Simple Recipes: Buttery Rum Orange Liqueur Cake

Buttery Rum Orange Liqueur Cake

Strong flavors infuse each slice of cake

The Buttery Rum Orange Liqueur recipe was created from the availability of different liquors and liqueurs in our liquor cabinet. Making cocktails and after-dinner drinks isn't standard around the Latta household these days.

The question is...what to do with all the fabulous booze in the cabinet. I thought, why not cook with it. There are many wonderful recipes to be created from our stash of goodies. The first of those recipes is the heavily infused boozy cake. 

Let's begin with the ingredients for the cake:
Cup of chopped walnuts
Package of yellow cake mix
Package of vanilla pudding mix (3.4 ounces)
Four eggs
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup of a freshly squeezed orange
A teaspoon of orange zest
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup dark rum (I like Myers's)
3/4 cup of unsweetened coconut

Ingredients for the glaze:
A stick and a half of unsalted butter
1/4 cup of water
2/3 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of dark rum
1/4 cup of orange liqueur (Grand Marnier, triple sec, whatever you have in the cabinet)

Greased, floured and layered with walnuts

Mix well and use a favorite dark rum

Pouring the batter in the Bundt pan 

First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the Bundt pan with butter and flour. Then, add the cup of chopped walnuts to the bottom of the pan.

In a large bowl, add the yellow cake mix and the vanilla pudding mix. Mix together. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs. Add the whisked eggs to the large bowl along with the 1/4 cup water, 1/4 cup squeezed orange, oil, 1/2 cup rum, and orange zest. Mix all ingredients to a smooth batter. Sprinkle in the coconut and stir. 

Add the cake mixture to the greased Bundt pan. Place in the oven for approximately 45 minutes. Insert a toothpick and if it comes out clean, the cake is baked. Let the cake cool for 15 minutes and take it out of the pan. Set aside. 

Fresh out of the oven

Take the cake out of the pan

Pour the glaze

For the glaze, mix together in a saucepan over medium heat the butter, 1/4 cup water, and 2/3 cup sugar. Once it comes to a boil, stir until the sugar melts (approximately 4 - 5 minutes). Stir continuously. After the mixture comes off the heat, add the rum and orange liqueur. 

Once the glaze is ready. add half of the mixture back into the empty Bundt pan. Place the cake back into the pan as originally baked. Pour the remaining glaze on top of the cake (which of course is the bottom of the cake). Let it sit for a couple of hours if you have the time, so the cake soaks up all the glaze. When ready to serve, flip the cake out of the pan. FYI: If you don't have time to wait for the cake to soak up all the glaze, brush it on until all the glaze is gone. 

Using fresh whipped cream on top of each slice of cake makes it extra special. Also, if you want to add a sprig of mint to the whipped cream for presentation, it's a dessert meant for fine dining.