When Nordic Ware of Minneapolis celebrates its 60th birthday this year, the lighted candles will probably be on a Bundt cake. After all, this fluted pan with the hole in the middle — you could call it the Spaghetti-O of the baking-pan world — is the bake-ware company's claim to fame.
But the once-obscure pan might have remained that way if not for the Tunnel of Fudge Cake, which Ella Rita Helfrich created for the 1966 Pillsbury Bake-Off. Baked in a Bundt pan, the cake's middle was a molten ring of fudgy sauce. The popular recipe swept the nation.
"The cake made a diminutive Houston mother of five a celebrity, changed the fortunes of a small company in Minneapolis, and made a little-known European pan a mainstay of nearly every American kitchen," wrote Amy Sutherland in "Cook-Off: Recipe Fever in America."
In fact, most households have a harvest-gold or avocado-green Bundt pan from that era still tucked away in a cupboard.
Today, you can buy Bundt pans shaped as sand castles, roses or carousels. Although the name Bundt is a Nordic Ware trademark, there are knock-offs made of silicone and stoneware.
To celebrate its 60th birthday — and maybe to find the next Tunnel of Fudge — Nordic Ware is sponsoring a Bundts Across America recipe contest. Recipes will be judged on originality, taste, texture, visual appearance and how well they represent the baker's home state.
"This contest is a celebration of the bakers that continue to reinvent the Bundt cake with their creative flair," said David Dalquist, Nordic Ware's president.
His father, also David Dahlquist, founded the Northland Aluminum Co. in Minneapolis in 1946. The company mainly made Scandinavian bake ware such as rosette and krumkake irons and ebleskiver pans. A Jewish women's group came to Dahlquist with an old-world cake pan from Europe. The metal tube in the middle conducted heat to evenly cook dense batter and dough.
"They asked my father if he could come up with a pan like this, because they wanted to have it for their bake sales and other events," Dahlquist said in a telephone interview from his office in Minneapolis. "They called it a 'boondt' pan, which, in German, has something to do with celebrations and crowds of people. The English spelling was 'bund,' so my father added a 't' on the end so the pronunciation would sound right."
He also applied for a trademark on the name. For about 10 years, the pan remained obscure. "There were several times when it almost got discontinued," said Dahlquist.
Enter Helfrich, who submitted 30 different recipes to get into the 1966 Pillsbury Bake-Off, according to Sutherland's "Cook-Off." Helfrich tried stirring Pillsbury's dry-frosting mixes into cake and brownie batters. Her final creation used a Double Dutch Fudge Buttercream frosting mix. To bake it, she used the specialty tube pan that her kids had given her for Christmas.
For her trouble, she received the second grand prize of $5,000 from masters of ceremonies Pat Boone and former Miss America Marilyn Van Derbur. The top $25,000 prize went to Golden Gate Snack Bread. It was flavored with cheese spread and onion-soup mix, trendy ingredients at the time.
But the Tunnel of Fudge cake became a trend all its own. It was easy to make, yet the impressive appearance and lava-like middle gave it a certain cachet. Grocery stores couldn't keep the frosting mix in stock. Nordic Ware began making Bundt pans around the clock, seven days a week, to meet the demand. In 1970, Nordic Ware and Pillsbury collaborated on a line of Bundt cake mixes.
"They were very popular through most of the '70s and part of the '80s," Dahlquist said. "But when microwave ovens came along, people lost interest in baking and traditional cooking methods."
Dry frosting mixes also waned in popularity and were replaced with ready-made frosting. With Double Dutch Fudge Buttercream frosting no longer on the market, today it's impossible to make the original Tunnel of Fudge cake recipe. But Pillsbury and Nordic Ware have a substitute recipe that uses powdered sugar, cocoa powder and a little more butter. Nordic Ware also sells a Tunnel of Fudge cake mix (www.nordicware.com).
The new millennium brought a resurgence of traditional baking, said Dahlquist, and Bundt sales are again on the upswing.
With 60 million Bundt pans already in households, "There's the challenge, how do you sell them another one?" Dahlquist said. "We've done a lot to revitalize the industry by coming up with different shaped pans — we've got rose petals, chrysanthemums, holiday shapes and sand castles," he said.
So what puts the "Bundt" in a "Bundt" pan? After all, angel food cake pans and other tubed pans have been around a long time. Dahlquist said Bundt pans are known for their decorative fluting, the center tube that conducts heat and the very dense, moist cake that results.
TUNNEL OF FUDGE CAKE
This rich cake has a fudgy center. Don't skimp on the nuts; they're essential to the success of this recipe.
Cake:
1 3/4 cups butter or margarine, softened
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
6 eggs
2 cups powdered sugar
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour (for Utah's altitude, add 3 more tablespoons)
3/4 cup cocoa
2 cups chopped walnuts
Glaze:
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons milk
For cake: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 12-cup Bundt pan. In a large bowl beat margarine and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually add powdered sugar; blend well. By hand, stir in remaining cake ingredients until well blended. Spoon batter into prepared pan; spread evenly. Bake at 350 degrees for 58-62 minutes. Cake will have a soft middle. Cool upright in pan on cooling rack 1 hour, invert onto serving plate.
For glaze: In small bowl, combine glaze ingredients until well blended. Spoon over top of cake, allowing some to run down sides. Store tightly covered. — Nordic Ware
GOOEY CARAMEL APPLE PULL-APARTS
4 pecan-crunch flavored crunchy granola bars, crushed with rolling pin to make 3/4 cup
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 cans (17.5 ounces each) refrigerated cinnamon rolls with icing
1 medium Granny Smith apple, peeled, coarsely chopped (about 1 1/4 cups)
Heat oven to 350 degrees. (For Utah altitude, heat to 375 degrees.) Spray 12-cup Bundt pan with nonstick spray. In small bowl, mix crushed granola bars, pecans and 1/2 teaspoon of the cinnamon. Sprinkle mixture evenly in bottom of pan.
