Italian Cream Cake
The other cold-to-the-bones, dismal, misty night, Mr. Fix-It said he was really, really, really wanting a dessert. We aren’t eating many desserts since the discovery of my thyroid issues. Of course, Mr. Skinny Fix-It can’t eat anything if I can’t eat anything, right?!
So, with the wood stove finally blazing, to make the house toasty warm, dogs sacked out around it like stuffed animals tossed aside, I decided to be nice and make him something special – an Italian Cream Cake. Ever since Sir Flying Ace’s and Miss Amelia Air-Heart’s wedding, Mr. Fix-It has been wanting another Italian Cream Cake. Only, he wanted it the way their wedding cake was – no coconut. It does make a difference – especially for those who aren’t crazy about coconut!!
Now, you know me. I had to find out the background on Italian Cream Cakes and so I researched and researched and guess what. There IS no background on Italian Cream Cakes. This is the best I could come up with from Answer.com and a recipe book:
“While the Italian Cream Cake has its roots in renaissance Italy, the first written record of it is first seen in Canada in 1913. It is not until 1937 that the first recipe of Italian Creak Cake surfaces in the Plano News from Texas. Over the years the recipe has grown more complicated, though it is adored for its endless flavor combinations.”
And
“Not much is known about the origin of the Italian cream cake. The recipe apparently first appeared in the southern part of the United States and was the creation of an Italian baker who had moved to the U.S.”
Evidently, we rednecks are more crazy about this cake than are Italians. That would make sense since it is all about butter and pecans!
So here is my version of the Italian Cream Cake. And just a note, I use my own, homemade bourbon vanilla which I’ll show in an upcoming post.
Italian Cream Cake
Preheat oven to 350º
Ingredients:
1 stick real butter
½ cup cooking oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups sugar
5 eggs separated
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups flour
1 cup chopped pecans
(regular recipes add 3 oz of shredded coconut – not me!)
Icing:
1 stick real butter at room temperature
1 (1 lb box) powdered sugar (approx. 3 ¾ cup)
1 (8oz) package cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
Printable Recipe
In a small bowl, mix together the stick of butter that has been melted, cooking oil, sugar and vanilla
Separate eggs and lightly beat egg yolks
Add yolks to sugar and butter mixture
Pour mixture into a large mixing bowl
Add buttermilk to the mixture and stir
Add all of the dry ingredients including nuts and mix on medium speed until well mixed and smooth
Whip the egg whites until stiff
Fold in egg whites by running the spatula around the outside of the batter, pulling it in over itself and the egg whites. Continue to do this until egg whites and batter are blended. Evenly divide the batter between three greased and floured 8″ round cake pans (grease and flour even if nonstick). Bake at 350º for 20 -30 minutes
When the layers are done – a toothpick comes out clean – allow to cool on racks. If they are higher in the center than around the edges, take a serrated knife and gently cut across the top to make an even surface for stacking.
Make the icing by mixing, on high, all of the ingredients together, slowly adding the powdered sugar a cup at a time. Ice the bottom layer and stack the second layer on top. Ice the second layer and place the top layer on last. To keep layers from sliding you can strategically put toothpicks down through the layers to hold them in place. Complete icing the sides and top.
The finished product. Place in the refrigerator to set the icing before slicing.
So rich, you’ll only need a skinny slice. This cake can be frozen whole or sliced and frozen for a quick dessert later
Happy Baking!
MB
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Tags: cream cheese icing, dessert, Italian Cream Cake, pecans, recipe
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on Sunday, January 24th, 2016 at 11:06 pm and is filed under Desserts, Let's Cook!.
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You forgot the flour….how much?
Carol, ha ha. That’s what I get for working at midnight on a post!!! I fixed it. 2 cups. Thanks for the heads up!! And thanks for reading.
Made this cake last week and brought it into work. Everyone raved about it and totally devoured it. I made a 2 tier cake instead of 3, extended my baking time to about 43 min, came out very moist, flavorful, plenty of icing with some left over. I added about 2 tablespoons of buttermilk to the icing and it balanced out the sweetness very well. Will definitely be making this again.
So very sorry at the tardiness for this response but the buttermilk sounds like an awesome idea!! So glad you liked the cake.
[…] so many other recipes, the stories behind how Italian cream cake started are varied. One says it started in Renaissance Italy. Another says that it was invented by an […]