Anyone who grew up in the sixties should remember this cake fondly. The Tunnel of Fudge Cake was a Pillsbury bake-off winner which used two Pillsbury products, a cake mix and a frosting mix--the latter of which is no longer available. This cake launched the Bundt pan craze--hardly anyone had this pan and everyone had to have one after the recipe was released. Ironically this recipe was just a runner up that year, a bread called Golden Gate Snack Bread won first place! It's made with a jar of "cheese" and an envelope of soup mix. Ah, you gotta love the sixties! 1966 to be exact--oh and the woman who submitted the recipe was from Texas, of course!I was pretty excited to see a from scratch version which uses hazelnuts instead of pecans in Food and Wine magazine. It lived up to all of my childhood memories of this wonderful chocolaty, rich cake. EnjoyTunnel of Fudge Cake with HazelnutsAdapted from Food and Wine
3/4cupunsweetened, high quality Dutch process cocoa powderplus some for dusting pan
2 cupshazelnutsskinned
2cupsall purpose flour
1teaspoonsalt
2 cupspowdered sugar
2 1/2cupsbuttercut into 1/2" dice, softened
1cupsugar
3/4cupbrown sugar
3eggs
3egg yolks
1/4cupvegetable oil
1tablespoonvanilla extract
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350º. Generously grease a 10" Bundt pan and dust with cocoa powder. Spread the hazelnuts on a sheet pan and toast for 10 minutes. Let cool and then process until finely chopped and slightly powdery. Transfer ground hazelnuts to a medium bowl and whisk in the flour and salt. Sift the 2 cups of powdered sugar into another medium bowl with the 3/4 cup cocoa. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the butter, sugar and brown sugar at medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl, reduce speed to low and beat in the eggs and egg yolks one at a time until just incorporated. Add the vegetable oil and the vanilla and stir to blend. Add the cocoa mixture and beat until incorporated. Using a spatula, gently fold in the hazelnut mixture until no streaks remain. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top. Bake for 40-45 minutes, until it starts pulling away from the side of the pan and the top just springs back when touched. The center should still be soft. Let the cake cool on a rack for at least 2 hours; it may crack slightly. Invert cake onto a serving plate and dust with powdered sugar. Serve at room temperature.
Notes
Really, really leave it alone to rest, it will crack. Mine cracked a lot!
Keyword cake, bundt cake, chocolate, tunnel of fugde
