What You Need To Know Before Ordering Whiskey Cake

Cake has seemed like a symbol of luxury throughout the course of history. Just take a look at how expensive sugar and dairy used to be before the modern food market made them more accessible. The ingredients, time, and energy needed to buy, make, and decorate cakes were once only had by the uber-wealthy classes of society. But some cakes do have a more humble, down to earth origin such as the classic pound cake, which All Recipes says was created in 18th century Britain and widely favored by the illiterate poor of the Commonwealth. 

Another cake favored by the common people was the fruitcake, which the Smithsonian claims was invented sometime during the Middle Ages in Europe and stuck around because dried fruit had become more available. Another thing that became more available during that time was booze. As you can probably guess, refrigerators weren't exactly running before the 20th century, so people had to get a little creative when storing their food. Booze was and still is, the way people killed the bacteria spoiling their fruitcakes (via The Spruce Eats). 

Over the centuries, and through many trials and errors, the traditional fruitcake fathered many different cake variations, one of which being the whiskey cake.

Whiskey cake, as the name describes, is commonly baked with nuts, dried fruits, and of course some good, old-fashioned whiskey (via Rabbit Hole Distillery). This dessert is also known as tipsy cake, but according to Toriavey, this boozy treat won't actually get you drunk. After all, it is actually just a version of the English fruitcake, which, in and of itself, has quite a few recipe variations regarding the kinds of berries, nuts, and flavors used. But because this cake has no steadfast rule other than it must contain some form of cake and whiskey, you can adjust it to your tastes. 

There are traditional aspects to the cake that are often followed for the sake of nostalgia. MasterClass states that some of the common factors between whiskey cakes are that Irish whiskey is either mixed into the cake's batter or soaked in it after baking and it is commonly cooked in a bundt pan or loaf pan. Otherwise, the cake can be chocolate, vanilla, caramel, yellow, etc., and topped with literally anything you set your mind to. And while that's all well and good, it means that when your friend invites you over for a slice or you order some from a bakery, you could end up with very different textured and tasting bakes.