This cake is a favorite throughout the southern United States and has its origins in Texas, where, for reasons we can’t possibly guess, it is always called Italian Cream Cake. At Moosewood, it became one of our first adaptations to gluten-free. Always popular, the coconut-pecan cake frosted with a fluffy cream cheese frosting is luscious for special occasions. A foolproof cake, it bakes up big for a dramatic presentation.
Yields one double-layer 9-inch round cake
Cake prep time: about 15 minutes
Cake baking time: 30 to 35 minutes
Cake cooling time: about 20 minutes
Frosting prep time: about 10 minutes
Frosting the cake time: about 10 minutes
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pans
2 cups Moosewood’s Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Mix, plus more for the pans
1¼ teaspoons baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon pure coconut extract
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup chopped toasted pecans
4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter, at room temperature
6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans and lightly dust them with some of the flour mix.
In a bowl, sift together the flour mix, baking soda, and salt. Add the shredded coconut and mix well. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla and coconut extracts. Alternate adding the buttermilk and the dry mixture to the butter mixture, beating well after each addition, to form a smooth batter. Stir in the toasted pecans. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans.
Bake until the cakes begin to pull away from the edges of the pans and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool the layers in the pans for about 5 minutes and then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
Make the frosting: In a food processor or using an electric mixer, cream the butter and cream cheese until well blended and light. Beat in the vanilla, and gradually add the sugar until the frosting is smooth and thick.
To frost the cake, first spread frosting between the two layers and then on the sides and top.
NOTE: Make It Pretty
Sprinkle shavings of fresh or toasted coconut on top, or press flakes of dried coconut into the frosting all over. Decorate the top with pecan halves. Or go all out: a few edible nasturtium blossoms would be the icing on the cake.