Praline Turtle Cake

This cake is packed with pecans, caramel, and a fudgy topping.

By Betty NicosonPublished: Jul 13, 2012

Jump to recipe

Charles Schiller

Yields:

16 serving(s)

Prep Time:

20 mins

Total Time:

1 hr 20 mins

Cal/Serv:

576

Betty Nicoson of Terre Haute, Indiana shares her winning recipe from our 2005 "Mom's Best Cake Contest." This praline turtle cake is packed with pecans, caramel, and a fudgy topping.

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Ingredients

1/2 cup butter at room temperature, plus more for cake pans
1 cup brown sugar
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup chopped pecans
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. white vinegar
1/2 cup fudge topping
1/2 cup chocolate chips, melted
chocolate frosting

Directions

1. Step 1Make the cake: Heat oven to 350°F. Butter the bottoms of two 9-inch round cake pans and fit a circle of parchment paper large enough to cover 1 inch up the side of each cake pan. Heat the butter, brown sugar, and sweetened condensed milk in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat until the butter melts and the sugar is dissolved. Do not boil. Divide the sugar mixture between the prepared pans. Sprinkle 3/4 cup pecans over sugar mixture and set aside to cool. Combine the flour, cocoa, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the eggs, sour cream, oil, vanilla, and vinegar, and 1 cup hot water and mix with a wooden spoon until the batter is smooth. Pour the batter into the cake pans — over sugar mixture — and bake until a wooden skewer inserted into the cake center comes out clean — 35 to 40 minutes. Cool cakes in the pans for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pans and turn cakes out onto a cooling rack. Remove the paper and cool completely.
2. Step 2Assemble the cake: Spread the fudge topping over the sugar mixture side of one cake layer. Place the second layer over the first and drizzle with the melted chocolate and the remaining 1/4 cup pecans. Frost the cake sides with your favorite chocolate frosting.

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