Cream Cake with Pecan Cream Cheese Frosting (Italian-American)

This Italian cream cake recipe is as effortless as making a homemade bakery-worthy cake gets. It features a rich coconut-scented cake with a thick coating of cream cheese frosting speckled with crushed pecan chunks. Although its name would suggest otherwise, this dessert isn’t believed to have originated in Italy. Instead, speculation says it’s a recipe developed by an Italian expatriate who relocated to the Southern United States years ago. Either way, it’s indisputably delicious and the perfect sweet treat to complement any meal year-round. Fortunately, preparing it isn’t a big undertaking either, as it only takes about an hour from start to finish.

Cream Cake:
½ cup butter, softened
½ cup shortening
2 cups Monk Fruit Sweetener with Erythritol (Granular)
5 large eggs, separated, room temperature
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour, unbleached
1 tsp. baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1½ cups sweetened shredded coconut
1 cup pecans, chopped

Cream Cheese Frosting:
11 oz cream cheese, softened
¾ cup butter, softened
6 cups Monk Fruit Sweetener with Erythritol (Powdered)
1½ tsp. pure vanilla extract
¾ cup pecans, chopped

Garnish:
chopped pecans and/or flaked coconut

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4). Grease and flour three 9" round baking pans.

In a large bowl, cream butter, shortening and sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla. Combine flour and baking soda; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk. Beat until just combined. Stir in coconut and pecans.

In another bowl, beat egg whites with clean beaters until stiff but not dry. Fold a fourth of the egg whites into batter, then fold in remaining whites. Pour into prepared pans.

Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 20-25 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.

For frosting, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in confectioners’ sugar and vanilla until fluffy. Stir in pecans. Spread frosting between layers and over top and side of cake. Store cake in the refrigerator.

Makes 16 servings.

Cook's Notes:

• What is Italian cream cheese called? Although this recipe calls for traditional cream cheese, mascarpone is often considered the Italian variation of this product. You can swap the two ingredients interchangeably in this recipe at a one-to-one ratio. The two ingredients share a similar creamy texture, although mascarpone isn’t as tangy and has a butterier flavour than cream cheese.
• What is Italian cake made of? This Italian cream cake recipe features a moist cake flavoured with vanilla, buttermilk, shredded coconut and pecans. It’s topped with a rich cream cheese frosting made with softened cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar and vanilla extract. A handful of chopped pecans gives the frosting an added layer of crunchiness.
• Can I leave a cream cheese cake out overnight? We strongly advise against leaving this cream cheese cake out overnight. It can promote spoilage as the ingredients enter the temperature danger zone where bacteria can grow quickly to potentially harmful levels.

Nutritional Information:
1 piece: 736 calories, 41g fat (19g saturated fat), 117mg cholesterol, 330mg sodium, 90g carbohydrate (75g sugars, 2g fiber), 7g protein.