Dream Chocolate Italian Cream Cake

Total Time: 55 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 25 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 10
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 2 cups sugar
• 5 eggs
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped hazelnuts
• 1 1/4 cups shredded sweetened coconut
• 1 1/2 cups cream cheese
• 3/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 6 cups powdered sugar, sifted
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 325°f.
• 2 use shortening or butter to grease three 8-inch round cake pans. use parchment paper, cut into circles, if desired. flour cake pans. (or make it simple and use wax paper liner for cake pans.).
• 3 in a large bowl, cream 1/2 cup of butter, shortening and sugar together. separate eggs; be sure to keep both yolks and whites. set whites aside in a separate bowl. beat in egg yolks, one at a time, to creamed ingredients. stir in vanilla.
• 4 in a separate bowl, sift flour, baking soda and 1/2 cup of cocoa. slowly add mixture to creamed ingredients along with buttermilk. stir in chopped hazelnuts and coconut.
• 5 beat egg whites well, until stiff peaks form. fold egg whites into the batter and pour into lined, cake pans. bake at 325 f for approximately 25 to 30 minutes. cakes must cool before icing.
• 6 meanwhile, prepare the icing by creaming the cream cheese and butter in a large bowl. in another bowl, sift powdered sugar and 1/2 cup cocoa together. add to cream cheese and butter mixture, slowly. beat until thoroughly creamed. mix in vanilla.
• 7 once cakes have cooled, remove from cake pans and form a three-layered cake, icing in-between each layer. sprinkle the top with remaining hazelnuts.