One of my favorite things to do lately is “dessert deliveries”. My friends and I started this as a way to stay connected, get out of the house for a minute and to see eachothers faces, even through a window. This week was my friends birthday. He’s originally from Georgia and love’s bourbon so I decided to make a peach cake with bourbon frosting. We all met up at a Party City parking lot like we were about to do a drug deal, but we exchanged cake instead. (masks on of course!) It definitely brightened up my week.
I first made the filling with the peaches, brown sugar, bourbon and lemon juice. The brown sugar turns the juice into a syrup when you cook it down. The lemon juice helps draw out the peach juice and keeps the peaches from browning. I had to use frozen peaches because there aren’t any fresh ones in store yet in Chicago. I think I’m a little eager at this point for it to be summer. If you have the availability to grab some you can absolutely use fresh as well! You will press out the syrup and use it in the cake for some added flavor.
For the frosting I wanted it to have a brown butter and bourbon flavor, but for it to still be light and fluffy when paired with the peaches. I started by browning the butter. Once browned, I poured it through a fine mesh sieve to catch some of the larger browned bits. I placed it in the fridge while I made the cake so it could turn back into a solid. I then mixed it with regular butter, powdered sugar, bourbon and whipped cream. The result was a mix between and buttercream and whipped cream frosting. Still firm enough to lay smoothly on the cake but light enough from the whipped cream that it didn’t feel heavy.
I know a lot of you have been asking questions about cake flour. I sadly used my last couple of cups on this cake. Cake flour has less gluten then all purpose flour and is more finely milled. Because of this, it creates a lighter cake with more delicate crumb. I know it, along with any type of flour, can be hard to find in the stores right now. But not to worry! If you don’t have cake flour, or can’t find it, you can make your own by mixing all purpose flour with corn starch. I place 2 tablespoons of corn starch in a measuring cup and then add in the all purpose flour until it equals a cup and I repeat until I have enough for my recipe.
Peach Cake with Bourbon Whipped Cream Frosting
Equipment
- Kitchen Aid Stand Up Mixer
- Fine Mesh Sieve
- Mixing Bowls
- Whisk
- Cake Pans
- Cake Strips
Ingredients
Peach Filling
- 1 16oz package frozen peaches (dethawed)
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
- juice from ½ lemon
- 2 teaspoons bourbon ( I used Bullet)
Peach Cake
- 2¾ cups cake flour (see notes if you can't find, I know its hard in quarantine :()
- 2½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup milk
- 6 egg whites
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ peach syrup from filling (see notes)
Bourbon Whipped Cream Frosting
- 1 cup butter (for browning)
- ½ cup butter at room temperature
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons bourbon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- 1-2 drops peach food coloring
Decorations
- 1 cup frozen peaches, dethawed
- ½ cup raspberries
- ¼ cup edible rose petals (optional)
Instructions
Peach Filling
- * See the first step for the frosting. Brown your butter first so it can cool and harden while you make the cake. To a medium pan set over medium heat, add the peaches, brown sugar, lemon juice and bourbon. Cook for five minutes until the juice has thickened into a syrup consistency. Remove from heat and set aside to slightly cool, around 2 minutes.
- Place a fine mesh sieve over a medium bowl. Pour the peaches into the sieve. With the back of a spatula, press out the juice from the peaches into the bowl. Place the peach jam into a separate bowl and set both aside.
Peach Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two 9" cake pans with parchment paper and grease the sides.
- In a medium bowl combine the cake flour, baking powder and salt. To the bowl of a stand up mixer, using the paddle attachment, add in the butter and sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy around 2-3 minutes.
- Add the milk, eggs whites, vanilla extract and peach syrup from above into a medium bowl and lightly whisk until combined.
- Turn the mixer on low speed and add alternate adding in the dry and wet ingredients. Mix until the batter is smooth. Pour the batter evenly into the cake pans. I used cake strips so my cake would bake evenly. You can buy them here.
- Bake the cake for 22-25 minutes at 350°F. The cake is done when the top is slightly browned and a toothpick comes clean out of the middle. Let the cake cool completely before frosting
Bourbon Whipped Cream Frosting
- To a medium pan set over medium heat add 1 cup of butter (2 sticks). Stir the butter constantly until the butter has browned and started forming brown bits on the bottom, around 5 minutes. Place a fine mesh sieve over a medium bowl. Pour the butter through the sieve to collect some of the larger brown bits. Place the bowl in the fridge to solidify while to make the cake.
- To the bowl of a stand up mixer with the paddle attachment, add the brown butter, butter, and powdered sugar. Start beating on low and raise up to medium once it starts to incorporate.
- Add in the bourbon, vanilla and whipped cream. Beat on medium high, around 2 minutes, until the frosting is light a fluffy. Add in the food coloring (optional) and beat until combined
Putting The Cake Together
- Place 1 cooled layer of the cake on a cake stand. Frost the top of the first layer with 1/4 inches of frosting. To the top of the frosting add the peach filling. Spread evenly. Place the second cake layer on top of the first.
- Spread a thin layer of frosting along the top and the sides to "collect the crumbs" Place the cake in the fridge for 15 minutes. This will make frosting the cake much easier.
- Frost the cake. To the top add the peaches, raspberries and rose petals.