A Short History Of The Bundt Cake

Any kind of cake baked in a bundt pan is considered a bundt cake. These special pans are more than a simple baking dish; they are like cake molds that come in all kinds of sizes and designs. After the cake is baked and turned out of the pan, it will not need much decoration because it is already in a decorative shape. Bundt cakes will often be dusted with powdered sugar or have a simple glaze drizzled over the top. Most people do not frost them completely, because that would hide the beautiful appearance of the cake.

Most two layer cake mixes will fit in a bundt pan. You can choose any flavor you like when making a cake in one of these pans. Typically, the recipes used to make bundt cakes are pound, sponge, or butter cake. Almost all bundt cakes have a hole in the center. If you want to have a special presentation of the dessert, you can put other items in the center like ice cream, fruit, or whipped cream. The following details the history of the bundt cake and how it came to be so popular.

How did the bundt cake get its name?

H. David Dahlquist was the founder of a company named Nordic Ware, which was based in Minneapolis and manufactured kitchen products. Two women named Fannie Schanfield and Rose Joshua asked Mr. Dahlquist to make an early example of a bundt cake pan in 1950. They were members of a Jewish women’s service group called Hadassah.

The women were discussing how they missed the rich and dense cake they had when they were young, and thought that American cakes were too light. In order to get the European style dessert they loved, the women knew they needed a special pan with a hole in the middle. This type of pan helps bake all the batter and prevents the under-cooking of dense batter that occurs in a traditional baking pan.

Fannie and Rose met with the owner of Nordic Ware and showed him a ceramic “kugelhopf” cake pan. Dahlquist agreed to make a new pan, using the kugelhopf pan as a prototype. He changed its design by adding folds into the fluted edges and used aluminum to make the dish. Dahlquist took the German word for community, “bund,” and added a “t” to the end of it and trademarked it. Several months after the women met with him, he delivered the pans to Hadassah, where they were sold to the members for $4.00 each.

The popularity of bundt cakes

Production of the bundt pan exploded in 1966 due to a bundt cake winning 2nd place during the 17th Annual Pillsbury Bake-Off. This is where the famous Tunnel of Fudge Cake, a dense and gooey dessert, was made into a star. Dahlquist was flooded with orders for the pan he created and started making 30,000 a day.

Baking with a bundt pan

An important tip to remember when using a bundt pan is that you must grease and flour every area of the dish before you pour in the batter. Before you place the pan in the oven, thump it a couple of times to remove any air bubbles from the batter. It is best to use a moist cake batter with this style of pan. The extra surface created with bundt pans means that your cake could dry out quickly.

Get delicious bundt cakes from Belmar Bakery

If you need a cake or dessert for your next event, visit Belmar Bakery & Cafe at 3325 Bell St. in Amarillo, Texas. We specialize in decorated cakes of all flavors, shapes, and sizes. We now have over ten flavors of Bundt Cakes ready for you to take home, including classic vanilla, triple chocolate, Italian cream, and lemon bliss. Call us today at (806) 355-0141 or Contact Us by email to learn more about our Cakes and our Cafe.