Kentucky Butter Cake
E
By Emma
Certified Culinary Professional
•
Recipe tested & approved
Rich bundt cake with deep buttery notes and a rum-infused glaze. Uses all-purpose flour, baking powder, and a touch of baking soda for tender crumb. Buttermilk keeps it moist and slightly tangy. Extracts add depth beyond simple vanilla. Sauce slow-warmed, never boiled, to keep buttery smoothness intact. Traditional bundt pan crucial for crust and soak. Cake’s texture soft but firm enough to hold sauce. Replace rum extract with bourbon or apple juice for twist. Results in 10 servings with 606 calories each, balanced carbs and fat. Reliable cake if you watch mixing and baking cues closely.
Prep:
15 min
Cook:
55 min
Total:
Servings:
10 servings
#American desserts
#buttery cake
#bundt cake
#rum flavor
#glaze cake
Listen, I’ve tinkered with buttery cakes for years and the trick’s in patience and knowing your stove. This cake’s a beast when done right—rich, buttery, soaked through. But the devil’s in the details. Cake batter should never be whipped to death; too much love wrecks texture. Rum and butter extracts slip in hints of complexity — splash bourbon if you like, adds a smoky note I didn’t expect at first. Baking at slightly lower temps helps avoid cracked tops and dry edges. And the sauce? Melt it slow, no bubbles, or it turns grainy fast. Pour it at just the right warmth and watch cake suck it up like a sponge. It’s a hands-on cake, feels alive, smells heavenly, crust golden and sticky at once.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 tsp rum extract (substitute with bourbon or apple juice concentrate)
- 1 tsp butter extract
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (for sauce)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (for sauce)
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 tsp rum extract (for sauce)
About the ingredients
Flour varies by brand—always sift or aerate. Baking soda balances buttermilk acidity but too much makes taste metallic; measure well. Softened butter’s essential, not melted or cold—room temp is your friend, 65-70°F ideal. Extracts bring extra layers; rum extract nails that southern vibe, but try bourbon or apple for a twist each time I try a variation the apple juice concentrate gives unexpected fruity note. Buttermilk adds moisture and a subtle tang, if missing, mix milk with lemon or vinegar as substitute. The sauce is a custard of sugar and butter but without eggs — must be gentle heating to stay tender without caramelizing too hard. Water adjusts viscosity—too little yields grainy, too much watery glaze.
Method
- Preheat oven to 320°F instead of 325°F; temperature drop slows crust formation and promotes softer rise. Grease and dust a 10-inch bundt pan thoroughly with flour; skip if using nonstick but grease well with butter. Shake out extra flour to avoid dry spots.
- Whisk together sugar and eggs in a large bowl. Add softened butter and beaten until light, fluffy, pale yellow - takes about 3 minutes with hand mixer on high speed. Creaming well traps air and avoids dense cake. Pour in rum and butter extracts along with buttermilk. Mix on medium-high until combined but don’t overdo — silky and airy, not soupy.
- Sift together flour, baking powder, and baking soda separately—no clumps tolerated. Add dry mix gradually, folding in or beating on low. Scrape sides with spatula often. The batter should feel slightly thick but pourable. Overmixing develops gluten; cake turns chewy, not tender. Avoid streaks but stop once uniform.
- Pour batter evenly into prepared bundt pan. Tap pan a few times on counter, releasing large air bubbles. Bake in center rack for 50 to 60 minutes. Don’t just rely on time—look for cake pulling slightly from sides, golden crust, and toothpick with moist crumbs still stuck but no wet batter.
- Allow cake to cool in pan for 15-20 minutes. Too hot sauce application melts crust; too cold cake won’t absorb syrup well. The cake will still be warm but sturdy to touch. Invert carefully onto wire rack or plate if ready; else remain in pan for sauce soak.
- For sauce, melt butter, sugar, water in medium saucepan over low-medium heat. Whisk gently. The sugar must dissolve without crystallizing; keep heat below simmering — watch for cracking tiny bubbles but never boil. Couple minutes—soft thick mixture, fully melted, glossy appearance.
- Remove pan from heat. Stir in rum extract for warmth and aroma. Reserve 1/3 cup of sauce aside for drizzling. Pour remaining hot sauce slowly over cake while it sits in bundt pan to take in maximum moisture. Wait 10-12 minutes, or until liquid fully absorbs. Don’t rush dunking or sauce will pool or slide off.
- Gently flip cake onto serving plate. Drizzle reserved sauce over top. Should glisten, give sticky but not soggy texture. Slice with serrated knife for cleaner cuts. Best served warm or room temp. Refrigerate leftovers tightly wrapped to maintain moist crumb.
