Holiday Dessert – Chocolate Avalanche Cake (Vote for Me Here)

Chocolate Avalanche Cake

As I mentioned in a previous post (September 18th) this is a cake recipe I created after years of testing. It’s a dead ringer to one we use to have and love at a restaurant called The Bubble Room, on Captiva Island, Florida.

I call this perfect celebration cake my Chocolate Avalanche Cake. Whether you’re celebrating the holidays, a birthday or special occasion it’s a showstopper and delicious! Most of the cakes I make are totally from scratch. However, this one uses a cake box mix, with the addition of numerous luscious ingredients and steps that make this cake, sensational and over the top outrageous!

Bon Appetit Magazine contacted me as a food blogger and asked me if I would like to share a holiday dessert recipe with their readers and my bloggers for a chance to win the Bon Appetit Holiday Dessert Bake-Off. So please cast your vote for me today and this recipe by going to: Bon Appetit. Voting starts today, November 1st and ends December 13th, 2009 and I’d love to win. So please pass this on to your friends as well. Make sure when you get to the voting page that once you’ve voted you continue to click to the last page and then hit submit so your vote counts!

The prize is a trip for two to NY and dinner at Le Bernardin restaurant with Editor-in-Chief Barbara Fairchild and Restaurant Editor Andrew Knowlton.

I would appreciate your vote!

As for the recipe, please read it thoroughly before starting and make sure you have all the ingredients on hand. Of course, if you have any questions you are always welcome to email me. This recipe has several steps but it’s really quite simple to prepare. Just take your time and it will get rave reviews!

Bon Appetit!

Chocolate Avalanche Cake
Serves 6-8

Cake ingredients:

1 cup sour cream
4 eggs
½ cup canola oil
½ cup water

Mix well.

Add: 1 box Devils Food Chocolate Cake mix (no pudding added)

Add: 3.4oz. Package of Vanilla Instant Pudding mix
12 oz. package semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted

Mix all together and pour in Bundt pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray

Bake in the Bundt pan for 1 hour at 350 degrees

Let cool completely inverted on a rack – then refrigerate overnight.
With a serrated knife divide the cake in thirds by slicing horizontally through 2 layers. Set aside for filling.

Cream Filling:

4 cups heavy cream
½ cup confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla

In a bowl, combine the cream, confectioners’ sugar, and vanilla and whip until stiff peaks form.

16 oz. container of fresh strawberries, hulled and cut in half, reserving about 6-8 for the top of the cake.

Spread half of the cream filling over the bottom of the first layer then top with strawberry halves, cut side down.

Place the next layer of cake on top of strawberries and cover all but ¼ cup with the cream filling adding remaining strawberries cut side down.

Cover with the top layer of the cake…..

Fudge Icing:
Photo above uses this recipe. However, if you want to totally cover the cake with icing I suggest doubling this.

1 stick butter
4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
6 tablespoons milk

Combine these 3 ingredients in a sauce pan and bring to a boil for 2 minutes.

Remove from heat and add:

1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pound box powdered sugar

Blend together. If you have clumps of powdered sugar left in the icing pour fudge mixture into a mesh strainer and press through allowing fudge to fall into a bowl which should be free of clumps.

Pour over cake.

Fill the hole in the center of the Bundt cake with remaining whipped cream and reserved strawberries. For a more decorative look use a small star tip on a pastry bag and pipe the cream attractively then adding the reserved strawberries.

This cake can be refrigerated until ready to serve.

Now that you’re cake is completed, you’ll have a showstopping dessert to serve for the holidays, a birthday or special celebration, that everyone will love and you’ll be proud of!

Enjoy!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

12 comments

  1. I went to vote for you, but it says they are not accepting votes yet. I will try later.

    Loretta

  2. Yes I know Loretta. They were suppose to have it up today but it appears they’re running a little behind schedule. Hopefully it will be up later this evening or by morning. Thanks for the attempt to vote for me. I appreciate it.

  3. I got to vote on your yummy looking cake, Vicki. I can’t wait for an occasion to try it. My family will love this. Good luck in the contest.

  4. Thanks Loretta. I hope you enjoy the recipe. It’s delicious and easy to make!

  5. This cake is awesome! Its delicious…the combination of chocolate, strawberries and whipped cream tastes fantastic. I highly suggest trying it.

  6. I’ve been lucky enough to do a taste test on Vicki’s Chocolate Avalanche Cake. YUM! Tastes similar to a very moist Black Forest Cake. Not too rich either and wonderful textures. Fun, festive and delicious! I highly recommend trying it.

  7. Hi Vicki, I happen to read about you on Twitter and came to your blog. Your Chocolate Avalanche Cake looks amazing and the recipe definitely sounds like something I could create at home. I can’t wait to try it, I know my family and friends will just love it. Good luck with the Bon Appetit contest I hope you win. I just voted for you.

  8. Oh my god this looks incredible! I have a dinner party to go to this weekend and I’m elected to bring the dessert. I’m not waiting for the holidays, I’m making it for this weekend. Plus chocolate is my FAVORITE thing of all!

  9. Sorry, Vicki, catching up on my blogs! But this one was worth catching up on 🙂 Looks like it has all our favorite things in it; will have to try soon!

    Good luck with contest!

  10. Thanks Carolyn, Justin and Maria. I hope if you all try this dessert you’ll love it as much as my entire family does. Justin we are all chocolate lovers here as well. In fact not a day goes by when I don’t have some. I’m pretty sure I can say the same about my daughter, mother and sisters, however, not so sure about my hubby eating it daily and my son well, he loves it but tries to avoid it.

    Justin I hope your friends enjoy the Chocolate Avalanche cake this weekend.

    Please share your thoughts on it after trying it. Thanks again for all the comments!

  11. I made your Chocolate Avalance Cake this weekend.

    The first review came from my daughter in New York. I had sent her a picture (not blog-worthy as it turned out) and her reply was “WOW! What lucky guests.” Said guests were amazed and totally awed, what else can I say? I casually mentioned that perhaps I could have cut down on the whipping cream and frosting and one of the guests said, “Oh, not the frosting”. It was thoroughly enjoyed by all, including me and hubby, who helped lick the bowls and beaters.

  12. Hi Connie,

    I’m so glad that the cake turned out wonderful. I’m not sure if you doubled the recipe for the frosting or not. The photo above has just one batch of frosting, hence, that’s why I call it Chocolate Avalanche Cake. However, my family said they would have loved it to be covered with icing, since it tastes so good. That’s why I posted you could double it to cover totally. The frosting is to die for isn’t it?

    As for the filling I found that 1/2 the recipe wasn’t enough, making the layers look too thin. Doubling it which I did, made for a better presentation in my opinion. However, you could make the recipe and just use the amount that suits you.

    Thanks for your post and I’m thrilled it was a huge success!

    Have a Happy Holiday!

Leave a Comment »