I finally purchased a bundt pan for the first time because I really wanted to make a red velvet bundt cake for Valentine’s Day this year. However, it’s a bit torturous since I am still in the throes of a health challenge where we can only indulge in sweets one day a week, I’ve got six days to dream up what lovely bundt cake pan dessert I will be enjoying for that one day of the week. When browsing bundt pan recipes, I came across a recipe for a gorgeous phyllo torte that was filled with ricotta cheese, spring greens, ham and mozzarella cheese that would be so great for a brunch. It looked so beautiful with all its flaky layers and I realized how useful the bundt pan would be in all kinds of savory ways. 

I researched all sorts of recipes and other ways to use the bundt pan and wanted to share five of my favorite ideas with you today. I love the bundt pan because it makes everything look fancy. I am all about recipes that look fancy and like you spent the whole day in the kitchen, but didn’t at all! I hope you enjoy and maybe even try some of these ideas.

1. Make a Giant Round Sandwich

Make a large sandwich out of it by baking two packets of refrigerated French bread dough and top it with whatever you want! You could go for something like a big BLT sandwich--ham, crispy bacon, lettuce and tomatoes or an Italian meatball sub, chicken parmesan sandwich, etc.

2. Bake a Pull-Apart Pizza Bread

This recipe is really similar to monkey bread, but you will use pizza dough and pizza toppings instead. Make up a little dipping sauce with butter, oil, and seasonings and use store-bought or homemade pizza dough chunks to dip in the sauce and add to a big bowl. Mix in your favorite pizza toppings like pepperoni, cheese, mushrooms, fresh basil, etc. Bake it up and once the bread is out of the oven, the hole in the bundt pan leaves a perfect spot to add a little bowl of warmed marinara sauce for dipping.

3. Make a Crispy Roasted Chicken

There is almost nothing better than a perfectly roasted chicken--the only downside is that if you make it the traditional way, the whole bottom of the chicken doesn’t get crispy, since it is cooking in the juices of the pan. You are usually missing out on the thigh skin getting nice and crispy. Not anymore, friends! Have you ever heard of roasting a turkey on a soda or beer can? You can do this same concept by propping your chicken up and roasting it upright with the cavity of the chicken covering the tube hole in the center to the bundt pan (which you will cover with a good layer of tin foil first). The bundt pan brings double duty this time since you can roast your chicken on top and add a layer of potatoes, carrots and onions on the bottom of the pan, which will get seasoned and cooked with the drippings from the chicken. Genius idea!

4. Make a Layered Gelatin Mold

If you’ve got a decent amount of patience and a desire to bring a show stopping side dish to a party, try making a layered gelatin mold dessert. You can choose to make it boozy or not at all. Either way, it is sure to impress guests! Just know that it takes about 3 hours to get this guy ready--a lot of that is down time, but you still have to poke your jello mold every few minutes and pour in all of the layers very carefully to get the desired effect. 

5. Make a Giant Ice Ring for Punch

Make a giant ice ring for a big punch bowl with your bundt pan. This method actually helps the ice melt slower, which makes for tastier punch for your guests and less work for you to do as a host. It also gives you a chance to add any decorative things for the ice like berries, slices of citrus, etc.

Do you have any other ideas for using a bundt pan in unique ways other than for a cake? Please share your thoughts in the comments below! I’m off to make a giant BLT and I would rather not disclose how much of the whole thing I will be eating myself ;)