Italian Cream Cake…My Birthday Cake

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
5 large eggs, separated
½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup shortening
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup flaked sweetened coconut
1 cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped


Pecan Cream Cheese Frosting:
11 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
½ cup butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 cups confectioners (powdered) sugar ( I used 3 ½ cups)
1 cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped


Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease and flour three 9 inch baking pans. Or, to make baked cake easier to remove from pans, lightly grease the pan, line with parchment paper, then lightly grease again.

2. In a medium bowl, sift flour, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.


3. In a medium bowl, beat egg whites with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

4. In a large bowl, combine butter, shortening, and sugar; cream together until mixture appears light and fluffy. Add egg yolks; beat until thoroughly mixed.

5. In a small bowl, stir the buttermilk and vanilla together. Alternately add some of the sifted flour mixture, and the buttermilk mixture to the batter, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until blended. Gently fold the beaten egg whites into the batter, and then fold the coconut and pecans into the batter.

6. Pour batter into the pans, dividing the batter evenly between the 3 pans. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes then remove cake from pans and finish cooling on wire rack.

7. To Make Frosting: In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese and butter; beat together until mixture is smooth. Add vanilla and powdered sugar; beat until frosting is smooth and creamy. Stir in pecans. Spread frosting between layers and over top and sides of cake. Cover frosted cake and refrigerate until ready to serve.

This recipe is from www.TheBakingPan.com