Dessert / Cake: Italian Cream Cake

From Shelly Carey
Note: This is a moist and dense cake. Very yummy!

Ingredients
Cake
2 cups granulated sugar
1 ½ cups vegetable shortening, softened
1 stick butter, softened
5 large eggs, separated
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans
Frosting
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 stick butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 lb box confectioners’ sugar

Directions
Cake
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease and flour three 9 x 2-inch round cake pans. Beat together sugar, shortening, and butter until fluffy. Add (only) egg yolks, one at a time, beating well. Set aside egg whites.

Into another bowl sift together flour, baking soda and salt. Beat ½ of flour mixture into egg mixture. Add ½ cup buttermilk. Add ½ of the remaining flour mixture. Beat well. Add remaining ½ cup buttermilk. Add remaining flour mixture and beat well. Beat in vanilla, coconut and chopped pecans.

In another bowl, beat egg whites until they just hold stiff peaks. Fold into batter gently, but thoroughly. Pour batter evenly into the cake pans and bake approximately 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool in pans on racks for 10 minutes. Invert onto racks to cool completely.

Frosting
In a bowl, beat together cream cheese, butter and vanilla until smooth. Gradually beat in confectioners’ sugar until creamy. Stack cake layers on a cake plate, spreading approximately ½ cup frosting between each layer. Spread remaining frosting on top and sides of cake.