Almost Tortuga Rum Cake

The Almost Tortuga Rum Cake - adapted from Recipe Goldmine and Food.com

Ingredients

2 cups cake flour 
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into bits
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
1 3 1/2 oz package vanilla instant pudding mix
1/2 cup milk
4 eggs
1/2 cup vanilla rum (Hawaiian-style rum)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Soaking Glaze

1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup boiling water
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup vanilla rum

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Grease and flour a standard sized bundt or angel food cake pan. Grease and flour well, this is an important step.

 Mix the cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer.  Add chucks of the softened butter and 3 tablespoons of the vegetable oil.  Continue mixing on medium speed until mixture is small pea sized bits.  Ad the pudding mix, milk, eggs, remaining oil, rum and vanilla. Continue beating with the paddle of the mixer, raising the speed to medium. Beat until well mixed, scraping bowl often to incorporate all the mixture. 

Sprinkle the nuts across the bottom of the pan. Pour batter over the nuts and bake for 55 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean and cake springs back when touched.

Prepare Rum Soaking Glaze by combining butter, water and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until sugar is dissolved and syrup is well combined and beginning to thicken.  Remove from the heat and stir in the rum.

With the cake cooling in its pan, poke holes all over the exposed top and gently pour the some of the hot syrup over the cake.  Give it a little time to soak in, then pour more syrup over the cake. Continue until all the syrup is added to the cake.  Allow the cake to cool completely in the before turning it out onto a serving platter.

This cake has a very delicate crumb.  A little whipped cream is a nice added touch.