Italian Cream Cake

We all love to make special dishes on the holidays and over the beautiful Easter weekend we experienced in East Tennessee, a cake caught my eye. It was a lovely creamy color topped with toasted coconut, and very rich and moist with pieces of crunchy pecan sprinkled throughout. The best part was the cream cheese frosting—another surprise that took this cake from ordinary to deliciously extraordinary.

Italian Cream Cake

• 1/2 cup shortening, room temperature
• 1 stick butter, room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 5 eggs, separated and at room temperature
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
• 2 cups shredded coconut
• 1 cup finely chopped pecans or walnuts
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese , at room temperature
• 1/4 cup butter, softened at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar, sifted
• 3/4 cup finely chopped pecans or walnuts.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and grease and flour 3 (9 inch) cake pans.

In the bowl of an electric mixer cream the shortening, butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift the flour, baking soda and salt together onto a sheet of waxed or parchment paper. With the mixer on low speed, add the sifted ingredients in batches alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff, and gently fold into the prepared batter. Add the coconut, pecans and vanilla and fold into the batter. Divide the batter among the 3 prepared cake pans and bake for about 25 minutes, or until golden brown and a tester comes out clean when inserted into the middle of each cake. Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for about 10 minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack to finish cooling. When the cakes are completely cool, stack the layers with the frosting and frost the sides and top.

While the cake is baking, prepare the frosting. In a large bowl combine the cream cheese, butter and vanilla and, using an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy. Add the sifted powdered sugar and mix until thoroughly combined. Add the nuts and fold together. Keep refrigerated until you are ready to frost the cake.