Italian Cream Cake

For Father’s Day, I told Dad he could choose his favorite “Grandma Jones” cake and I’d do my best to recreate it.  Of course, he chose the ever popular, somewhat difficult Italian Cream Cake, so I decided to enlist some help from Mom since she has mastered this recipe over the years. 

I learned two things from making this cake with Mom:

1. I MUST invest in a stand mixer!!  It is so much easier (especially anytime you are peaking egg whites) to just set it up and let it go.  Anyone out there want to buy me a Kitchen Aid Mixer? 
2. It’s a lot more efficient to bake as a team – and a whole lot more fun! 

Overall, the cake turned out fantastic!  It is, however, a mammoth and neither Mom nor I could find a cake dome to fit over the top.  I may consider making it as a two layer cake next time as covering and store the three layer variety posed some definite problems.

Also, the original recipe calls for mixing the nuts into the cream cheese frosting, but I found that made it really difficult to frost the cake and it felt more like spackling than frosting.  I suggest leaving the nuts out of the frosting and just covering the sides with crushed nuts after assembly.

Italian Cream Cake

2 cups sugar
5 eggs, separated
1 stick butter, room temperature
1/2 cup shortening
2 cups cake flour
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup shredded coconut, sweetened
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla

Technique: 

1. Preheat oven to 325.  Grease and flour 3 round cake pans. 
2. Cream butter and shortening. 
3. Gradually add sugar. 
4. Add egg yolks one at a time beating well after each addition. 
5. In small bowl, mix together buttermilk, vanilla, and baking soda. 
6. Alternate adding flour and buttermilk mixture to sugar mix beating slowly, beginning and ending with flour. 
7. Stir in coconut by hand. 
8. In separate mixing bowl, beat egg whites on high until stiff peaks form, approximately 5 – 7 minutes. 
9. Gently fold in egg whites to cake batter until incorporated. 
10. Divide batter equally into prepped cake pans. 
11. Bake for 40 minutes until toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean. 
12. Cool on wire rack for approximately 10 minutes.  Then, flip cakes out of pans and cool completely before assembling. 

Cream Cheese Frosting

1-8oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 stick butter, room temperature
16 oz powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Technique:

1. Mix together all ingredients. 

Assembly

3 cake layers
Cream Cheese frosting
1 cup of crushed nuts, walnuts or pecans 

Technique:

1. Place first layer on cake platter and line strips of parchment underneath to keep cake plate clean. 
2. Spread a layer of frosting on first layer and top with second cake layer.  Repeat for third layer. 
3. Frost top and sides of cake. 
4. Sprinkle sides of cake with crushed nuts. 
5. Remove parchment strips. 

Brittany’s Tips 

• I’m officially addicted to Pillsbury Softasilk Cake Flour – the last three cakes I’ve made using this enriched cake flour have turned out wonderfully with just the right texture. 
• Be very gentle when incorporating the egg whites to the cake mixture.  Add about half of the egg whites and fold until almost incorporated; then, add the remainder and fold until just incorporated – try not to over mix. 
• I usually set out the cream cheese overnight that way it will be nice and soft and give you that extra creamy frosting consistency. 
• If the frosting is a little too thick to spread, feel free to add a little hot water to thin it out. 

Happy Baking!!