Kentucky Butter Crunch Cake… the cake to make this fall! A butter pound cake with the most perfect flavor and crumb is topped with a butter pecan glaze! I didn’t think this pound could get any better (it is so good without any frosting) but this glaze absolutely enhances it and takes it to the next level!
Kentucky Butter Crunch Cake
This cake is broken down into two major components. The cream cheese pound cake and the butter pecan glaze. Because there are so few ingredients between the two recipes, it is important to use good quality products! I opted for Challenge Butter and Challenge Cream Cheese to make sure that my cake would be the best-tasting pound cake you will ever try!
How to Make Kentucky Butter Crunch Cake
Let’s start with the pound cake itself. I used my Cream Cheese Pound Cake as the base for a couple of reasons. It has been heavily tested and perfected and it tastes amazing. Perfection. People are known to have their eyes roll up in their heads when taking the first bite. It’s that good.
Tips for Perfect Pound Cake
- Room temperature ingredients. This will ensure easier mixing and helps achieve that perfect crumb. Make sure each ingredient is incorporated before moving on to the next!
- Be gentle with your batter. If you want to remove it from the stand mixer right after adding the flour and mix by hand that is just fine but make sure your flour is doubled sifted and that there are no lumps.
- Baking time and temperature matter! Keep a close eye on your cake. If you happen to have any hot spots in your oven you may want to turn the cake halfway through baking. The crust should be golden, not burnt. This means that 325°F is the highest you should go, but the length of baking might be longer.
- True pound cake will have a dark golden brown crust. It is the goal! Don’t be afraid of a pound cake browning in the oven.
Pecan Butter Glaze
I recommend starting the glaze after the cake has baked and been removed from the oven. It is such simple ingredients, but packs a big punch!
Using a fork, punch holes into the bottom of the cake.
Pour HALF of the glaze over the broken-up cake. Let the cake sit and cool slightly. Set the rest of the glaze (still in the saucepan) back onto the stove on the lowest heat setting.
When you are ready to serve the cake or about 30 minutes later, carefully flip it onto a serving platter.
Add the chopped pecans to the saucepan with the glaze and stir well. Pour the pecan butter glaze over the top of the cake.
Is there anything better than this cake? That beautiful butter pecan glaze soaks into the cake so beautifully!
How to Serve Kentucky Butter Crunch Cake
This cake is best served warm. The glaze will harden a bit when it is cool or at room temperature and while it still tastes delicious, the texture is changed.
How to Freeze Pound Cake
If you are making this cake ahead of time and freezing, do not add the pecan butter glaze to the top (only the bottom). Warm the cake to room temperature before adding the pecan glaze. Another option is pouring the entire portion of pecan glaze over the top of the cake (instead of half on the bottom and half on top), it will still taste amazing, just look different.
More Pound Cake Recipes
Kentucky Butter Crunch Cake
Ingredients
POUND CAKE
- 1 package (8-ounce) Challenge Cream Cheese, room temperature
- 1 ¼ cups (284 g) Challenge Butter, room temperature
- 3 cups (600 g) granulated sugar
- 6 large (10 ounces) eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups (384 g) cake flour
- ¼ cups (60 g) buttermilk, or whole milk, room temperature
BUTTER PECAN GLAZE
- ½ cup (1 stick / 113 g) Challenge Butter
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- ½ cup chopped pecans
Instructions
POUND CAKE
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Prepare a large bundt pan with butter and flour or by spraying with non-stick spray. (My 10-inch bundt pan is 3 inches deep. There should be at least 1 ½ inches between the height of the batter and the top edge of the pan.)
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine cream cheese and butter until smooth, about 3 minutes. (Can also use a hand-held mixer.)
- Add sugar gradually and beat until lighter and fluffier.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition.
- Add in the vanilla.
- Add the flour all at once and mix until just combined.
- With the mixer on low, add in buttermilk and mix until just incorporated.
- Remove bowl from stand mixer and scrape with a rubber spatula to get every last bit of ingredient incorporated.
- Pour into the prepared bundt pan. Bake for 1 hour – 1 hour and 20 minutes. Check for doneness at 1 hour. (A toothpick inserted into the center of the cake should come out with a few crumbs but no wet batter when the cake is done. The crust will be a dark golden brown around the edges and lighter in the center.)
- Set cake on a cooling rack (still in the pan) to cool slightly while glaze is prepared.
BUTTER PECAN GLAZE
- In a saucepan over medium heat, add the butter, sugar, and vanilla.
- Stir with a rubber spatula and allow butter and sugar to melt into a smooth consistency.
- Remove from heat.
ASSEMBLING CAKE
- Using a fork, poke the warm pound cake and break up the bottom crust. Do this all over the exposed cake. (See pictures above.)
- Pour HALF of the butter pecan sauce over the broken cake. Allow to cool to room temperature. (Do not let cake get cold.)*
- After about 30 minutes, carefully flip the cake onto a serving platter.
- Re-heat the remaining butter glaze and add the chopped pecans. Stir well.
- Pour pecan glaze over the top of the cake.
- Serve immediately. (Cake is best when served slightly warm.)
Video
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Thank you for making my recipe! You took pictures, right? Well go ahead and post them on Instagram! Be sure to mention me @iambaker and use the hashtag #YouAreBaker.
Thank you for supporting the brands that support me here at iambaker! I adore working with Challenge products and love how their superior quality enhances everything I bake!
1time going to bake this awesome pound cake. I’m a diebetic, now can I substitute and use Splenda instead
Hi Annie- I have not made that substitution so I cannot speak to its effectiveness.
Could you please tell me, can this pound cake be converted to make in the pressure cooker? Thank you!
Hi, Kathy! I work with iambaker and am happy to help with questions. We have not tested the recipe in a pressure cooker, so I cannot say how it would turn out. Have a great day!
The cake is excellent, but the sauce was just melted butter full of sugar. I cooked it for a while to see if the sugar would dissolve, but it didn’t…..what happened?
This was the best pound cake I’ve ever tasted! I cut the recipe in half and used a loaf pan and it came out beautiful!
When do you use the confectioner’s sugar that’s listed in the ingredients?
It is optional, should you not want to use the glaze.
I love this recipe, cake turned out beautiful but the glaze. Too thick. Do. you think maybe it needs some water
I love the cake but not impressed with the glaze,could not get it past the graininess,even addded some water and cooked it a little longer bot still grainy
I live at 7000′ altitude. What changes do I need to make for this?
Hi, Amy! I work with iambaker and am happy to help with questions. Check out the High Altitude Baking Tips for some adjustments you can try in this recipe. Have a great day!
I live at high altitude. I made cake according to recipe, but bumped up my oven to 340 degrees and extended baking time about 15 minutes. The cake came out beautifully!!! The problem I had was with the glaze. I’m unsure if it due to the difference in boiling points at altitude or what, but the remedy I found was to add 1/4 cup of milk and use brown sugar instead of white sugar. According to recipe, it turned into a big hunk of caramel, a giant-sized Werther’s candy – not so bad in itself. With the milk and brown sugar sub the glaze was perfect, then TRULY an amazing cake!
Hello Sharon here. I made this cake for Sunday dinner dessert.It was a hit.Not overly sweet just right.I let my cake for cook for 1 hour and 10 minutes.