This Butter Tart Cake has butter tart filling swirled into a delicious butter bundt tart cake, then smothered in a creamy brown butter maple glaze. It's a delicious butter tart in the form of a cake. The perfect dessert for your Christmas dinner!
Grease bundt cake pan with non- stick cooking spray. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F/162 degrees C.
Make butter tart swirl filling:
In a medium pot on stove top, add 1 teaspoon vanilla to ¼ cup and 2 Tblsp whipping cream, heat to medium low,  then add 2 Tblsp and 2 teaspoon butter.
In a separate large bowl, combine 3 eggs, and 1 ½ cups brown sugar.
Add egg mixture to warm cream mixture and simmer on low, then add 1 ½ teaspoon vinegar and whisk in 2 teaspoon of cornstarch.
Add ½ cup raisins or chopped pecans.
Keep whisking until thickened on med/ low heat for about 12 -15 minutes. Be patient and keep whisking, as it won't really start to thicken until the last 5-7 minutes.It should be the consistency of thick gravy after 15 minutes. If it's not, then you need to add more cornstarch and keep whisking.
Remove from heat and cool. Once it's cooled, it will be very thick like pudding. *If it is not this thick it won't work - the cake won't cook properly! *This is why I often make it the night before so it has time to cool and sit in the fridge and thicken. **To thicken it quickly, put it in the freezer for 30 minutes.
Make Cake:
Pour 1 teaspoon vinegar into 1 cup milk (let stand ).
Mix 2 ½ cups flour and ½ teaspoon baking powder together – set aside.
Cream 1 cup unsalted butter and 2 cups brown sugar with electric hand mixer, (or with a paddle attachment in the bowl of a stand mixer) then beat in 1 teaspoon each butter and vanilla extracts, 2 eggs and ¼ cup whipping cream.
Mix dry ingredients into wet and stir until combined. Mix 1 teaspoon baking soda into milk mixed with vinegar, stir and allow a moment for it to bubble up.
Then fold into cake mix and stir until just combined.
Pour ½ the cake batter into the bundt cake pan. Drop spoonfuls of the butter tart swirl filling (about ½ of the filling) over cake and swirl gently with a knife.Â
Pour in remaining batter and swirl in the remaining butter tart swirl filling, using the same technique.
Bake in preheated oven for approximately 1 hour or until cake tester/toothpick comes out clean.
If it's not done, cover will foil so it won't darken anymore and put it back in the oven, check it at 5 minute intervals.
Allow it to cool in pan on trivet for at least 10 minutes.
Remove from pan and cool for another 20 minutes on wire rack.
Glaze:
Brown butter: Melt ¼ cup unsalted butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and continue to cook until butter turns a light golden brown and is fragrant (caramel odor). SEE VIDEO IN RECIPE NOTES
Remove from heat and add 1 teaspoon maple extract (be careful because it will bubble up and can spray). Then cool to room temperature. Whisk the butter mixture with 1 cup confectioners sugar and add 3 Tblsp of whipping cream.Â
Pour Brown butter maple glaze over cake and allow to harden a few minutes.
Notes
📖 Variations & SubstitutionsMini Butter Tart Bundt Cakes: You can also make these mini bundt cakes. Bake for half the time, approximately 30 minutes or until cake tester or toothpick comes out clean (serves 2). And they are great for bake sales!🎥 VideoVideo: How to make brown butterTips for Success
Make sure your butter and eggs are at room temperature- Room temperature butter and eggs ensure that your batter will be smooth and lump-free!
Use good quality ingredients (especially butter)Â - I find that the quality of butter has changed (especially in Canada) over the last 5 years and this is well documented. No name butter has the highest water content, so you'll want to avoid it and use a brand name. From my own research, Lactantia is the best (lowest water content).
Use a bundt pan- A bundt pan is ideal for a bundt cake because it allows more of the cake to be in contact with the edges of the pan, and therefore the heat is transferred more evenly. But an angel food cake pan can be used in a pinch.
Swirl enough, but don't over swirl -Â You want to make sure the butter tart filling is swirled into the cake batter enough that it doesn't clump, but not too much that it's a smeary blob and not a swirl. Cutting in deep with the knife and lifting while you swirl will give you the outcome you're looking for!
Grease your pan thoroughly (and use cake release)-Â Make sure you grease your pan very well or bits will stick to it. I use a product called "Wilton Cake Release" for all my cakes and it's THE BEST! However, if bits of cake come off with the pan, just stick them back on - the glaze will cover any blunders anyway.
Make sure the filling is thick enough-Â Your filling should be like thick pudding before you swirl it into the cake batter. If your swirl filling is too thin, the cake won't cook and set properly and it will be a wet mess.
Don't skimp on chilling time- Cool the cake and chill the cake thoroughly and serve it cold!