The Perfect Peach Layer Cake

Cooking time: 1 hour

Ingredients

3 cups of granulated sugar

2 sticks of unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup of shortening

5 eggs, room temperature

1 cup of milk

3 cups of all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

GLAZE:

1 cup of granulated sugar

1 cup of water

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup whiskey

1/3 cup light brown sugar

1 heaping tbsp. peach preserves

FROSTING:

2 packages of cream cheese

2 sticks of unsalted butter

4 cups of confectioner’s sugar

1/2 cup peach preserves

Cooking Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt and baking powder and set aside. In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar and shortening. Once sugar mixture is well blended, add in 5 eggs ONE AT A TIME. Once the eggs are combined, begin to add flour mixture and milk. Always start and end with flour. (I start with a third of flour, then half of milk then a third of flour then remaining half of milk then remaining third of flour). Add extracts and mix until completely blended.

Grease and flour three (3) 9 inch cake pans. I know it’s old fashioned to grease and flour non stick pans but it leaves a lovely crust on the cake. Put a third of the mixture into each of the three cake pans. Lift each pan approximately 4 inches from the counter top then drop on counter to get all of the air out of the cake batter.

Put each of the cake pans into the preheated oven and bake for 60 minutes.

While the cakes are baking, combine the ingredients for the glaze… water, sugar, extract, whiskey, brown sugar and peach preserves in a sauce pan. Bring to a light boil then remove from heat and let sit until cakes are ready.

Once the cakes are done, poke each cake several times with a toothpick and soak each of the cakes with the glaze mixture. Let the cakes rest for about 5 minutes before turning them out onto parchment paper to cool. E cakes should rest at least an hour…preferably two hours.

Once the cakes are room temperature, in a large bowl combine cream cheese, butter and confectioner’s sugar, one cup at a time. Once the ingredients are combined, in a smaller bowl, mix the peach preserves and about a cup of the frosting. This mixture will be spread between the layers.

For the bottom and middle layers, you should level off the cakes before icing them. Place the first cake on a cake plate and frost the top with the peach preserves mixture, add the second layer and repeat with the peach preserves mixture and add the third cake a top. With the non peach preserves frosting, begin a crumb coat to cover the entire cake and refrigerate for a few minutes. Add another layer of frosting to the cake and refrigerate again for a few minutes and then once again frost your final “company’s coming” layer of frosting.

Now get ready for your friends and family to ask for this cake every birthday, holiday and dinner! Enjoy!!!