Dessert

Mocha Pecan Cake

When coffee and chocolate combine into mocha, you get one of the greatest flavor combinations known to our palate. Add to this a nutty, pecan element, and you have the ultimate dessert trifecta! Our Mocha Pecan Cake is everything you've dreamed of — and more. It's semi-homemade, using a boxed German Chocolate cake mix as the base. Along with the usual baking ingredients, you'll doctor this up by adding pudding mix, espresso powder and strong coffee, along with Smith's Sour Cream and Smith's Milk to keep it moist. The secret to this cake's great taste is the pecans. To prepare them, add a surprise splash of Smith's Orange Juice to a mixture of sugars, cocoa and espresso powder and toast to perfection. The frosting contains more cocoa and espresso powders and is made creamy and spreadable with Smith's Half & Half. The final touch is a ganache drizzle, made using Smith's Heavy Whipping Cream and semisweet chocolate. This Mocha Pecan Cake is layer upon layer of decadent flavor. Pour a nice cup of coffee, and enjoy every bite!

How to Make

INGREDIENTS

Cake:

15.25-Oz box German chocolate cake mix
3.4-Oz box instant vanilla pudding mix
1 tsp espresso powder
1 cup Smith's sour cream
1/4 cup Smith's milk
1/4 cup cold strong coffee
1/3 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs

Pecans:

1 egg white
2 tbsp Smith's orange juice
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 tsp espresso powder
1-1/4 cups pecan halves

Frosting:

5 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp espresso powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup Smith's half & half, warmed
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Drizzle:

1/4 cup Smith's heavy whipping cream
2 oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

DIRECTIONS

Heat oven to 350 F.
Line bottoms of three 9" round cake pans with parchment paper circles. Spray sides of pans lightly with cooking spray. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, stir together cake mix, pudding mix and espresso powder. Add Smith's sour cream, Smith's milk, coffee, oil and eggs. Beat on low speed until combined. Beat on medium speed for 1-2 minutes until smooth. Divide into prepared pans.
Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool completely.
Meanwhile for pecans, in a small deep bowl, beat egg white and Smith's orange juice until frothy.
In a medium bowl, stir together sugar, brown sugar, cocoa powder and espresso powder. Add egg white mixture. Stir until evenly combined then stir in pecans.
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread pecan mixture on parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 F for 20-25 minutes, stirring every 7-8 minutes until pecans are glazed.
Remove from oven and cool completely before separating pecans.
For frosting, in a large mixing bowl, stir together powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and espresso powder. Add melted butter, Smith's half & half and extract. Beat on low speed until smooth.
To assemble, place one cake layer on a plate and spread thinly with frosting. Repeat steps twice.
Spread remaining frosting on sides of cake. Immediately sprinkle pecans evenly on top and sides of cake, pressing into frosting.
Refrigerate uncovered for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, for drizzle, heat cream over low heat in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer. Place chocolate in a small bowl and pour cream over chocolate. Stir until chocolate is melted.
Cool for 5 minutes then place in a 1-quart resealable plastic bag. Snip 1/8" off a bottom corner of bag.
Squeeze bag to drizzle mixture on top of cake as desired. Allow drizzle to harden before slicing to serve.

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