Mini Vanilla Bundt Cakes

Congratulations 2021 graduates!  For me, graduation season started the first weekend in May when my youngest graduated from Georgia College and will continue all the way into into June when my nephew graduates from high school.🎓  It does my heart good to see all of these hard working graduates get the ceremonies and celebrations they deserve after so many graduation events were cancelled and postponed in 2020.  Celebrate your accomplishments graduates - you did it.  🎉

​There are a lot of different ways to commemorate academic achievement.  In our family - we celebrate with food.  This shouldn't come as a surprise - after all,  we celebrate ALL holidays and major life events with food in this house.  (I think it's an Italian tradition. 🤷🏻‍♀️😅) When my kids brought home exceptional report cards from elementary school, we rewarded them with a trip to the ice cream store. 🍦When they had a win on the baseball or soccer field, we went out for ice cream with the team.  And when we added a new puppy to our family, we took her to the ice cream store for a canine treat as soon as she was able. 🐶Anyone seeing a trend here?  😂🍨

I feel like I possess a limited number of useful skills but I am a master at coming up with excuses to consume more sugar. 😅I feel like every life event is made more meaningful when celebrated with sugar.  I'm the girl who's been known to just show up with a surprise cake to a birthday party if I feel like there's a need for a commemorative dessert. 🎂 After all, is it really a birthday party without cake?  🎂

So if you're a sugar addict like me or you just like to memorialize special days with cake and ice cream - I've got just the recipe for you.  These mini bundt cakes are the perfect little treat if the occasion calls for dessert for a small family gathering.  They're also perfect to serve at events where slicing and serving a big, layer cake isn't convenient.  🍰  Think of these mini bundt cakes as a fancier, more elegant and more modern version of a cupcake.  

Mini Vanilla Bundt Cakes
12 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
3/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 Tablespoon vanilla 
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons milk, room temperature

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2-4 Tablespoons milk

Beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. 

Beat in baking powder and salt. 

Beat in 1 of the eggs.  

Mix in 2 T. flour, followed by another egg. Repeat until all 3 eggs are incorporated.

Add extracts to milk.  

Add remaining flour to batter in 3 batches, alternating with milk.  

Scoop batter into a greased mini bundt pan.  

Bake 19 minutes at 350. 

Loosen the edges of the cakes and invert onto a rack to cool.  Remove cakes from pan after 10 minutes.  

Combine glaze ingredients.  

Drizzle glaze over cakes. 

For a girl who craves chocolate on a daily basis - this vanilla cake with vanilla glaze is not something that I would normally be drawn towards, but with that being said - I could not stop eating these bundt cakes.  They're sooo good.  The vanilla cake is super soft, moist and flavorful the glaze adds just enough sweetness to make them irresistible.  They're delicious - trust me!

Ciao!

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