Irish Whiskey Cake in a Jar

I have to admit that I didn’t believe that baking cake in a jar would work.  I assumed that the cake would either burn, dry out or develop a tough, overdone crust.  Instead, a dense-but-moist, rich and flavorful cake came out of the oven.  And the whiskey-butter sauce?  If you’re like me, you’ll be dreaming up all sorts of things to pour it on.  Ice cream, pound cake, your finger…this stuff is really amazing.  When you pour it over the warm cakes, they’ll absorb it into every nook and cranny and take on a pudding-cake quality.  The Irish Cream whipped cream isn’t too sweet, so it’s the perfect mate to the rich, buttery cake.  But, because good enough isn’t good enough, drizzle a little caramel sauce on top.  Just because.

I used 12 ounce jars, just because that’s what I had on hand.  You can also use the little 8 ounce jelly jars, but no matter what size you use, make sure you only fill them half full with batter.  The smaller jars will likely require less oven time, too.  I’d start checking them at about the 30 minute mark; mine came out of the oven right at 41 minutes.    While these are best eaten immediately, you can store them in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours before serving.  Just hold off on making the whipped cream until right before your guests arrive.

I do hope you’ll give this a try!  It’s a lot of fun and sure to be a crowd-pleaser!

Irish Whiskey Cake in a Jar
Yield:  8 – 12oz jars or 10 – 6oz jars
Prep Time:  30 minutes ♦ Bake Time:  45 minutes ♦ Cooktop:  10 minutes ♦ Total Time:  1hr 15 minutes

Cake Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups brewed, strong coffee
¼ cup plus 3 Tbsp. Irish Whiskey
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Whiskey-Butter Sauce Ingredients:
1/4 cup Irish whiskey
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup water

Whipped Cream Topping Ingredients:
1 cup cold, heavy whipping cream
¼ cup confectioner’s sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract OR  1 teaspoon Irish Cream

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees (F).   In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs and vanilla; set aside.

In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine coffee, whiskey, butter, cinnamon and cocoa powder. Over medium heat, whisk until combined and butter is completely melted.  Remove from heat and add sugar.  Whisk until the sugar is incorporated and starts to dissolve. Pour mixture into a large bowl and allow to cool slightly, about 5-10 minutes.  Meanwhile, prepare your jars by placing them on a large baking sheet. There is no need to butter or flour the jars.

Once slightly cooled, slowly pour the egg mixture into the chocolate mixture, whisking continuously. Add the flour mixture and whisk vigorously until just combined.  The batter will be thin.

Pour batter into the jars, filling them no more than half full.  Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a cake-tester comes out clean.   Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.

While cakes are cooling, prepare the whiskey-butter sauce.  Simply combine the butter, whiskey, sugar and water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat.  Stir frequently, until the butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat.

Using a skewer, poke holes in the tops of the cakes.  Pour the whiskey-butter sauce over the tops of the cakes, evenly distributing until all of the sauce is used.  When ready to serve, prepare the whipped topping.

In the bowl of a stand mixer using the whisk attachment, beat the cream until stiff peaks form.  Add confectioner’s sugar and Irish Cream and beat until just combined.  Place a generous dollop of cream on top of each jar and drizzle with caramel for serving.   Serve within 24 hours.

Enjoy!

Source: Sprinkle Bakes