Recipe: Kentucky Bourbon Cake (Bundt cake, 1960's Pillsbury Bake-Off)

KENTUCKY BOURBON CAKE

"Move over, shortcake! This buttermilk Bundt cake, drenched in a boozy bourbon glaze, is a great vehicle for whipped cream and strawberries. Kentucky Bourbon Cake was the prize-winning entry by Nell Lewis at the 1963 Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest in Platte City, Missouri."



FOR THE CAKE:
3 cups sifted cake flour (12 ounces)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup unsalted butter (8 ounces), room temperature
1 1/2 cups white granulated sugar (10 1/2 ounces)
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar (3 3/4 ounces)
4 eggs, at room temperature
1/4 cup bourbon
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature

FOR THE BOURBON GLAZE:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter (3 ounces)
3/4 cup white granulated sugar (5 1/4 ounces)
1/4 cup bourbon

Center an oven rack and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 10-cup fluted metal tube pan.

TO MAKE THE CAKE:
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl, then whisk the mixture by hand to ensure that the ingredients are well mixed.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the 1 cup butter and 1 1/2 cup white and brown sugar together on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes.

As you make the batter, stop the mixer frequently and scrape the paddle and the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Blend in the eggs one at a time.

Combine the 1/4 cup bourbon and buttermilk in a small bowl. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the buttermilk-bourbon mixture in two parts, beginning and ending with the flour. After each addition, mix until just barely blended and stop and scrape the bowl.

Stop the mixer before the last of the flour has been incorporated and complete the blending by hand with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it out evenly.

Place the prepared pan in the oven and bake until the cake is golden and springs back when touched, 40 to 45 minutes.

MEANWHILE, TO MAKE THE GLAZE:
Make the glaze by combining the 6 tablespoons butter, 3/4 cup white sugar, and 1/4 cup bourbon in a small saucepan over low heat just until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves, whisking to combine.

TO GLAZE THE CAKE:
Remove the cake from the oven but leave it in the pan. Poke holes all over the top of the cake with a wooden skewer. Pour three-quarters of the glaze slowly over the cake, saving the remaining glaze. Allow the cake to cool for 30 minutes, then flip it out onto a serving plate so the glazed part is on the bottom. Brush the top with the remaining glaze. If the glaze has thickened, rewarm it over low heat.

Makes 1 Bundt cake, 10-12 servings
Adapted from source: Vintage Cakes by Julie Richardson