Jameson Irish Whiskey Cake

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My oldest son’s birthday cake request this year was, “Chocolate, whiskey…  surprise me.”  Feeling optimistic from the mini Bacardi cake results, I decided to tweak the recipe a bit and see how it would do. I changed the cake and pudding mixes to chocolate, and substituted Jameson Irish Whiskey for the Bacardi.  I also omitted the nuts.

Irish whiskey always makes me think of Irish coffee.  I went to Ireland when I was younger and while I remember the castles, the beautiful green landscape, the wool sweaters, and the very nice people, what I remember most was the Irish coffee.  They kept coming around with huge tray-fulls of them and let’s just say I drank an eyebrow raising amount.  Knowing that my son loves coffee (Irish or otherwise), I thought a little coffee with that whiskey was in order.

 

Jameson Irish Whiskey Cake

1 pkg. (18.25 oz.) chocolate cake mix
1 pkg. (3 3/4 oz.)  chocolate instant pudding and pie filling mix
4 eggs
1/2 cup cold water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup Jameson Irish Whiskey 
Glaze:
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup Jameson Irish Whiskey 
Coffee Drizzle:
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1 packet Starbucks Via
1 tablespoon water
1 cup powdered sugar

Optional:
dark chocolate covered espresso beans for garnish

 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Grease and flour 6 cake mini Bundt pan.  Combine all cake ingredients.  Blend well.  With electric mixer at medium speed, beat 2 minutes.  Measure 1/4 cup batter and fill each mold approximately half full.  Bake 15 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.  Cool.  Invert on serving plate.  Wash pan, grease and flour, and repeat to make six more cakes.

Prepare glaze in saucepan by melting butter over medium heat.  Stir in water and sugar and boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and stir in whiskey.  Spoon or pour glaze into the bottom of each cake mold so that it covers the entire bottom of mold.  Using a fork, gently poke holes into the decorative top of each cake.  Transfer cakes back into molds and poke holes into bottom of cakes.  Pour warm glaze generously over each cake and let sit several hours or more to absorb glaze.  Remove cakes from pan.  Repeat glazing process with remaining 6 cakes.

To make coffee drizzle, whip softened butter in medium bowl using hand mixer, about 1 minute.  Dissolve Via in cold water, stirring well.  Add powdered sugar, 1/3 cup at a time, to butter, using mixer to incorporate.  Add half of dissolved coffee and blend well.  Add remaining powdered sugar, alternating with coffee, and blend for another minute or two until very smooth and shiny.

Plate glazed cake to serve.  Transfer coffee drizzle to small ziploc bag and snip just a tiny bit off the corner of the bag using sharp scissors.  Drizzle over cake.  Garnish with espresso beans if desired.

 

You can also make this cake full sized.  Just use a regular Bundt pan and adjust the baking time to 1 hour.  This cake would be every bit as good using yellow cake mix and vanilla pudding.  In this case, I would definitely garnish with a generous bit of whipped cream and channel those Irish coffee spirits more traditionally.

Make sure to wait for cakes to cool before trying to remove them from pan.  They are pretty stubborn and won’t budge until they’re ready, but will release easily when the time is right.  You do not need to wash the baking pan before you glaze the cakes.  And…  let those cakes soak as long as possible. I have let cakes sit overnight.   Once infused, you can remove by  inverting pan, and using clean fingers, easing each cake from its mold by pulling carefully around the cake’s edges.  Success!  Make sure to keep the other 6 cakes tightly covered with plastic wrap so they don’t dry out while you glaze the first batch.  Wrap any finished cakes you don’t serve at once, individually, in plastic wrap, and store in a covered container, or in a Ziploc bag in the freezer, ready to pull at a moment’s notice. Thaw cakes still wrapped, at room temperature.  Garnish cakes with coffee drizzle just before serving.

This cake was a huge hit.  It held its own against the Barcardi cake I had made earlier, and I was happy have a few left to wrap carefully for the freezer.  I put the remaining glaze in another small, sealed ziplock and stored it in the refrigerator to use later this month.  Already looking forward to putting these cute little tipsy cakes on a plate together and being ready to celebrate whatever comes next.