Maple Pecan Cake with Maple Buttercream {A Scratch Recipe}
We love this deliciously flavorful Maple Pecan Layer Cake recipe! This recipe is perfect year round but we especially love it in the fall!
Servings: 15
Ingredients
For the Maple Glazed Pecans
- 2 cups (200 g) pecans, chopped
- ½ stick (56g) unsalted butter
- 3 Tablespoons (39g) maple syrup (I used pure maple syrup)
- After baking the pecans mix the following 2 ingredients and pour over pecans and stir to cover
- ½ teaspoon (2g) maple extract
- 2 Tablespoons (26g) maple syrup
For the Maple Cake
- 1 ½ sticks (170g) unsalted butter,softened Should still hold its shape but leave an impression when pressed.
- 1 ½ cups (300g) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, room temperature (place eggs in a bowl of warm water for 5 minutes if you are in a hurry)
- 1 teaspoon (4g) vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons (8g) maple extract
- ⅓ cup (73g) milk
- 1 cup (242g) sour cream
- 2 ½ cups (285g) cake flour
- 2 ½ teaspoons (12g) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (3g) salt
Maple Buttercream Frosting (Double this recipe if you plan to do lots of piping.)
- 2 sticks (226g) unsalted butter, softened
- 6 cups (690g) confectioners sugar (adjust amount slightly up or down to your liking)
- 1 teaspoon (4g) vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons (8g) maple extract
- ¼ cup (60g) whole milk or more if needed
- pinch of salt
Instructions
For the Maple Glazed Pecans (Do this before baking the cake)
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. If using aluminum foil, spray with non-stick cooking spray
- In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat, add 3 Tablespoons maple syrup
- Add chopped pecans and stir until pecans are coated.
- Spread pecans on baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes. Remove from oven and put into medium sized bowl.
- In a small bowl, mix together the 2 additional tablespoons maple syrup and ½ teaspoon maple extract. Pour over pecans and stir to coat.
For the Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour two 8 inch round cake pans
- In a medium sized bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.
- In another bowl combine the milk, sour cream, vanilla and maple extract. Blend with a fork and set aside.
- In the bowl of your mixer beat the butter until smooth. With the mixer on medium speed slowly add the sugar and mix 4 to 5 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each egg until no streaks of egg yolk color remains.
- With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to butter mixture alternating with the milk mixture. Begin and end with the flour mixture ( 3 additions of dry and 2 of liquid)
- Pour into 2 greased and floured 8 inch round pans.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cake layers cool in the pans 10 to15 minutes then turn out.
- Makes 7 cups batter. Also works for cupcakes (little to no dome)
For the Maple Buttercream Frosting
- Cream the softened butter until smooth, blend in the flavorings. Add half of the powdered sugar and most of the milk.
- Mix at medium speed until the powdered sugar is incorporated. Add the remaining powdered sugar and milk and mix at medium speed another 3 to 4 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally.
- Slow down the mixer to the lowest speed during the last minute of mixing to help eliminate air pockets in the buttercream. The texture will become very smooth.
- Makes about 6 cups of frosting
Assembly of Cake
- Reserve a small bowl of frosting for your desired amount of filling. Stir in your desired amount of maple glazed pecans. Assemble the layers. Frost the cake (we piped ruffles with a tip 104). Use the remaining glazed pecans as topping for the cake.