Pecan Praline Buttermilk Pound Cake
This buttery Pecan Praline Buttermilk Pound Cake is filled with toasted pecans and toffee bits then drizzled with a sweet pecan praline glaze. It’s the kind of cake ideal for serving at any special event from tea parties with friends, holiday brunch, a church potluck or a “just because” dessert.
Easy Pecan Praline Buttermilk Pound Cake Recipe
Pound cakes were once made with a pound of flour, a pound of butter, a pound of eggs and a pound of sugar. That simple combination turned pantry staples into one of the most beloved Southern cakes of all-time. I still love the thrill of mixing up those same simple ingredients to create a cake that will delight my dessert eaters. It’s one of the small pleasures in life that never gets old. I truly believe that when you make a dessert from scratch it really shows the love, doesn’t it? It just screams that you thought it was important enough to go the extra mile to make something delicious for everyone to enjoy. How to make Praline Pound Cake from scratch:
- Flour – All purpose flour sifted with baking powder and salt.
- Fats – Salted butter and solid vegetable shortening.
- Sugar – Light brown sugar and granulated sugar.
- Flavorings – Vanilla extract.
- Eggs – 6 large eggs.
- Milk – Whole buttermilk.
- Nuts – Roughly chopped toasted pecans and toffee bits.
- Glaze – Salted butter, heavy cream and light brown sugar.
How to Make the Best Pecan Praline Pound Cake
If you’ve been cooking with me for a while, you know how much I love caramel and pecans. It was just a matter of time before I combined my love of caramel, pecans and pralines and turn it into a pound cake. Voila, this beautiful pound cake actually exceeded my expectations.
- Ingredients you’ll need to make homemade Pecan Praline Buttermilk Pound Cake: All purpose flour, baking powder salt, butter, solid vegetable shortening, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, large eggs, vanilla extract, buttermilk and toffee bits and chopped pecans.
- Ingredients to make the glaze: Salted butter, light brown sugar and heavy cream.
- Kitchen tools you’ll need: Stand mixer or hand mixer, large bowl, medium bowl, whisk, measuring cups and spoons, bundt pan, cooling rack and sheet pan to toast the pecans.
- Why start with a cold oven for baking pound cakes? This is a hundred year old technique that allows the cake batter to heat and rise slowly giving the leavening time to develop and lighten the texture of the cake. While it’s not necessarily fitting for every pound cake recipe it works beautifully for this one that’s dense and buttery.
- Do I have to use a stand mixer to make a Southern pound cake? While a stand mixer is so simple to use you can certainly make this, or any cake, using a hand mixer.
- How do you toast pecans for pound cake? It’s really a simple process. Spread chopped pecans on a baking sheet in a single layer. Place into a preheated 350°F oven toasting for 6-8 minutes or until lightly golden and fragrant. Allow to cool completely before adding to the batter.
- Store this cake in an airtight container chilled in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
- When storing chilled, bring to room temperature for serving to allow time for the praline glaze to soften.
More Southern Pound Cake Recipes to Make
This decadent cake is not for the butter or sugar shy as it celebrates both in abundance. Save this for a special occasion and enjoy a piece with the special people in your life. They’ll be so glad you did.
- Million Dollar Pound Cake is a classic cake that never gets old.
- Lemon Sour Cream Pound Cake is packed with the bright flavor or citrus.
- Coconut Cream Pound Cake is full flavored.
- Orange Pound Cake is drizzled with a fresh sweet orange glaze.
- Pretty in pink White Chocolate Cherry Pound Cake.
- You may also like these 8 No-Fail Pound Cakes on Parade.
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Helpful Kitchen Items:
Pecan Praline Buttermilk Pound Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter softened
- 1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
- 2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 6 large eggs
- 3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup whole buttermilk
- 1 1/2 cup toasted roughly chopped pecans
- 1/2 cup toffee bits
- Praline glaze: Made in a 1100 watt microwave
- 2 Tbsp salted butter
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup finely chopped toasted pecans
Instructions
- Do not preheat the oven. Liberally butter and flour a tube pan. Set aside. (See Cook's note)
- In the bowl of a stand mixer cream together the butter, shortening, vanilla, brown and granulated sugars. Beat for 2 minutes or until creamy and light beige in color..
- Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition stopping to scrap the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Lower the speed of the mixer and add to the creamed mixture alternately with the buttermilk. After all has been added increase the speed of the mixer to medium and beat until fully combined around 45-60 seconds.
- By hand mix in 1 1/2 cup pecans and toffee bits. Spread into the prepared pan.
- Place the cake into a cold oven. Bake at 325F for 1hr 30min to 1hr 45min or until a long skewer inserted into the center comes back clean.
- Cool in the pan on a cooling rack for 30 minutes then turn onto the rack to cool completely.
- To make the glaze. In a deep microwave safe bowl melt the butter in the microwave. Whisk the brown sugar and heavy cream into the melted butter then return to the microwave..
- Cook on high for 2 minutes. Remove from the microwave and stir in the vanilla and 1/4 cup pecans. Allow to cool slightly then drizzle over the cake.
