¼ cup strong coffee (mostly for color - you can just use buttermilk if preferred)
1 tablespoon vanilla
2½ cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
⅛ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa
1 tablespoon "Special Dark" cocoa (or use regular cocoa and a little black food coloring)
Green food coloring
FUDGE COATING:
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons corn syrup
2 cups powdered sugar
6 ounces chocolate (chocolate chips are okay)
DECORATIONS (optional)
Crushed chocolate cookies (remove filling first if using sandwich cookies)
Green candy melts to make trees
Plastic or chocolate deer, ducks, hunters, etc.
Instructions
Heat oven to 350 F. Line a large loaf pan with parchment. Spray any uncovered surface with baking spray (or grease and flour the exposed area). This recipe was made with a 10"x5" loaf pan. If your pan is smaller, don't fill more than ⅔ full. Make a few cupcakes if you have leftover batter.
In a large bowl beat butter and sugar together for 3-4 minutes, scraping the side of the bowl often.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating 30 seconds with each addition. Scrape the bowl!
Combine buttermilk, coffee, and vanilla.
In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Alternately add flour and liquids, beginning with ⅓ of the flour, stirring well, then add ⅓ of the liquid. Repeat until all has been added. Mix until well combined.
Remove 1 cup of the batter and place in a small bowl. Fold in 1 tablespoon dark cocoa.
Divide the remaining batter between 3 small bowls. Add 2 teaspoons regular cocoa to one bowl, add green food coloring to one bowl (add a touch of cocoa or orange color if you want to make a khaki color) and leave the last bowl as it is. You will have dark brown, light brown, green, and cream/tan.
The first layer: using a small spoon, drop dollops of green, light brown, and cream batter in a random pattern in the prepared loaf pan. Place dark batter in a piping bag or sturdy food storage bag with the tip cut off and add long, skinny shapes here and there. Fill in some low places, climb the side of the pan - just don't use too much of it in one spot.
The second layer: repeat, taking care to fill in any low places. Tap the bottom of the pan on a hard surface and gently smooth the top. The colors will smear together on top, but that's fine.
Bake for approximately 75 minutes. Ovens vary, so check the cake at 1 hour by inserting a skewer into the center next to the crack (which is perfectly normal for a pound cake, by the way). If the skewer has batter or a lot of sticky crumbs on it, give the cake more time. It takes a long time to cook a pound cake in a loaf pan, and the edges may get a little dark before it's done. I just use a serrated blade to trim them if necessary.
Cool the pan on a baking rack for 10 minutes before lifting the cake out.
FUDGY COATING: In a small pot, combine water, corn syrup, and powdered sugar. Stir over medium heat until hot but not bubbling. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate. Spread over cake and decorate as desired.
Recipe by The Rowdy Baker at http://www.therowdybaker.com/?p=6593