Drizzled in a mouthwatering salted caramel sauce, this Kentucky Bourbon Butter Cake is the ultimate dessert! So easy to make, this indulgent treat combines delicious buttery flavor with a bourbon-infused sauce for maximum flavor.
This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Affiliate, if you purchase through those links, I earn a small commission. Thank you! Read our disclosure policy here.
If you're looking for a delicious and decadent cake recipe, this bourbon butter cake is an excellent choice! It features classic southern flavors that will be the perfect ending to any cozy family dinners or an indulgent treat to enjoy with your morning cup of coffee.
Why This Recipe Works
Featuring common ingredients that you probably have on hand, this butter cake recipe is perfect for even a beginner baker! It's so easy to make and results in a bakery-quality dessert.
Rich and buttery, this cake uses bourbon for a kick of flavor that gives this treat a Kentucky twist. Topped with a butter sauce and bourbon-infused salted caramel drizzle, this cake will get you so many rave reviews!
And if you can't get enough of tasty cake recipes, try my Banana Crumb Coffee Cake for breakfast or brunch and this Peach Loaf Cake as another dessert or sweet afternoon treat!
Ingredients Needed
- Unsalted Butter
- Sugar
- Bourbon: The buttery drizzle that gives this cake its rich flavor is infused with bourbon for lots of sweet and woody flavor.
- Dry Ingredients: All-purpose flour, baker powder, and salt.
- Large Eggs: Room temperature
- Vanilla Extract
- Buttermilk: Using buttermilk adds a slightly tangy flavor and leads to a moist and tender cake.
- Heavy Cream: Gives the sauce a rich and thick texture.
- Sea Salt: Balances the sweet and buttery flavor of this home caramel sauce.
How to Make this Kentucky Butter Cake
- Step 1: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan.
- Step 2: Add sugar and water and mix until well combined.
- Step 3: Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Step 4: Remove from heat and add the bourbon, then stir and set aside.
- Step 5: In a separate large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt
- Step 6: Cream together the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer, then add eggs and vanilla.
- Step 7: Add 1/3 of the combined dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well on medium speed.
- Step 8: Add 1/3 of the buttermilk and mix well, then repeat the pattern with the rest of the flour and milk.
- Step 9: Pour batter into a prepared pan (a Bundt pan works best), smoothing the top of the batter to be as even as possible.
- Step 10: Bake for an hour or until a toothpick comes out clean. Use a serrated knife to flatten the top.
- Step 11: Use some kind of chopstick or the back of a wooden spoon to poke holes in the top of the baked cake.
- Step 12: Pour half of the butter sauce over the cake, allow it to sit for 5 minutes, and soak in, then add the rest of the sauce. Remove the cake from the pan and drizzle with bourbon caramel sauce.
Recipe Tips
- Instead of using vegetable shortening with flour or cooking spray, Homemade Pan Release is another great option.
- If you don't have buttermilk, mix a cup of whole milk with a tablespoon of white vinegar, then wait about 5 minutes.
- The bourbon is optional for both the butter sauce and the caramel drizzle! This cake will still be perfectly delicious without it.
- Don't overmix the batter or the cake might end up more tough than you want it.
- The buttery caramel sauce is entirely optional as well and the cake can be served with just the butter sauce.
Recipe FAQ's
Because the bourbon is added to the butter sauce after it's already been cooked, there is a small amount of alcohol in this cake. It's not enough to have any real effect, but it gives the butter sauce an extra punch of flavor!
This cake gets its name not only from the butter in the batter, but also from the delicious melted butter sauce that soaks into the cake for extra moisture and flavor.
A pound cake is a slightly drier and denser cake that combines equal parts flour, butter, sugar, and eggs. This butter cake has more ingredients and has a slightly lighter and more tender texture, and often includes a melted butter drizzle.
Make sure to follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest for all my latest recipes!
Kentucky Bourbon Butter Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
Butter Sauce
- ½ cup butter unsalted
- 2 tablespoon water
- 1 cup sugar granulated
- ¼ cup bourbon optional
For The Cake
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt table
- 1 cup butter unsalted, softened
- 2 cup sugar granulated
- 4 eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk room temperature
Caramel Glaze
- 1 cup white granulated sugar
- 5 tablespoon butter unsalted
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ tablespoon bourbon optional
Instructions
For The Butter Sauce
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.
- Add the sugar and water, bring to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Remove from the heat and mix in the bourbon, and set aside.
For The Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Thoroughly spray a fluted bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray and dust lightly with flour. Set aside.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set this aside.
- Add the butter to a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or a large bowl and use a hand mixer and mix on medium speed for 1 minute.
- Add the granulated sugar and mix on medium speed for 3 minutes. The batter will have the texture of thick wet sand.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing them low to incorporate.
- Add the vanilla extract.
- Remove the bowl and alternately fold in flour and buttermilk, ⅓ at a time, until everything is combined. The batter will come together and have the texture of soft serve ice cream.
- Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan. Smooth the top of the batter as evenly as possible.
- Bake at 325 in the middle of the oven for 60 minutes, until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. If the top is browning at the halfway point, loosely cover with foil.
- When fully cooked, remove from the oven and cool for 20 minutes.
- Once slightly cooled, using a serrated knife flush and parallel to the edge of the cake pan, trim any doming of the cake that occurred during the cooking process. Just level the cake with this trimming, and don’t be concerned as this trimming is the “bottom” of the cake.”
- Using a round chopstick or small wooden skewer, poke holes [in the “bottom” of the trimmed cake] and slowly pour ½ the butter sauce into the holes. Allow to soak for 5 minutes.
- After 5 minutes, pour the remaining butter sauce over the cake. Let it soak for five more minutes, then invert it onto a serving platter or cake stand.
For The Caramel Glaze
- In a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat, add the granulated sugar.
- Swirl the pan occasionally, allowing the sugar to melt, and come to a boil for 6-7 minutes.
- Once the sugar is golden amber in color (the color of honey), reduce the temperature to low and add in the butter.
- *NOTE* This will cause the melted sugar to bubble and steam violently!
- Continue whisking in the butter until completely melted.
- Slowly add the heavy cream to the caramel sauce.
- Continue whisking on low heat and simmer for 3-5 minutes until smooth.
- *NOTE* When the heavy cream is added, the caramel sugar may seize a bit; this is normal. Keep it on the low heat, slowly stirring constantly to break up the pieces. Once it comes back to a simmer, it will smooth out.
- Remove from heat and add the fine sea salt and bourbon, if desired.
- *Note*: If you add the bourbon, the caramel will bubble again.
- Allow the caramel to rest/cool to room temperature while baking the cake. The caramel will thicken more as it cools.
- Drizzle with the caramel sauce when ready; this cake is best served at room temperature.
Notes
- Homemade Pan Release also works well, unlike cooking spray or vegetable shortening with flour.
- Don't have buttermilk? Measure 1 cup of whole milk and add one tablespoon of white vinegar. Mix and allow to sit for at least 5 minutes before using.
- Bourbon is totally optional to use.
Leave a Reply