Here’s another suggestion and recipe for a tea break treat. Chocolate Pound Cake is really good without any icing or glaze at all. Just sprinkle some powdered sugar over it for a lighter taste.
Chocolate Pound Cake
3 cups flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 ½ cups milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ½ cups butter, softened
2 ¾ cups sugar
5 large eggs
2 squares (2 ounces) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, grated
Preheat oven to 350ยบ. Grease and flour, or spray with Pam for Baking, a 12-cup Bundt pan. In a bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa and baking powder. In another small bowl, mix milk and vanilla.
In a mixer at medium speed, beat butter until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until well blended. Increase speed to medium-high; beat until creamy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low; add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. With mixer at low speed, alternately add flour mixture and milk mixture, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat until blended. Stir in the grated chocolate.
Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Cook cake in pan on wire rack 10 minutes. Invert cake onto wire rack to cool completely.
Drizzle glaze, below, over cake and serve in wedges.
Chocolate Glaze
3 (3 ounce bars) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
1 cup heavy cream
Break chocolate into pieces and process in a food processor until very fine. Remove the chocolate to a small, heavy saucepan.
Heat the cream to the boiling point and pour three quarters of it over the chocolate. Cover for 5 minutes to allow chocolate to melt. Gently stir together until smooth, trying not to create air bubbles. Allow to cool until just tepid. If the glaze is too thick, add some of the warm remaining cream by the teaspoon. If the glaze is too thin, stir in a small amount of the melted chocolate. When the consistency is correct, use at once.
To go with the Chocolate Pound Cake, have a handful of walnuts. Chocolate and walnuts have a natural affinity. And walnuts are so good for you.
