Never Tried Michigan’s Famous Bumpy Cake? You’re Not Alone!

Sanders Confectionary has been serving up one of Michigan's most decadent desserts for over 100 years.

Well, at least for the time being.

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Michiganders across the state were recently rushing to their nearest Meijer store to snatch up as many Bumpy Cakes as they possibly could after the confectionary company announced they were still searching, albeit unsuccessfully, for a new baking partner.

I promise you I was born and raised in Michigan, so how has this confectionary delight known as "Bumpy Cake" escaped me all these years? I'll be the first to admit that I don't have a very big sweet tooth. In fact, I haven't tried the famous Bill Knapp Celebration Cake either. I'm curious though, why do Michiganders seem to love cake so much?

Sanders Candy

The Detroit-based chocolate company was first founded in 1875 by Fred Sanders. According to the company's website,

Sanders products and chocolate shoppes were woven into the lives of Michigan families. Sanders® soon became the leading source of confections in the region and started selling directly to national supermarket chains, as well as to other retailers in the Detroit area.

By the 1950s Sanders operated over 57 locations throughout the Great Lakes area serving ice cream sodas, hot fudge cream puffs, and candies. In later years Fred's great-grandson grew the family operation to include 111 malls and grocery stores nationwide.

However, one of Sanders' lasting legacies was his "Bumpy Cake" which was actually made by mistake!

Bumpy Cake

According to the Historical Society of Michigan, it all started with a chocolate cake, a favorite of Fred's father. Fred hoped to improve upon the generic cake by topping it with a decadent chocolate ganache and buttery frosting but unfortunately ran out of frosting mid-way through his experiment.

Instead, he put long strips of frosting atop the cake and covered that with the ganache which gave the cake an irregular or "bumpy" appearance. Adds the Historical Society of Michigan,

When people came into the store to buy that cake, they called it the “cake with bumps” or “bumpy cake.” So Fred called it Chocolate Bumpy Cake.

Thus, Bumpy Cake was born!

Today only 3 Sanders retail stores remain in Michigan in Clinton Township, Rochester, and Mackinac Island, but thankfully they've grown to include online sales and will ship your Bumpy Cake anywhere in the U.S.!

That is, until the supply runs out.

Read the full statement from Sanders here.