Slow Cooker Hot Fudge Banana Split Cake

For the past few months I've been on the hunt for some new slow cooker recipes. I had recently found a minty chocolate slow cooker cake that had my name written all over it so I made it this past Sunday for the family. Weeelll, there was a typo in the recipe apparently. It clearly said to cook this cake for 4 to 4 1/2 hours on High in my slow cooker. Being a 'Type A/follow the rules' kinda gal I did what the recipe said. It was my first time 'baking' a cake in a slow cooker and the recipe was in a magazine so who was I to question it? After 3 hours of cooking, out of my slow cooker wafted a nasty burning smell and, alas, my cake was a black, hardened MESS! I was so not happy and had 3 kids (plus one hubby) who were pretty disappointed.

I'd just like to note that I don't consider myself to be a stupid person. I have loads of edumacation to prove it! You'd think that something in my brain would have kicked in and said "Psst! Laurie, isn't 4 hours on high probably too long to cook a cake?". But no my brain didn't pick up on that little tidbit which leads me to plead the Chocolate Stupidity defence. It's a real defence (in my world). "Chocolate Stupidity" is when the perceived and expected indulgence of chocolaty delight greatly decreases the brain's power to reason and think clearly. Sadly, I had a scorching case of Chocolate Stupidity (as well as Ice Cream Idiocy and Whipped Cream Weak-Mindedness). That's my case and I'm stickin' to it!

That was 2 days ago and I've been haunted by the slow cooker cake debacle ever since! My Type A brain just couldn't get over it! To purge myself of my cake demons I went on the hunt for a better recipe. With some tweaks and some fingers crossed I made another slow cooker cake today ... and it was fan-freakintastically delicious!!!! We're talking foodgasm good!

With this new cake you have the light (not too rich) chocolate cake and underneath the cake is a hot chocolaty sauce (which you pour over the cake when serving). Topped with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream and some banana and strawberry slices and you've got a keeper!!!! Phew! Cake Fiasco Demon be gone! I have redeemed myself!

Cooking spray
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tbsp cocoa
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
2 tbsp light olive oil (I used grapeseed oil)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup cocoa
2 tsp instant coffee granules
1 1/2 cups boiling water

Garnish
2 large bananas, sliced
2 cups strawberries, sliced
Whipped cream
Vanilla ice cream
Maraschino cherries

Spray the slow cooker dish with cooking spray. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, white sugar, 2 tbsp cocoa, baking powder and the salt. In a small bowl, combine milk, olive oil and vanilla. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Scrape batter into the recently greased slow cooker dish and smooth the top.

In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, 1/4 cup cocoa and the instant coffee granules. Whisk in the boiling water. Pour over the cake batter -- do not mix!! It'll look like a giant mud puddle and that's what you want!

Cover and cook on High for approximately 1 hour (or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean). Turn off the crockpot, remove the lid and let the cake cool for 30 minutes.

Scoop out the warm cake and sauce into bowls. Top with banana slices, strawberry slices, vanilla ice cream, whipped cream and, of course, a cherry to top it all off!

Recipe inspired by: Rachael Ray's 'Hot Fudge Sundae Cake'