Butter Pecan Cake

Butter Pecan Cake is moist, light, and nutty and topped with an irresistible cream cheese frosting! It is sure to delight all of the butter pecan lovers in your life. Make it for fall, special occasions, or just because!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 40

Chill Time 30

Total Time 1 40

Servings servings

Calories 1167kcal

Author John Kanell

Ingredients

For the Cake:

1¼ cups and 3 tablespoons unsalted butter softened and divided (325g)
1½ cups chopped pecans (180g)
4¼ cups all-purpose flour (540g)
2½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon baking soda
2½ cups granulated sugar (500g)
5 large eggs room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1¼ cup buttermilk room temperature (300ml)

For the Buttercream:

1½ cups unsalted butter softened (340g)
2 (8-ounce/227g) blocks cream cheese room temperature
¼ teaspoon salt
7 cups powdered sugar (840g)
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup toasted pecans finely chopped (60g)

Instructions

For the Cake:

In a skillet over medium heat, melt 3 tablespoons of butter. Add chopped pecans and cook, stirring occasionally, until toasted, 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer the toasted nuts to a small bowl and let cool completely.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease 3 (9-inch) round cake pans with baking spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper. Wrap with water-soaked fabric baking scrips, if desired.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the remaining 1¼ cups butter and granulated sugar together until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until combined between each addition. Stop to scrape down sides as needed. Beat in the vanilla.
With the mixer on low speed, add a third of the flour mixture followed but half of the buttermilk. Repeat, alternating between the flour mixture and buttermilk until both are fully combined. Stop to scrape down the bowl occasionally. Fold in the cooled buttered pecans until evenly distributed. Divide the batter among the prepared cake pans.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs. Let the cakes cool for 20 minutes in the pans. Invert onto cooling racks, remove the parchment paper, and let the cakes cool completely.

For the Buttercream:

In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, cream cheese, and salt together on medium speed until creamy and well combined, about 1 minute.
With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the powdered sugar. Stop occasionally and scrape down the bowl. Beat in the cream and vanilla. Once combined, increase the speed to medium-low and beat until smooth and fluffy, about 1 minute.

For the Assembly:

Place one cooled cake layer on a cake stand or serving plate. Top with 1 cup frosting, spreading smoothly out to the edges. Place another cake layer on top and repeat with 1 cup of frosting. Top with the final cake layer, and spread the remaining frosting all over the top and sides of the cake. Press finely chopped pecans around the bottom of the cake, and sprinkle any remaining on top of the cake around the edge. Chill for 30 minutes to set the frosting before serving. Cake can be covered and stored at room temperature or refrigerated for up to 5 days.

Notes

Keep an eye on the toasting pecans. Adjust the heat on the stove if needed, and stir the pecans occasionally so they don’t burn. Remove the nuts from the heat once they have absorbed the butter and turned a light golden brown. The pecans will crisp up and get more crunchy as they cool. Cool the nuts entirely before adding them to the cake.
Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Or for about 3 to 4 minutes. Properly creaming like this will add an exceptionally light and fluffy texture to the cake sponge. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed while creaming as well to ensure that all of the mixture gets evenly creamed.
Add the wet ingredients to the cake batter as directed. Beat in the cracked eggs one at a time and alternate mixing in the buttermilk and the dry ingredients. This will help the eggs and ingredients to mix in more evenly and for the batter to be nice and light.
Cool the cakes completely before frosting. Prevent the frosting from melting off of the cake by cooling them completely before frosting. To speed up the cooling process you can chill the turned-out cakes on a wire rack in the refrigerator or freezer. If chilling in the freezer, check the cakes frequently and remove them as soon as they are chilled to prevent freezing.
Chill the frosted cake for at least 30 minutes or prepare ahead of time. Allow the frosting to set before serving. To prepare the cake ahead of time, frost and decorate it up to 1 day in advance. Store the cake in an airtight cake container or poke the top with a few toothpicks and gently tent plastic wrap over it, securing the wrap underneath the cake plate so it is airtight.
Optional: Make homemade buttermilk. Also known as “sour milk,” make your own homemade buttermilk by mixing 1 scant cup of sour cream with 5 tablespoons of water or milk. You can also add 4 teaspoons of distilled white vinegar to a 2-cup measuring cup and fill the cup to the 1¼ cup line with whole milk or 2% milk. Stir well and let sit for 5 minutes before using.

Nutrition