Gather your ingredients:
Cake:
- 2 sticks of butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
- 4 large eggs
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Icing:
- 3/4 cup butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
- 3 large eggs yolks
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
- Get to baking:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease and flour three nine-inch round cake pans. Make sure you grease and flour them or use non-stick spray specifically for baking because these cakes will stick.
- Mix the butter and sugars together until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition.
- Sift the flour with the baking powder, baking soda and salt and mix into butter and sugar mixture then add the milk and vanilla extract.
- Divide batter evenly between the pans and bake in the center of the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool layers in their pans over a rack for ten minutes, then loosen and turn out layers directly onto racks for cooling. Allow layers to cool.
- While cakes are cooling, start the icing by melting the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Remove from heat and stir in granulated sugar and light brown sugar. (Sugars will not dissolve).
- In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the evaporated milk until smooth, then whisk this mixture into the saucepan with the sugar mixture. Return saucepan to a medium heat setting and cook, whisking constantly, until mixture is thick, shiny and caramel-like, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract and pecans.
- Cool icing for about 30 minutes until it can be spread, then spread evenly between cooled cake layers and over the top and sides of the cake.
- ENJOY!