Kentucky Derby Mint Julep Cake - Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to some of the bravest women I know.



From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I've always viewed life as an experiment and cooking is certainly is part of it. Save for the people in my life, I am bored with theme and variation and will go out of my way to find and test something new. So, it should come as no surprise, that I decided to make a cake rather than the standard pie for Derby Day. I had a special cake in mind and decided to make it without a test run. After all, how bad can a cake made with bourbon and crème de menthe be? I'm happy to report that it wasn't half bad. The cake was delicious and the glaze was fine. I must admit to being disappointed with the frosting and next time I make the cake I'll use a mint or milk chocolate ganache to top it. This is an easy cake to make and I think those of you who try it will really like it. The recipe appears below.

I also want to wish all of you a Happy Mother's Day. I've been really blessed with the women in my life. I include all of you in that number. Those of you who are regular readers have met the wonderful women who helped raise and form me. They are especially close to me today, as is my mother who appears in the pictures below. She was an extraordinary woman who mental illness took from us long before age called her to the grave. It is wonderful to see her here when her world was still new and full of promise. One of these photos also appears in Brodie's Album, a retrospective of aviation pioneers that is kept in the Smithsonian Museum. She has a place there because she was one of the first stewardesses on a commercial airlines. The man in the second photo is my dad who was a public relations agent for the same airline.



Kentucky Derby Mint Julep Cake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Peggy Trowbridge Filippone
Ingredients:
Cake
3 cups cake flour
2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
Bourbon Butter Sauce
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/3 cup butter
3 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons Bourbon whiskey
Mint Frosting
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) white chocolate chips
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
1 teaspoon white creme de menthe liqueur or 1/2 tsp mint extract

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10-inch bundt pan or a 9 x 13-inch baking pan..
2) To make the cake: Whisk together flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl. Make a well in the center. In a separate smaller bowl, combine buttermilk, butter, vanilla extract, and eggs. Add wet ingredients to flour mixture. Beat at low speed for 1 minute, then increase to medium speed for 3 more minutes. Pour into prepared pan and smooth evenly around pan. If using a bundt pan, bake for 50 minutes. If using a baking pan, bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Use a toothpick to test for doneness. Ten minutes before cake is done, prepare Bourbon Butter Sauce.
3) To make bourbon butter sauce: In a saucepan over medium heat, combine 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, 1/3 cup butter, and 3 tablespoons water. Stir until melted and combined. Do not boil. Remove from heat, continuing to stir for 2 minutes. Then stir in bourbon.
4) When cake is done and still warm from the oven, use a skewer to poke holes around the top of the cake. Pour bourbon butter sauce evenly over top of the cake. Let cake cool to room temperature in the pan before removing.
5) To make mint frosting: Melt chocolate chips with sweetened condensed milk in heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly until chips are melted. Remove from heat and stir in creme de menthe liqueur (or mint extract). Let cool for 10 minutes, then spread evenly over cooled cake. Garnish with fresh mint leaves. Chill to set chocolate ganache. Take cake out of the refrigerator 30 minutes before cutting to serve. Yield: 12 to 18 servings.







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