Chocolate Bundt Cake Christmas Wreath (Printable)
Decadent chocolate Bundt shaped as a holiday wreath, glazed and garnished with sugared cranberries and rosemary.
# What You Need:
→ Cake
01 - 2½ cups all-purpose flour
02 - 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
03 - 2 teaspoons baking powder
04 - ½ teaspoon baking soda
05 - ½ teaspoon salt
06 - 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
07 - 2 cups granulated sugar
08 - 4 large eggs
09 - 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
10 - 1½ cups buttermilk
→ Chocolate Glaze
11 - 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
12 - ½ cup heavy cream
13 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
→ Decoration
14 - ½ cup fresh cranberries
15 - ⅓ cup granulated sugar
16 - 4–5 sprigs fresh rosemary
17 - Powdered sugar for dusting
# How-To:
01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously grease and flour a 10-cup Bundt pan, ensuring every crevice is coated to prevent sticking.
02 - In a medium bowl, sift together the all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
03 - In a large mixing bowl, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar together using an electric mixer until pale, light, and fluffy, approximately 3 minutes.
04 - Add the eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition until fully incorporated. Blend in the vanilla extract.
05 - Alternately add the sifted dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined — avoid overmixing to keep the crumb tender.
06 - Pour the batter evenly into the prepared Bundt pan, smoothing the top with a spatula to ensure an even bake.
07 - Bake on the center rack for 45–50 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted into the thickest part of the cake emerges clean.
08 - Allow the cake to rest in the pan for 15 minutes, then carefully invert onto a wire cooling rack. Let cool completely before glazing.
09 - In a small saucepan, heat the heavy cream over medium-low heat until just steaming — do not boil. Pour the warm cream over the chocolate chips and butter in a heatproof bowl. Let sit undisturbed for 2 minutes, then whisk until silky smooth.
10 - Drizzle the chocolate glaze generously over the completely cooled cake, allowing it to flow naturally down the sides.
11 - Lightly dampen the fresh cranberries with water, then roll them in granulated sugar until evenly coated. Arrange on a wire rack to dry. Once set, arrange the sugared cranberries and rosemary sprigs artfully on top of the glazed cake to resemble a Christmas wreath. Finish with a light dusting of powdered sugar for a snowy, festive effect.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- The cake is impossibly moist thanks to buttermilk and a generous amount of cocoa, and it stays tender for days wrapped on the counter.
- Sugared cranberries and rosemary turn a simple chocolate cake into something guests genuinely gasp at when you carry it in.
02 -
- Grease every crevice of the Bundt pan with extra care because even one stuck spot will tear the beautiful ring shape when you flip it.
- The glaze must cool for a few minutes before pouring or it will run right off the cake without leaving any coating behind.
03 -
- Test for doneness a few minutes early because every oven runs differently and a dry Bundt cake is heartbreaking after all that effort.
- Let the glaze thicken for about five minutes before drizzling so it coats instead of puddling at the bottom of your serving plate.