SERVES15 to 20

INGREDIENTS

For the cake:

• Cooking spray
• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (see Recipe Note)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda 
• 3/4 teaspoon fine salt 
• 1 cup well-shaken buttermilk, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup hot brewed coffee or hot water
• 1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the filling:

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/8 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, at cool room temperature

For the icing:

• 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, divided
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup well-shaken buttermilk
• 1/3 cup dark corn syrup
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Make the cake: Position a rack to the center of the oven and heat it to 350°F. Spray a 9 x 13-inch light-colored metal baking pan with cooking spray. 
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. 
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, coffee or water, oil, eggs, and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients in the dry. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool completely. Meanwhile, prepare the filling.
4. Make the filling: In a 2- to 2 1/2- quart saucepan, whisk together the granulated sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; boil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla. Transfer to the clean bowl of an electric mixer and let cool completely. Beating with the paddle attachment on medium speed, beat in 1 tablespoon of butter at a time. Increasing the speed to medium-high, beat until light and fluffy and resembling whipped cream, about 5 minutes. 
5. When the cake has cooled completely, load the filling into a pastry bag fitted with a 1-inch large round tip. Pipe nine 9-inch lines crosswise over the cake, 1 inch apart. Freeze until the filling is solid, at least 30 minutes. 
6. Make the icing: When the filling is solid, keep the cake in the freezer while you prepare the icing: In a 2- to 2 1/2- quart saucepan, combine 1/2 cup of the butter and the sugar, buttermilk, corn syrup, cocoa powder, and salt. Place the pan over medium-high heat and bring the mixture to a boil. Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the pan and cook until the mixture reaches 235°F— no higher. Whisk in the remaining butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. Stir in the powdered sugar and vanilla, whisking until the icing is smooth. 
7. Remove the cake from the freezer. Immediately pour the icing in waterfall-like ribbons over the surface of the cake. If needed, gently rewarm any icing clinging to the pan, and pour it again. Freeze the cake until the icing is set, about 15 minutes, or refrigerate until ready to serve. Store any leftovers tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to a week. 

RECIPE NOTES

Cocoa powder: My first choice here is a half-and- half mix of regular Dutch-processed and black cocoa powders, for dynamite color and flavor. But if all you have is natural cocoa, that will work, too. 

Reprinted with permission from Midwest Made by Shauna Sever, Running Press, 2019.

History

A Beloved Midwestern Treat, Born from a Happy Accident

German confectioner Fred Sanders Schmidt first opened up his confectionery in Chicago, but that venture was short-lived, as it was a casualty of the Great Fire in 1871. Sanders and his wife, Rosa, quickly moved further east and landed in Detroit, where he reopened for business in the city in 1875. Sanders Confectionery has been a Detroit institution ever since.

For its first few decades in business, Sanders Confectionery was simply a good old-fashioned chocolate and candy shop, with most of the products handcrafted by Fred and Rosa. In 1912, Fred decided to begin selling baked goods to honor the passing of his father, who had been a prominent baker and business owner in Illinois. One of those items was a rich chocolate cake, first frosted with vanilla buttercream and finished with a glossy fudge icing, a nod to Fred’s candy-making skills. During one recipe test, Fred began to run out of vanilla buttercream, and instead of frosting the cake in a thick layer as planned, he playfully piped the white frosting in several rails across the top of the cake, which created a bumpy surface under the fudge icing and made for an attractive cross-section. 

Like many happy culinary accidents, the newly fashioned cake with its unique look took off with customers. Initially called “Devil’s Food Buttercream Cake,” so many people simply asked for “the cake with the bumps” that Sanders changed the name to “Chocolate Bumpy Cake.” These days, you can buy the cake from Sanders’ brick-and-mortar stores in Michigan, some select grocery stores in the Midwest, and online, but it’s even better when you set aside the time to make it yourself. 

Oven: 350 degrees Bake: 45 min

Indgredients:

1 (15.25 oz.) box chocolate fudge cake mix
1 (3.9 oz.) box instant chocolate fudge pudding mix
3/4 c. water
3/4 c. vegetable or canola oil
4 large eggs
1 c. sour cream (or Greek yogurt)
1 tsp. vanilla

Marshmallow Creme Filling:
10 Tbl. unsalted butter, room temperature
1 (7 oz.) carton marshmallow creme
pinch of salt
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 c. powdered sugar

Chocolate Ganache:
1/2 c. chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate)
3 Tbl. whipping cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  

For the Cake: Grease and flour a 12-cup bundt pan; set aside.  In a large bowl, combine the dry cake mix, dry pudding mix, water, oil, eggs, sour cream and vanilla.  Using a hand mixer, mix until all ingredients are completely incorporated and mixture is smooth.  Pour batter into the prepared bundt pan and spread out evenly.  It is a very thick batter.  Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Remove from oven and cool in pan for 10 minutes, then invert to a wire rack and cool completely.  Once cake is cool, slice in half horizontally.

