Brown Butter Pound Cake with Blackberry Bourbon Sauce

Talk about improving on perfection! The nutty flavor of this Brown Butter Pound Cake with Blackberry Bourbon Sauce is extraordinary. And the perfectly tangy Oregon Blackberries take it to the next level. More, please.

brown butter poundcake with blackberry bourbon sauce

Ingredients

For the Pound Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 sticks butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2½ cups butternut squash, sweet potato, or pumpkin puree*
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

For the Blackberry Sauce

2 cups fresh, frozen, or canned blackberries
½ cup sugar
â…“ cup bourbon
3 tablespoons orange juice
1 tablespoon cornstarch

For Serving

Vanilla ice cream, optional to serve with finished pound cake

*If using homemade squash, sweet potato, or pumpkin puree, transfer puree to a sieve lined with a thin, clean kitchen towel and allow to drain, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes.

Preparation

Step 1
Preheat the oven to 350℉. Spray a nonstick bundt pan with cooking spray.

Step 2
In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Step 3
In a medium skillet, melt butter over medium-low heat and cook, swirling the pan occasionally, until the butter starts to foam and gives off a nutty smell. When you swirl the pan you should see brown bits in the bottom. Scrape the butter and brown bits into a large bowl.

Step 4
Beat sugars into browned butter until smooth. Beat in squash, sweet potato, or pumpkin puree. Beat in eggs one at a time until incorporated, then beat in vanilla. Fold dry ingredients into wet ingredients until smooth, and scrape into the prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 60-75 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Step 5
In a medium saucepan combine blackberries, sugar, and bourbon and bring to a simmer. In a small bowl whisk together orange juice and cornstarch and whisk into blackberry sauce. Cook briefly, until thickened.

Step 6
Serve pound cake topped with blackberry sauce and ice cream, if desired.