Chocolate Pound Cake with Nutella Glaze
This decadent Chocolate Pound Cake features a Nutella Glaze. If you have any chocoholics in your family, then this cake needs to be in your holiday plans!
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We headed out of Gloucester on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, and started searching the deep ocean waters for whales. Or more specifically, we were watching for the little bursts of water that signal a whale right below the surface. About halfway through our 3-hour trip, we were starting to get a little discouraged. We hadn’t seen any whales. In fact, all we had seen was a whole lot of nothing. But then our ship’s captain got a call that whales had been sighted at a nearby feeding ground. We made a direct line straight to that location…and sure enough, the whales were there!
Not only were there about 8-10 whales in the area, but they seemed to be in a pretty playful mood. We sat there for almost an hour following behind this pod as they jumped, splashed and generally had an active Saturday afternoon at the feeding ground. (We were at the Stellwagen Bank right near the mouth of the Massachusetts Bay. Underwater currents hit the steep sides of this plateau and carry up nutrients and food from the bottom of the ocean. Whales then swim right along the top of the plateau feeding on this ocean buffet.)
One of the things we learned on this trip is that whales often use their tails to slap the top of the water. This stuns the fish near the surface, thus making feeding a bit easier. I’m not sure about you, but this seems like playing with your food. Perhaps I should take a spatula and beat the leftover slices of this Chocolate Pound Cake into submission. Of course, whales also eat about 2,000 pounds of fish a day. I’m not sure eating 2,000 pounds of pound cake would be in my best interest…unless I want to become a permanent resident at our gym. #NoThanks
Needless to say, we had an awesome weekend trip out to the Massachusetts coast. Whales are incredible creatures, and to see them up close like that was just amazing. If you ever get the chance to go whale-watching, do it. As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, we spent the next morning wandering around Salem, Mass. before heading back home. It was a quick weekend trip, but sometimes those are the best kind!
But let’s turn our attention to the food…and I don’t mean 2,000 pounds of fish. I mean this delicious Chocolate Pound Cake. I’ve been making pound cakes for years, and they’re one of my all-time favorite desserts. However, I’ve never made a chocolate version. I decided to get in the kitchen and play around a bit. The next thing I knew, I had this tasty cake sitting on the counter. This Chocolate Pound Cake is delicious enough to serve by itself, but I went one step further and drizzled it with a Nutella Glaze.
As we head into the midst of the holiday season this year, I highly recommend this cake. If you’ve got any chocoholics in your family, then this cake is for them! The Nutella Glaze adds just a hint of delicious hazelnut flavor. So go for it. Slice a piece of this chocolate pound cake and put your feet up. You deserve it!
Have you ever been whale watching?
Nutella or peanut butter?
Chocolate Pound Cake with Nutella Glaze
Ingredients
For the Pound Cake
- 1½ cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 3 cups sugar
- 5 eggs room temperature
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
For the Nutella Glaze
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp cocoa powder
- 3½ Tbsp milk
- 3 Tbsp Nutella
Instructions
For the Pound Cake
- Grease and flour a standard bundt pan; set aside.
- Preheat oven to 325°F.
- Using a countertop mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (~2-3 minutes on medium speed.)
- Add eggs; mix until well combined.
- Add remaining ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, milk and vanilla). Mix until well combined, scraping down the sides of the mixing bowl as needed.
- Using a spatula, pour batter into greased bundt pan.
- Bake for 80-90 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into cake comes out mostly clean.
- Let cake cool in pan for 30 minutes and then transfer to a baking rack until completely cool.
For the Nutella Glaze
- In a small bowl, whisk together all ingredients (powdered sugar, cocoa powder, milk and Nutella).
- Drizzle Glaze over cooled cake before serving.
David, oh my gawd, that video of the whale is SO cool!!!!! Glad you guys were able to see them this time! OK, I LOVE this chocolate pound cake!!!!! WANT! Looks so good!!!!
Thank you so much, Alice! This cake was insanely delicious, and the whale watching trip was the experience of a lifetime. If you ever get a chance to go, do it! Thank you so much!
Oooh I want to see whales! That is so cool!
Mmmmm Nutella glaze and chocolate? I’m sold 🙂
I know! I didnt even know much about whale watching trips until I stumbled across them just north of Boston. Talk about a fun weekend trip! And this cake? Yes, I’m sold, too…I already ate it all. Oops! 🙂
Wow! Beautiful whale shot! Never been whale watching will have to add to my things to do list. Chocolate+Nutella=Bliss!!!
Definitely add whale-watching to your bucket list, Tonya! It’s 100% worth the effort. I was literally standing there stunned the entire time. And this cake? Bliss is a great word to describe it! Thank you so much! 🙂
Forget about beating the rest of this cake into submission, I’d be using that spatula to swat at any and all hands reaching for a slice of this decadence! I adore me some chocolate and this is one of those recipes you should only post if you are willing to share – so I’m heading up to Upstate NYC – my spatula in hand! 🙂
Wow – what a trip y’all had – I’ve never been whale watching, but Lil Shashi and I have had our fill of dolphins off the Charleston and Savannah coastlines.
