Carolina Skillet Cake

Name: Carolina Skillet Cake
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 60 min
Ingredients: 1/3 cup Crisco shortening; 1 3/4 cups UNBLEACHED all-purpose flour (bleached flour toughens baked goods); 3/4 cup half-and-half (or milk); 3/4 cup granulated sugar; 2 large eggs; 2 1/2 tsp. baking powder; 1/2 tsp. salt; 1/3 cup pecans (or other nuts, chopped (measure after chopping)); 1/2 cup light brown sugar (packed ); 1 tsp. cinnamon; 2 tbsp. unsalted butter; 2 tbsp. UNBLEACHED all-purpose flour ((bleached flour toughens baked goods)); 1 cup powdered sugar; 3 tbsp. half-and-half; 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

August 16, 2012Teresa Ambra

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Carolina Skillet Cake is a delicious cinnamon streusel-flavored coffee cake with powdered sugar icing that is delightful served out of a cast iron skillet. Every bite is fabulous. The original recipe recommended making this in a cast iron skillet although the subsequent recipe also allows for a regular round baking pan. You can make this recipe without the powdered sugar icing, but I really like it with it.

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I keep coming across old recipes I thought I had in the electronic version of my cookbook but then realize I somehow neglected to put them in. This is one of them. This is a delicious coffee cake recipe that Martha White flour put out in the late 70s or early 80s, I think.

I only realized it wasn’t in my electronic version of my recipes after someone else posted a recipe very similar from Martha White last week on a food blog. (Her post is here). You will also find the exact same recipe on the Crisco website.

This recipe is so easy to put together and extremely economical. You probably have all the ingredients on hand already. If you don’t have pecans you can substitute another kind of nuts. You could also put a fruit topping on top of the cake before the crumble topping (jam or preserves, pie filling or even fresh fruit) if you like a fruitier taste. I like this cake just like it is. I followed the recipe really closely for this cake.

If you’re looking for a tasty coffeecake recipe for country breakfasts, holiday breakfasts, or even for dinner, this scrumptious cake should be on your menu. It’s always been one of my favorite coffeecake recipes. If you’re a coffeecake lover with your coffee or tea, this luscious cake should be on your “to make” list.

When I initially posted this recipe in August 2012, right after I began my blog, my staging was okay, but the pictures were taken with an iPhone 3, so they were really not as sharp as I would have liked.

I recently remade this recipe (November 2016) for a potluck at our church where we had “breakfast for dinner!” I brought a batch Carolina Skillet Cake along with a Gluten Free Cinnamon Roll Bread. I have to admit, this is still one of my favorite coffee cake recipes. I hope you’ll give it a try.

Carolina Skillet Cake is totally wonderful!

Martha White now refers to this recipe as Carolina Coffee Cake, but when it was first published it came out as Carolina Skillet Cake. That’s how I typed it into my computer in 1984!

Carolina Skillet Cake is a great coffeecake for holiday breakfasts.

We love this cake for breakfast. It’s so simple and easy to put together.

Here’s what I did.

I used these ingredients for the cake layer.

In a mixing bowl stir together sugar, Crisco shortening, eggs, salt, baking powder and half-and-half.

Cream with an electric mixer until well mixed.

Add UNBLEACHED all-purpose flour. Bleached flour toughens baked goods. Add chopped pecans.

Stir into cake mix (don’t beat)!

Using a paper towel, dip into Crisco shortening can and apply about 1/4 to 1/2 cup shortening (a lot!) to your seasoned cast iron skillet. Don’t be stingy. Put a lot of grease in the pan so the mixture doesn’t stick or scorch on the bottom. Add flour to coat the bottom of the skillet just like you would for regular cake pans. Use a lot of flour. Make sure you tilt the sides of the pan so the flour covers the sides of the skillet and not just the bottom. Pour the batter into the skillet.

I used these ingredients for the crumble topping.

Combine UNBLEACHED all-purpose flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until coarse crumbs form.

Sprinkle crumble topping over top of cake batter. With the bottom of a wooden spoon make indentations in the batter all the way to the bottom so the crumble mixture gets integrated into the batter. I probably made 20 or 30 pokes all over the cake in order to do this effectively.

Now the cake is ready to bake.

Bake 40-50 minutes at 375, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

I used these ingredients for the powdered sugar glaze.

Combine ingredients with a whisk.

While cake is still warm, ice with powdered sugar icing.

Here’s what the cake looks like after adding the icing. If you use too much liquid your icing will be too thin and it will melt on the top rather than staying white like this with the icing holding its shape.

Cut cake into 12 pieces before serving.

Carolina Skillet Cake is amazing.

The cinnamon streusel topping and pecans make this coffeecake so scrumptious.

Here’s the recipe.

