Mississippi Mud Cake

The name of this cake was inspired by the richly colored mud on the banks of the Mississippi. We’ve eliminated some of the fat by substituting a glaze for the standard rich frosting.

Number of servings : 16 servings

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes + 1 hour, cooling time

Type of meal : | Cakes | Cakes

Special diet :

Ingredients

1½ cups sifted all-purpose flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter or margarine, at room temperature
1¾ cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup chopped pecans, toasted

Glaze:
½ cup sifted confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 tablespoon low-fat (1% milkfat) milk
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F and butter and flour a 9-inch Bundt or tube pan. Onto a piece of waxed paper, sift the flour, cocoa, and salt.
  2. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on high, cream the butter and granulated sugar until light yellow. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then blend in the vanilla and beat 1 minute more.
  3. Stir in the flour mixture just until the flour is incorporated. Spoon the batter into the pan and sprinkle the pecans on top. Bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs. Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes, then turn out onto the rack to cool.
  4. To make the glaze: In a small bowl, mix all of the ingredients until smooth, adding more milk, if necessary, to make a pourable mixture. Drizzle over the cooled cake.

Nutritional information: