Italian Cream Cake by Mary Beth Jeanes

Tomorrow is my youngest child's birthday. I always make this cake for MY birthday, and it was a very pleasant surprise when she stated that she wanted this cake for hers!  This one is pretty labor intensive, but it is so worth it. Now, you'll notice that the picture looks a bit...weird. That's because purple is my child's favorite color, so we tinted the cake itself lavender. It's usually a lovely yellow cake color. But even with the odd color, this tastes FABULOUS! If (when!) you taste the batter, this is what CAKE BATTER is supposed to taste like. I don't mind using mixes, but if you want a REAL YELLOW CAKE, this is the recipe for you!

I got the recipe from the cookbook that the Officers' Wives Club at Tyndall Air Force Base in Panama City, Florida offered many years ago. It's just a bonus that the recipe was submitted by a good friend of mine.

Now, you'll also notice that there are NO NUTS in this cake pic...that's because the PURPLE LOVING GIRL also hates pecans...so, I'm sure your rendition of this cake will be prettier and fully loaded with pecans!

Italian Cream Cake

Mary Beth Jeanes

5 eggs, separated

2 sticks oleo (I used butter)

2 cups sugar

2 cups flour

1 cup buttermilk

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup coconut

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Stiffen egg whites in a small bowl and set aside. 

In another bowl, cream oleo and sugar. 

Add egg yolks, one at a time. 

Mix flour and soda together then add to oleo mixture, alternating with buttermilk. 

Add coconut and vanilla. 

Fold in egg whites. 

Pour into 3 greased and floured cake pans. 

Bake 25 minutes.  Cool in pan for 10 minutes then invert, remove the pan, and finish cooling on wire racks.

The cake will be tall when removed from oven, but will then fall, it's supposed to do that so that the layers are DENSE.

Frost with cream cheese icing.

Cream Cheese Icing

1 8 ounce pkg. Cream cheese

1 cup chopped pecans

1 stick oleo (I used butter)

16 ounces powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Soften cream cheese and oleo.

Mix well then add powdered  sugar

Spread on bottom layer and sprinkle with 1/4 cup pecans

Repeat with second layer.

Add remaining layer and ice entire cake.

Sprinkle remaining pecans over entire cake. 

This cake is so rich, that a very thin wedge is enough, but then you can  eat TWO! Of course, when you see the color of THIS particular cake, you might think twice! Kind of a weird lavender gray thing...I'll update the pics when I make the NEXT one!

It really IS a lovely YELLOW CAKE!

Although my youngest told my oldest that since this was rather an UNDEAD color, that maybe the eldest would like the same color cake, with GREEN icing...that way it would really ROCK the ZOMBIE CAKE LOOK. Ah, I love my kids!

This gets a Family Rating of

Five out of Five!

even with the odd color!

Editing to add a NEW picture. This time, the natural color of this lovely cake batter...with blue frosting. Because it was my 55th birthday cake and I like blue. I also love Swedish Fish...red...and there you have my 55 on the top in FISH. Also, this one has almonds instead of pecans, as the majority of the family like those better than the other. It was yummy: