Pecans were for sale. Oh my God. I have yet to use them all (though I did use most of them), but I buy more than I need in case. In retrospect, I could have bought a huge bag at Costco.
This is not a complaint (only) but a PSA to those who do not cook. Remember that ingredients are costly the next time you ask a friend to bake a cake.
If they do it for free, then that’s a good friend. They should be cherished and showered with love and gift certificates to their favorite bakery.
Let’s now talk about this tasty Pecan Pie cake!
Pecan pie has always been my favorite pie for the Fall. It’s my favorite Fall pie.
We never had any type of Fall dessert or pie as a child. We adopted Thanksgiving as a family tradition after moving here. Although it’s not part of Polish culture, my parents accepted this tradition, and others liked Halloween as they grew up.
We never received the pies for some reason. I am feeling deprived. You will understand.
I first tried pecan pie in my 20s. It was never something I thought I would like before. The texture of the filling was very unpleasant to me. It looked strange. What a travesty I missed out on. Is amazing. !
It is so good. What I imagined as a thick, gooey filling was a creamy custard. It’s mouthwatering.
As this is a blog about cakes, and since I do not enjoy making pies myself, it would be an excellent opportunity to transform all the deliciousness of pecan pie into a beautiful, elegant cake.
Pecan Pie Cake
To enhance the flavor of the cake and complement the pecan pie filling, I replaced some granulated (light) sugar with brown sugar.
Instead of the granulated white sugar used in a Swiss Meringue, we use (dark brown) sugar. It gives it a more rich flavor. I love the color too! I used it for my Walnut cake.
I decided to leave out the frosting between the layers in this Pecan Cake because it would have been too much, especially with the pecan pie.
It seemed like too much frosting on top of the sweet filling. The frosting on top and sides was enough for me, but feel free to add some to the first layer!
The filling tastes EXACTLY like pecan pie. It’s heaven. It’s a match made in heaven.
Tips to make this Pecan Cake
For three 8” pans, 1.5x the recipe. To make three 8″ pans, multiply the recipe by 1.5.
You can make cupcakes by reducing the baking time. Start checking after 15 minutes.
You can bake the cake layers ahead of time and freeze them for up to three months. Remove 2-3 hours before assembling.
You can make the pecan pie filling a few days ahead. Just store it in an airtight jar in the refrigerator. Please bring it to room temperature, and whisk well before using.
Frosting can be frozen for up to 3 months or refrigerated in an airtight container for a week. Bring frosting to room temperature and re-whip it before use.
You can toast pecans to add flavor to incredibly decorative ones. Then, toast them at 350F for about 5 minutes or until they smell.
I used a Wilton piping tip to make the rope border on the top of the cupcake. I pipe continuously in a spiral motion while holding my piping tip at nearly 90 degrees. It’s hard to explain, so I do hope this makes sense.
Check out my Swiss Meringue Buttercream for troubleshooting tips.
Use Simple Syrup to moisten your cakes.
Check out this How To Bake Flat Cake Layers article to learn how to bake flat cake layers!