P.S. Tried out those chive and ginger waffles this weekend – with a couple minor tweaks like using teff flour and olive oil – and wow – they were phenomenal! Lil Shashi thoroughly enjoyed them – thanks for sharing that recipe and Happy Monday
I like the way you think, Shashi! Anyone coming close to my cake is going to get swatted! And I’m perfectly willing to share with you, Shashi. But you have to serve a round of guard duty with that swatter. Wait…what happens when you can’t trust the guard? 😉
Oh man, I do love me some dolphins in Charleston. Those were always the best. I’d ride my bike up to the Battery and look for dolphins out in the ocean! Also, I’m really glad you enjoyed those waffles. They are super fun! Post your version on the blog? Happy Tuesday, my ATL friend!
My husband, the girls and I, have gone whale watching twice, here in the northern coast, and it is an amazing experience! we were so humbled by the size of these gentle giants! Your glazed looks so good! I just want to eat half of your delicious cake 🙂
You are totally right, Gaila…whale watching is a humbling experience. Whales are such incredible creatures! Hey, you can have half of this cake…if I don’t swat you with the spatula when you swoop in to get a piece! Haha! 🙂
That sounds like such an amazing trip! Glad you guys got to finally see the whales! Delicious looking cake!
Thank you so much, Nancy! We did indeed have an amazing trip. And this cake? Well, it’s all gone. 🙂
I haven’t even read your post, but I am making this cake over the weekend! I’ve been contemplating making a chocolate pound cake for weeks and this is clearly a sign. I do have a different glaze in mind though. As always this looks amazing!! Now, I’m going to read your post. 🙂
Haha…this is definitely a sign, Tamara! Chocolate pound cake is where the cool kids are. Come join the party! 🙂
Whale watching sounds so amazing! I don’t think that I could eat 2,000 pounds of fish, but I think I could (even though I should not) eat 2,000 pounds of this chocolate pound cake! That Nutella glaze is so over the top incredible! Can I have Nutella and peanut butter? I don’t think I can choose!
2,000 pounds of chocolate pound cake is a lot of pound cake! But I bet we could divide and conquer. How about you take the first 1,000, and then I’ll finish it off. Deal? 🙂
Yum! Nutella glaze cake is an instant winner in my book! And I love weekend trips, we did one to Philly recently and it’s so much fun to just get away from the old haunts and see some new things.
I totally agree, Mary. Weekend trips are the best. Sometimes you just need to get away for a bit. We made a weekend trip down to Philly back in the early summer. It was an awesome trip! 🙂
Hi David! Chocolate pound cake OH YEAH! I was just thinking about what to make since I ate the last cookie at 3:00 this morning! All the desserts being posted lately are adding “insulation” to me in anticipation of winter! 🙂
3:00am? What in the world were you doing up eating cookies at 3:00am, Dorothy?? Haha! Pretty soon, I imagine I’ll be up at 3:00am…and I think eating cookies is the only respectable thing to be doing at that time of the night. Haha! Insulation is how we get through the winter up here. 🙂
Beautiful Bundt and beautiful footage too! In SA mating season (this time of year) in the Cape coastline is breathtaking too! Looks like you had an awesome time!!!
Oh man, I would love to get out there to SA sometime. I bet it is beautiful…especially in Autumn! We did indeed have a great time. Thanks so much, Johlene!
Wow, 2000 pounds of food per day?! That is truly incredible. I love chocolate but the idea of even 2000 pounds of chocolate per *decade* is alarming. This cake looks like a wonderful way to indulge a bit this holiday season!
Haha…2000 in a decade is only 200 in a year. And thats less than a pound a day. Totally more manageable, right? 🙂 Thank you so much!
That cake has a beautiful color, David. And it’s nice next to the dark icing. My interest is piqued by the Nutella-cocoa icing! I want a piece. When are they going to invent a computer screen that let’s you taste the food?
I completely agree with you, Jeff! We have drones that can deliver packages to your doorstep, but we dont have scratch-n-sniff computer screens. How annoying!
Wow, your whale watching experience sounds awesome- glad it worked out this time! This chocolate bundt looks delicious and I love the Nutella glaze 🙂
Thank you so much, Medha! We had an awesome time whale watching. And this pound cake is indeed delicious. I hope you’re having a great week so far! 🙂
wow whale watching sounds awesome! and this chocolate cake sounds even better!! loving the glaze David!
Thank you so much, Manali! Chocolate makes everything better, right?? 🙂
Wow! This looks amazing and the nutella glaze sounds amazing…i mean how could you go wrong with nutella? lol It looks like you had fun whale watching…i think i might need to try whale watching and this cake now!
