BROWN SUGAR FUDGE CAKE
A moist and fluffy cake topped with a thick layer of creamy brown sugar fudge; this Brown Sugar Fudge Cake is an indulgent and insanely delicious dessert.
Man, it sucks being a food blogger, sometimes. Here I am, staring at this Brown Sugar Fudge Cake, trying to think of ways to describe to you just how insanely and amazingly delicious it really is. Yet, my head feels just like one giant field of extreme fuzziness today, so I can’t even come up with a single thing to say.
Brown Sugar Fudge Cake
Yield: Serves 15
Ingredients
FOR THE CAKE
Dry Ingredients
2-1/4 cup (290g | 10.2oz) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (28g | 1oz) corn starch
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt (I use Himalayan salt)
Wet Ingredients
3/4 cup (180g | 6.3oz) butter, softened
1/2 cup (100g | 3.5oz) light brown sugar
1/2 cup (100g | 3.5oz) granulated sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
3/4 cup (180ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
1/2 cup (115g | 4oz) sour cream, at room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract, (store-bought or homemade)
FOR THE SYRUP
3/4 cup (180ml) pure maple syrup
1/4 cup (120ml) water
2 tbsp rum (optional)
3 tbsp butter
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (store-bought or homemade)
1/4 tsp salt
FOR THE BROWN SUGAR FUDGE ICING
3 cups (600g | 1.3lb) light brown sugar
1-1/2 cups (360ml) heavy cream
2 tbsp corn syrup
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup (60g | 2.1oz) butter, softened
1 tbsp vanilla extract
OPTIONAL GARNISH
2-3 tbsp chopped walnuts
Instructions
TO MAKE THE CAKE
Preheat oven to 350°F; butter a 9 x 13 baking dish and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, corn starch, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix very well with a whisk until fluffy and thoroughly combined; reserve.
In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the butter, brown sugar and sugar. Beat on high with the paddle attachment until light and creamy, about 5 minutes.
Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each addition and scraping the sides as needed, making sure that each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next. Once all the eggs have been added, beat on high until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Add about half the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until barely just incorporated, then add the sour cream, buttermilk and vanilla and resume mixing on low speed until just combined.
Finally, add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just combined.
Transfer the batter to the prepared baking dish and spread lightly to the edge.
Bake for 28-32 minutes, or until the top is beautifully golden and appears completely set.
TO MAKE THE MAPLE SYRUP
When the cake is almost done baking, combine the maple syrup, water, rum, butter, vanilla extract and salt in a small saucepan; bring to a simmer over medium heat; simmer for 1 or 2 minutes and kill the heat. Keep warm.
Once the cake is done baking, take it out of the oven and, using a wooden skewer, poke holes all over the top of the cake, going all the way to the bottom.
Slowly pour the warm maple syrup over the entire surface of the cake and then let the cake rest and cool down while you work on the brown sugar fudge icing.
TO MAKE THE BROWN SUGAR FUDGE ICING
In a medium saucepan, combine the brown sugar, heavy cream, corn syrup and salt. Cook over medium heat until the sugar has completely dissolved, then increase the heat slightly and bring to a boil.
Continue cooking, without stirring, until the sugar mixture reaches 238°F on a candy thermometer.
Promptly remove from heat and add butter and vanilla but do not stir them in.
Let the hot sugar sauce rest on the counter undisturbed until the sugar mixtures gets down to 110°F, about 20 minutes.
Once the sugar has reached the right temperature, delicately stir in the butter and vanilla, then beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until the mixture becomes thick and creamy and the fudge gets lighter in color and starts to lose its sheen.
Pour over top of cake and spread delicately all the way to the edge, creating decorative swirls in the icing as you go.
Top with chopped walnuts, if desired. Let the icing set for about an hour at room temperature and serve.
Leftovers will keep at room temperature for about a week.