Cooking tips
Start mixing by creaming butter and sugar with patience—no shortcuts here, think thick clouds forming. Adding eggs slowly avoids breaking emulsions. Don’t mix flour aggressively; folding or low speed beats gluten overdevelopment. Look for sides of bowl slick not flour-coated. Bake near center rack, away from hot vents that overbrown bundt’s outer edges. Pull cake before fully dry; slight wobble means moist inside. Sauce must never boil—watch closely, stirring constantly prevents crust or grit. Pour sauce while cake’s warm but not steaming to maximize soak; room temp means glaze slides off. Let cake rest upside down to prevent soggy bottom, slice only when slightly cool to hold shape. Use serrated knife. Test toothpick must come out cleanish but moist crumbs mean perfect crumb. Leftovers kept airtight can last days but avoid refrigeration if possible or cake gets dense.
Chef's notes
- 💡 Cream butter and sugar until pale fluffy clouds form. Don’t rush—takes minutes at medium-high speed with mixer. Air trapped here gives light crumb later. Eggs added slowly, beat well after each. Helps emulsion hold, avoid curdling. Warm butter soft—avoid melting; fridge cold ruins texture. Measuring flour sifted, no clumps allowed. Baking soda balances tang from buttermilk but too much tastes metallic. Fold flour gently, low speed only. Overmixing means chewy tough cake. Pour batter with thick but pourable consistency. Tap bundt pan on counter to pop big air bubbles—prevents gaps inside.
- 💡 Oven temp slightly lower at 320°F not usual 325 to slow crust setting. Cake rises softer, no cracking top or dry edges. Watch baking cues not just clock. Pull when sides pull back slightly and toothpick comes out with moist crumbs, no wet batter. Cool cake in pan 15-20 minutes minimum or crust melts with hot sauce. Sauce must not boil. Heat slow below simmer with sticky tiny bubbles only. Stir constantly to avoid gritty sugar crystals. Keep heat low to keep buttery smoothness not caramelized. Sauce thickens slowly, don’t rush pouring over warm cake, absorbs best.
- 💡 Substitutions work. Rum extract can be bourbon or strong apple juice concentrate. Gives interesting twist not obvious rum replacement. Buttermilk essential for moist crumb and subtle tang. Without it, use milk plus a squeeze lemon or vinegar standing 10 min. Butter softened but not melted. Melted butter makes cake dense or greasy. Grease bundt pan well, dust flour especially if no nonstick. Shake out excess flour so no dry spots. Helpful to tap pan after filling batter to settle and release large bubbles. Sauce made separately, reserve some for drizzle so balance between soaked cake and topping visual.
- 💡 Cake texture is key. Soft but firm enough holds sauce soak without soggy bottom. Flip carefully onto wire rack or plate only after partial cooling. Too hot, crust ruins and soggy mess. Slice only once coolish with serrated knife. Clean cuts, no tearing. Leftovers best wrapped airtight, fridge okay but may dry crumb. Room temp storage specifically keeps texture better but watch for spoilage at warm temps. Sauce texture changes fast if overheated—grainy if boiled, too watery if too much water added. Water quantity in sauce adjusts viscosity, keep near recipe proportions to avoid glaze running off or excess thickness.
- 💡 Watch sauce bubbles carefully—tiny cracking bubbles okay, big boil bubbles ruin smoothness. Sauce gloss shows melting butter and dissolved sugar done right. Pour sauce while cake in bundt pan to maximize soak time. Wait 10-12 min for full absorption. Don’t rush flipping cake to prevent sauce sliding off. Cake will glisten sticky but not soggy if timing right. Use serrated knife or cake knife for cleaner slices. Keep eye on crust texture and scent—it should smell buttery not burnt or sharp. Timing and heat control make or break final texture here.
Common questions
How to replace rum extract?
Bourbon extract or straight bourbon good alternative. Apple juice concentrate adds fruity vibe. Adjust volume less if stronger alcohol. Try small batch first. Keep in sauce or cake batter both work. Flavor changes but same method applies.
Why does my cake turn chewy?
Usually overmix flour part or too hot oven. Gluten develops if mixed too long or too fast. Batter is thick but still pourable state. Stop folding when flour just incorporated. Lower oven temp by few degrees if crust tough. Soft butter helps texture too.
Sauce got grainy after heating?
Overheat or boil breaks sugar dissolve and butter emulsion. Keep simmer low. Stir constantly. Tiny bubbles okay but no rapid boiling. If grainy, try gently remelting with splash water, stir thoroughly. Prevent by slow, gentle warming.
Best way to store leftovers?
Wrap airtight plastic or foil to keep moisture in crumb. Fridge keeps longer but cake can dry hard. Room temp good short term but cover to avoid crust drying. Sauce soaked cake keeps moist longer. Freeze possible but wrap tight and thaw slow.
