This Browned Butter Pecan Layer Cake has three layers of buttery vanilla cake filled with toasted pecans that are covered with a delicious browned butter frosting! It’s the perfect cake for the holidays!
Browned Butter Pecan Layer Cake
Can you believe that it’s November already? The holidays are approaching fast. I mean, not to freak you out or anything, but Thanksgiving is two weeks from Thursday. I’m not sure I can even wrap my head around that. We will actually spend the holiday with my family in Charlotte this year though, so I guess that means the pressure isn’t entirely on me. 🙂
We are getting into one of my favorite times of year – the holidays. Not only do I love the food and all the vacation days off, but I also love the time spent with family, slowing down a bit and being thankful for all that surrounds me and all that has happened during the year.
And this year we have so much to be thankful for. The hubs’ job has been going well, I released a cookbook, Simply Beautiful Homemade Cakes, and (breaking news!) I’m leaving my other job to blog full-time starting in December. Not to mention so many other wonderful things that we take for granted every day. Ultimately it’s the seemingly little things that we should be most thankful for.
One thing I totally take for granted is cake, since I’ve pretty much always got some in our house. But you know I love it and this cake is no exception.
The cake layers are a moist, buttery vanilla cake spotted with toasted pecans. The flavor of the cake alone is delicious. The pecans add a whole other level of awesome. Before adding them to the cake batter though, they are tossed with butter and brown sugar and toasted. Don’t skip this step! The flavor of the cake is so much better with the pecans toasted versus un-toasted. If you’ve never toasted pecans, all you need to do is put them in the oven on a cookie sheet for about 5 to 7 minutes until they’ve browned a bit and you can smell them. A wonderful way to make your house smell delicious and like the holidays have arrived!
The cake layers are frosted with my new favorite frosting. It begins with browned butter, which is heavenly and lends a caramel-y flavor to the frosting that pairs so well with the toasted pecans. Of course I used Challenge Butter, which is such a wonderful, good quality butter. And browned butter is just as it sounds – butter that is browned right on your stove top. The frosting recipe uses a good bit of browned butter so it takes a bit of time to brown, but you really just melt the butter and allow it to brown. It’ll get a little foamy as it cooks, but eventually the foam will subside and you’ll be done.
The butter is chilled until it’s firm again and then you can use it in your frosting! I love it! The full finished pecan layer cake is super moist and delicious!
Give this delicious Browned Butter Pecan Layer Cake a try! You won’t regret it!
More Pecan Dessert Recipes
- Pecan Tassies
- Maple Pecan Pie
- Pecan Praline Fudge
- Classic Pecan Pie
- Pecan Pie Layer Cake
- Browned Butter Pecan Cheesecake
Browned Butter Pecan Layer Cake
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 12–14 Slices 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
This Browned Butter Pecan Layer Cake has three layers of buttery vanilla cake filled with toasted pecans that are covered with a delicious browned butter frosting! It’s the perfect cake for the holidays!
Ingredients
TOASTED PECANS
- 1/4 cup (56g) salted Challenge butter, melted
- 2 1/4 cups (370g) finely chopped pecans
- 2 tbsp light brown sugar, loosely packed
CAKE LAYERS
- 3/4 cup (168g) unsalted Challenge butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups (310g) sugar
- 1 cup (231g) sour cream, room temperature
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 5 large eggs, room temperature
- 3 cups (390g) all purpose flour, preferably sifted
- 4 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup (240ml) milk, room temperature
- 2 tbsp (30ml) water, room temperature
BROWNED BUTTER FROSTING
- 2 1/4 cups (504g) salted Challenge butter, room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups (237g) shortening
- 10 cups (1150g) powdered sugar
- 6 tbsp (90ml) water or milk
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (176°C). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
2. Combine the melted butter, pecans and brown sugar in a medium sized bowl and toss to coat.
3. Spread the pecans evenly onto the cookie sheet and bake for 5-7 minutes, or until toasted.
4. Set pecans aside to cool.
MAKE THE CAKE LAYERS:
5. Prepare three 8 inch cake pans with parchment paper circles in the bottom and grease the sides. Leave the oven at 350°F (176°C).
6. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light in color and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Do not skimp on the creaming time.
7. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.
8. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing until combined after each. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to be sure all ingredients are well incorporated.
9. Combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then combine the milk and water in a measuring cup.
10. Add half of the dry ingredients to the batter and mix until well combined. Add the milk mixture and mix until well combined. Add remaining dry ingredients and mix until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to be sure all ingredients are well incorporated.
11. Gently stir 1 cup of the toasted pecans into the batter.
12. Divide the batter evenly between the cakes pans and bake for about 24-26 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs.
13. Remove the cakes from the oven and allow to cool for about 2-3 minutes, then remove to cooling racks to cool completely.
MAKE THE FROSTING:
14. Melt 2 cups of butter in a saucepan over medium heat. It’s best to use a light colored pan so that you can see the butter browning. Whisk the butter occasionally so that it cooks evenly.
