Why does cake always taste better when it’s soaked in alcohol? I have never really been fond of fruit cakes, but for some reason I am so into rum cakes! I love the dense yet crumbly texture of it and yes, I have to admit the rum flavour just makes me eat half of the cake!
Traditionally, a good rum cake will call for authentic dark Jamaican rum and some coconut. I’ll save the gory details but, yeah there is a lot of good stuff in a rum cake enough to make a pirate out of you. I have gotten hooked on it for a few years now and I try real hard to distract myself from baking one every day. I know that if I give in … I might as well throw the weighing scale out the window.
There’s really not much into making a rum cake. You may even use yellow cake mix to make your life easier. A yellow cake mix doesn’t mean you’re cheating with authenticity .. but come on, you’ve got to be with me on this. It does make a good rum cake! The pudding in the mix is probably the trick to it as a rum cake would definitely call for some vanilla pudding to turn it into a dense yet very moist yummy cake.
I’ve made some variations to the basic rum cake and added some crushed pineapple as well and coconut. It was a pretty heavy cake but most definitely good with a nice cup of tea  and a good buddy to chit chat with on a lazy afternoon.
Here is another version of a rum cake but it maintains the alcohol goodness … a lot!
Coconut Rum Cake
Ingredients:
12 eggs
2 cup(s) granulated sugar
2 cup(s) all purpose flour
1 can(s) 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
1 can(s) 14 oz coconut milk
0.25 cup(s) dark rum
2 teaspoon(s) vanilla
0.5 teaspoon(s) almond extract
INSTRUCTIONS:
- preheat oven to 350* Spray a 9 X 13 X 2 in baking dish with nonstick spray
- With a stand mixer, whip eggs and sugar until fluffy and doubled in volume, about 3 minutes Whisk or lightly stir in flour and salt. Pour into prepared baking dish and bake until just done, about 15 min.
- remove from oven and poke holes in cake
- In a 1-quart measuring cup, combine condensed milk, coconut milk, rum and vanillla and almond extracts. Slowly pour over cake until all is absorbed. Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving
- Top with ice cream, if desired, and garnish with toasted coconut and confectioners’ sugar
Photo Credit: timnatl
Photo Credit: ambertq
Photo Credit: Cook Like a Champion