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Vanilla Bean Mini Bundt Cakes

Name: Vanilla Bean Mini Bundt Cakes
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: ½ cup toffee bits; 3 tablespoons brown sugar (packed); ½ teaspoon cinnamon; ½ tablespoon cocoa; ½ ounce semisweet chocolate (finely chopped); 1 cup all-purpose flour; ¾ teaspoon baking powder; ¼ teaspoon baking soda; ½ cup unsalted butter (room temperature); ¾ cup granulated sugar; 1 large egg (room temperature); ½ cup sour cream (room temperature); 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (for vanilla bean speckles or vanilla extract); ¾ cup confectioners’ sugar; ½ tablespoon Lyle’s golden syrup or corn syrup; 1-2 tablespoons water; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 2 tablespoons cocoa; ¾ cup confectioners’ sugar; ½ tablespoon Lyle’s golden syrup or corn syrup; 1 tablespoon water; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

By Wendy Sondov · Published: Sep 29, 2015 · Modified: Jan 1, 2023 · This post may contain affiliate links · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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Vanilla Bean Mini-Bundt Cakes are the perfect size for one person celebrations or, when feeding a crowd, for everyone to have their own cake. Under the double drizzle of chocolate and vanilla icing is a fluffy vanilla bean cake and a crunchy chocolate-toffee filling.

Closeup of Vanilla Bean Mini-Bundt Cake topped with chocolate and vanilla drizzle and toffee bits.

Why you'll love this recipe

These mini bundt cakes are adapted from a recipe in “Sweet Times” by Dorie Greenspan, published in 1991. The same sour cream bundt cake with a few changes also appears in her 2006 cookbook, “Baking: From My Home to Yours”.

In the 1991 recipe, a layer of filling is sprinkled onto the bottom of the cake. In the 2006 recipe, the filling stays inside the cake, but instead of vanilla, the cake is flavored with orange.

This recipe is a combination of the two cookbook recipes, with a few of my own edits and re-sized for use with a 6-mold mini-bundt pan.

I stuck with the original vanilla cake and upped the flavor using vanilla paste to speckle the cake with vanilla bean bits. I substituted pecans with an equal amount of toffee bits.

The vanilla bean, chocolate, and toffee flavors are wonderful together and, though some of the toffee melts into the cake, some of the toffee stays crunchy.

For those with nut allergies who cannot eat packaged toffee bits (which contain almonds), an easy recipe for homemade toffee is included with the Biscoff Oatmeal Cookies recipe.

Interior of a mini bundt cake with a piece of cake on a fork.

Instructions

This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the recipe card below.

In a small bowl, combine the filling ingredients.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and baking soda.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar for 4 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat for 2 minutes. Add the sour cream and vanilla and beat for 2 minutes. Mix in the flour mixture at the lowest speed, just until combined.
Spoon about 4 tablespoons of batter into each mini-bundt mold. Use a butter knife to even out and smooth the batter. Sprinkle the chocolate-toffee filling (about 1 tablespoon) on top of the batter. Gently spoon the remaining batter on top of the filling (about 4 tablespoons into each mold) and use a butter knife to smooth the surface.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Storage

When stored at room temperature in an airtight container, the texture of these little cakes is moist and fluffy for up to 5 days. The flavors are best on days 2-3.

Vanilla Bean Mini-Bundt Cakes with Chocolate-Toffee Crunch close-up showing drizzle and toffee bits.

Tips

Be sure to both grease and flour each mini bundt mold for easy removal and no sticking.
Change the toffee for holiday sprinkles to dress up these cakes for any occasion and turn them into impressive holiday desserts.
The crunchy toffee bits in this recipe can be substituted with equal amount of chopped nuts.

Cakes sprinkled with multi-colored dot sprinkles for any occasion on top of decorative drizzle.

Cakes sprinkled with fall leaf sprinkles over decorative drizzle.

Cakes sprinkled with dot sprinkles in Christmas colors.

For lots of vanilla bean flavor in a crunchy, melt in your mouth butter cookie you can't beat Vanilla Bean Shortbread Cookies.

Coconut Milk Cake is a quick and easy snack cake with a delicous moist and tender crumb.

Coconut Chocolate Chip Loaf Cake is another irresistible recipe using coconut milk that would be welcome at any occasion.

Tea Brack is a traditional Irish quick bread full of plump, sweet raisins.

Cherry Bread is both tasty and pretty with bright red cherries and shiny pink cherry glaze.

Closeup of the chocolate and vanilla stripes of drizzle on a mini bundt cake.

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