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My aunt stood in my mother’s kitchen and watched her pour a cup and three quarters of hot water over a pan of chocolate cake batter, and she said, out loud, that my mother had lost her mind. My mother did not answer. She slid the pan into the oven and set the timer. Forty minutes later my aunt was spooning hot fudge sauce out of the corner of the pan and asking for the recipe on a card. It is the dessert in our family that every newcomer has to be told not to worry about.
Here is what happens. You stir together a simple, stiff chocolate batter and spread it in the pan. Over it you sprinkle a mixture of brown sugar and cocoa. Then you pour very hot water over everything and, this is the part that takes faith, you do not stir. In the oven the batter is lighter than the sugary water, so it rises up through it and bakes into a soft, brownie-like cake on top. The water dissolves the brown sugar and cocoa as it sinks and cooks down into a thick, glossy fudge sauce on the bottom. When you spoon it out, you turn each spoonful upside down so the sauce runs over the cake.
Why this hot fudge pudding cake works
- A stiff batter. Only half a cup of milk, so the batter is thick enough to float up through the water and bake into cake.
- Brown sugar and cocoa on top. They become the sauce. Brown sugar gives it the deep fudge flavor that white sugar would not.
- Very hot water. Hot water dissolves the sugar and cocoa quickly and starts the sauce cooking right away.
- Never stirred. Stirring mixes the layers into one wet batter. Left alone, they separate on their own: cake up, sauce down.
- A 15 minute rest. The sauce thickens as it cools slightly, from thin and hot to spoonable fudge.
Ingredients
Makes one 9 inch square pan, about 8 servings. The measurements are in US cups with grams in brackets.
For the cake
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (125g)
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar (150g)
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (10g)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/2 cup whole milk (120ml)
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (28g), melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the fudge topping
- 1 cup packed brown sugar (200g)
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (20g)
- 1 3/4 cups very hot tap water (415ml)
To serve
- Vanilla ice cream or lightly whipped cream, optional
Use natural unsweetened cocoa powder. The water should be as hot as your tap will run, or just off the boil from a kettle.
How to make hot fudge pudding cake
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees (175°C). Have ready an ungreased 9 inch square baking pan, and set it on a baking sheet to catch any bubbling sauce.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons cocoa, baking powder and salt.
- Stir in the milk, melted butter and vanilla until smooth. The batter will be thick and stiff.
- Spread the batter evenly in the pan.
- In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar and 1/4 cup cocoa. Sprinkle it evenly over the batter.
- Slowly pour the 1 3/4 cups very hot water over the top, pouring over the back of a spoon so it does not dig holes. Do not stir. It will look like a pan of chocolate soup.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes, until the top is set and looks like a cracked, dry cake and the sauce bubbles at the edges.
- Let it stand 15 minutes. Spoon it into bowls, turning each spoonful upside down so the fudge sauce from the bottom runs over the cake. Serve warm, with ice cream if you like.
Tips that make the difference
- Set the pan on a baking sheet. The sauce bubbles right up to the rim, and an oven floor learns that only once.
- Pour the water slowly over a spoon. A hard pour can push holes through the batter.
- Do not overbake. The cake should still be soft; the sauce cooks down further as it rests.
- Serve it warm. Cold, the sauce sets like pudding, which is good too, but it is not hot fudge.
Variations
- With nuts. Stir 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans into the batter.
- Mocha. Use 1 3/4 cups hot brewed coffee instead of the water for a darker sauce.
- Peanut butter. Drop 6 small spoonfuls of peanut butter over the batter before the sugar and cocoa go on.
- Butterscotch. Leave the cocoa out of the topping and use 1 1/4 cups brown sugar for a caramel sauce over a chocolate cake.
Storage and make-ahead
Pudding cake is best warm, within an hour of baking.
Cover leftovers and refrigerate for up to 3 days. The sauce soaks into the cake and turns into a thick, fudgy pudding.
Rewarm single servings in the microwave for 20 to 30 seconds, until the sauce loosens again. It does not freeze well.
Frequently asked questions
Why do you pour hot water over the batter?
The water dissolves the brown sugar and cocoa sprinkled on top and sinks under the batter as it bakes, cooking down into the fudge sauce while the cake rises above it.
Should I stir in the water?
No. Stirring mixes everything into one wet batter and you lose the two layers. Pour it on and put the pan straight in the oven.
Why is there no sauce in my pudding cake?
It was probably overbaked, so the sauce soaked into the cake, or the water was stirred in. Pull it at 40 minutes while the sauce still bubbles at the edges.
Can I double it?
Yes, in a 9x13 inch pan with all the amounts doubled. Bake 45 to 50 minutes, on a baking sheet.
Pour the water on, do not stir, and do not listen to anybody in the kitchen who says you have lost your mind. They will be asking for the card in forty minutes.
Hot Fudge Pudding Cake (Pour Hot Water on Top and Don't Stir)
The old-fashioned hot fudge pudding cake: a chocolate batter spread in a 9 inch pan, brown sugar and cocoa sprinkled over, 1 3/4 cups very hot water poured on top and never stirred, baked at 350 degrees for 40 minutes into cake on top and fudge sauce underneath.
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (28g), melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 3/4 cups very hot tap water
- Vanilla ice cream or lightly whipped cream, optional
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees (175°C). Have ready an ungreased 9 inch square baking pan, and set it on a baking sheet to catch any bubbling sauce.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons cocoa, baking powder and salt.
- Stir in the milk, melted butter and vanilla until smooth. The batter will be thick and stiff.
- Spread the batter evenly in the pan.
- In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar and 1/4 cup cocoa. Sprinkle it evenly over the batter.
- Slowly pour the 1 3/4 cups very hot water over the top, pouring over the back of a spoon so it does not dig holes. Do not stir. It will look like a pan of chocolate soup.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes, until the top is set and looks like a cracked, dry cake and the sauce bubbles at the edges.
- Let it stand 15 minutes. Spoon it into bowls, turning each spoonful upside down so the fudge sauce from the bottom runs over the cake. Serve warm, with ice cream if you like.
