Root Beer — It’s Not Just For Drinking
One of my fondest memories as a teenager is the jolting brain freeze I’d get slurping an A&W root beer float after spending the afternoon playing tennis with my older brothers.
The frosty mug of root beer and soft-serve vanilla ice cream went down sweet, slightly bitter, and creamy. I was usually so thirsty that I couldn’t help but take that first gulp big and fast. The coldness would race up my nose to the middle of my eyes, forcing them shut with part pleasure and part pain. For a kid, it was the ultimate reward after all that running around after a fuzzy, bouncing ball.
Nowadays, I can’t remember the last time I picked up a tennis racket. And I long gave up root beer floats in an ode to try to be more health conscious.
But when I saw the photo of Root Beer Bundt Cake in the new “Baked” cookbook (Stewart, Tabori & Chang) by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito, I knew I had to make it. There’s root beer in both the chocolate cake and the chocolate frosting.
The root beer flavor is pretty subtle in the resulting cake, one of the moistest I’ve had in a long time. One slice is all it takes to bring me back to my teen years. But this time, without the brain freeze.
For the recipe and my cookbook review on ProjectFoodie, click here.
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November 22nd, 2008 at 12:57 pm
I have to go buy some root beer and give this cake a try! Looks amazing!
November 22nd, 2008 at 2:06 pm
I highly recommend the artisan Virgil’s Root Beer at Trader Joe’s If you find any other outstanding root beers, do tell.
November 22nd, 2008 at 4:48 pm
WOW!! I love that there is root beer in the frosting too. I am going to bookmark this and try it sometime!
November 22nd, 2008 at 5:18 pm
This looks good and inspire me to make steamed cake that is typically leavened by lemon-lime soda… and replaced it with root beer. Thanks for the inspiration
November 22nd, 2008 at 8:15 pm
Hi Carolyn!
Wonderful recipe and memories. Perhaps no more tennis but the fondness for the root beer still there
I’ll put in must-do list to give this tasty cake a try!
Gera .:. sweetsfoods
November 23rd, 2008 at 8:37 am
This cake has everything, pure joy! Love the flavor combo and it looks fantastic!
November 23rd, 2008 at 11:43 am
my room mates and i usually do this with boxed cake mixes and sprite since we’re poor college students trying to save a few bucks
yours looks great-and so moist! must try root beer next 
November 24th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
I’m not a soda drinker, but I do break for root beer. This sounds lip-smacking.
November 25th, 2008 at 12:41 pm
I so need to make this when Root Beer Float day comes around again.
November 26th, 2008 at 12:39 am
Yum! For the first time I’m wishing I had my bundt pan. Lost somewhere in the storage units of you-know-who.
November 27th, 2008 at 9:56 am
Stylegal, ya mean our dear friend Barb who lives in Shanghai without an oven has your bundt pan? Too funny!
November 28th, 2008 at 11:07 pm
I believe you or lori (or ken or mike or jeffie) may have had a hand in packing it away, oh, 13 or so years ago! Ii might have to just splurge and get another one so I can bake this cake.
December 14th, 2008 at 4:38 am
Mechanical engineers and students gathered Thursday evening to watch small vehicles zip around the Garden Court as part of the Payload Drop competition. The competition was hosted by the BYU chapter of the American Society of Mechanical