I love to celebrate a birthday, not just because birthdays are synonymous with cake, but that certainly doesn’t hurt anything. I do love a good bakery cake, but for some reason I have always loved the personal touch of a homemade cake more than anything. There’s really nothing more special than knowing somebody loves you enough to take the time out of their day to make you exactly what you want for your special day.
When my mother-in-law, Ninny, makes a cake, it is always from scratch. She’s from the generation where homemade cake doesn’t mean homemade from a mix, it means she actually makes the entire thing herself from start to finish. This year she was making her youngest grandson an Italian Cream Cake. I couldn’t let it pass without pictures.
Here are the ingredients for Ninny’s Prize Winning Italian Cream Cake
- 2 C. sugar
- 1/2 C. shortening
- 1 stick margarine or butter
- 1 C. buttermilk
- 2 C. flour
- 1 C. chopped pecans
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. salt
- 5 eggs (separate yellows and whites)
- 2 C. coconut
Cream together sugar, shortening, and margarine.
Add beaten egg yolks and vanilla.
Add buttermilk with dry ingredients. (flour, soda, salt) Do half at a time.
Fold in beaten egg whites and add coconuts and pecans.
Bake @ 325° for 30 to 35 minutes. She used a 9×13 pan but these are really moist and amazing when you use round pans and layer them.
Baking.
Now for the best part…the frosting. (or filling, as Ninny calls it)
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 1 stick margarine
- 1 lb box of powdered sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla
Mix these together and beat until smooth. Spread over cooled cake. *Optional* Sprinkle chopped pecans, coconuts, or both on cake.
Ninny, looking at her masterpiece.
20 years young
And Many More.
