Easy Chocolate Pudding Cake

Total Time: 50 mins Preparation Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 40 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons dutch-processed cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder (optional, but very good)
• 3/4 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup dutch-processed cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon espresso powder (optional, but very good)
• 1 1/2 cups hot water or 1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee

Recipe

• 1 to prepare your bread machine:
• 2 remove the paddles from the bread machine bucket.
• 3 spray the inside of the bucket lightly with non-stick vegetable oil spray.
• 4 program the machine for bake only, 40 minutes, no keep warm option.
• 5 to prepare for baking in your oven:
• 6 preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• 7 lightly grease a 9" round cake pan.
• 8 to make the first layer:
• 9 in a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, 6 tablespoons cocoa, and 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder.
• 10 stir in the milk, vanilla, and oil, mixing until smooth.
• 11 pour the batter into the bread machine bucket, or into the 9"round pan.
• 12 to make the second layer:
• 13 mix the 3/4 cup brown sugar with the 1/4 cup cocoa and 1 teaspoon espresso powder, and sprinkle this mixture over the batter.
• 14 gently drizzle the hot coffee or water over the uncooked batter; there's no need to mix it inches.
• 15 to bake the cake:
• 16 if you're baking in the bread machine, press start; allow the machine to complete its cycle.
• 17 if baking in the oven, place the pan in the preheated oven, and bake for 45 minutes, removing the cake when it appears set and is bubbly around the bottom.
• 18 let the cake cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.
• 19 the sauce will thicken as it stands, and when totally cooled will be the consistency of medium-thick fudge sauce.
• 20 to serve, scoop servings of the warm cake onto individual plates; top with whipped cream or ice cream, if desired.
• 21 if you can't serve it while it's warm, keep it at room temperature (for 2 or 3 days), and reheat it very briefly in the microwave just before serving.