15. Cook the butter until turns a nice toasty brown. It will foam up at first, particularly since this is a good bit of butter, but it will eventually subside and you’ll have browned butter. Some of the brown bits may separate, but that’s ok. Once the butter has browned, pour it into a heat-proof bowl and set it in the fridge to cool completely.
16. Bring the butter back to room temperature, then add it to a large mixer bowl with the additional 1/4 cup of butter and the shortening. Beat until smooth.
17. Slowly add about half of the powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
18. Add 4-5 tablespoons of water and mix until smooth.
19. Slowly add the remaining powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
20. Add the remaining water, if needed, and mix until smooth.
TO ASSEMBLE THE CAKE:
21. Use a large serrated knife to remove the domes from the top of the cakes so that they’re flat. Place the first cake on a serving plate or a cardboard cake round.
22. Spread about 1 cup of frosting evenly on top of the cake, then top the frosting with 3-4 tablespoons of the remaining toasted pecans.
23. Add the second layer of cake, another cup of frosting and 3-4 tablespoons of pecans.
24. Top the cake with the remaining layer and frost the cake. Refer to my tutorial for frosting a smooth cake, if needed.
25. Pipe swirls of frosting around the top edge of the cake and press the remaining pecans into the sides of the cake and sprinkle some over the top. Store the cake in an airtight container. Cake is best for 2-3 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Slice
- Calories: 1194
- Sugar: 94.3 g
- Sodium: 211.3 mg
- Fat: 77.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 121.3 g
- Protein: 10.2 g
- Cholesterol: 179.4 mg
Enjoy!
Categories:
Cakes and Cupcakes, Christmas, Easter, Holidays, Recipes, Sweets and Treats, Thanksgiving,
This looks wonderful. Do you think it’s possible to substitute Margarine for butter in the cake recipe when creaming the butter and sugar?
No, they don’t work the same in most recipes in my experience.
Would this cake be stable enough to be a bottom tier?
I would think so.
Hi, this recipe looks delicious! Can I substitute the shortening for butter for the frosting?
You sure can!
Made this for my son’s birthday. He LOVES butter pecan cake and it’s what he asks for every year. This is the first one I’ve made that wasn’t dry! Everyone loved it! This will be a yearly tradition for sure.
So glad to hear it was a hit! Thanks Gail!
I finally got around to making this delectable cake. When I was making the frosting however it separated and didn’t look fluffy at all? What could I have done wrong?
It’s possible it had to do with the temperature of the browned butter. If it was too soft still, maybe that is what caused it. You could try refrigerating the butter until it’s nice and firm first.
Beautiful! But did you forget to list pecans within the icing? How have you achieved the brown speckled appearance on the outside?
Thanks Kay! No – it’s from the browned butter, not pecans. Browned butter has little brown specks like that.
I made this and I can’t wait to eat it, but I have a LOT of frosting left. Like 2 cups. Does it keep? For how long do you think?
I’m certainly a bit more heavy-handed with frosting than some. 🙂 Yes, it keeps just fine. I’d say refrigerated for 1-2 weeks, but you could even freeze it for maybe a month.
I’ve been hypnotized by all your scrumptious looking recipes and now I want to go attack my refrigerator. I do have a question though: Why do you use salted butter in your recipes? I was always told to use unsalted butter. Is that just a cooking myth?
Thanks Vincent! Not a myth really, but there isn’t necessarily a right or wrong way in my opinion. Just a preference. You’ll actually find it both ways on the site. The reason for using unsalted butter is to control the amount of salt that is added. With salted butter, there’s no need to add additional salt because it’s already in the butter. I find that the salted butter I use is just fine for salt content. However, if you’re sensitive to salt, you can definitely use unsalted butter and add your own salt. I hope that helps!
Hello. Could I make this cake and then refrigerate it for a day before eating it ? Will it still be fresh ?
Yes, it’ll be fine made a day ahead. If you refrigerate it, I just suggest serving at room temperature.
I just made it tonight and its heavenly!! Does it need to be refridgerated?
Sorry for the delay in replay. Either way is fine. I usually don’t refrigerate.
Recipe is in the works! I will let you know how it turns out for thanksgiving dessert!
I made this today to test run it before thanksgiving and all I can say is “OMG! Soooo good!” I took a few pieces to my parents and my dad couldn’t stop talking about how good it is! This cake is so a keeper for the recipe stash!
Awesome! 🙂 I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it!
Hey Lindsey, The cake sounds wonderful! Would there be any problem with substituting butter for the shortening in the icining?
No problem at all. 🙂
I need to make this cake! The cake sounds fantastic!
This looks delicious!! i pinned it! Thanks for the recipe!
i made this for the first time the other day and thought it was the best thing on the planet. the frosting is to die for. they ate it at work so fast i only got 1 piece.
Oh good! I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it! 🙂
Hi Lindsay! I just found your blog (via Lisa at Wine and Glue). Your cakes look SPECTACULAR! I’m putting your book on my wishlist for Christmas!
Awesome! Thank you Melissa! 🙂
What a stunning cake! I must try this. Perhaps Mom will have this for her birthday!