I like little bundts and I can not lie!

I went out to cut some pine bows and dogwood branches for my holiday decorating and popped in to see my Mom. She sent me home with a new Ina Garten cookbook,  a spring form tube pan, a fluted pie plate (I think) and a mini bundt cake pan. I knew immediately I wanted to play with the mini bundt cake pan. I decided these would be wildly popular at the Red Mug so brought it to work. I wasn't doing the cooking and baking today but my co-worker Anna was happy to try out the recipe that was originally from Martha Stewart.

I would love to say I know first hand how delicious these were but I can't,  they all sold in a matter of an hour. A huge success. I did ask a few of my customers how they liked them and they said they loved them and thought we should offer them again. Who could resist their very own little bundt cake! So not only do I like big bundts, I like little bundts too! Hurry, go buy a mini bundt cake pan!

 Little Almond Bundt Cakes

Makes 6
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pans
6 tablespoons sliced almonds
1/3 cup coarsely chopped almonds
5 tablespoons packed light-brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup sour cream, or plain yogur
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
3 to 4 tablespoons milk

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter six mini Bundt pans; set aside. Spread sliced almonds out on a baking pan, and toast until golden brown. Transfer nuts to a bowl to cool. In a medium bowl, combine chopped almonds, light-brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg; set aside. In another medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine 6 tablespoons butter and granulated sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg; beat until combined. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla, and beat until smooth. Add 1/3 of reserved flour mixture and half of sour cream; beat to combine. Repeat. Add final third of flour mixture, and beat to combine.

Fill each Bundt pan with 3 tablespoons batter, and spread evenly with a small offset spatula or spoon. Sprinkle each with 2 tablespoons of reserved almond-spice mixture. Top with additional 3 tablespoons batter; the batter should come to within 1/2 inch of the rims of the pans.

Bake until cakes are golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer cakes to a wire rack to cool completely. Unmold cakes. Place cakes, flat sides down, on a wire rack placed over a baking pan.

Melt remaining 4 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat until color turns nut brown, about 5 minutes. Pour butter into a medium bowl, leaving behind any dark sediment. Stir in confectioners’ sugar, remaining 2 teaspoons vanilla, and 3 tablespoons milk until smooth; add an additional tablespoon milk, if necessary, so glaze is pourable. Drizzle glaze over cakes, and sprinkle with toasted almonds. Serve.

Bahama Mama Banana Rum Cake

This recipe comes from my Sticky Chewy Messy Gooey cookbook. I've baked this cake twice. Once for the Ryan Hoff Golf Tournament where it fetched $50 at the dessert auction and once to sell at the coffeehouse where I work. It is rich heavy and delish! And there is enough rum in this bad boy that you could consider eating a slice after lunch an afternoon bump. Enjoy!



Bahama Mama Banana Rum Cake

Dark Rum Glaze:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup water
1/2 dark brown sugar (firmly packed)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark rum

Combine the butter, water, and sugars in a heavy bottomed (hey! Like the pan I'm heavy bottomed too!) saucepan over medium high heat and bring to a boil. Immediately turn down the heat to medium low and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the eat and stir in the rum. Set aside and keep warm.

Cake:
1 1/2 cups toasted chopped pecans (To toast you can heat them on the stove top in a dry pan or in the oven on a sheet pan until lightly browned and aromatic)
3 sticks of unsalted butter at room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
5 large eggs (room temperature) VERY IMPORTANT
1 cup mashed bananas (very ripe) about 3 bananas
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 T dark rum (are feeling tipsy yet? wee!)
3 cups bleached all purpose flour
1 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
1 t salt
3/4 cup sour cream

To make the cake! Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Position a rack in the middle of the oven. Spray a 10 cup tube pan (angel food cake pan) with non stick cooking spray. Sprinkle the toasted pecans in the bottom of the pan. Set aside.

In a large bowl with an electric mixer set on medium speed beat together the butter and sugars until the light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Beat in the mashed bananas, vanilla, and rum. SIFT the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt over the batter and fold it in using a rubber scraper, just until no streaks of flour remain. Fold in the sour cream. Spoon the batter over the nuts in the pan and spread to the edge of the pan using the back of the rubber spatula.

Bake until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out with no more than a few moist crumbs clinging to it like their lives depend on it. 60 to 80 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for 5 more minutes. Poke holes with a wooden skewer all over the cake and pour 1/4 cup of the warm rum glaze all over the cake. Let cool for another 5 minutes. Place a serving platter over the pan and invert to release the cake onto the platter. Spoon the remaining glaze a little at a time and let stand until glaze is completely absorbed into the cake. If the glaze starts to pool at the ase of the cake use a small metal spatula to spread it up the sides of the cake. As the glaze hardens, this will encase the cake in a rummy yummy sugary shell.

LET THE CAKE COOL COMPLETELY before cutting into wedges and serving. And don't drive drunk.

I had to buy a BIG $23 bottle of Meyers rum to make this cake. It's so good you'll make it more than once. But I bet if you're creative you'll find other ways to use the yummy rum!