checking them after 55 minutes).

5. Transfer cake to a rack. Unmold after 15 minutes and sprinkle warm cake with more whiskey (I skipped this part). Let cool before serving, garnished with confectioners’ sugar if you like.

My Tip: to soften butter quickly, place in microwave on a plate for 1 minute on a 10% power level per stick of butter.

More cakes:

Cranberry Upside-Down Cake
Babbo Modenese Crumbly Cake
Apple, Cinnamon and Walnuts Cake

Update:

1) My friend reported she feels a little drunk after 1 piece. So be careful, don't EAT and DRIVE.

2) I made cinnamon ice cream to serve with this cake. Oh, it was so wonderful. Recipe will be posted soon.