Chocolate Cake and a Great Read

Happy Monday! This weekend the weather was beautiful here and the next two days are supposed to be even nicer - hooray! We had a birthday lunch for my sister-in-law to attend yesterday and I was asked to bring the cake. She LOVES chocolate so I was sure to make something full of chocolate. I had a new cookbook from Pillbury that I hadn't made anything from yet and thought I'd try it out. I found a recipe called Chocolate-Cherry Truffle Cake that sounded delish - and it was! I (and my sis-in-law) highly recommend it!



Chocolate-Cherry Truffle Cake

Filling:
1 c. chocolate chips
2/3 c. sweetened condensed milk (from 14 oz. can)
1/4 t. almond extract

Cake:
1 box chocolate fudge cake mix with pudding
1 c. water
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1/2 t. almond extract
4 eggs
1 box (3.9 oz) chocolate instant pudding
1 jar (10 oz) maraschino cherries, drained on paper towel, chopped (3/4 cup)

Glaze:
Remaining sweetened condensed milk (from 14 oz. can)
3/4 c. chocolate chips
2 T. corn syrup
1 t. milk, if needed

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees*. Grease 12-cup bundt cake pan with shortening; lightly flour. In medium microwaveable bowl, microwave all filling ingredients on high 25 to 35 seconds, stirring every 15 seconds, until melted and smooth; set aside.

2. In large bowl, beat cake mix, water, oil, 1/2 t. almond extract, the eggs and pudding pudding mix with electric mixer on low speed about 1 minute, scraping bowl constantly. With rubber spatula, fold in chopped cherries. Spoon batter into pan; spread evenly. Carefully spoon filling in ring over batter (do not let filling touch side of pan).

3. Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until toothpick inserted 1 inch from side comes out clean, top of cake feels firm to the touch, and cake pulls away slightly from side of pan. Cool 15 minutes.

4. Place heatproof serving plate over pan; turn plate and pan over. Remove pan. Cool cake completely; about 1 hour

5. In 1-qt saucepan, heat all glaze ingredients except milk over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in up to 1 t. milk if necessary for desired glaze consistency. Pour glaze over cake, allowing some to drizzle down sides.

6. Store loosely covered in refrigerator.

*High altitude - heat oven to 375 degrees

Tonight my book group is meeting at our house to discuss The Quilter's Homecoming by Jennifer Chiaverini. It's a wonderful book that I loved so very much. I have lots to do today to get ready. I'll post pics and recipes for the food I made tomorrow...till then!