This cake sounds good does the roughly chopped nuts go in bottom of pan or on top of batter
Neither. 1 1/2 cup in the batter 1/4 cup in the praline glaze.
Can I put walnuts instead of pecan and raisins instead of toffee bites
You can use a different kind of nut, if you desire. I can’t imagine you’d want to use raisins in this cake. I recommend following the recipe.
I made this today but it fell and crumbled. What would cause that? I will say though it is very good.
This cake is so moist I’m not certain why yours crumbled. Unless, it was under baked. Always test baked goods with a toothpick to be certain it’s done all the way through, it may take longer or even less time to bake depending on your oven.
This is my kind of cake! I made a similar Praline cake for a family reunion, it was as expected a huge hit. I love to bake
Can you use whole milk as a substitute for the heavy cream?
In this recipe that isn’t interchangeable.
I used half and half. It was all I had. It turned out fine.
Was your blog ever called “Chin Deep” ???
No but, I know Melissa well she’s a dear friend. She still has her blog you should visit her.
Hello. Is this recipe user friendly for a non-baker such as myself?
Hi Nicky, I think it is, yes. Follow the step-by-steps and you’ll be good to go.
Can you sub the shortening for something else?
You can use all butter, but it will change the texture. The shortening stabilizes the batter.
What is 1 1/2 cups toasted rpughy
1½ cup toasted roughly chopped pecans
Is the hour and a half TOTAL time or AFTER oven has reached 325.
That refers to the total time. That said, you would always adapt this or any cake recipe to how your oven performs. It may take longer in your oven and always check for over browning and cover with foil, if needed. You can also bake this cake in a preheated oven, if you’e more comfortable with that concept.
If making this for a potluck, can I make the cake the day before, and save the glaze and microwave the glaze right b4 I pour over cake the next day, or will the glaze get hard?
Yes, you can do that. The glaze will set but, will liquefy again when you reheat.
Hello …. Can I add less sugar ,,like 1.5 brown and 1/2 white … Also if I have left over cake with glaze ,, what’s best way to store it to keep it fresh and will heating cake in microwave make glaze soft again ??? Planning on baking it tommorow
Thank you
I bake this cake as written with ingredient amounts as called for in the recipe. Leftover cake with glaze can be wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen, if you like. Thawing it in the fridge and it should be fine when warmed. Also, some of my readers are saying they baked this cake in a preheated oven which was their preference and it baked nicely. If you choose to do this, just keep an eye out for over browning.
I baked the cake today and it was AMAZING …. THANK U FOR SHARING THIS LOVELY RECIPIE ????
Wonderful Mona, thanks for letting me know
will using butter instead of shortening affect the consistency of the cake
It will as both ingredients bake differently. You can use all butter, but may have to adjust the baking time.
More or less baking time if you use all butter?
Follow the recipe as written and test it for doneness with a toothpick then adjust from there.
Hi, I usually use the ratio of 1tsp baking powder for 1 cup of flour, I was with wondering 1tsp for 3 cup flour will result in hard texture?
Tia
That won’t work with this cake it’s so moist no worries at all about hard texture.
What did I do wrong? I started the cake in a cold oven, but the top burned while the oven was preheating. How do I prevent this next time?
Where was the oven rack located? It sounds as if it may have been set a bit high if the top burned. Some ovens run hotter than others but, this cake shouldn’t burn especially when started in a cold oven.
Sounds like you may have had the oven on broil if the top burned while you were preheating the oven.
If using an electric stove (oven) the broiler is on while preheating. I do not put mine into a cold oven. I wait until it is preheated. No problems.
So….I CAN preheat the oven and put cake in oven at 325? Because I am now afraid of burning the top. Thers’s a lot of “cost” in this cake. lol
Sure, if you’e concerned preheat the oven prior to placing the cake into the oven.
Have you ever made the cake a day in advance? If so, would you put the glaze on it the same day you make the cake or can you make the cake the night before and put the glaze on the next morning?
Yes, I have made it in advance and I would recommend you gkaze the cake the day you serve it as the glaze will harden a bit when chilled.
Do you know how long this keeps, in or out of the fridge? I’m single, live alone, and NOT sharing… so a piece a day would last me a week (if I had only ONE piece a day LOL)
This cake is so moist it would keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks when tightly wrapped. Otherwise, cut into single pieces and wrap in plastic wrap and freeze.
Whole buttermilk? Our stores only carry the low fat types, will that change anything ? Suggestions ?
Low fat buttermilk will work, but yes it will make a difference and I wouldn’t use nonfat buttermilk. Have you actually ever looked for whole buttermilk? If not, you may be surprised it is readily available.
In the past years ago, I used to buy a powdered buttermilk because IUsed buttermilk infrequently. Would this work?
It should if using in the same amount, sure.
Lowfat Buttermilk is all that is available here. I’ve looked and looked. Now I add lemon juice or vinegar to whole milk and make my own. Do you think that would change anything?
You can use low-fat if that’s all you can find. Otherwise, yes your homemade substitute will work.
For the glaze, is that one tsp for the vanilla?
Yes
Can this be baked in layer pans?
I’m sure it could although, I typically make this cake as presented.
What is the oven temp???
Place the cake into a cold oven then set the temp at 325F.