Semi Naked Italian Cream Cake

Embracing Springtime with this Semi Naked Italian Cream Cake! Sweet, nutty, and decedent. Three light and fluffy layers that are filled to the brim with sweetened shredded coconut and chopped pecans, sandwiched between the very best cream cheese frosting. Every bite is sure to be just as good and sweet as the last. This cake is one of our absolute favorite Southern classics. It doesn’t get better or easier than this!

About The Recipe

This is my mom’s absolute favorite cake. So, when I asked her what she wanted for her birthday cake, this was her immediate answer.

Quarantine doesn’t have to mean you can’t celebrate things anymore. Yes, maybe it means that instead of a new car, you’ll get a roll of toilet paper instead. It’s all about perspective.

I couldn’t order anything for my mom’s birthday because A) I don’t shop early enough and B) whatever I’d buy, it would be considered non-essential.

Which is understandable, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to stop trying to celebrate.

My mom’s other request of was for a semi-naked cake. Which is basically just a crumb coat around the cake. I didn’t mind but I had no way to pretty up the cake and that was incredibly frustrating for me. I love to decorate with fresh flowers, lots of icing, extra little bips and bops.

But, I had none of that. So, very basic semi naked cake it is!

It still tastes just as delicious as it always does and during these times, I guess I shouldn’t really complain too much. A delicious cake shared between the three of us is always better than nothing.

Though, I do have to admit, I alway’s add more frosting to my slices!

Ingredients

• Unsalted Butter
• Sugar
• Eggs
• All-Purpose Flour
• Baking Powder
• Baking Soda
• Salt
• Buttermilk
• Vanilla
• Pecans
• Sweetened Coconut

Instructions

Thankfully, like so many of our other recipes, this cake isn’t too hard to make! So, first things first. Sift dry ingredients into a large bowl and set aside.

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Beat butter and sugar in a mixer until light and fluffy.

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Add egg yolks one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

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Alternately add flour and milk. Beginning and ending with flour.

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Stir in the vanilla.

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Now mix in the chopped pecans and shredded coconut.

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Okay, in a new bowl, place your egg whites in a mixer with the whisk attachment. Beat on high just until stiff peaks but not to the point where the egg whites are “dried out”. You don’t want lumpy egg whites!

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Now, add your egg whites to the cake batter. Gently fold them in!

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Spoon in about 1 pound and 12 ounces of cake batter per pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown and testing done.

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Set the cakes aside and let them cool in the pans.

Now onto the frosting! Add heavy cream to a mixing bowl with the whisk attachment. Beat until stiff peaks form. Beat in one pad of cream cheese at a time. The frosting will begin to resemble butter, that’s good! You want it to look this way. Add half of the powdered sugar, mix in well. Add the other half and beat until smooth and creamy. Now, add the vanilla and mix in well.

Once the cake is cooled, turn it out and level if needed. Spoon about 1/4 – 1/2 a cup of frosting onto each layer of cake. Smooth out from the middle towards the edges. Remember, try and keep it as level as possible!

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Now, add about 1/4 cup or so of frosting to the top layer and spread it smoothly across. You can add more less frosting to the sides and top if you prefer.

Now you’re done! You can serve immediately or leave covered on the counter for a few days. The longer it sits, the more flavor it develops!

How To Store

Like so many cakes, you can actually freeze the individual layers and assemble at a later date, or freeze individual slices once the cake is made. You also could freeze the entire cake as a whole but I promise freezing individual slices is so much easier for when you are craving a bite!

This cake also keeps well on the counter when covered. It should last 5-7 days.

Expert Tips

• If you freeze the cake layers before frosting, you will have less crumbs!
• The actual amount of frosting you use is totally up to you.
• Use an off-set spatula to get the best results.
• You can put the cream cheese frosting in the fridge and it won’t harden. It will stay spreadable.
• This cake lasts for about 4-7 days covered on the counter at room temperature.
• Make sure to use sweetened coconut!
• If you have a food processor, you can use that to quickly chop the pecans.

When you make these Semi Naked Italian Cream Cake, leave a comment down below! We love hearing from you and answering any questions you might have! Also, be sure to tag us on social media and hashtag it #BakersTable.