Pioneer Woman's Rum Cake ~

I don't usually make cakes from cake mixes.  Although I don't have a problem with a cake mix in of itself, I just never seem to buy them.  I think it's because I have all of the ingredients to make desserts in my pantry and fridge, so no need really.  However, I do have good friends who rave about this cake and one even serves it at Holiday gatherings.  So, when a friend asked me to make a rum cake for her Birthday, I chose this one.  And I wasn't disappointed at all.  As a matter of fact, I was delighted and so was my friend.

Pioneer Woman's Rum Cake
1 box (about 18 oz.) Yellow Cake Mix

1 package (3.5 oz.) instant Vanilla Pudding Mix

4 eggs

1/2 cup cold water

1/2 cup canola oil

1/2 cups Rum (dark or light)

1 cup chopped pecans

Brown sugar (optional)


Glaze1 1/2 sticks butter

1/4 cup water

1 1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup Rum

Preheat oven to 325 F.

Grease and flour a bundt cake pan. Sprinkle nuts over bottom of pan. If desired, sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of brown sugar over the nuts.

Mix all cake ingredients together. Pour batter into pan over nuts. Smooth the batter out until the top is even. Bake for 1 hour, or a little less if the pan is black. Do not over bake!

Glaze:
While cake has ten minutes left to bake, begin preparing the glaze.

Melt butter in a saucepan. Stir in water and sugar. Boil for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Turn off the flame and pour in the rum. Stir to combine and reheat for 30 seconds.

Remove the cake from the oven. Immediately drizzle 1/3 of the glaze on the bottom (top) of the cake. Allow to sit for five minutes. Invert the cake onto a serving plate. Prick surface a hundred times with a fork very gently. Slowly drizzle the remaining rum glaze all over the top of the cake, allowing it to drip down the sides. Cool to room temperature before serving to ensure glaze has soaked in.

My Notes: I combined a couple of tablespoons of brown sugar with the chopped pecans and then spread them into the bottom of my bundt pan.  And I saved about 1/4 of the glaze to serve with the cake for drizzling.

My cake was done in 55 minutes.

Here is a slice served with a little whipped cream.