BE MADE: The Outside-In Bundt Cake

That looks like a plain-jane bundt cake, doesn't it? Well, I promise, it's not.

This was a recipe of my mom's. Once she discovered it, she made it a lot, and it was really, really good. But it was a recipe I never got from her, and after I lost her, I thought it was just one of the many things I lost with her. But thank goodness my mom was a pack rat {a trait I most definitely inherited from her}! In going through some random papers, I found that recipe she had quickly scribbled down.

To me, this is the perfect cake for travel. I always hate taking iced baked goods anywhere because my perfectly applied frosting never arrives perfectly intact. With this cake, no need to worry about the frosting getting all over your plastic wrap or cake carrier. Why's that, you say? Because the frosting is on the inside. And I don't mean as a filling between cake layers.

It is BAKED on the INSIDE!

The ingredients are nothing special, and the directions aren't complicated at all, so I bet just about anyone can give it a shot.

First, grab a cake mix in a box. Now, I am a "from scratch" kinda girl. You just can't beat the taste. But I have nothing against box mixes. Sometimes, I just don't feel like pulling out my entire pantry and measuring ingredients out, etc. You might could say this is a lazy day recipe for just one of those times! :)

Flavor doesn't matter in this particular recipe. I chose to go the German Chocolate Cake route, but I remember her using spice cake mix, and just plain chocolate with chocolate frosting. I was thinking a white cake with confetti frosting would be fun too!

Anyhoo, put your cake mix into your bowl.

Add in 4 eggs...

1 cup of milk...

and 3/4 cup of vegetable oil.

Mix all of those ingredients together well.

Then you add in a whole can of store-bought frosting. Again, I chose German Chocolate, so I have pecan coconut frosting, which will also add texture to my cake, but like I said, any flavor of frosting you would like to use is fine. My suggestion would be to imagine the cake you like with the frosting you like on it, and go with that.

Now, my mom's scribbled recipe had no directions, just ingredients, so I had thought to just fold in the frosting. It might work with plain frostings, but my folding wasn't getting anywhere, so I used my mixer JUST ENOUGH to mix it thoroughly. I didn't want to over-mix my batter.

Once I had it all mixed together, I sprayed my bundt pan with the spray incorporated with flour. I have never used it before but my mom did all the time, so I figured I'd give it a try.

With the batter in place in the pan, its time to bake. And if the batter is any indication, I can verify the cake will be good! ;) I am an excellent beater-licker.

Bake it in a 350 degree pre-heated oven for about an hour. I remember my mom saying she had to watch it because sometimes it would overflow {since you are adding in extra volume with the frosting}. Because of that, I placed a foil-lined cookie sheet under my pan, just in case. I also remember her saying that the time kinda varied based on the cake. When it got close to an hour, she would watch it and test it with a toothpick.

An hour was almost a bit too long for my cake. I probably could have taken it out after 50 minutes because after an hour it was beginning to darken--like, burn. Also, mine did not overflow, but I'm still glad I took the precaution :).

After it baked, I let it cool, then removed it from the pan. It came out of the pan very nicely, so I'm thinking the flour-spray worked. I sprinkled just a bit of powdered sugar for a bit of pretty, and this beauty is ready to devour!

This one is actually on it's way to my in-law's for my father-in-law's birthday. His favorite cake is German Chocolate, so we'll see how he likes this outside-in version.

Outside-In Bundt Cake

1 box cake mix, any flavor

4 eggs

1 cup milk

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 can frosting, any flavor

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix together cake mix, eggs, milk and oil, just until smooth.

Add in can of frosting and mix just until incorporated fully.

Pour into lightly greased bundt pan and bake for approximately 1 hour. Be sure to keep a watch on the cake for possibly over-flowing. Check cake's doneness between 45 minutes and 1 hour of baking.

Let cake cool and remove from bundt pan.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired.

Enjoy!

Let me know if you try this and what flavors you use. I'd love to see {and try} the varieties! (:

P.S. After a second and third helping, I'd say my father-in-law approved!

ta ta for now!