Gigi's Thimble

Praline Turtle Cake

Country Living Magazine - 2005

(photo from countryliving.com)

½ c. butter

1 c. brown sugar

14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk

1 c. chopped pecans

2 c. all purpose flour

¾ c. unsweetened cocoa

2 c. granulated sugar

1½ tsp. baking powder

1½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

2 large eggs

1 c. sour cream

½ c. canola or vegetable oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. white vinegar

1 c. hot water

½ c. fudge topping

½ c. chocolate chips, melted

favorite chocolate frosting

1. Make the cake: Heat oven to 350ºF. 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 ¾ cup pecans over sugar mixture and set aside to cool.

2. Combine the flour, cocoa, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl.

Add the eggs, sour cream, oil, vanilla, vinegar, and 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 45 minutes. Cool cakes in the pans for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pans and turn cakes out onto cooling rack. Remove the paper and cool completely.

3. Assemble 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 ¼ c. pecans (I actually pat the pecans around the outside of the frosted cake – I don’t put them on top.) Frost the cake sides with your favorite chocolate icing.