Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake with Blood Oranges

Step 1

Place oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 325°F. Butter bundt pan very well (take your time to do this well) then dust with cocoa powder, knocking out excess.

Step 2

Heat coffee, orange juice, zest, orange liquor, vanilla, butter, in a medium heavy saucepan over moderate heat, whisking, until butter is melted, then whisk in cup of cocoa powder. Remove from heat, then add both kinds of sugar and whisk until dissolved, about 1 minute. Let cool.

Step 3

While chocolate mixture cools, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.

Step 4

Whisk together eggs and vanilla in a small bowl, then, temper the eggs by pouring a little of the melted cocoa butter mixture to the eggs, whisking, a tablespoon at a time, to gradually warm them. After about 4 tablespoons, add this into cooling chocolate mixture and whisk well.

Step 5

Add the chocolate-egg mixutre to the flour mixture and whisk until just combined (batter will be thin and bubbly). Pour batter into the greased and cocoa dusted bundt pan and bake until a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes.

Step 6

Cool cake completely in pan on a rack, about 2 hours. Loosen cake from pan using tip of a dinner knife, then invert rack over pan and turn cake out onto rack.

Step 7

Melt the chocolate chips and milk in a small pot over very low heat. Whisk until combined, then pour over the cake.

Step 8

To make the syrupy blood orange slices – very thinly slice one blood orange. Place in a pot with one cup water and simmer 20 minutes, until water has reduced to about ¼ cup and orange peel becomes tender. Add in sugar, and stir until dissolved. Squeeze the juice of the other orange( I used ½) into the mix, and simmer gently for a couple minutes. Taste, add more sugar if you want. Let this cool. Spoon over the cake after cutting into it, topping with a blood orange slice.