Rum Cake
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This boozy, buttery rum cake is guaranteed to be the life of the party.
My grandmother loved to bake, and her rum cake was legendary. It was the star of every family gathering, and no one could walk through her kitchen without sneaking just one more thin slice. Although she kept the recipe a closely guarded secret, upon discovering my interest in cooking, she finally revealed that it was actually a Duncan Hines cake mix doctored up with instant vanilla pudding, butter, and lots of rum. Who knew?! These days, keeping the recipe a secret would be impossible—it’s all over the internet (just google “Bacardi rum cake”).
I’ve always wanted to recreate her cake from scratch, so I came up with this rum cake recipe, which is hardly any more work than the semi-homemade one. My grandmother might beg to differ, but I believe my scratch-made version comes pretty close to her original.
Table of Contents
“This is one of the most exquisite cakes I’ve ever made.”
About Rum Cake
Rum cake is a traditional Caribbean dessert that dates back to the days of sugar plantations, as rum is a liquor made from sugarcane. The most well-known version of Caribbean rum cake, known as black cake because of its intensely dark color, is a fruitcake made from a variety of dried fruits soaked in rum for several weeks or even months before being baked. This lighter version is made by soaking a moist butter cake in a syrup of butter, sugar, and dark rum, giving it a rich, boozy flavor. There’s almost a cup of rum in the cake, so it’s definitely not for young kids or anyone avoiding alcohol. For a similar cake that’s booze-free, try my Kentucky butter cake.
What You’ll Need To Make Rum Cake
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by combining the eggs, egg yolks, rum, vanilla extract, and almond extract.
Whisk and set aside.
Combine the flour, sugars, baking powder and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
Beat on low speed to combine.
Add the butter.
Beat for a few minutes until combined.
Add one-third of the liquid ingredients and mix on low to combine.
Increase the speed to medium and beat for two minutes more.
Add another third of the liquid.
Mix on low speed until just combined. Increase the speed to medium and beat for two minutes.
Add the remaining liquid.
Beat and scrape as before.
Transfer the batter to the prepared Bundt pan.
Bake the cake for 65 to 75 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Let cool on a rack for 10 minutes.
While the cake bakes, make the glaze. In a small saucepan, melt the butter.
Add the sugar and water and bring to a boil; then turn the heat down and simmer for 5 minutes until thickened.
Remove from the heat and stir in the rum.
It will thicken as it sits.
Using a toothpick or skewer, poke holes all over the bottom of the cake.
Brush or spoon half of the glaze over the cake and let it soak in.
Invert the cake onto a platter. Brush or spoon the remaining glaze over the top and sides of the cake.
Let the cake cool completely before serving.
The cake portion of this recipe is based on a recipe from Perfect Cakes by Nick Malgieri. I changed the process, replaced the all-purpose flour with cake flour, swapped the white rum for dark rum and omitted the almonds. The glaze recipe is from my grandmother.
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Rum Cake
This boozy, buttery rum cake is guaranteed to be the life of the party.
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 4 large eggs
- 3 large egg yolks
- ½ cup dark rum
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 2½ cups cake flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off (see note)
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
For the Glaze
- 1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter
- ¼ cup water
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons dark rum
- Generous pinch of salt
Instructions
For the Cake
- Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325°F. Spray a 12-cup Bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray with flour, such as Baker's Joy or Pam with Flour. (Alternatively, grease the pan with butter and then dust with flour.)
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, rum, vanilla extract and almond extract. Set aside.
- Place the cake flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on low speed for about 30 seconds to combine. Add the butter and beat on low speed for about 2 minutes, or until the ingredients are well combined. (The mixture will look a bit like cookie dough.)
- Add a third of the liquid ingredients and mix on low speed until just incorporated. Increase the speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes, then stop the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add another third of the liquid and mix on low speed until just combined. Increase the speed to medium and beat for two minutes, then stop the mixer and scrape again. Add the remaining liquid and beat and scrape as before.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 65 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted halfway between the central tube and side of the pan comes out clean.
- Cool the cake on a rack for ten minutes.
- While the cake bakes, make the glaze. Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Add the water and sugar and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture is slightly thickened. Remove from the heat and stir in the rum and salt.