I completely agree! Nutella is an amazing invention. And even more amazing when it ends up on top of a chocolate pound cake! Oh, and you should totally try whale watching…it’s an incredible experience! 🙂
Such great pictures of the whales and the cake! And yep…lots of chocolate lovers in my family. I’d better add this to the menu!
This cake just speaks the same language as chocoholics! And that Nutella glaze just adds a little something different in there. Thanks so much, Kathy!
Nutella. That is all. Haha, no, seriously, I can’t control myself around Nutella. Once that jar is open, that is IT!
Great whale photo! We went wale watching in Boston and it was incredible.
Hahaha…you’re right, Dannii! I might have had to sample the Nutella when I got it out of the cupboard…you know, just to make sure it was still good and all. Thanks!!
Whales? Without treats? What were you thinking, David? They won’t have the best playful mood unless you bring them some delicious pound cake. We tried that. Didn’t work. Besides, they really are the smart mammals. They read you blog (at least Canadian whales). You’re one of their favorite bloggers ever. Last time we just saw an ad saying them won’t be perfomyng without yours treats. So you should send me a food parcel or I won’t see any whales. Don’t you worry – I’m not going to eat anything #foodforwhales Please don’t send any lavender food since they don’t like it. Thanks!
Haha…whales eating pound cake is a funny idea, Ben. As delicious as it sounds, they seem to prefer loads of other food instead. Go figure…oh well, that just means more cake for us, right? 🙂 The Canadian whales are pretty smart…I mean they can read and all! I guess I should send you some whale food so you can give it to those Canadian whales. Too bad they like small fish and plankton instead of chocolate! (And how do you know whales don’t like lavender??)
We went whale watching off the coast of Victoria, British Columbia a few years ago. It was the highlight of our trip! So glad you finally got to see some whales. And the cake looks amazing. Nutella glaze is a brilliant idea!
I would love to get out to British Columbia sometime, Danelle! Thank you so much for the comment…and happy baking! 🙂
I bet the whale watching was a lot of fun! This cake looks incredible, David! Loving the Nutella glaze! 🙂
Thanks so much, Jess! We did indeed have a blast whale watching…and then eating cake! 🙂 Nutella makes everything better!
DUDE! I’m totally a chocoholic! …well, I pretty much love all dessert. Loving that nutella glaze. Would it be wrong to eat 2,000 pounds of that?
You can absolutely eat 2,000 pounds of this cake, Chris. Just make sure to swat it into submission with your spatula first. 🙂
I didn’t know you could whale-watch in Mass! That sounds amazing! How a 2 ton animal can be cute boggles my mind but I find whales adorable. And in completely unrelated news: I want to devour that ENTIRE cake. The whole thing. Mine. Pinned.
Yes you absolutely can go whale watching…in Gloucester (just north of Boston). It’s an amazing trip…and then you can swing by Salem, too. In unrelated news, if you come curling with me tonight, then I’ll make this cake for you. #JustSayin
Dude, I thought that video was off youtube- That is incredible!!!!!! I would have been tempted to jump in. Just kidding, I would push Niki in and see how they react. If it’s fine, I would then jump in 🙂 I want to go whale watching now…
I think I’ll make this pound cake and bribe them to come to me. Come whales….
Well, that video was off YouTube…but I took it! Ok, well actually our friend that we were with took that one. I have a lot of videos of absolutely still water…you just have to kind of get lucky when the whales decide to come out and say hello. I don’t think whales like chocolate, though…we might have to rethink this plan of yours…
2,000 pounds of fish a day is crazy, but what a cool video clip of the whale breaching up and out like that!
A few years back Dave and I and 2 other couples rented a 40′ catamaran in Sydney and sailed the Whitsunday Islands. So much fun, but when a whale slapped his/her tail alongside us I got a bit worried and then he (or she!) was gone. I kept waiting and hanging on for a bump, but nope. All safe.
This looks so good and I’ll take one slice, but with extra Nutella glaze please! #WolfPackWhalers
Wow! You guys actually went out sailing in Sydney. What an awesome trip! Sounds like the whales were just hanging out visiting you and your mates that day. They really are such incredible creatures! I’ll save you a slice of cake….but you gotta hurry! 🙂
I made your cake for Valentine’s Day, but with a Nutella ganache rather than your glaze. The cake was delicious and though I worried three cups of sugar would make it very sweet, I’m guessing the cocoa powder counteracts it. My husband loved it.. this was my first chocolate pound cake and it was a beautiful and easy-to-follow recipe. Thank you.
Hey Laurie! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, and I really appreciate you stopping back by to leave a comment. I haven’t made this cake in a while now, and I’m thinking I need to make it again soon! It’s hard to beat a good pound cake. And it’s hard to beat the chocolate + Nutella combo, too. Happy baking, my friend! 🙂