For the Marshmallow Creme Filling:  In a large bowl, using a hand mixer, mix butter until smooth.  Add the marshmallow creme, salt and vanilla and mix until well combined.  Add one cup of powdered sugar and mix until combined.  Add remaining one cup of powdered sugar and mix until smooth and creamy.  Spread filling over the bottom half of the cake and place top half of cake over the creme filling.

For the Chocolate Ganache:  Place chocolate chips in a small bowl; set aside.  Microwave whipping cream in a small, microwave-safe, dish until it starts to bubble.  Pour hot cream over chocolate chips and allow to sit for 5 minutes.  Stir together until smooth and creamy.  If chocolate chips aren’t completely melted.  Place in the microwave and heat, stirring every 10 seconds until mixture is smooth and chocolate is melted.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes or until slightly thickened and pour over cake.  Store cake in the refrigerator.  Bring to room temperature before serving.    

Ingredients

• For the Cake:
• 3 cups cake flour
• 3/4 cup uncooked oatmeal
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 TBSP molasses
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 cup plus 2 TBSP full fat buttermilk
• For the Filling: (not a huge fan, next time try SMBC)
• 1 cup shortening
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 (7oz) jar marshmallow fluff
• 1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla extract
• For the Crumbles: (huge amount of crumbles!)
• 1 (17.5 oz) Oatmeal Cookie Mix (I used Betty Crocker)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

Instructions

1. For the Cake:
2. Preheat oven to 350°F.
3. Grease and flour three 6 inch pans and set aside.
4. Sift together the flour, oatmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt set aside.
5. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth.
6. At the sugars and mix on medium high until the butter is light and fluffy, about three minutes.
7. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl.
8. The mixer to medium low and add the molasses, vanilla, and the eggs and egg yolks, one at a time until combined.
9. Stop mixer and scrape down the bowl.
10. Turn the mixer to low and add the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.
11. Mix on medium for no more than 30 seconds after the last streaks of dry ingredients are combined.
12. Evenly divided the batter between the prepared pan.
13. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean.
14. Let them cool on wire rack for 10 to 15 minutes before removing the cakes from their pans.
15. Keep the oven at 350F for the crumbles.
16. For the Crumbles:
17. Mix together the cookie mix and melted butter. 
18. Mix with your hands until crumbles form.
19. Spread out the mixture onto a baking pan lined with parchment paper.
20. Bake for 10 minutes. 
21. Then flip the crumbles with a spatula and bake another 5-10 minutes depending how crunchy you want your crumbles to be.
22. For the Filling: 
23. Cream the shortening, powdered sugar, and vanilla together until smooth.
24. Add the marshmallow fluff and mix until fully combined. 
25. Putting the cake together:
26. Place a cake layer on a cake pan. 
27. Take 1/3 of the filling and spread it on top of the layer.
28. Add 1/2 cup of crumbles.
29. Repeat until all the filling and cake layers are gone. 

Swiss Meringue Buttercream Recipe

 Prep Time 25 minutes  Cook Time 5 minutes  Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 5 large (150 grams) egg whites
• 1 1/4 cups (250 grams) granulated sugar
• 3 sticks (340 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt

Directions

1. Wipe the bowl of an electric mixer with paper towel and lemon juice or vinegar to remove any trace of grease. Make a double boiler by placing the mixer bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, making sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water.
2. Add the egg whites and sugar to the bowl, whisking constantly but gently, until temperature reaches 140°F, or until the sugar has completely dissolved and the egg whites are hot.
3. Attach the bowl to the mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and begin to whip until the meringue is thick, glossy, and the bottom of the bowl no longer feels warm, about 7 to 10 minutes.
4. Switch over to paddle attachment and, with mixer on low speed, add the butter cubes, one at a time, until incorporated. Continue beating until it has reached a silky smooth texture. If the buttercream curdles simply keep mixing and it will come back to smooth. If the buttercream is too thin and runny, refrigerate for about 15 minutes before continuing mixing with paddle attachment until it comes together. Add the vanilla and salt, continuing to beat on low speed until well combined.
5. Add additional flavors, purees, or mix-ins as desired.

To make ahead:

1. Keep in airtight container in refrigerator for up to one week or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Let come to room temperature and rewhip in the mixer with the paddle attachment before using.

Recipe Notes

This makes enough frosting to generously frost a 9-inch two layer cake or about 2 dozen cupcakes. This recipe can easily be doubled.