Delicious layers of homemade Spice Cake with a Pecan Pie filling. This Pecan Pie cake is topped with a creamy Brown Sugar frosting! Drooling yet?
Love Pecan Pie? Don’t miss my favorite Pecan Pie Bundt Cake recipe! Or these creamy, delicious Pecan Pie Cheesecake Bars for the perfect holiday treat.
Why This Recipe is Best
Today, though, it’s all about the Pecan Pie Cake.
This isn’t just an everyday cake with a few pecans thrown on top, folks. When I say it is a Pecan PIE cake, I mean it.
Starting with a spice cake base, you sandwich real pecan pie filling between the layers. You get moist cake with sticky pecan crunch in every bite of this dessert!
And I haven’t even mentioned the frosting yet. A simple cream cheese frosting gets a richer flavor from the addition of brown sugar that pairs beautifully with the pecan flavor.
This cake is MUST try if you love all things pecan!
Ingredient Notes
- Karo corn syrup – Dark corn syrup is a must for getting a deep caramelized flavor in the pecan pie filling.
- Pecans – You need both pecan halves and the pieces for this recipe (or you can chop the halves into smaller bites yourself!). I prefer to toast the pecans for more flavor.
- Cake flour – For cakes with a light crumb, cake flour is a must! You can substitute all purpose flour if needed by the finished cake will be more dense.
I started with my from scratch, spice cake recipe to make this Pecan Pie Cake. If you want to save yourself a step and use a boxed mix, go for it!
Step by Step Instructions
Pecan filling
- Heat the brown sugar, dark corn syrup, heavy cream, butter and kosher salt until it begins to boil. Let it boil for a full minute, stirring constantly.
- Remove the pot from the stove and stir in the chopped nuts and vanilla extract. Let the mixture cool to thicken up before adding it to the cake layers.
Bake your cakes
- Combine the egg whites with milk in a small bowl. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar, then add all the dry ingredients followed by the egg whites and milk.
- Pour the batter into prepared layer cake pans and bake for 25 minutes.
Brown sugar frosting
- While the cakes are baking, beat together the cream cheese, butter, brown sugar and powdered sugar until the frosting is fluffy and smooth.
Assemble the cake
- Place one of the cakes on a cake plate. Make sure the dome of the cake has been sliced off, so that the cake is level.
- Top with the pecan pie filling, followed by the second cake later. Then top with the second cake layer. Spread a thin layer of the frosting over the cake top and sides, then chill for 15 minutes.
- Spread the remaining frosting over the cake and garnish with pecan halves (or pieces, if preferred). Keep the cake in the refrigerator until 15 minutes before serving.
Slice and enjoy!
Recipe FAQs
You CAN but the cake will be denser with a firmer crumb. You can also substitute a boxed spice cake mix for all the cake ingredients and bake it according to package directions as an alternative.
I baked this in 2 9-inch round baking pans.
Yes, I find it holds up best if stored covered in the fridge.
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Pecan Pie Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 5 egg whites room temperature
- ¾ cup milk
- ¾ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 ½ cup cake flour
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
For the filling:
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ cup dark corn syrup
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- ¼ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups chopped pecans
For the frosting:
- 1 package cream cheese, softened 8 ounce
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup pecan halves for garnish
Instructions
- Begin by making the filling first. You can do this night before, or before preparing the cake.
- In a small saucepan, combine the brown sugar, dark corn syrup, heavy cream, butter and salt. Heat over medium heat until mixture begins to boil, stirring constantly.
- Once boiling, continue to stir and boil for one full minute. Remove from heat and add in the vanilla extract and chopped pecans. Chill in the refrigerator until it thickens, at least two hours (or overnight).
- For the cake, preheat oven to 350 degree F. Prepare 2- 9inch cake pans by spraying with non stick baking spray. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine egg whites with 1/4 cup of the milk. Mix and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until creamy (about 2-3 minutes). Add in the dry ingredients and mix until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the egg white mixture and slowly add the remaining 1/2 cup milk. Beat for a full 3 minutes.
- Pour batter into prepared cake pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Remove and cool for 5 minutes in the pan. Then invert on wire racks and cool completely.
- For the frosting, beat cream cheese, butter, brown sugar and powdered sugar for 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- To assemble cake, lay one layer of cooled cake on a cake plate. Make sure the dome of the cake has been sliced off, so that the cake is level. Top with the chilled and thickened pecan pie filling. Then top with the second cake layer. Spread a thin layer of the frosting on sides and top of cake to make a crumb coating. Chill for 15 minutes in the refrigerator.
- Spread the remaining frosting over the cake and garnish with pecans. Keep cake chilled until ready to serve. Then let rest at room temperature for 15 minutes. ENJOY!
Notes
- Make sure the cake layers are level before stacking. Use a serrated knife to cut the dome off the top of your cake. This is especially important for the bottom layer. You don’t want the pecan pie filling oozing out the sides too much.
- Make the pecan pie filling the night before. I like to do this so it has plenty of time to thicken.
- Keep cold. Store the cake in the fridge to kee[ the pecan layer from getting too soft and oozing out. Remove it from the fridge 15 minutes before serving to let it soften a bit.
Nutrition
So, there you have it friends, the perfect holiday cake! Pin it, bookmark it or print this one out for your recipe box. Pecan Pie Cake is going to be a new family favorite!
Years ago at a Cake Contest at our church a lady made an Italian Cream Cake with a pecan pie as the filling. It looked amazing and yes, she won 1st place in the tasting.
I’m so glad this came through my feed because I’ve wanted to try ever since, but honestly forgot about it over the years. Thank you for the inspiration! It looks delicious!
I’ve made this twice and while the filling can be a bit of a curveball for decorating purposes, it kinda doesn’t matter because it’s just sooo very good. Nobody cares if there is oozing…in fact, bring on the ooze. So long as all the elements make it to the plate, nobody cares because it’s delicious. Making it again for Christmas tomorrow! Thank you!
I made this cake yesterday. I made the filling first & refrigerated it for two hours. It was still kind of runny so I left it in the frig for a few more hours. (It would be best to make the day before & refrigerate over night) When I assembled the cake, I piped a ring of frosting around the outer edge of the bottom layer the added the filling. It was too hard to spread so I let it sit for 10-15 mins to soften. I used a small rubber spatula to very gently smooth the filling. My cake was very soft & I didn’t want to tear a hole in it. The piped ring prevented the filling from oozing out perfectly. I added the top layer & did the same thing. I had so much filling that I spread the rest on the top then smoothed the sides & piped rosettes around the top edge & added pecan halves. It’s a pretty spectacular cake, if I do say so myself! Plus, that frosting! YUM! It tastes like chocolate chip cookie dough without the chocolate chips.
So smart to do the ring of frosting!!!
Can you use regular flour in recipes that call for cake flour or am I asking for trouble by doing so?
This looks like such a show stopper! This needs to be on my holiday dessert table as the centerpiece!
I have to make this for Thanksgiving! The pecan pie filling is drool worthy!
This MUST happen for Thanksgiving!
Super delicious and easy to make. Winner with the family!
Love this cake ! Can’t wait to try this gorgeous cake!
I’m definitely drooling looking at the pictures! 🙂 The pecan pie filling sounds fantastic and I’ve been thinking about making a cake this year for Thanksgiving as an alternative to pumpkin pie. Think I found the recipe. Thank you so much!
This is one of the most delicious cakes – and a perfect twist for Thanksgiving!