Deep chocolate bundt cake

I’m really not much of a chocolate person, but for some reason, every dessert I’ve wanted to make lately involves chocolate. I’m itching to make my white chip brownies again. I couldn’t resist adding those chocolate chips to my peanut butter banana bread. Speaking of bananas, I’ve been eating mine lately smeared with chocolate PB Loco. On top of all that, three of the four baked goods on my to-make list are chocolatey. It’s a little out of line with my usual tastes, but you know, I’m not going to fight it. Last week I accepted this chocolate phase with open arms and plunged right into it with an all-chocolate dessert. I made the low-fat bundt cake from Veganomicon, which is right up my nutritional alley.

1 3/4 cups brewed coffee
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup applesauce
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
Powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease and flour (or sugar) a bundt pan. If you haven’t brewed your coffee, do so now. Check out my Senseo—I love it. I haven’t made drip coffee at home since I got it years ago. It’s quick and convenient, and it makes great coffee.



If your coffee is hot and fresh, like mine, mix in the cocoa powder until it’s dissolved. If your coffee has cooled, bring it to a simmer over medium heat, then turn down the heat and whisk in the cocoa. Set it aside to cool.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, applesauce, and cornstarch until the sugar and cornstarch have dissolved, about 2 minutes. Mix in the extracts...



...and the cooled coffee/chocolate mixture.



Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. I really need a sifter; 2 cups of flour took a looong time to sift in my little sieve. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and beat until smooth. I highly recommend using a handheld electric mixer for all this mixing—my arm was pretty tired by the end.



Pour the (delicious!) batter into the greased bundt pan.



Bake for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for about 20 minutes.



Invert onto a serving plate to cool completely. Once cooled, lightly sift some powdered sugar over it, cut, and serve.



This cake absolutely lives up to the hype. Calling it “deep” chocolate is no misnomer. The coffee intensifies the flavor of the cocoa powder, and the applesauce/oil ratio creates a perfectly moist crumb. It’s dense and rich, while remaining light and springy. One person who tried it likened its taste and texture to a Hostess cupcake! This would be the perfect dessert to bake for your Valentine. However you slice it (literally), this cake is mouthful after mouthful of excellence.



Yield: 16 slices. Per slice: 186 calories, 5.3g fat (.6g sat), 34.7g carbs, 2.9g fiber, 2.2g protein.

If you like this, you might also like...
Peanut butter bliss cake
White chip brownies