Sock It To Me Cake (Recipe Inspired by AN AMERICAN MARRIAGE)

Sock It To Me Cake is main character Roy’s favorite cake in An American Marriage. His momma makes it for him when he goes to visit her, and the unusual, playful name of the dessert caught my eye as I was reading.

However, when it tured out that Sock It To Me Cake is the last dessert Roy enjoys before being unjustly imprisoned, I knew what my book-inspired recipe for this amazing novel had to be.

While Sock It To Me Cake is a well-known dessert in the American South, I’d never heard of it before reading An American Marriage.

Some quick Googling told me that, basically, it’s a buttery Bundt cake with a ribbon of cinnamon, pecan, and brown sugar running through it.

Surprisingly, though, most Sock It To Me Cakes are made with a boxed cake mix. *gasp*

I get it – people are busy and don’t always have time to make an entire cake from scratch. And, truth be told, one of my favorite cakes in the world comes from a Duncan Hines box.

However, I really wanted to bake a Sock It To Me Cake entirely from scratch, so I ferreted out some recipes that could mimic the moist, tender consistency found in box cake mixes.

That brought to the butter cake, which I’ve only ever had from Entenmann’s before. And it was kinda “meh.”

Let me tell you: THE HOMEMADE VERSION IS SO MUCH BETTER.

Butter cake’s very similar to a pound cake, but it has a much lighter crumb. Lighter cake  = being able to eat bigger slices of cake, which is never a bad thing.

When I found out that the filling in a Sock It To Me Cake is just a pecan variation of the filling in my Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Cake, all I had to do was smack the two recipes together.

As you can see, the result is an absolute winner!

The homemade butter cake is light and airy, perfectly golden on the outside and enticingly cake-batter yellow on the inside. Just like from the boxed mix!

The flavor is understated, containing just a subtle hint of vanilla, which is perfect for letting that ribbon of streusel really stand out with its crunchy, cinnamony sweetness.

My favorite part, though? The thick, vanilla icing drizzled over the top of the finished cake.

It hardens once it sets, freezing the glaze into smooth, perfectly formed drips that cascade over the curves of the cake.

Just look at it! The sight of that bright, white glaze against the deep, golden-brown cake drives me nuts. (Pun intended.)

Oh, and the hit of pure sugar with every bite doesn’t hurt, either.

Sprinkle the iced Sock It To Me Cake with a few more pecans, both whole and chopped, and you’ve got yourself a picture perfect dessert that was incredibly simple to make!

Sock It To Me Cake

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 40 minutes mins

Total Time 55 minutes mins

Servings 16 servings

Ingredients

  

BUTTER CAKE INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 4 eggs, at room temperature
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup full-fat Greek yogurt

CINNAMON PECAN FILLING INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup pecans, chopped
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

ICING INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup confectioner's sugar
• 1 tbsp + 1 tsp milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• extra pecans for decorating

Instructions

 

PREP INSTRUCTIONS

• Preheat oven to 350F.
• Spray a 10-cup Bundt pan with non-stick baking spray, then place pan on a baking sheet. Set aside.
• Chop one cup pecans and place in a small bowl. Add the brown sugar, 2 tbsp flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg to the bowl, then mix together with clean hands until thoroughly combined. Set aside.

BAKING INSTRUCTIONS

• Cream together the softened butter and the granulated sugar in a large bowl using either a stand mixer or a handmixer.
• Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition until mixture is light yellow and fluffy.
• Add 2 tsp vanilla extract and beat a few seconds to incorporate it into the batter.
• In a separate, medium bowl, whisk together the 3 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• Alternately add the flour mixture and the yogurt to the creamed mixture, beating well after each addition. Scrap down the sides of the bowl as needed, which may be often, to ensure all ingredients are thoroughly combined.
• Pour about ½ of the cake batter into the prepared Bundt pan, smoothing the surface to ensure even distribution of the batter in the pan.
• Sprinkle the cinnamon pecan filling all over the batter, then top with the remaining cake batter. Spread the top batter carefully to ensure that all of the pecan filling is covered.
• Thump the pan on the countertop a few times to make sure there are no air bubbles in the batter.
• Bake the cake at 350F for 40-50 minutes minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
• Remove pan from oven and place on a wire cooling rack. Let cool 10 minutes.
• Invert cake onto a wire cooling rack and carefully remove pan. Let cake cool thoroughly before icing.

ICING INSTRUCTIONS

• Whisk together the confectioner’s sugar, milk, and 1 tsp of vanilla until you have a thick but pourable glaze.
• Pour glaze over the top of the cooled Sock It To Me Cake, letting it drip down the sides. Sprinkle whole or chopped pecans on top of the icing for decoration.

Notes

The Butter Cake recipe is barely adapted from this recipe.