Yes, this cake is typically made in a jelly roll pan, but I've adapted this beloved cake for our square pan with the same dense, sweet chocolatey flavor and fudgy icing studded with pecans.
2 cups water
1 pound (4 sticks) butter
1/2 cup natural cocoa powder
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 cups cake flour or White Lily All Purpose Flour
4 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 cup buttermilk
4 large eggs
Preheat oven to 325°F. Prepare Old Country Kitchenware square tube pan by brushing with chocolate pan coat and lining the bottom with parchment paper (if using two piece pan, also fit with a parchment paper square between the two pieces first). In a medium saucepan, bring water, butter, cocoa powder, and vanilla to a boil. In a large bowl, sift together all dry ingredients. Make a well in the center. Pour in cocoa mixture and stir until combined. Add buttermilk and eggs and stir together until ingredients are fully incorporated. Pour batter into prepared tube pan and bake for 1 hour 35 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out nearly clean. Let cool until the pan is comfortable enough to handle, then use a thin spatula to release the sides of the cake. Transfer the cake to a wire rack in two steps: first, turn the cake up on its side, then invert fully. (If using two-piece pan, invert the entire cake without separating the pieces). Let cool completely.
Boiled Chocolate Frosting
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup natural cocoa powder
1 stick butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups chopped pecan pieces
In a medium saucepan, bring milk, cocoa powder, butter, and vanilla almost to a boil. Remove from heat and beat in powdered sugar with an electric mixer. Stir in pecan pieces. Let cool until thickened. Pour over cooled cake.
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37 comments
DingKing, do you mean melted chocolate or chocolate chips? I haven’t tried replacing the cocoa with melted chocolate but let me know if you try it! Chocolate chips would likely sink to the bottom too
Can you use dark chocolate in the recipe. The cake looks so DELISH.
Thanks can’t wait to try this.
I don’t have the pan yet. But will have to save up to get the pan and cookbook.
Lori, you can do it by hand, with a hand mixer, or a stand mixer! I did it by hand!
Janet, this recipe will work in any 18 cup tube pan but works best in our square tube pan (it’s available on our website at oldcountrykitchenware.com). if yours is smaller you can scale this recipe down, or make a bundt pan plus a loaf! for a 12 cup pan you’d reduce the recipe by 1/4. bake times will be different in different pans