Milky Way Cake

There is no end to what a sweet little Southern church lady will dream up to bring to a dinner on the ground when she’s trying to be original. Candy bars have long been a source of inspiration. The basic rule of thumb for coming up with a dessert recipe like this is that if a candy bar tastes good by itself, try making a cake with it!

Cake

8 Milky Way candy bars (Snickers bars also work)

3 sticks butter, divided

2 cups sugar

4 large eggs, beaten

1¼ cups buttermilk

2½ cups cake flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup chopped pecans

Icing

1½ cups sugar

1 stick butter

1 (5-ounce) can evaporated milk

1 cup marshmallow crème

1 (6-ounce) package semisweet chocolate chips

Garnishes

¼ cup chopped pecans

¼ cup caramel ice-cream topping, melted

To make the cake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease and flour an 11 x 7-inch baking pan. In a saucepan melt the Milky Way bars and 1 stick of the butter and set aside to cool. In a large bowl cream the sugar and the remaining 2 sticks butter. Add the beaten eggs to the creamed mixture and continue to beat until fluffy. Add the buttermilk to the creamed mixture and blend well. Add the flour, baking soda, and vanilla, blending until completely integrated. Fold the candy bar mixture into the batter and then fold in the nuts. Pour into the prepared baking pan and bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.

To make the icing, while the cake is baking, cook the sugar, butter, and evaporated milk in a large saucepan over medium-low heat until the mixture reaches the soft-ball stage (this can easily be determined with a candy thermometer). Remove the icing from the heat and add the marshmallow crème and chocolate chips, stirring until blended.

When the cake is finished baking, punch holes across the surface of the entire cake in the pan. Ice the cake in the pan and sprinkle the top with the chopped nuts and drizzle with the hot caramel topping. Allow the cake to cool in the pan before serving.

Makes 12 servings