De Fazio's-Inspired Italian Hangover Cake Recipe

There are a handful of ways that one might go about mitigating a hangover. The first option is to sleep it off, allowing time and fluids to work their magic. There's a school of people who maintain that the best option is to keep the party going, perhaps with a good brunch cocktail to stave it off if only for a few hours longer. There's a third option yet, and that's to enjoy a slice (or three) of recipe developer Patterson Watkins' Italian hangover cake, a booze-soaked confection that just might take the edge off. 

Inspired by the Italian hangover cake available from DeFazio's pizzeria in New York (and popularized by Dave Portnoy's "One Bite Pizza Reviews" YouTube series), Watkins' rendition of the treat stays true to its boozy origins. "There's a TON of booze in this recipe," Watkins admits, including orange liqueur, almond liqueur, and straight-up vodka. She warns, "There is a fine line in baking where too much booze spoils the experience. This was not the case with this one. You get these sensory pleasing aromatics and flavor (my house smelled fantastic while I was making this) that did not come across as sharp or acidic or alcohol heavy." Watkins says the flavor from the alcohol was almost like using freshly made natural extracts. The result is, "rich, moist, with a deep, pleasantly intense sensation of orange and almond." So no, this cake isn't going to get you drunk, but it might make you forget about that hangover, if only a little bit.

There are two main components to this hangover cake: the cake batter itself and the glaze. For the batter, you'll need softened unsalted butter, granulated sugar, orange zest, olive oil, eggs, orange juice, whole milk, orange liqueur (Watkins used Grand Marnier), all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Then, for the extra boozy glaze, you'll need more orange juice, granulated sugar, orange liqueur, almond liqueur (Watkins used Amaretto), vodka, and powdered sugar. 

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Place 1 cup of softened butter in a mixing bowl fitted with the whisk attachment and beat until fluffy.

Add the sugar and zest to the bowl and beat until combined.

In a separate bowl, place the olive oil, eggs, orange juice, milk, and orange liqueur. Whisk to combine.

In another bowl, place 3 cups of flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, stir to combine.

Place the dry ingredients into the mixing bowl with the whipped butter and stir until crumbly.

Add the wet ingredients to the mixing bowl and whisk to combine the batter.

Thoroughly coat a Bundt pan with the remaining ½ cup of butter (you may not need the entire ½ cup).

Coat the buttered Bundt in the remaining ¼ cup of flour, shake off any excess.

Pour the batter into the prepared Bundt and gently tap the pan to release any air bubbles.

Place in the oven and bake for 1 hour or until cooked through and golden brown.

While the cake is baking, make the glaze by placing orange juice, sugar, orange liqueur, almond liqueur, and vodka in a medium saucepan. Whisk to combine and bring to a simmer on low.

Cook the glaze for 10 minutes, whisking occasionally. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool at room temperature.

Remove the cake from the oven and set aside to cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Once cooled, use a bamboo skewer to poke holes into the cake, making sure not to puncture through the cake.

Pour half of the glaze over the cake, letting the glaze soak into the holes. Set aside to cool completely.

Once cooled, remove the cake from the pan, and place on a serving platter.

Dust the cake with powdered sugar before slicing and serving. Serve with the remaining glaze on the side for additional drizzling.

Even the most delicious of cakes only turns out perfect when proper pan preparation takes place first. If you're anything like Watkins, then perhaps your Bundt pan has given you problems in the past when it comes to cake clinging onto all of those crevices. As such, Watkins recommends applying plenty of butter to grease the pan, and to be sure to get into all of those nooks and crannies. "I really get in there too — hands, fingers, pastry brushes — to make sure every square inch of that Bundt is butter-coated," she says. She even doubles down with a coating of flour on top of the butter, which not only helps ensure a clean release from the pan but also helps to ensure even browning on the outside.

Another tip to ensure a successful cake comes in the form of prepping certain elements ahead of time, which isn't necessary, but can help with time management. Watkins notes that the glaze can easily be made well in advance, so when it comes time to make the actual cake, you can focus on baking it properly without having to multitask. And, if you wanted, you could even make the whole cake a day or two in advance and keep it at room temperature, but wait to glaze it until you're ready to serve.

The boozy combination in this Italian hangover cake — orange liqueur in the cake batter itself and then orange liqueur, almond liqueur, and vodka in the glaze — pays homage to the OG DeFazio's cake, which features Grand Marnier (orange liqueur), Disaronno (an amaretto, which provides the almond flavor), and vodka. These flavors work beautifully together, and Watkins strongly recommends giving the recipe a go as written before experimenting with other boozy flavor profiles. That said, if you do want to explore other flavor combinations, there's no shortage of inspiration. 

"I think lemoncello and fresh lemon would be a fun swap for the orange," Watkins says. "Lime would be tasty, subbing out the fresh orange ingredients, paired with a coconut liqueur." Otherwise, more adventurous additions like apple or apricot liqueur (paired with apple juice and apricot juice instead of orange juice) would give this cake a fruity makeover. "Both of those fruit liqueurs would pair well with the almond, but they would also be pretty tasty with hazelnut liqueurs," Watkins notes.