In large bowl, mix whipping cream, brown sugar and remaining 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Separate both cans of dough into 10 rolls; set icing aside. Cut each roll into quarters. Stir roll pieces and apples into whipping-cream mixture to coat. Spoon mixture into pan; spread evenly.
Bake 50-60 minutes or until deep golden brown. (For Utah altitude, bake 40-50 minutes.) Immediately place serving platter upside down over pan; turn plate and pan over (do not remove pan). Cool 5 minutes. Remove pan; scrape any remaining topping in pan onto coffee cake. Cool 5 minutes longer. Drizzle reserved icing over top. Serve warm. — Lisa McDaniel, 2006 Pillsbury Bake-Off
FIDDLER ON THE ROOF CAKE
This cake's name comes from its moist texture and sweetness; you'll feel like a rich man, or rich woman, when you fork into it.
Vegetable oil spray for dusting pan
Flour for dusting pan
1 package plain yellow cake mix
1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Mist a 12-cup Bundt pan with vegetable oil spray; dust with flour, shaking out excess.
Place cake mix, sour cream, oil, sugar, almond extract, salt and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Blend with electric mixer on low speed 1 minute. Stop and scrape down sides of the bowl. Increase mixer speed to medium; beat 2 minutes more, scraping sides again if needed. Pour half of batter into pan, smoothing with rubber spatula.
Blend cocoa powder with remaining batter. Pour evenly over the yellow batter in the pan. Run a dinner knife through the batters to swirl them together for a marbleized look. Bake cake 60-65 minutes, until cake springs back when lightly pressed with your finger. Place pan on a wire rack to cool for 20 minutes. Run a long, sharp knife around the edge of the cake and invert it onto a serving platter. To serve, shake powdered sugar from a sieve over the cake or frost with your favorite glaze or frosting. — "The Cake Mix Doctor" by Anne Byrn
BUTTERSCOTCH BUBBLE LOAF
24 frozen dinner rolls, thawed and unbaked
1/2 box butterscotch pudding mix, non-instant
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine
Thaw rolls until soft (about 2 hours at room temperature). Spray Bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. Cut dinner rolls in half and dip in dry pudding mix. Arrange rolls in pan, alternately sprinkling with pecans. Sprinkle remaining pudding mix over the top. Combine brown sugar and butter and heat until butter is melted and a syrup is formed (microwave about 1 1/2 minutes). Pour syrup over rolls. Cover with plastic wrap that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Let rise until even with top of pan. Carefully remove wrap. Bake at 350 degrees 30-35 minutes. Cover top with foil the last 15 minutes of baking. Immediately after baking, loosen from sides of the pan with a knife and invert onto a serving plate. — Rhodes Bake-N-Serv
HEARTY LAYERED SANDWICH
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
1 17.3-ounce package frozen puff pastry, thawed
3 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
8 ounces thinly sliced ham
8 ounces thinly sliced turkey
1/2 cup red onion rings
1/2 cup chopped roasted red peppers
1 tablespoon melted butter
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a Bundt pan and sprinkle bottom and sides with sesame seeds. Roll a sheet of pastry into a 16-by-14-inch rectangle. Make a 3-inch cross-shaped cut in the center of the pastry. Place the cross-cut over the center tube of the pan, gently fitting the pastry over the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Gently pull the cross-cut edges up about halfway on the tube.
Layer 1 cup of the cheese and half of the ham, turkey, onion and red peppers over dough. Repeat layers and top with remaining 1 cup of cheese. Roll out the second sheet of pastry into a 16-by-14-inch rectangle, again cutting a 3-inch cross in the center to fit over the center of the tube pan. Pinch edges of pastry sheets together to seal in the filling. Brush top with butter.
Bake at 350 degrees for 60-65 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 15 minutes. Invert onto serving plate. Cut into wedges to serve. Serves 10-12. — Nordic Ware
CHEDDAR ONION BUNDT
24 frozen dinner rolls, thawed and unbaked
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
1/2 package dry onion soup mix
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
Saute onions in 2 tablespoons of butter until onions are clear but not brown. Add 1/4 cup butter and onion soup mix. Spray Bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. Cut rolls in half and dip in soup mixture. Layer in pan, alternating with cheddar cheese. Continue dipping and layering until all the rolls are in the pan. Cover with sprayed plastic wrap. Let rise until double in size or until rolls reach the top of the pan. Remove wrap and bake at 350 degrees 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Cover top with foil the last 15 minutes of baking. Do not underbake. Remove from oven and immediately invert onto serving platter.
Optional: In the Deseret Morning News test kitchen we tried substituting dried minced onions for the finely chopped sauteed onions. We also sprinkled in 1/2 cup real bacon bits. — Adapted from Rhodes Bake-N-Serv
SPAGHETTI FLORENTINE
16 ounces of spaghetti (cooked and drained according to package directions)
4 10-ounce packages chopped frozen spinach
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup Parmesan cheese
8 ounces chopped pimento
1/2 cup margarine
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Pepper to taste
Cook spinach and onion per spinach package instructions. Drain. Mix all ingredients together and place in well-greased 12-cup Bundt pan. Bake 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Cool 5 minutes before inverting onto a platter. Pour sauce in middle to serve.
Sauce:
3 cups fresh sliced mushrooms, sauteed or 1 10-ounce jar mushrooms
2 16-ounce jars meatless spaghetti sauce.
Heat mushrooms and spaghetti sauce together and serve over the Spaghetti Florentine. — Adapted from Nordic Ware
E-mail: vphillips@desnews.com