Forget regular old rum cake, this Rum-Soaked Honey Pound Cake is where it’s at! Buttery cakey goodness gets soaked in buttered rum glaze for dessert perfection!
Today’s recipes is one of my dessert island desserts. It’s sweet without being pucker-your-mouth-holy-sugar crazy sweet, and really…what cake isn’t better with a little rum? The rich honey flavors pair perfectly with the caramel and vanilla flavors in the rum for boozy cake harmony you can’t resist!
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A little back story about this cake. I’m in a group called the Peoplehood of the Traveling Swirly Pan. Jenni got the fun idea of buying one of those fancy bundt pans, you know the ones you’d buy and use one or twice ever because it makes fancy cakes, and then sending it all over the country for the group to cook with. It’s been two years since I signed up (I think) and my turn finally came earlier this month! The delightful Sandy from Everyday Southwest was sweet enough to deliver Dorothy (the cake pan) and Toto (the journal) to me. I got to keep them for 10 days before sending them out to California for the next cook to have a turn. The journal is filled with stories and recipes from everyone in the group. It’s really cool!
I had been sitting on this honey pound cake recipe for a couple years wanting just the right occasion to bust it out. What better time than Dorothy stopping in?! But since I can’t leave well enough alone, and a fancy cake pan needs a fancy cake, I rum-soaked the bejesus out of it. This cake is heaven kids. It looks like your standard yellow cake, but it’s flavorful and toothsome for the best little bite fo cake.
Full disclosure: I was out of my favorite miracle pan release. *sigh* I greased and floured the crap out of Dorothy, but my cake stuck and stuck good. I had to cut it out of the pan. It’ll happen. But the cake still tasted amazing and that’s all that really matters. So be sure to use the right pan release. My favorite is equal parts flour, shortening, and vegetable oil whisked until smooth. Just brush you cake pan with a generous (not crazy thick) coat of the goop and your cake will never stick!
Rum-Soaked Honey Pound Cake
Ingredients
Honey Pound Cake:
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 ⅓ cups granulated sugar
- ¼ cup honey
- 5 eggs
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Rum Glaze:
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup water
- ½ cup silver rum I used Bacardi Superior
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Pound Cake:
- Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Generously grease a bundt pan with miracle pan release (equal parts flour, vegetable oil & shortening whisked together until smooth).
- In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the honey and beat together for 1 more minute.
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating until just combined after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in two additions, mixing until just combined after each addition.
- Pour the batter evenly around your prepared bundt pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (The center is halfway between the outer edge of the pan and the flute in the middle.)
- Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
Glaze:
- When the cake is about 10 minutes from being done, start your glaze.
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter, and then add the sugar, water, rum, and vanilla. Whisk until combined.
- Cook, stirring occasionally until the sugar is dissolved and all the ingredients have melted together. Reduce the heat to medium-low and stir occasionally to prevent the glaze from forming a skin.
- Once the cake is out of the oven, pour half of the glaze over the top of the cake (This will become the bottom of your cake later.)
- Allow the cake to cool to room temperature. (Turn off the heat for your glaze while the cake cools.) Once the cake has cooled completely, place a serving plate over the pan (bottom of the plate facing up). Invert the whole thing so the cake comes out of the pan right onto the plate.
- Once the cake is out of the pan, reheat the glaze until it is smooth again. Pour the remaining glaze all over the top of the cake and allow it to soak in. Serve immediately.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container for 2-3 days.
Notes
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.
Jenni says
Stuck or not, that is one gorgeous cake! Beautiful flavors, too–I am so glad you enjoyed your time with Dorothy and Toto, and I’m thrilled you chose such a special cake to make! xo
Julie says
Thank you, Jenni! After having Dorothy, I totally want to buy that cake pan so I have my own. I can’t wait for the recipe book!!
Karin says
That looks like heaven. My mind has already started to wander to lime zest and maybe even toasted coconut on top. Oh the possibilities!
Talithia says
Ok maybe it’s just me but, when do I add the honey ? I’m making thus for Mother’s Day. Sounds delish!
Julie says
The honey goes in after you beat the butter and sugar together, and before the eggs. I’ve updated the recipe card as well. So sorry about that!
Kelly says
Looks delicious. Loving that fancy bundt pan!
Helenita Galera says
Ohhh, how i wish we had a “traveling pan club” here in Brazil !!!!!!! what a wonderful idea, girls…and i’m going to make this recipe for the holidays !!!! TY
Julie says
I hope you love it! It’s one of my favorites to serve for Christmas.
Tammy Glasgow says
Julie,
I am making this cake this weekend for my family get together. I have one question. Exactly when do I flip the cake over? I see in the instructions for the glaze on step 4, you state this will be the bottom of your cake later but I didn’t see the step where it became the bottom. I just want to make sure I do this exactly as you did so it will turn out fantastic.
Julie Espy says
Hi Tammy! Sorry for the delayed reply!! I’ve been traveling for the past two weeks. You want to turn the cake out after it cools completely, and then top with the reserved glaze. Thank you so much for pointing this out. I’ve updated the recipe card so everyone will know what’s up. I appreciate you!
Marilyn Coughlin says
Delicious cake, very potent as well. I was careful to keep the glaze from boiling, so as not to evaporate the alcohol. I also added a spoon of honey to the glaze because I love honey so much!
Robert says
I like cooking the alcohol I would like Moore of the same Recipes