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01/29/2003 Archived Entry: "Tunnel of Fudge Cake"

What you wouldn’t do for love! And a great chocolate cake! Or so you say.

Would you spend an afternoon in the kitchen practicing a famous chef’s recipe, getting the timing down pat, so you could serve your Valentine one of those so-called “molten” chocolate cakes they charge $2 a bite for in fancy restaurants?

If the answer is “Nah, probably not this year,” then there’s Pillsbury to the rescue with it’s Tunnel of Fudge, the predecessor to those individual-serving molten cakes that are now the national rage. It’s easy. If you follow the simple directions it comes out perfect every time. In Pillsbury We Trust. (Well, sometimes.)

Created by Ella Helfrich of Houston, Texas, the Tunnel of Fudge, a walnut-studded chocolate pound cake that comes out with a fudgy-wet center and crusty, dryish brownie-type surround, was the second-place ($5,000) winner in the 1966 Pillsbury Bake-Off and an immediate national sensation. In fact, it introduced the bundt pan to mainstream America. Until then, it was mainly ethnic bakers who used the pan, but once the recipe was disseminated through newspapers and magazines, Pillsbury alone fielded 200,000 requests for the crenellated tube pan.

The original Tunnel of Fudge recipe, however, called for a product that is no longer being manufactured: “Double Dutch Dry Frosting Mix.” So a few years ago, still receiving countless requests for the recipe, as well as queries about how to make the cake without the frosting mix, Pillsbury’s test kitchens developed a from-scratch version. It’s interesting to see the changes: the dry frosting mix was apparently nothing more than cocoa and confectioners’ sugar. The recipe follows.

(By the way, the original Tunnel of Fudge recipe is still floating around on the internet. Obviously, no one has told the many people who have posted it on many different websites that you can’t make it anymore.)

As for the “molten” chocolate cake for which fancy restaurants charge $2 a bite, get the recipe and read the story behind this cake in The Maven’s Diary, April 2001

Tunnel of Fudge
Serves about 16

This is the from-scratch recipe that Pillsbury devised in its test kitchen so that the legacy of Tunnel of Fudge can be continued without the dry frosting mix the company no longer makes. Use American-style cocoa, not Dutch-process.

Butter and flour to prepare cake pan

For the cake:
1 3/4 cups (3 1/2 sticks) butter or margarine, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
6 eggs
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 1/4 cups bleached all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cocoa
2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts (see note 1)

For glaze (optional):
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons milk

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour a 12-cup fluted tube pan or 10-inch angel food tube pan.

In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the butter or margarine and granulated sugar until light and fluffy.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Gradually add the powdered sugar, blending well

By hand, using a wooden spoon, stir in the remaining cake ingredients until well blended.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan; spread evenly.

Bake at 350 degrees for 58 to 62 minutes. (see note 2)

Cool upright in pan for 1 hour on a rack 1 hour. Turn the cake out onto a serving plate and let cool completely.

If desired, glaze cake when fully cooled. To make glaze, in a small bowl, combine the glaze ingredients until well blended. Spoon over top of cake, allowing some to run down sides.

Store cake tightly covered.

Note 1: Nuts are essential for the success of the recipe.

Note 2: Since this cake has a soft tunnel of fudge, ordinary doneness tests cannot be used. Accurate oven temperature and baking time are crucial. The lesser time will result in a wetter center, which is fine. The longer time may result in a too-dry texture.