Kentucky Bourbon Cake
Description
Kentucky bourbon cake is a deliciously dense fruit cake that's brushed with bourbon and wrapped in a bourbon-soaked cheesecloth for a festive treat.
Ingredients
•
2 cups bourbon
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8 ounces golden raisins
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16 ounces red candied cherries, halved
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3/4 pound butter
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2 cups white sugar
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6 egg yolks
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6 egg whites
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2 cups packed brown sugar
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2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
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1 teaspoon baking powder
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5 cups all-purpose flour
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1 pound chopped pecans
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1 cup bourbon
Directions
1
Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C). Grease a 10-inch tube pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.
2
Soak raisins and cherries in 2 cups of bourbon or whiskey for 48 hours. Before making cake, drain well and reserve bourbon.
3
In a separate bowl, mix flour, nutmeg, and baking powder. Set aside.
4
In a small bowl, cream butter with white sugar. In a separate small bowl, cream yolks and brown sugar until very light.
5
In a large bowl, combine two sugar mixtures and blend well.
6
Alternately, add flour mixture and reserved bourbon in three stages, mixing well with each addition.
7
Add soaked fruit and fold in. Add nuts and fold in.
8
In a clean medium bowl, whip egg whites until stiff but not dry. Fold into batter until evenly distributed; pour into the prepared 10-inch tube pan.
9
Bake cake in the bottom of the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 4 to 5 hours. Ovens vary, so it may take longer than 5 hours.
10
Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes before turning out. When almost cool, brush sides and inside hole heavily with bourbon. Wrap cake with a bourbon-soaked cheesecloth, then with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight and saturate again with bourbon. Cover with plastic wrap and then with foil and store for at least 2 weeks in a cool, dry place.