Bourbon Apple Cider Cake
rom a cozy mystery Icing on the Murder by Valerie Burns
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 cups apple cider
- 3½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 8 oz unsalted butter (two sticks)
- 2¼ cup sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 2½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- 1½ tsp allspice
- 2 Honeycrisp apples, peeled and cored, and then pureed
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 1 stick butter
- 5 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup plus 3 teaspoons bourbon
- ½ tsp vanilla
Instructions
Cake Batter
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, grease three 9-inch cake pans and prepare ingredients.
- Heat the apple cider in a small saucepan on medium heat until it reduces by half, making 1 cup
- Whisk flour, salt, spices, and baking powder together in a large bowl.
- Cream butter and sugar together in a stand mixer until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating completely before adding the next egg.
- Mix milk and vanilla together. While the mixer is on low, add 1/3 of the flour mixture, followed by 1/3 of the milk. Keep alternating wet and dry ingredients until all are incorporated.
- Pour in the pureed apples and reduced apple cider and mix to combine.
- Divide the mixture evenly between the cake pans and bake for 25 minutes.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together.
- Slowly add in the powdered sugar one cup at a time.
- Add in the vanilla and bourbon and mix until combined.
- After frosting the cake, add 4-5 tablespoons of caramel as a glaze.