Root Beer Float Cake

I love root beer. I especially love Barq's root beer, which is a dangerous thing because we have it on our soda fountain here at Madfish. Needless to say, when I saw this recipe for Root Beer Float Cake on Joy the Baker's blog, I knew I had to try it. It seemed the perfect summertime treat to feature for Memorial Day weekend.


On a side note... if you like to bake (or cook in general) and have never been to Joy the Baker's site, please go there as soon as you are done here. She is fun to read, and has some fantastic recipes!

Back to the cake. It was easy to make, and turned out very moist and very chocolaty. It is hard to taste the root beer, but it seems to bring out the richness of the chocolate.



Overall, with some vanilla ice cream, I'd say this is a yummy summer treat! We will be featuring Chocolate Root Beer Float Cake for the next few days as a dessert special - so come on in and try it!


Chocolate Root Beer Float Cake
Adapted from Joy the Baker and
Baked: New Frontiers in Baking

2 cups root beer (not diet)
1 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter cut into cubes
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
2 cups flour (all-purpose)
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 325 degrees (F). Spray the inside of a 10-inch bundt pan with cooking spray or butter and dust with flour - whichever method you prefer. I used cooking spray.



Heat the cocoa, butter, and root beer in a medium saucepan on medium heat until melted, then whisk in the sugars until completely dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool. You want it to be cool enough so that the eggs won't cook when you beat them in.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.

Whisk the eggs in a small bowl until just beaten. Whisk the eggs into the cocoa mixture once it has cooled a good bit. Then, fold the flour mixture into the cocoa mix. Give it a couple of quick stirs, but be careful not to over beat... it might cause the cake to be tough. The batter will be loose and slightly lumpy, so no worries!

Pour the batter into the bundt pan and cook for 35-45 minutes. I used a convection oven and had to bake it for the full 45 minutes. Rotate the pan every 15 minutes or so. Cake is done when a sharp knife is inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cake cool, then go around the edges with a butter knife to loosen. Turn out on a cake plate, let cool, then slather on the icing!


Chocolate Root Beer Frosting
2 oz 60% cocoa, melted (I like using a double boiler to melt chocolate... helps it not burn!)
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup root beer
2/3 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Beat, either in a stand mixer or with an electric hand mixer, softened butter and cocoa powder until well combined. Then, add in the melted chocolate, salt, powdered sugar and root beer. Beat until smooth and creamy.