I have no clue why this delicious butter cake is named for the state of Kentucky, but the recipe has been around since at least 1963, when Nell Lewis of Platte City, Missouri entered it into the Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest and won. It’s an old-fashioned vanilla buttermilk pound cake drenched in a luscious butter and sugar syrup. The syrup not only adds exceptional moisture to the cake, but it also creates a crisp coating on the surface, almost like a glazed donut. Kids love it, grown-ups love it—this simple butter cake is hard to beat. A big thank you to my longtime reader, Karen Tannenbaum, for sharing the recipe with me.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
Butter Sauce:
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup butter, cubed
- 1/4 cup water
- 1-1/2 teaspoons almond extract
- 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Directions:
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating well after each addition.
Pour into a greased and floured 10-in. tube pan. Bake at 350° until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 55-70 minutes. Cool 10 minutes. Run a knife around edges and center tube of pan. Invert cake onto a wire rack over waxed paper.
For sauce, combine the sugar, butter and water in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat just until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat; stir in extracts.
Poke holes in the top of the warm cake; spoon 1/4 cup sauce over cake. Let stand until sauce is absorbed. Enjoy.
