Kahlua Chocolate Cake
If you like the combination of chocolate, coffee, and liquor, these glazed chocolate cakes belong to your recipe file. Whether you make mini cakes, one large bundt cake, cupcakes, or loaf, they're easy to make (one bowl) and incredibly moist.
Servings 12 mini cakes
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons shortening soft, to grease the pans
- 4 tablespoons flour to dust the mini pans
For the cake:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¾ cups sugar
- 2 eggs at room temperature
- 1 cup milk
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup drip coffee or espresso coffee (very hot)
- ½ cup coffee liqueur such as Kahlua
For the glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons Kahlua or other coffee liqueur
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC).
- Grease 12 mini bundt pans with 3 tablespoons shortening, covering every angle, nook and cranny. Dust with 4 tablespoons flour, shaking off excess. Reserve.
- Sift together 2 cups all-purpose flour, ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder, 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda and ¾ teaspoon salt. Stir in 1 ¾ cups sugar. Reserve.
- In a large bowl, beat 2 eggs, 1 cup milk, ½ cup vegetable oil and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract for 1 minute.
- Add dry ingredients to the wet, ½ cup at a time, while beating on low speed. Do this slowly so the batter doesn't develop clumps.
- Heat ½ cup drip coffee until almost boiling.
- Mix with ½ cup coffee liqueur (Kahlua) and add slowly to the chocolate batter. The mixture will be thin.
- Fill molds up to ¾ of their capacity. I put the batter in a large jar so it's easier to pour.
- Bake until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 25 minutes for mini bundts.
- Cool on a wire rack for about 15 minutes.
- Invert the pan and release the cakes. You might want to use a smooth-bladed knife first to make sure no bits of cake are stuck to the sides and the center tuve. If cake resists, cool in the pan for 15 minutes before inverting.
For the glaze:
- In a small bowl, mix 1 cup powdered sugar with 2 tablespoons Kahlua or more depending on how runny you want your glaze. It should be smooth and creamy.
- Pour glaze on top of the cakes and let it drip to the sides. Let dry before cutting.
Notes
Baking time: keep in mind that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look the same or very similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as it can be, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend you keep track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
Different pans: I love mini bundt pans, but you can use a regular large bundt pan (10 to 12-cup capacity baked for about 45-50 minutes) or 2 medium loaf pans. I never tried this recipe as a layer cake, and I think it would be a bit too tender to fill. But it would work baked as a sheet cake.
Glaze: use the liquor as stated in the recipe, prepared strong coffee, or a tablespoon of each. They all work great.
Storing: this is a very moist cake recipe and it keeps very well at room temperature, well covered in plastic wrap. The flavor is fudgier the next day. You can freeze it for a month, wrapped first in plastic and then aluminum foil.
Alternative liquors: Coffee liquor best complements this chocolate cake, but it also works well with orange liquor (Cointreau, Grand Marnier), almond liquor (such as Amaretto), and probably others I have never tried. I use Kahlua because it's my favorite, but there are other coffee liquors you can use.
Alternative glaze: use the chocolate ganache recipe from the best chocolate bundt cake, adding a tablespoon of Kahlua for an extra dose of chocolate.