- Using a toothpick or thin skewer, poke holes all over the bottom of the cake about ½-inch apart, going about ¾ of the way down (you will feel like you are butchering the cake; don't worry, it will be fine). Brush half of the glaze over the cake and let it soak in. If the glaze pools on the surface, poke more holes to help it sink in. Invert the cake onto a cake platter. Gradually brush the remaining glaze evenly over the top and sides of the cake, letting it soak in as you go. (Go slowly so that the glaze gets absorbed, rather than drips off the sides.) Let cool completely before serving.
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cake can be made up to 1 day ahead of time and stored in a cake dome or covered container at room temperature. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, double-wrap it securely with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap, or place it in a heavy-duty freezer bag. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
- Note: It's important to use cake flour in this recipe. All-purpose flour will make the cake dry and dense.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (16 servings)
- Calories: 438
- Fat: 19 g
- Saturated fat: 12 g
- Carbohydrates: 56 g
- Sugar: 39 g
- Protein: 4 g
- Sodium: 145 mg
- Cholesterol: 127 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Put finely chopped pecans in bottom, great recipe, thank you.
I wish there were a way to attach a photo. This cake is not only delicious, it’s beautiful.
1) I made it with light rum and served it with macerated strawberries
2) dusted with powdered sugar from presentation
3) instead of “painting” the glaze before tipping over I poured by tablespoons. I made it before and this method worked better.
4) YUM!!
I went through such a debacle over this cake and it was worth it.
On flipping the cake, it broke (my fault), and after about 1 minute of silently freaking out I decided to just increase the amount of simple syrup and thicken it, thereby “gluing” the cake together from the outside… and somehow I pulled it off. Cover it with powdered sugar, melted white chocolate and white chocolate chips and no one can see its broken top. In fact, it turned out absolutely gorgeous.
Overall, people loved the cake and I thought the texture was great, dense yet fluffy and moist. Flavour was good; not as “rummy” as I would like but I didn’t have dark rum so that’s to be expected. Quite tasty, slightly boozy and good with homemade whipped cream.
I was just about to review this cake (which I love) when I saw your review. I was going to highlight in my review that using a dark rum is essential. I have been a rum drinker for years, and my favourite rums are either dark amber or just plain very dark rums, such as Captain Morgan or especially Kracken. Sailor Jerry is a great darker amber rum as well, but what I can honestly say is that you CAN taste the rum in the cake, and it makes a huge difference using the dark rum. If you have ever been to the Caribbean, you will have seen the famous and ubiquitous Tartuga rum cake in the bright yellow box. This recipe of Jenn’s is every bit as good, and frankly I think better, than this famous rum cake. So, my recommendation is try it once more with Kracken; you’ll love it if you love a good rum cake!
I made this for Christmas and added some rum soaked raisins. It was amazing!!
I felt it turned out dense still. It smelled great and honestly the batter tasted so good! But the flavor just wasn’t there when I served it and I couldn’t swallow because it was dry. I poked so many holes in it and topped with glaze generously. With that said, I converted to making cupcakes for COVID reasons; so that could have been it.
What is the calorie count for this cake, per slice?
Hi Barbara, I just added all the nutritional info for the cake. Hope you enjoy if you make it!
Hi Jen! I’ve made this rum cake 3x previously with 6 cup and 12 cup bundt pans. It turned out well every time. If I use a pan for 12 small bundt cakes and reduce the baking time, do you think it would still work? I also love you french apple cake recipe by the way and made it numerous times for the family. Thank you.
So glad you like this! Yes, I do think you could make mini bundts with this.
Hi Regina! I plan on using a 6 cup pan. What bake time do you use? Thanks!!
Thank you so much for this recipe! I have been baking it for my family for a couple of years now. They all love it, ask for it at family dinners and even show disappointment when I make a different dessert :). I follow the recipe exactly as written, and it comes out perfectly each time.
I was wondering, would a bit of ground ginger be a good addition to this? Thanks!
Glad your family enjoys it, Aida! Sure, I think a little ground ginger would work nicely here.
This is a great recipe! I added a cup of chopped pecans in the bottom of the bundt pan. Will definitely make this again. It’s much better than the recipe with the cake mix. Thank you for sharing!
Can this cake be frozen? It sounds delicious!
Yep!