Beauteous Bundts
You know how when you’re a kid, you have all the time in the world, but just don’t know it?
When I was a kid, I loved to bake cakes. Layer cakes. With homemade frosting, all done up with elaborate swirls, sprinkles, and flowers.
Heck, I had the time then.
Now? Forget about it.
Nowadays, if I do bake a cake, it’s apt to be a no-nonsense springform-pan variety or the reliable bundt-style.
So when Nothing Bundt Cakes came calling, offering to send a sample for me to try, my first thought was: “Really? A bakery that makes nothing but bundt cakes? Why on earth?”
After all, bundts are one of the quickest and easiest of cakes to make. Would people really opt to buy these, rather than fancy layer cakes enrobed in pastel fondant or airy meringue buttercream if they were going to the trouble and expense of buying a cake?
When the doorbell rang and the cakes arrived, I understood why they would.
Why, of course, if they got a bundt cake that looked like this: Dressed up with a big, bright yellow sunflower bursting from its center, and thick ripples of ivory cream cheese frosting cascading down it. A precious card and butterfly magnet perched atop it all upped the cute factor even more.
Sure, it looked amazing. But was it merely a bimbo cake — all looks and no substance underneath? One taste would determine that.
Nothing Bundt Cakes offers nine flavors of bundts. This was “chocolate chocolate chip,” a chocolate cake with chocolate chips hidden in the batter. It was nicely moist. It also was surprisingly airy for a bundt, which are usually much denser in texture. It was more like a sponge cake or even a light Asian-style bakery cake. I could press on it gently with my fingers and it would collapse, then spring back. I’m not saying that’s a good thing or a bad thing. I’m just saying it didn’t fit the norm for a bundt.
There was good chocolate flavor, enough to satisfy and linger, but not as deep and intense as a molten chocolate cake would be. The frosting? Quite sweet, with a bit of tang, and just outrageously good.
I also tried the single-serving bundtlet sizes. The red velvet had a subtle cocoa flavor and was studded with chocolate chips. The lemon had a vibrant citrus tang. The marble maybe could have used a little more chocolate, but this is coming from a chocolate fiend. All the cakes were again quite airy and light in texture, and all were capped with that wonderful cream cheese frosting.
The flower-decked, 10-inch bundt is $39.50; the little bundtlets are $3.99 each. Nothing But Bundts has locations nationwide, including two in the Bay Area (Los Gatos and Dublin). The cakes can be picked up from the bakery, delivered locally, or shipped across country.
I think I’ll still end up baking most of my bundt cakes. After all, it’s one of the few types of cakes I still actually have time to make from scratch. But if I wanted to mark a special occasion by making a friend or relative break into a smile of sheer amazement as they opened their door, this would be a great way to do it.
These look excellent – can they deliver a free sample to the east coast 🙂
I always bake bundt cakes when I’m rushed for time. They’re quick and easy and still easy to impress.
you’ve been baking those elaborate layered cakes since you were a kid? how old are you talking about?
Sophia: Oh, don’t get me wrong. It wasn’t like I was taking my first baby steps while sticking cake pans in the oven. Hah. I was probably baking layer cakes when I was in 6th grade and beyond. I still remember once how the top layer developed a crack in the top. My best friend and I tried to cover it up by plopping extra frosting over it. Wouldn’t you know that’s the piece my Dad got. I still remember him saying, “Wow! Lot of frosting on this cake!” My friend and I could barely stifle our laughs.
My office bought one of these the other day, the red velvet kind. It was good, but I’m a frosting kind of girl, so the cake to frosting ratio was a bit off to my tastes. Everyone in my office really loved it though!
Those are adorable! I need to break in my (rose-shaped) bundt pan. My mom is a bundt-baker extraordinaire but I haven’t really baked many, and that was when I was a kid.
Red velvet with chocolate chips added in sounds very interesting! They’re very cute too, and now I’m hungry for cake.
My daughter-in-law loves sunflowers and would be wowed beyond belief by that top one. And, oh my goodness! Do they all have that crater full of frosting as shown in your photos? I have never been so generous when frosting a bundt cake, but that really looks appealing to me — like it would put the frosting-to-cake ratio right about at perfect!
I’ve heard about “Nothing But Bundt Cakes” before, but never put it on the list for “Must Visit Next Time I’m in Los Gatos”. Hint to other retailers who are pondering sending free samples to Carolyn: this viral marketing stuff really does work! For sure the folks at “Nothing But Bundt”s will be seeing me walk through their door the very next time I’m in that neighborhood, and I will be sure to tell them it’s these photos and your review that sent me!
Oh, they look so pretty and scrumptious!
Cheers,
Rosa
Kiss our bundts! Baby got bundt! Nothing bundt a G thang. Love the bundt jokes. Haven’t made it to the LA valley location yet, but we’ve heard that the cakes are flying off the shelves. They’ve got a good gimmick going. So cute and so very nice to see something other than cupcakes!
Oh my, this post needs an X rating because it really is food porn. 😉 I never knew bundt cakes could looks so beautiful, but I have to say, it does seem like A LOT of frosting.
“Bimbo cake.” Ha!
Would that then be a kimbo?
Bundtlets – what a great word.
The red velvet one looks great. It is again one of those things that make me wish I live in the States.
omg these are gorgeous!!!
and now I’m craving red velvet cake. even though I ate a cupcake 2 seconds ago.
I have had the lemon one from here and it was heavenly.
A coach brought a couple of these to a tournament recently. The red velvet was great (red velvet is always a favorite of mine) but I really loved the carrot. Seriously delish!
Foodgal, what is it on your patented scale of 1 to 10 lip-smackers?
Ann: I usually reserve the patented scale for chocolate bonbons and the like, but if I had to rank the chocolate chocolate chip bundt as such, I’d give it 8 lip-smackers. 😉
Those are adorable. I love that you were baking and decorating elaborate cakes as a kid. I was baking too, but only in my easy bake oven from a mix. I think my favorite thing to make from scratch at the time was homemade playdoh.
I did not know the Bay Area had a bundt bakery! I’m telling my mom today and maybe she’ll take me next time I’m up there. I know L.A. has one near where I live that I still haven’t gotten around to going to, but it’s on my short list of things to do. It’s a place called Kiss My Bundt, and I was reminded of it again because the company I work for just listed tickets this morning to a bundt baking class there for this Sunday.
http://www.goldstar.com/events/los-angeles-ca/intro-to-baking-class.html
I’m not going to go because I think I could probably teach a course on it myself. 🙂 But I do love the idea of bakeries devoted to specific items. There’s no reason why cupcakes have to be the only thing. When I buy cookbooks, one of my favorite types is when the book is devoted to a single food, such as peanut butter. If I’m in the mood to make something with peanut butter, I know which of my 1000 cookbooks to look at first. Otherwise the recipe search can be daunting.
Oh, and by the way, “But was it merely a bimbo cake — all looks and no substance underneath?” is unequivocal brilliance, Carolyn.
I just received an old bundt pan belonging to my centenarian foster grandmother – she still had the original recipe booklet tucked into it. Seeing this post is just the spark I need to bake a cake in it! I’ll have fun looking for a recipe to use and these pictures are a great inspiration.
I’ve seen these bundt cake shops and wondered what they were like. But bundt cakes are so easy to make… I can’t imagine buying one! They do look rather delicious though for those non-bakers.