I brought this cake to a family dinner on Sunday. Mom made a Hershey Bar Marshmallow Pie (I’ll have to get the recipe and post it. Yum!). Why choose one when you can have both? All of us had a slice of each…the best way to top off a heavy dinner, right?

Thanks Jen for hosting this week. You picked a good one. Check out the other participants over at Project Pastry Queen.

INGREDIENTS

Cake
1 cup unsalted butter
½ cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
¾ cup water
2 C sugar
2 eggs
1 C buttermilk (or put 1 tsp lemon juice in 1 cup container then fill remainder with milk)
2 Tbls vanilla extract
2 C all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp sea salt

Glaze
1 C pecans (optional)
½ C unsalted butter
¼ C whole milk
½ C high-quality cocoa powder
2  C sifted powdered sugar
1 Tbls vanilla extract
¼ tsp sea salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9″ tube pan or 10-12 C Bundt pan with non-stick spray or use Baker’s Joy. For cupcakes, line standard-size muffin pans with muffin wrappers and spray with non-stick spray.
2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the cocoa and whisk until smooth.  Add the water and whisk until smooth. Be careful not to boil the mixture. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
3. Add the sugar, eggs, buttermilk and vanilla to the warm cocoa mixture. Whisk until smooth.
4. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Whisk until dry ingredients are completely incorporated.
5. Pour the batter into the pan. If using muffin pans, fill each cup 2/3 full.
6. Bake for 40-45 min; the cake is done when it has pulled away slightly form the sides of the pan and feels firm to the touch. For cupcakes, check for doneness after about 20 min.
7. Let the cake cool in the pan for about 20 min. cupcakes need only a total of 10 min cooling time.
8. Meanwhile, make the glaze. Arrange the pecans on a baking sheet in a single layer and toast them in the 350 degree oven for 7-9 minutes, until golden brown and aromatic. Chop the pecans.
9. Melt the butter over low heat in a medium saucepan. Add the milk, cocoas, and powdered sugar and whisk until glossy. Remove the saucepan from the heat and whisk in the vanilla, salt, and pecans.
10. Loosen the cake with a knife or spatula and overturn it onto a seving plate. Spoon the glaze over the cooled cake, covering it thoroughly. For cupcakes, remove them from the pan, and peel off the paper liners. Invert each cupcake onto a small serving plate and cover with glaze.

NOTES

Adapted (very slightly) from Rebecca Rather’s The Pastry Queen’s Mexican Chocolate-Fudge Cake.

Cake will keep up to 3 days, covered, at room temperature. Unglazed and well wrapped, it will keep frozen up to 3 weeks. When frozen, bring the cake to room temperature and glaze just before serving.