Salted Caramel Kentucky Butter Cake
A rich, moist Bundt cake with a brown-butter twist, soaked in bourbon butter sauce and finished with a glossy salted caramel glaze that clings to every curve.
Equipment
- Bundt Pan
- Light-colored saucepan
- Heat-safe bowl
- Stand mixer with paddle attachment
- Medium bowl
- Whisk
- Cooling Rack
- Long skewer
- Aluminum Foil
Ingredients
Butter Cake
- 3 cups all-purpose flour (360 grams)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup unsalted butter (softened)
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 4 eggs (large)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk (room temperature)
Bourbon Butter Sauce
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
- 1/4 cup bourbon
Salted Caramel Glaze
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup confectioners' sugar
Instructions
Brown the butter, then prep the pan and dry mix
- Brown the butter for the cake and sauce in a light-colored saucepan, cooking until it smells nutty and turns golden brown. Pour it into a heat-safe bowl and let it cool until it is soft enough to cream, not melted.
- Place a rack in the center of your oven. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit 20 minutes before baking your cake. Spray pan thoroughly with baking spray and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder and set aside.
Cream, mix, and build a tender batter
- Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter on medium speed for one minute, or until smooth and creamy. Add granulated sugar, and continue to cream on medium speed for 3 minutes.
- Add eggs one at a time, mixing on low only until incorporated. Slowly mix in vanilla extract, and stop as soon as everything looks unified.
- With the mixer on low, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk in thirds. Stir ingredients after each addition but only until just combined, then scrape down the sides so no pockets of flour hide.
Bake the Bundt, then cool it correctly
- Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Tap the pan on the counter a few times to remove any air bubbles.
- Bake for approximately 60 minutes. Halfway through the baking time, loosely cover the pan with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning.
- Once a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, your cake is done.
Soak with bourbon butter sauce, then finish with salted caramel glaze
- First, melt the butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add water, granulated sugar, and brown sugar, bring everything to a boil and then simmer for five minutes, stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat, and pour in the bourbon.
- Once the cake is finished, set the pan on a cooling rack. Use a long skewer to poke holes all over the warm cake, it should still be in the pan.
- Very slowly, pour the sauce over the cake, allowing it to soak in. Cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil and allow the cake to sit at room temperature for 3 hours, up to overnight.
- Combine the butter, brown sugar, heavy cream, and salt in a medium saucepan. Stirring constantly, heat the mixture over medium-high heat until it begins to boil, then keep stirring as it boils for one minute.
- Remove the mixture from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract and confectioner's sugar. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and no lumps remain.
- Once boiling, whisk the mixture for 1 minute as it thickens. Remove the mixture from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract and confectioner's sugar, then whisk until smooth.
- Pour the caramel glaze over the cooled cake and garnish with candied pecans if desired.
Notes
Brown the butter until it smells nutty and looks golden, not dark. Pour the bourbon butter sauce slowly so it absorbs into the holes, then let the cake rest at room temperature for the full 3 hours (or overnight) for deeper flavor.
Nutrition information is estimated based on common ingredients and serving sizes and may vary.