Caramel Bourbon Orange Cake

If you're into cakes and cocktails, this bundt recipe is spot-on: a tribute to the wonderful old-fashioned drink, it's dense and moist with a wonderful orange flavor and a has bourbon caramel sauce that you will want to eat with a spoon! Serve it in a bowl and call it dessert.

I started out to make a caramel bundt cake. 

Now, I find caramel to be one of the best discoveries ever. EVER.

But at the same time, I wanted to share something different, try to enhance the caramel while not making it too sweet.

This orange caramel bourbon bundt cake turned out much better than I expected.

It's the bourbon with the caramel, an inspiring idea from a drink called old fashioned, which involves whiskey, sugar, bitters, and orange. Prepare me one and I'll sit right next to you and spill all my secrets.

Oh, I love the stuff. It has a slight caramel undertone, a mellow sweet and sour flavor, and all the tough exterior of what appears to be a manly glass of bourbon blurred by the addition of sugar.

I started with one of my favorite recipes ever, the Orange Chocolate Marbled Bundt Cake, a cake that works for all the right reasons and is absolutely delicious. 

Bourbon in cakes

Sometimes I think that I can pretty much add bourbon to every cake. Probably my favorite cake ever is the Bourbon Hot Chocolate Bundt Cake, and I'm known for adding a bourbon chocolate glaze to the Buttermilk Banana Cake. So yes, I can say I'm a fan. 

What bourbon does is add a subtle caramel undertone with a kick. Together with some vanilla extract, which I pretty much use in every recipe, it created a much deeper and very unique flavor.

So yes, I can say I'm a huge fan. When used sparingly, it can have the same effect as an extract or citrus zest. Too much and you get what we here call a tipsy cake. Not a bad idea at all, but we're focusing on caramel today.

Preparing the bundt pan

1. Butter: I use soft butter (NOT melted) to patiently cover the whole pan, every nook, and cranny, every sharp angle, and every single bit of space available. I use a brush or my fingers. I then flour the pan and REFRIGERATE IT while putting together the batter. I take it out at the last moment when I need to fill it (image above) and it goes like that into the oven. It will unmold like a dream!
2. Baking spray: I use a spray that is labeled as having flour in it, or being specifically made for baking. It has to have flour in it, otherwise, you have a high chance of the cake sticking when removing it. That is my experience at least.

Main ingredients

• Rye flour: it gives the cake an earthier tone and a more rustic texture. Use semi-fine or fine flour for smoother results. 
• Bourbon: I like to use the best whiskey or bourbon I can afford, even for baking, so I use Jack Daniel's regular or honey.
• Milk: you can also use orange juice if you want. 

This cake is like a deconstructed old-fashioned that focuses more on the golden caramel than the booze, with an orange cake as a base, a hint of bourbon both inside and out, and a caramel sauce made with orange juice instead of water.

A sensational mix of flavors, very balanced, with the pooling sauce around the warm piece of cake if you choose to serve it on a deep plate or bowl. Almost a dessert.

Serving

I highly suggest you eat it warm with the caramel sauce.

It's up to you if you want it even more decadent and add a dollop of whipped cream on top. Or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. 

And go ahead, make extra sauce and use it over vanilla ice cream. 

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