Southern Pecan Cake Food

SOUTHERN BUTTER PECAN CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350. Generously grease 2 9-inch cake pans with shortening and lightly dust with flour. Set aside.

BOURBON PECAN CAKE

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. Combine the bourbon, milk and vanilla in a separate bowl (it may get clumpy looking--that's ok) and set aside.
• In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and coconut oil until fluffy, about 1 minute. Add 1 3/4 cups of the granulated sugar and beat until fluffy, about 1 more minute. Add the egg yolks one at a time, mixing well between additions. Add the dry ingredients in four batches, alternating with the wet mixture, starting and ending with the dry. Stir in the pecans.
• In a stand mixer with a whisk attachment and a clean bowl, whip the egg whites with the cream of tartar on medium until soft peaks form. Sprinkle in the remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar and whip to stiff peaks, about 5 minutes total. Fold the egg whites into the batter in thirds.
• Pour into a bundt pan and bake until a cake tester comes out clean, 55 to 60 minutes. Let cool before turning the cake out of the pan.
• For the glaze: In a medium bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, bourbon and 2 tablespoons water. Once the cake is cool, top it with the glaze and sprinkle with the chopped pecans.

TEXAS PECAN CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F. Beat butter and sugar with a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Stir together baking powder, salt, and 3 1/2 cups of the flour in a bowl. Gradually add flour mixture and lemon extract to butter mixture, beating on medium speed until just combined. Stir together pecans, raisins, and remaining 1/2 cup flour in a separate bowl; stir into batter until combined.
• Coat a 10-inch tube pan with baking spray with flour. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake in preheated oven until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 1 hour, 15 minutes to 1 hour, 30 minutes. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Remove from pan; let cool completely on a wire rack, about 1 hour.

PECAN-PIE CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• For the crust: Position a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat to 325 degrees F. Butter the inside of the springform pan.
• Pulse the graham crackers in a food processor until finely ground. Add the butter, sugar and salt, and pulse until the mixture comes together and holds its shape when squeezed. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan, and press it into the bottom to make an even layer. Bake until the crust is just firm, about 10 minutes. Remove and let cool completely. Place the pan on a large piece of foil, and fold the foil up the sides of the pan. (This helps seal the pan, to keep water out while baking.)
• For the filling: Wipe out the food processor. Pulse the cream cheese, sugar and sour cream until completely smooth, without any lumps, scraping down the sides of the bowl a few times. Add the eggs and vanilla, and pulse until incorporated. Pour the filling into the crust, and set the pan inside a roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with enough hot water to go halfway up the sides of the springform pan (but not above the foil).
• Bake the cheesecake until the edge is set but the center jiggles slightly (when you gently shake the pan, the cheesecake should move in a cohesive wave motion), 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes. Turn the oven off, and open the door for a few seconds to let out some heat. Close the door, and let the cheesecake sit in the oven until cooked completely through, 1 hour more.
• Transfer the springform pan to a cooling rack. Run a knife around the edge, and let the cheesecake cool to room temperature. Wrap and refrigerate overnight or up to 2 days.
• For the topping: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the pecans out on a baking sheet, and bake until they turn a few shades darker and are nicely toasted, about 15 minutes. Let cool, then halve each pecan lengthwise.
• Meanwhile, heat the cream, butter, corn syrup, vanilla and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat until just steaming. Reduce the heat to low to keep the cream mixture warm.
• Cook the sugar in an even layer in a medium skillet over medium heat, without stirring, until it begins to melt. Gently swirl the pan as needed as the sugar continues to melt and begins to caramelize and turn lightly golden in spots. Keep cooking and swirling until the caramel is a uniform deep amber. Remove from the heat, and slowly whisk in the warm cream mixture (watch out for ferocious bubbles). Return the caramel sauce to medium heat, and cook to reduce slightly, about 2 minutes. Let cool. To see if the sauce is ready for topping the cheesecake, dip a spoon into it and let the sauce drop off; it's ready if it easily and slowly drips off the spoon. (The sauce can be refrigerated up to 2 days; reheat in the microwave.)
• To assemble: Spoon the sauce into the center of the cheesecake, and let it ooze to the edge. If needed, swirl the sauce with the back of a spoon to help it along. Sprinkle the pecans in a generous layer over the sauce. The cheesecake can now be served or refrigerated for up to 4 hours.
• To slice the cake, dip a sharp, heavy knife into warm water, wipe the knife dry and slice into the cake. Wipe the knife clean and repeat.