CAROLINA SKILLET CAKE

(Recipe adapted from Martha White Flour)

Carolina Skillet Cake

Teresa Ambra

This luscious coffeecake is filled with cinnamon and pecans and made in a cast iron skillet. It has a luscious crumble topping with more cinnamon and glazed with powdered sugar icing. This coffeecake is great for holiday breakfasts.

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Prep Time 25

Cook Time 35

Total Time 1

Course Breakfast Coffee Cake, Cakes and Cheesecakes, Dessert

Cuisine Southern

Servings

Calories 286 kcal

Equipment

1 10-inch cast iron skillet or other oven-proof skillet or 10-inch round baking dish
1 large mixing bowl
1 electric mixer
1 nut chopper if nuts are not previously chopped
1 wooden spoon
measuring cups
measuring spoons
1 whisk
1 small mixing bowl
1 medium mixing bowl
1 pastry blender

Ingredients

COFFEECAKE:

1/3 cup Crisco shortening
1 3/4 cups UNBLEACHED all-purpose flour bleached flour toughens baked goods
3/4 cup half-and-half or milk
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup pecans or other nuts, chopped (measure after chopping)

CRUMBLE TOPPING:

1/2 cup light brown sugar packed
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
2 tbsp. UNBLEACHED all-purpose flour (bleached flour toughens baked goods)

ICING:

1 cup powdered sugar
3 tbsp. half-and-half
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Instructions

COFFEECAKE:

Heat oven to 375°.
Generously grease and flour a 10-inch iron skillet or a 10 inches round cake pan.
Cream shortening in a large mixing bowl; gradually add granulated sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs, baking powder, salt and milk.
Mix with an electric mixer until well combined.
Stir in flour and nuts.
Pour into pan and top with crumble topping.
Make indentations in the batter with the bottom of a wooden spoon all the way to the bottom of the pan so the topping will bake into the cake.
Bake 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
If desired, drizzle with powdered sugar icing.

CRUMBLE TOPPING:

Combine ingredients in a medium mixing bowl.
Mix with fingertips or pastry blender.

ICING:

Mix ingredients with a whisk.
Drizzle over warm cake.

Notes

NOTE: You can substitute milk for the half-and-half, but you will have to decrease the amount used in the icing to two tablespoons (or less).

Recipe adapted from Martha White Flour.

^© Can’t Stay Out of the Kitchen

Nutrition

Calories: 286kcalCarbohydrates: 50gProtein: 4gFat: 13gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 43mgSodium: 215mgPotassium: 86mgFiber: 1gSugar: 22gVitamin A: 177IUVitamin C: 0.2mgCalcium: 103mgIron: 1mg

Keyword breakfast, cake, coffee cake, dessert

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

[b]Carolina Skillet Cake[/b]

Recipe Type: Breakfast Coffee Cake

Cuisine: Southern

Author: Teresa Ambra adapted from [url href=”http://www.marthawhite.com/recipes/carolina-coffee-cake-2703″ target=”_blank” title=”carolina coffee cake”]Martha White Flour[/url]

Prep time: 25 mins

Cook time: 35 mins

Total time: 1 hour

Serves: 12

Ingredients

1/3 cup Crisco shortening
1 ¾ cups UNBLEACHED all-purpose flour (bleached flour toughens baked goods)
¾ cup milk
¾ cup sugar
2 eggs
2 ½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1/3 cup chopped pecans or nuts[br]
[b]CRUMBLE TOPPING:[/b][br]
½ cup brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. UNBLEACHED all-purpose flour (bleached flour toughens baked goods)[br]
[b]POWDERED SUGAR ICING:[/b][br]
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tbsp. hot milk
½ tsp. vanilla

Instructions

Heat oven to 375°.
Grease and lightly dust with flour a cake pan or iron skillet, 10 inches round and 2 inches deep.
Cream shortening, gradually adding sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.
Add flour and milk alternately.
Fold in nuts.
Pour into pan and top with crumble topping.
Make indentations in the batter with your finger all the way to the bottom of the pan so the topping will bake into the cake.
Bake 35 minutes.
If desired, drizzle with powdered sugar icing.[br]

[b]CRUMBLE TOPPING:[/b][br]

Combine ingredients.
Mix with fingertips or pastry blender.[br]

[b]POWDERED SUGAR ICING:[/b][br]

Mix ingredients with a whisk.
Drizzle over warm cake.

Serve Carolina Skillet Cake for any kind of country breakfast. Your family will rave over this cake.

Doesn’t Carolina Skillet Cake look marvelous?

One bite of this coffeecake will have you drooling!

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Carolina Skillet Cake

Teresa Ambra

No ratings yet

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 25

Cook Time 35

Total Time 1

Course Breakfast Coffee Cake, Cakes and Cheesecakes, Dessert

Cuisine Southern

Servings

Calories 286 kcal