Spiked Eggnog Bundt Cake

eggnogcake Do you have any quirky holiday food traditions? Mine has to do with eggnog. Every year, someone in my family buys a carton of it because there are a few of us (including me) who like the taste. But I can only handle a taste of the taste. Like one sip. I love the flavors, but eggnog on its own is just so…noggy. It’s a little too thick for comfort. (Also I’m lactose intolerant, haha.) Anyways, there usually ends up being half a carton leftover that no one wants to drink.

As I was guiltily noticing this year’s half-drunk nog bottle for the 10th time, I thought I should find a recipe that would take care of neglected nog. I settled on a bundt cake because they are so easy to throw together; and the pretty shape means you don’t have to worry about frosting or other time-consuming food styling that no one has time for during the busy Christmas season.

This recipe is based on Hummingbird High’s Kentucky Bourbon Cake, a deliciously moist and easy bundt I’d made in the past. I basically just subbed out eggnog for the buttermilk and rum for the bourbon, and scaled back the sugar and eggs slightly to account for the nog, and added a couple pinches of cinnamon and nutmeg. For the glaze, I used a recipe for a coffee-whiskey one from The Kitchn. If you don’t want to use alcohol, you could probably replace with all eggnog / coffee, but I thought these flavors complemented each other nicely and the booziness wasn’t overpowering.

Merry Christmas!

Makes one 10-inch cake, enough for 10-12 servings

Ingredients

For the cake:

300 grams / 3 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Generous grating of freshly ground nutmeg
228 grams / 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
275 grams / 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
100 grams / 1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
3 eggs, at room temperature (I used extra large)
1/4 cup dark rum
1 cup eggnog, at room temperature

For the coffee-bourbon glaze:

28 grams / 2 tbsp unsalted butter
50 grams / 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/3 cup strongly brewed coffee
2 tbsp bourbon

Method:

Center an oven rack and preheat the oven to 350 (F).
In a medium bowl, sift together dry ingredients in a bowl, then whisk the mixture by hand to ensure that all ingredients are well mixed. Set aside.
Whisk together 1/4 cup rum and 1 cup eggnog together in a liquid measuring cup. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars together on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes.
Turn down the mixer to its lowest speed and add 3 eggs, one at a time, making sure each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next one.
With the mixer still on its lowest speed, add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the rum/eggnog mixture in two parts, beginning and ending with the flour. After each addition, mix until just barely blended and stop and scrape the bowl. Stop the mixer before the last of the flour has been incorporated and complete the blending by hand with a rubber spatula.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and use a rubber spatula to spread it out evenly. Place the pan into the preheated oven and bake until the cake is golden and springs back when touched and a tester comes out clean, about 40 to 45 minutes.
When the cake is ready, remove from oven and let rest on a cooling rack. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, while you make the glaze.
Place all the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer, whisking, until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat.
After the cake has cooled for about 10 minutes in the pan, poke the exposed surface of the cake with a skewer. Brush about half the glaze over the surface. Loosen the edges of the cake from the pan with a butter knife and turn the cake out onto a plate.
Poke holes all over the surface of the top of the cake. Brush glaze over the cake, soaking as much in the holes as possible. (You will likely have glaze left over.) Let cake cool completely.

Spiked Eggnog Bundt Cake