I began by combining cake mix, 1 cup of buttermilk, 1/3 cup
of melted butter, 4 egg whites, and a ¼ teaspoon of almond extract. I turned the oven on the pre-heat setting to
350 degrees. This allowed me time to beat
the ingredients together. The recipe
said to do this for two minutes, but I did it for three to make sure that the
ingredients were well blended and absent of chunky bits. The recipe also said
to pour the batter into a jelly roll pan.
I used a 13 x 9 pan instead, and I sprayed it with a cooking spray to
make sure that the cake did not stick.
After I poured the batter into the pan I allowed it to cook
for 20 minutes. I then poked the center
of the cake with a toothpick. The pick
came out clean, and I knew the cake was ready to cool off.
I worked on the frosting while the cake was cooling. I used a small and shallow pan to bake the cup
of chopped pecans for 5 ½ minutes until they were lightly browned. I baked them on 350 degrees. While the pecans baked, I combined and whisked
1 cup of brown sugar and 1/2 cup of butter into a 3 ½-quart saucepan. I boiled them over medium heat, and continued
to whisk the mixture for 2 minutes. I then
removed the mixture from the heat and added 1/3 cup of buttermilk. I whisked the mixture all together and set it
back on the stove onto the broil setting for 1 minute. Finally I added 2 cups of powdered sugar, ½ teaspoon
of vanilla extract, and ¼ teaspoon of almond extract. I beat the mixture in a small bowl until it
had a smooth texture. This was not a
brilliant idea because some of it spewed out on me and the counter. I used a butter knife to spread the sticky mixture
evenly over the cake. I was so
infatuated with the way my caramel mix had turned out that I forgot to add the
pecans! I drizzled them over the top of
the caramel frosting. Yum!
The cake looked delicious, but definitely not as fancy as the
online picture. The cake was still a
little warm when I poured the caramel over it so it was slightly runny. Judging by the appearance, I felt that the cake
would for sure have a gooey taste with an added crunchy topping. I thought the inside may taste a bit soggy
from the caramel seeping into the cake instead of setting on top.
The first bite of the cake was moist, and I think the pecans
on top actually helped to soak in some of the melted caramel. It was not as sweet as expected, and I felt
the recipe could use some regular sugar instead of brown sugar next time. Overall, the gooey topping and moist texture
was pleasing, but next time I would make it with at least a cup of sugar!
Recipe Link: http://www.tampabay.com/features/food/cooking/article1024418.ece
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