Valentine Raspberry Chocolate Fudge Red Velvet Cake

Ingredients

• 1 (18.25 ounce) box red velvet cake mix*
• 1 (3.9 ounce) box instant chocolate fudge pudding and pie filling mix
• 1 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup creme de cocoa or raspberry liqueur or brandy
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 4 jumbo or extra-large eggs (at room temperature)
• 1 (12 ounce) jar seedless raspberry jam
• Vanilla Buttercream Frosting, Old-fashioned 7-Minute Icing or Chocolate Fudge Frosting

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, combine cake mix, pudding mix, water, creme de cocoa or raspberry liqueur or brandy and oil; add eggs and beat at medium speed of an electric mixer for 4 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Fold in pecans. Spoon into two wax paper-lined greased 9-inch wide heart-shaped layer pans or one greased and floured 10-inch Bundt or tube pan.
3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes (heart-shape layer pans) or 45 minutes (tube or Bundt pan) or until a cake tester inserted into the cake layers or cake comes out clean.
4. Let cake or cake layers cool for 10 minutes in pan(s), top side up for tube cake and upside down for Bundt cake.
5. Turn out onto wire rack(s) to finish cooling.
6. For heart-shaped cake, arrange one layer on a cake serving plate. Evenly spread raspberry jam over cake layer. Top with second layer. Evenly spread top and sides with frosting of choice.
7. For tube or Bundt, spread frosting of choice over top and sides of cake. Sprinkle decorative confectioners' red sugar over cake as desired.

Notes

* 18.25 ounce boxes of cake mix have been replaced by 16.5 ounce and 15.25 ounce boxes. To compensate for the volume loss in a 16 ounce box, whisk 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour into the dry cake mix before proceeding with the recipe. To compensate for the volume loss in a 15.25 ounce box, add 1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour and 1/4 teaspoon baking powder.