I chose this week’s Project Pastry Queen recipe, Totally Rummy Pound Cake. It was cake + booze. Surely it would be a winner.

But if I could do it all over again, I’d go back and choose a different recipe. Because it turns out that I’m not as big a fan of rum as you’d think. Or as I’d think… Captain & Diets excluded 🙂 And this cake has a lot – A LOT – of rum in it.

I made half a recipe (thank goodness) and baked it in a small loaf pan. It didn’t really rise much but while it baked, my kitchen smelled a whole lot like Spring Break 1998. I couldn’t bring myself to make the glaze for the cake, which called for even more rum, so I macerated some chopped strawberries with a little sugar and served it on top.

My husband graded it with a half-hearted “It’s okay I guess.” There aren’t many recipes in the book that I haven’t cared for but I guess they can’t all be winners. So now that I’ve totally sold you on the cake…

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Totally Rummy Pound Cake

A dense, rummy pound cake studded with Texas pecans.

Ingredients

• For the cake:
• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped
• 1 stick butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 cup dark rum
• For the glaze:
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp water
• 1 1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp dark rum

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Spray a 9-inch loaf pan with baking spray.
3. Spread pecans on a baking sheet and bake 5-7 minutes, until browned and fragrant.
4. Cream butter and sugar on high for 2-3 minutes, until light and fluffy.
5. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the eggs one at a time.
6. Add the vanilla and rum, mixing until completely combined.
7. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl.
8. Reduce the speed of the mixer to low and add the dry ingredients to the bowl in three additions, alternating with two additions of the sour cream.
9. Add half of the pecans to the batter and mix well.
10. Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan and sprinkle with remaining pecans.
11. Bake ~40 minutes, until browned and a skewer in the center of the cake comes out with moist crumbs attached.
12. Let cool in pan 10 minutes and then turn out onto a rack to cool.
13. To make the glaze, heat the butter, water, lemon juice, and rum in a small pan over medium heat.
14. Bring mixture to boil and cook for ~1 minute.
15. Pierce the cake many times with a skewer and brush/pour the glaze of the cake. Let rest 1 hour before serving, overnight preferred.

Notes

Yields: 8 servings

Adapted from The Pastry Queen

Estimated time: 1 hour 15 minutes