Pudding Cake, Take Me Away!

Remember that 1980's Calgon commercial, Where the woman, evidently tired and run-down by the events of the day (though you'd never know it by looking at the perfect looking model, not a hair out of place, nor a hangnail to be had), leaves her daily troubles awash in the bubbles of her tub?

Well, move over Calgon, because there's a new escape in town: Hot Fudge Pudding Cake.

Pudding Cake--please, please take me away!

We at the Wieber home don't have a whole lot of restraint--definitely not enough to write home about. In fact, our pantry is missing the ready-to-eat boxes of oreos and potato chips. Purposely. We just can't handle having those things in the house. We end up eating them just to get rid of the temptation. Our lack of restraint is also the reason I've been known to cut a recipe down by eighths and make about 6 cookies at a time. Or keep the extras in our freezer (out of sight, out of mind). I suppose not having it in the house is a type of restraint. But I dare say the weakest type of restraint. There are times, however, when we feel remorse for our lack of ready-to-eats and we lose our cool and cave in at 8pm--and decide to whip up something that soothes our sweet palate.

This happened to us last night. Thankfully, I dog-eared this super easy recipe not long ago. This was the perfect last-minute dessert, as it had simple ingredients, simple instructions, and enough indulgence to tide us over for a few days at least. (Yes, mom, I do still dog-ear my books....:o).

This cake is super moist--no frosting is needed--as it makes it's own delicious fudgy topping while it bakes. But you absolutely do need to offset this delight with a dallop of fresh whipped cream. Yes, that is an arm-twist you are feeling. As if whipped cream needs an excuse to exist!

Oh my sweet tooth, this is tasty!

But really--could any recipe from this cookbook, NOT be tasty? It has "Hershey's" in the title for goodness sakes!

Are you ready to whip up some of this simple, one-pan indulgence for somebody special tonight? It's fast, easy, and ready to scarf down in under 45 minutes.

I think I'm slipping into a chocolate coma, just thinking about it.

So let's get started.

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Ingredients:

1-1/2 C. granulated sugar, divided

1 C. all-purpose flour

1/2 C. Hershey's cocoa, divided

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 C. milk

1/3 C. butter, melted

1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 C. packed light brown sugar

1-1/4 C. hot water

Whipped topping

First, heat oven to 350 degrees.

Next, stir together 3/4 C. granulated sugar, flour, 1/4 C. cocoa, baking powder and salt. Stir in the milk, butter and vanilla; beat until smooth. Pour batter into ungreased 9-inch square baking pan. Stir together remaining 1/2 C. granulated sugar, brown sugar and remaining 1/4 C. cocoa; sprinkle mixture evenly over batter. Pour hot water over top. Do not stir.

Finally, Bake 35-40 minutes or until center is almost set. Let stand 15 minutes;

spoon into dessert dishes, spooning sauce from bottom of pan over top. Garnish with whipped topping. And since we're being honest here, let me just say that no dessert is truly decadent without chocolate shavings.

Makes about 8 servings, unless you're a Wieber, in which case it makes 4 servings.