Kentucky French Butter Cake

French Butter Glaze, Candied Butter Pecans, and Peach Jam

Pastry Chef Juliann Stoddart of Olamaie | Austin

Adapted by StarChefs | March 2020

INGREDIENTS:

Kentucky Butter Cake:
1 cup unsalted European butter
2 cups sugar
4 whole eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
260 grams all purpose flour
100 grams cake flour
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup pecans, optional

Butter Glaze:
⅓ cup unsalted European butter
¾ cup sugar
2 tablespoons oat milk, can substitute with water, milk or cream
2 tablespoons bourbon
2 teaspoons vanilla

Candied Butter Pecans:
316 grams pecans
40 grams unsalted European butter
3 grams kosher salt
25 grams granulated sugar

Peach Jam:
3 pounds peaches
1 lemon, juiced
3 cups sugar
20 grams vanilla paste

METHOD:

For the Kentucky Butter Cake:
Combine butter, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl. On low speed mix until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until combined. Make sure to scrape down your bowl after each addition - don't forget to really get the bottom of the bowl! Combine all of your dry ingredients and add in two installments into your mixture. Add pecans, if desired, with your last addition of flour. Coat your bundt pan well with butter and flour. Make sure you get all the spots! Pour mixture into the prepared bundt pan, and bake at 350F on the middle rack of your oven for 30-45 minutes. Some ovens take longer, so you are looking for a toothpick inserted in the center to come out clean. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, leave it in the pan and carefully poke holes throughout the bottom of your cake. Slowly pour the warm Butter Glaze over the cake.   Let your cake cool completely, usually 2-3 hours before unmolding it from the pan.

For the Glaze:
Combine all of your ingredients into a pot and melt on low heat. Do not boil, only melt.

For the Candied Butter Pecans:
Melt butter and coat pecans. Coat buttered pecans with salt and sugar. Toast pecans in your oven at 250 F until they smell toasty - about 7-10 minutes.

For the Peach Jam:
Peel, pit and quarter your peaches. Combine all of your ingredients into a large pot. Stir ingredients until all the peaches are coated in sugar. Let sit for 30 minutes to 1 hour at room temperature before cooking. Bring mixture to a full boil over medium/high heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 1-2 hours, until mixture is thick and jelly-like. Make sure to stir often to prevent scorching! Once mixture is at desired thickness, pour it into a clean dry vessel and let it cool completely before storing it away.

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