SOUTHERN PECAN BUTTERMILK POUND CAKE

Steps:

• Cream the heck out of the room temperature butter and sugar using a stand mixer. Scrap down sides occasionally. Cream until smooth. It will take at least five minutes.
• Add room temperature eggs, one at a time. Mix only until the yolks disappear.
• Mix in 3 3/4 cups sifted flour and all the buttermilk, alternating, starting and ending with flour.
• Stir in vanilla and almond extracts.
• In a small bowl, add remaining 1/4 cup flour to 1 cup chopped pecans. Stir until pecans are coated then stir pecans into batter.
• Pour batter into greased and floured tube pan.
• In a small bowl, toss remaining 1/4 cup pecans with 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour. Add pecan mixture on top of pound cake batter. Sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
• Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
• Cool in pan for 10 minutes.
• Carefully remove cake from tube pan and place on a wire cooling rack. Completely cool before cutting.
• Pounds cake are best if they cure for a day or two before eating, if you can stand it that long.

SOUTHERN PECAN PRALINE CAKE

Steps:

• Grease and flour three nine-inch round cake pans and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Cream the butter with both granulated sugar and light brown sugar until very light and fluffy, then add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Sift the flour with the baking powder, baking soda and salt and add to the batter alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the dry mixture. Stir in the vanilla extract.
• Divide batter evenly among the prepared pans and bake in the center of the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center of the layers comes out clean. Cool layers in their pans over a rack for ten minutes, then loosen and turn out layers directly onto racks for cooling. Cool layers thoroughly before icing.
• For the icing, melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Remove from heat, then stir in granulated sugar and light brown sugar. (Sugars will not dissolve).
• In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the evaporated milk until smooth, then whisk this mixture into the saucepan with the sugar mixture. Return saucepan to a medium heat setting and cook, whisking constantly, until mixture is thick, shiny and caramel-like, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract and pecans.
• Cool icing to a good spreading consistency (about 30 minutes), then spread evenly between cooled cake layers and over the top and sides of the cake.

SOUTHERN PECAN CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 8-inch round cake pans.
• Mix butter, milk, coconut milk, and vanilla extract together in a large bowl. Combine flour, sugar, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl. Slowly mix into the milk mixture. Add egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Divide batter between the prepared cake pans.
• Bake cakes in the preheated oven until tops are golden yellow and spring back when lightly pressed, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Prepare frosting while cakes are baking. Combine sugar, evaporated milk, butter, egg yolks, and flour in a saucepan. Heat over medium-low, stirring constantly, until mixture starts to thicken. Add vanilla and stir for 1 minute. Pour in pecans; cook and stir for 2 minutes more.
• Remove frosting from heat and let cool. Remove cakes from the oven and set aside to cool, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Place 1 cooled cake layer on a serving plate. Cover with some of the cooled frosting. Top with the second cake layer. Frost top and sides with remaining frosting.

PECAN POUND CAKE RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. In a small bowl toss pecans with ¼ cup flour
• Beat butter on medium speed with a stand or hand mixer. Gradually add in granulated and brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy (3 to 5 minutes). Add eggs in 1 at a time, beating until just blended. Stir in vanilla.
• In a medium bowl stir together baking powder, salt, and 3 ¾ cups flour. Add this flour mixture to the butter mixture, alternating with buttermilk. Beging and ending with flour mixture until just combined. Do not over mix. Gently stir pecans into the batter.
• Spray a 10-inch tube or 10 to 12 cup bundt pan with baking spray or butter and flour pan. Pour batter into the pan and smooth the top with spatula.
• Bake for 70 to 90 minutes or until a wooden pick comes out mostly clean. Check at about 45 minutes and if the cake is browning too quickly add foil over the top and finish baking. Cool in pan for 15 minutes and then turn onto a cooling rack to finish cooling.