Following its debut at the 1966 Pillsbury Bake-Off®, the Tunnel of Fudge Cake recipe became a hit. Two crucial elements give the “tunnel of fudge center”: a large amount of sugar in the batter that prevents the center from completely baking through and nuts that help the batter set around the gooey middle. In our from-scratch Milk Chocolate Tunnel of Fudge Bundt Cake, we used milk chocolate instead of dark, and we swapped out the walnuts for pecans.
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Milk Chocolate Tunnel of Fudge Bundt Cake
Makes 1 (15-cup) Bundt cake
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups (397 grams) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (110 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar
- 6 large eggs (300 grams)
- 1 teaspoon (4 grams) vanilla extract
- 1¾ cups (210 grams) confectioners’ sugar
- 2¼ cups (281 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (84 grams) sweet ground cocoa*
- 1 teaspoon (3 grams) kosher salt
- 2 cups (226 grams) chopped pecans
- Milk Chocolate Glaze (recipe follows)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar at medium speed until creamy, 3 to 4 minutes, stopping to scrape sides of bowl. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Beat in confectioners’ sugar.
- In a medium bowl, stir together flour, ground chocolate, and salt. Add flour mixture and pecans to butter mixture, and beat at low speed until almost combined. Fold batter by hand just until combined.
- Spray a 15-cup Bundt pan with baking spray with flour. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Tap pan on counter 3 to 4 times, and smooth with an offset spatula.
- Bake until top is set and an instant-read thermometer inserted near center registers at least 160°F (71°C), 50 to 55 minutes. Let cool in pan for 2 hours. Invert cake onto a wire rack, and let cool completely. Pour Milk Chocolate Glaze over cake before serving. Serve slices with additional Milk Chocolate Glaze, if desired.
Notes
*We used Guittard Grand Cacao Drinking Chocolate Sweet Ground Cocoa, a mix of Dutch process cocoa powder and ground chocolate.
Milk Chocolate Glaze
Makes about 1⅔ cup
Ingredients
- 8 ounces (225 grams) milk chocolate, finely chopped
- ⅔ cup (160 grams) heavy whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon (21 grams) light corn syrup
- 3 tablespoons (42 grams) unsalted butter, cubed and softened
Instructions
- In a medium heatproof bowl, place chocolate.
- In a medium saucepan, heat cream and corn syrup just until bubbles form around edges of pan. (Do not boil.) Pour cream mixture over chocolate, and let stand until chocolate is melted, 2 to 3 minutes. Starting in center of bowl, slowly stir mixture with a rubber spatula until well combined. Add butter, 1 tablespoon (14 grams) at a time, stirring until combined after each addition. Let cool for 10 minutes before using.
Notes
The glaze can be made ahead of time and refrigerated. Reheat over a double boiler until fluid before using.
