Winter Entertaining: Bourbon-Pecan Chocolate Pound Cake

Winter Entertaining 

Southern Socials 

Bourbon-Pecan Chocolate Pound Cake

Stunning, crowd-pleasing desserts need not be complicated & cakes prepared in tube pans offer a simplicity in preparation as well as a vast number of ways in which they can be used for special celebrations. Bourbon-Pecan Chocolate Pound Cake not only showcases a triple dose of goodness but it elevates a traditional Buttermilk Pound Cake with a few additions. Chocolate ganache has long been a French classic typically reserved for tarts & petit fours but when a tried & true southern favorite is desired, ganache may serve as a beautiful & delicious garnish. A splash of bourbon is added for good measure but it may be substituted with a bit of cream if you so please. And I don’t quite know what could be better than finishing this decadent pound cake than with a handful of toasted pecans. They are a jewel well worth showcasing indeed. I’ll be pausing a moment from all of those iconic classic French desserts so that I may share the secrets & procedures necessary in order to make this timeless, yet elevated cake as I’m sure you’ll find it to be the perfect focal point for upcoming parties & family celebrations. So do join us this morning on WBRC Good Day Alabama & learn how to make your best buttermilk chocolate pound cake to date.

Bourbon-Pecan Chocolate Pound Cake
makes 16 servings

Tube & bundt pan sizes vary & not all recipes are interchangeable due to the quantity of batter produced from recipe to recipe. Check pan sizes before making a pan substitution.

1 1/2 cups butter, softened
3 cups dark brown sugar, packed
5 eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted 3 times
3/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted 3 times
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup whole buttermilk
1/3 cup bourbon
3/4 cup chocolate syrup
Bourbon-Chocolate Ganache
3/4 cup toasted pecan halves, coarsely chopped

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Generously grease & flour a 10-inch tube pan. Beat the butter & the brown sugar with an electric stand mixer on Medium speed until light & airy, about 5 minutes. Stop the mixer occasionally & scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the vanilla & the eggs, one at a time, blending on Low speed just until the yellow disappears. Whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder & baking soda in a medium bowl. Add to the butter mixture alternately with the buttermilk & the bourbon. Blend in the chocolate syrup. Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared pan. Drop the pan a few inches from the counter top surface to settle the leavening.

Bake 1 hour & 15 minutes to 1 hour & 20 minutes or until a wooden pick tests clean. Do not over bake the cake. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove the cake from the pan. Cool completely on a wire rack. Prepare the Bourbon-Chocolate Ganache as directed. Quickly drizzle the ganache over the top of the cake & allow some to spill down the sides. Sprinkle the pecans over the warm ganache.

Bourbon-Chocolate Ganache
makes enough to cover 1 {10-inch} pound cake

Be careful not to over blend the mixture as it will become a whipped ganache instead.

1 cup bittersweet chocolate morsels
3 Tbsp heavy cream
2 Tbsp bourbon

Microwave the chocolate & the cream in a small bowl on High 30 seconds. Gently swirl the ingredients in the bowl. Cook an additional 15 seconds & whisk until glossy & almost smooth. Whisk in the bourbon. Use immediately as directed.

FROM THE KITCHEN OF BUTTERMILK LIPSTICK
{testing notes}

How To Prepare Bourbon-Pecan Chocolate Pound Cake

 A pound of butter, sugar & flour. Pound cakes began with simple ingredient ratios easy enough for any home cook to follow. The most traditional pound cake recipes did not have leavening in them & many were prepared without the addition of salt. This one pan baked good utilizes a tube pan for baking which makes the preparation that much easier. Over the years, bakers who love a quality piece of homemade cake have experimented with the formula to create beautiful slices in a variety of flavors. Some are even baked in bundt pans which offer additional presentation options. Bourbon-Pecan Chocolate Pound Cake strays from the traditional preparation method for a slice well worth your attention. The addition of cocoa powder, chocolate syrup & a rich chocolate ganache glaze elevates the classic cake flawlessly. A smidgen of bourbon further enhances the flavor & sophistication on the plate. 

The Technique

Chocolate pound cake is an easy to prepare one pan baked good & with a few extra garnishes, the cake becomes a handsome centerpiece to a special menu. A stand mixer is the ideal piece of baking equipment to use when preparing one as many utilize the creaming process in order to blend the ingredients. A tube pan & additional tools will be necessary in order to complete the task. The key factor is being certain the pan is generously greased & dusted with flour so that the cake releases without flaw, enough where you can see the shortening streaks around the inside of the pans. Pay particular attention when applying shortening to the center tube portion as this seems to be a trouble spot when removing the cake from the pan. As long as the it is well coated with both shortening & flour plus it is removed in a timely manner as specified in the recipe instructions, there should not be any issues. For the complete tutorial with the recipe & comprehensive photos that detail each step, look to Baking Classics: Bourbon-Pecan Chocolate Pound Cake. 

The Tune
“In The Mood” The Andrews Sisters

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Be sweet.