Thursday, December 20, 2012

Andes Mint Bundt Cake

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I'm back!  So sorry for the long absence but October and November were completely consumed with my father-in-law becoming very sick then unfortunately losing his life to cancer.  It all happened so fast and was so incredibly stressful.  We are all doing ok now and trying to have a wonderful Christmas.
I have been taking pictures of some yummy food so I'll be catching up on my blogging here in the next couple of months.  We recently had our faculty party at the elementary school where I teach PE. I signed up for a dessert and literally thought of this cake while laying in bed a few nights before the party. I love anything with Andes mints! I put them in my hot chocolate, eat them plain, and have some cookies that I make with them. Chocolate cake is my absolute favorite dessert so I thought adding Andes mint would just make a chocolate cake even better. I was right! There's still time to make this for your holiday dinner or party! 

ANDES MINT BUNDT CAKE

Ingredients:
1 (18.25 ounce) package devil's food
cake mix
1 (5.9 ounce) package instant chocolate
pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
1 C vegetable oil
4 eggs
1/2 cup warm water
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 C Andes mint chips
1 oz unsweetened chocolate
1/2 C heavy whipping cream, chopped
20 (approx) Andes Mints, chopped
Directions:
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, beaten eggs and water. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour batter into a well greased 12 cup bundt pan.
3.Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until top is springy to the touch and a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cake thoroughly in pan at least an hour and a half before inverting onto a plate.

For the ganache:
Place 3/4 C Andes mint chips and unsweetened chocolate into a heat-safe bowl. Heat the 1/2 C heavy whipping cream in a small saucepan until it is just about to boil. Do not let it boil! Pour the hot whipping cream over the chips and chocolate.  Using a whisk, stir the chocolate and cream together until combined.  Let it cool for a few minutes then pour over the cake that has been inverted onto a plate.  Immediately sprinkle the chopped Andes mints on top of the ganache. 

Note:  When I made this, I used Andes chips from a bag to sprinkle on top.  I didn't think it looked very pretty because the chips looked "powdery."  They almost looked like nuts until you looked close.  Next time I will buy regular Andes mints and chop them for the top and I suggest you do the same.  It will look much prettier!