Happy Pandemic Thanksgiving!
This was tasty and fun to make. Keeping it short and sweet this time around. Appreciate those you love, remember we (in the US) live on stolen land that came at the cost of many indigenous lives, give thanks for our health care practitioners, grocery store workers, and teachers, and stay masked, distanced, and at home as much as possible. BAKE ALL THE THINGS!
Happy Baking!
This recipe is for a 3-layer 6" cake. If you want to make a 3-layer 8" or 9" cake, double everything and bake the cake layers 30-35 min.
PECAN PIE FILLING
INGREDIENTS/SUPPLIES
2 large eggs
1/2 cup dark corn syrup (160g)
1/2 cup dark brown sugar (100g)
1 tsp vanilla
3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/4 teaspoon salt
1.25 cups chopped pecans (125g)
sheet pan
heavy bottomed saucepan
whisk
silicone spatula
DIRECTIONS
Toast your pecans at 350F for 10 minutes
In your saucepan, whisk together the 2 eggs, then add and whisk in the rest of the ingredients (except the pecans)
Over medium-low heat, whisk the mixture until everything is melted and homogenized
Turn heat to medium, and whisk frequently until boiling
Add the pecans and return to boiling for another minute, stirring with the spatula (the pecans will get stuck in the whisk!)
Set aside to cool to room temperature, or if you're in a hurry transfer to another bowl and chill in the fridge. The more surface area of the bowl the faster it will cool, but check on it frequently in the fridge because you don't want it to get too hard to be un-spreadable.
CINNAMON GRAHAM CAKE LAYERS
INGREDIENTS/SUPPLIES
1 cup AP flour (125g)
85g graham cracker crumbs (about 7 sheets)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 + 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 + 1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup buttermilk (or 1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons whole milk + 1/3 cup sour cream)
1 stick butter, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar (65g)
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar (100g)
2 eggs
3 6” cake pans
CAKE GOOP! and a silicone brush
Stand mixer with beater attachment
Mixing bowl & hand whisk
DIRECTIONS
Cake goop-up your pans. If you don’t have cake goop (you should! go make some!), you should cut out parchment circles that will fit inside the bottoms of your pans, then grease the pan with butter or shortening, line the bottoms with parchment, grease the parchment & pan sides, and cover all the surfaces with flour, tapping out the excess into the sink or trash. Now, see? Wouldn’t cake goop be SO MUCH EASIER? Also, it works better. Okay I’ll step off my soapbox now...
Heat oven to 350F degrees.
Grind your 7 sheets of graham crackers to a fine powder if not already ground. Whisk in a mixing bowl the 85g graham crumbs with 125 AP (1c), 1tsp BP, 1/4 + 1/8 tsp BS, 1/4 + 1/8 tsp salt, and 1 tsp cinnamon.
Cream 1 stick of butter with 65g sugar (1/3c) and 100g light brown sugar (1/2c) for 5-6 minutes on medium-high in your stand mixer, scraping down the bowl as needed, until light and fluffy.
Add 2 eggs one at a time, mixing until just fully incorporated after each.
Add 1/2 of your flour mixture and mix on medium until just combined, then add your buttermilk and do the same. Finish with the last 1/2 of your dry, scraping down the sides and mixing on medium just until no streaks of flour remain. Don’t over mix.
Evenly divide the batter between the cake-gooped pans (use a scale for accuracy), and smooth the batter even with an offset spatula. Bake 20-25 minutes, until the cake layers are just pulling away from the sides of the pan, and/or using my tips on how to tell when cake layers are done.
Let the cakes cool in their pans for 10-15 minutes before turning them out. Let them cool completely before using or storing in the freezer.
If storing to use at a later time, chill them in the freezer until they can be handled easily without bending. Wrap them in plastic wrap and then tin foil. Label & freeze.
If using them imminently, chill them in the fridge so they will be easier to level.
CINNAMON CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
INGREDIENTS/SUPPLIES
1 package cream cheese (8oz), room temperature (if you're just now removing it from the fridge and you want to get started, take the aluminum wrapped package and submerge it in a bowl of warm water for ~10 minutes)
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature (same deal, if cold zap in the microwave for 5 seconds on each side of the stick)
4 cups powdered sugar (500g), sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon (you might want a lot more cinnamon than this; you'll add it to taste)
stand mixer with a beater attachment
sifter
silicone spatula
DIRECTIONS
On medium-high, mix the cream cheese for a few minutes until it's smooth, scraping down and the sides and bottom of the mixer bowl at least once during mixing.
Add the butter and mix on medium-high until combined and fluffy, again scraping the bowl halfway through
1 cup at a time, add your 4 cups (500g) sifted powdered sugar, starting the mixer on low so it doesn't all poof up in your face, and increasing the speed mixing until combined. After adding 3 cups taste it and then decide if you want to add the 4th cup - you might want to add only a bit of it, or all of it - your choice.
Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and mix on medium-high until combined. Taste, and then keep adding cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon at a time until you get what you want.
PUT IT ALL TOGETHER!
ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS/SUPPLIES
Pecan halves for decoration
Serrated knife
Turn table
Cake board or cake carrier base
Two offset spatulas
Piping bags/tips and decorations as desired
DIRECTIONS
Level each layer with a serrated knife to remove any domed top as needed.
Place your cake board or cake carrier base on top of your turn table.
Spread about a teaspoon of frosting in three triangular dollops on the center of your board or plate, then place your first cake layer centered on top. Press down gently to make it stick with the frosting as glue.
Spread about a half to three quarters of a cup of the pecan pie filling evenly on your first cake layer. If you're worried it's too thick to spread, you can warm it in the microwave for 5 seconds at a time (then stirring) until it's a bit looser, but try not to make it actually warm, otherwise your frosting will melt! It's okay if it doesn't go all the way to the edge (it will be a little jagged because of the pecans), just try your best.
Using the other offset spatula, spread 1/4" to 1/2" thick layer of frosting on top of the pecan pie filling layer.
Place it in the fridge for 10 minutes, then center and place your next cake layer on top, then repeat steps 3 & 4. You're chilling the cake in between layer applications so that when you have to press a bit hard to spread the pecan pie filling, you're not smooshing the frosting underneath.
Place your final cake layer on top, then place in the fridge for 15 minutes.
Re-whip your buttercream for 20 seconds in your mixer to aerate, then crumb coat the cake and return to the fridge to chill for 20 minutes. Don’t know what crumb coat means? Check it out!
Re-whip your buttercream once more, then coat the sides of the cake with a thick layer of frosting, and put the rest in a piping bag fitted with your decorating tip of choice.
Spread a thick layer of pecan pie filling on the top of the cake, leaving a half inch at the edge.
Surround the pecan pie filling circle with piped frosting, and press pecan halves around the bottom edge of the cake.
Serve at room temperature, otherwise the pecan pie filling layers will be too difficult to cut through. The cake will keep up to 24 hours in *cool* room temperature conditions, up to 5 days in a covered container in the fridge, or up to 6 months in a box/container in the freezer that is well-wrapped with two layers of plastic wrap and two layers of aluminum foil.