Turtle Cake
Submitted by Sue Lowes on Apr 11, 2011

Chocolate cake with caramel icing and pecans

Servings:
Group

Complexity:   
Medium

Total Time:
2 hours

Ingredients:
Cake
1 egg
2/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups flour
1&3/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup good quality cocoa
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 cup hot coffee

Icing
1/2 cup milk
1 cup sugar
6 tbsp. butter
2 cups good quality semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup caramel
1&1/2 cups toasted pecans

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 3 (9-inch) cake pans. Cover each bottom with disk of parchment paper

In bowl, combine egg, oil and buttermilk. In large separate bowl, mix together flour, sugar, cocoa, salt and baking soda. Gradually add wet ingredients to dry until well mixed. Gradually add hot coffee. Crape batter into prepared pans.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Let cake rest in pans for 10 minutes. Turn out onto wire racks to cool.

Frostin--Mix sugar and milk in saucepan. Add butter. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Add chocolate chips to pan. Using wire whisk, mix until smooth. If frostin is too thick or grainy, add 1 or 2 teaspoons hot coffee.

Place one cooled cake layer, top side down, on cake plate. Spread 1/3 of frosting, pushing it out gently from edges to make a petal effect. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup pecans. Drizzle with 1/3 cup caramel. Add next layer, again top side down. Repeat frosting and sprinkle with 1/2 cups pecans and drizzle with 1/4 cup caramel. Add final layer, top side up, frost with petal effect and finish with remaining pecans and carmel.