Buttery bourbon pound cake: Mexico and Kentucky, together at last

A pound of sugar; a pound of flour; a pound of butter; a pound of eggs makes what? A traditional pound cake, hence, the name.

Pound cake has been around for centuries, first found in an English cookbook dating from the mid-18th century. And the fact remains that you didn’t have to be a brain surgeon to remember the recipe, which was critical when cookbooks and the internet weren’t around for easy access. Pretty easy, right? 

Pound cake is versatile: you can eat it plain, or make variations like lemon, or top it with fruit and cream, or infuse it with caramel and bourbon, as in our recipe. But did it ever have a place in Mexican cuisine? 

In fact, it did. While the Spanish are the invaders who most garner our attention for their 300-year-long occupation of Mexico, the French and their influence are often overlooked. France recognized Mexico as a country in the early part of the 19th century, and French settlers started to arrive around 1830. France also directly occupied Mexico in the 1860s, though only for five years. Despite the short stay, the French made their mark, most notably with their cuisine that influenced the Mexicans, especially when it came to baking and sweet breads called pan dulce. 

In France, pound cake is called quatre-quarts, literally “four fourths,” referring to the four ingredients that are equally added to the recipe. It is believed that the French so influenced the Mexicans with their pound cake that the latter began featuring it in their bakeries, calling it panqué. Today, there are many variations on the pastry:

• Panqué con nueces: Made with walnuts. 
• Panqué con pasas: Made with raisins to add sweetness and moisture.
• Panqué de chocolate: Chocolate pound cake.
• Panqué de nata: Made with cream from boiled raw milk, that makes the cake incredibly rich. 

One of the four ingredients in pound cake is butter and that’s the ingredient that gives it that awesome, melt-in-your mouth buttery flavor. And for the best pound cake, you probably can’t do better than to buy butter in Mexico! 

Mexican butter is higher in butterfat than its American counterpart, meaning it has richer flavor and smoother texture. You can also find cultured butter here that’s made more like European butter, with slightly soured cream that gives it a tangy texture. But we can’t forget to give credit to Mexican cows, who are fed mostly grass and greens which results in a butter with deeper color and one that tastes more natural and robust. Two Mexican brands of butter, Aguascalientes and Flor de Alfalfa, are known for their high quality. 

Let’s combine the best of Mexico and Kentucky with this caramel bourbon pound cake with caramel bourbon glaze.

Bourbon pound cake with caramel bourbon glaze

Adapted from George Pyne’s recipes.

Ingredients

• 3 cups sifted all-purpose flour (I am yet to find proper all-purpose flour in Mexico and recommend ordering from the U.S.)
• 2 tsp baking powder (polvo para hornear)
• 1 cup butter, softened (mantequilla)
• ½ cup shortening 3 cups sugar (azúcar estándar)
• 5 eggs (huevos)
• 1 ½ cups milk (leche entera) 
• ½ cup Kentucky bourbon (use Wild Turkey, Evan Williams or Bulleit Barrel Strength Bourbon, or apple cider for teetotalers!)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract (extracto de vainilla)

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 325 F (163 C).
2. Grease a 10” Bundt or tube pan and coat evenly with a layer of bread crumbs. Unlike flour, bread crumbs do not leave residue or clumps.
3. Sift flour and baking powder together three times and set aside.
4. In a medium-size bowl, using a big wooden spoon, mash and mix the butter and shortening together until well combined. 
5. Add 1 cup of sugar. Using the wooden spoon, mix everything into a smooth, thick texture.
6. Move the dough to the mixer. Add 2 cups sugar and beat on medium speed until well combined.
7. Add eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition.
8. Add one fourth of the flour mixture, beating on low speed until flour disappears.
9. Beat each of the following ingredients into the batter. After adding each ingredient, beat just enough to keep batter smooth:
   1. Half of the milk called for.
   2. Second fourth of flour called for.
   3. Remainder of the milk.
   4. Stir in third fourth of the milk.
   5. Add bourbon.
   6. Add remaining flour.
   7. Stir in vanilla.
10. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
11. Bake for 60-70 minutes, until cake is slightly browned, pulls from sides of pan and a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.
12. Place cake on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Invert onto a serving platter.

Caramel bourbon glaze

Make while the cake bakes.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup brown sugar (azucar moreno)
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup (jarabe de maíz)
• 1/2 cup water
• 3/4 cup heavy cream (crema para batir)
• 2 tbsp bourbon

Instructions

1. In a medium saucepan, over medium-high heat, stir together all ingredients. Stir until sugar dissolves.
2. Increase heat to high and stop stirring. The ingredients will form a caramel sauce. Allow the caramel to boil for six minutes.
3. Remove from heat and gently whisk in cream. Be careful, as caramel bubbles up quickly.
4. When the caramel is thoroughly blended, whisk in bourbon.
5. Poke holes in the cake with a long skewer, twirling slightly to create space for the caramel to soak into the cake. 
6. While the caramel sauce is still warm, brush all over the cake, including the sides. Repeat until all the glaze is used.
7. Stir until sugar dissolves.

Deborah McCoy is the one-time author of mainstream, bridal-reference books who has turned her attention to food, particularly sweets, desserts and fruits. She is the founder of CakeChatter and the author of four baking books for “Dough Punchers” via CakeChatter (available @amazon.com). She is also the president of The American Academy of Wedding Professionals™ (aa-wp.com).