Description
Kentucky Butter Cake is a classic vanilla Bundt cake with a fine, buttery crumb, soaked with a warm butter-sugar sauce that seeps into every bite, making it glossy, rich, and incredibly moist.
Ingredients
- For the cake: 340 g unsalted butter, softened (1 1/2 cups)
- For the cake: 400 g granulated sugar (2 cups)
- For the cake: 4 large eggs, room temperature
- For the cake: 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- For the cake: 360 g all-purpose flour (3 cups)
- For the cake: 1 teaspoon baking powder
- For the cake: 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- For the cake: 240 ml buttermilk, room temperature (1 cup)
- For greasing the pan: 1 tablespoon softened butter
- For greasing the pan: 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- For the butter soaking sauce: 170 g granulated sugar (3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons)
- For the butter soaking sauce: 80 ml water (1/3 cup)
- For the butter soaking sauce: 115 g unsalted butter (1/2 cup)
- For the butter soaking sauce: 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- For the butter soaking sauce: 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
Instructions
- Preheat and prepare pan: Heat oven to 325°F (165°C). Generously butter a 10–12 cup Bundt pan, dust with flour, and tap out excess.
- Mix dry ingredients: Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
- Cream butter and sugar: In a large mixing bowl, beat softened butter and sugar for 3–5 minutes until very pale and fluffy.
- Add eggs and vanilla: Beat in eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Stir in vanilla extract.
- Alternate flour and buttermilk: Add dry ingredients in 3 additions, alternating with buttermilk in 2 additions. Mix just until combined each time (do not overmix).
- Bake: Spoon batter into prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake 55–65 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Make the butter sauce: In a saucepan over medium heat, stir sugar and water until sugar dissolves. Add butter and melt. Simmer gently 2–3 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and salt.
- Soak the cake: Keep cake in the pan. Poke deep holes all over the warm cake (about 40–60). Slowly pour about half the warm sauce over the cake. Wait 10 minutes, then slowly pour remaining sauce over the top.
- Cool and unmold: Cool in the pan 30–40 minutes, then invert onto a plate. Rest another ~30 minutes before slicing for best texture.
Notes
- Poking holes helps the warm sauce soak deep into the cake instead of sitting on top.
- For a buttermilk substitute: mix 1 cup (240 ml) milk with 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar; rest 5 minutes before using.
- To avoid dryness: measure flour accurately (spoon and level) and remove cake as soon as the tester is clean or has moist crumbs.
- If using salted butter, reduce cake salt to 1/4 teaspoon and sauce salt to a small pinch.
- Loaf pan option: bake in two 9×5-inch loaf pans; start checking at 45–55 minutes.
- Storage: keep tightly covered at room temp up to 3 days, refrigerate up to 5–6 days, or freeze (well-wrapped) up to 2 months.
- Reheat: microwave a slice 10–15 seconds, or warm covered in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 8–10 minutes.
- Variations: add 2 tsp citrus zest to sugar; fold in or layer 3/4 cup (80 g) toasted pecans; add 1 tsp cinnamon to flour; boost vanilla for deeper flavor.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/14 cake)
- Calories: 520
- Sugar: 44 g
- Sodium: 190 mg
- Fat: 29 g
- Saturated Fat: 18 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10 g
- Trans Fat: 0.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 62 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 125 mg
