Caramel Pecan Cake and Pretzels

My friend was having a dinner party and needed a good dessert.  She does not bake so I offered to make something for her.  This is what she wanted. I also dressed this up by sifting powdered sugar over the top and adding chopped candied pecans.  It went out the door before I got a pic of it though.

 This cake tastes remarkably like pecan pie.

ingredients:

For the cake:

• 1 cup finely chopped pecans
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup light or dark corn syrup
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 & 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

For the glaze:

• 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• pinch of salt

Directions:

To make the cake:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Generously grease a 10-cup Bundt pan.
2. Sprinkle the pecans in the bottom of the pan.
3. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
4. Stir together the corn syrup and buttermilk. Set aside.
5. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla.
6. Reduce mixer speed to low. Add the flour in three portions, alternating with two portions of the buttermilk mixture. Mix just until combined.
7. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour, or until a pick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.
8. Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes. Then invert the cake onto a wire rack to continue cooling.

To make the glaze:

1. Place the brown sugar, butter, cream and salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.
2. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for a couple of minutes until it has thickened slightly.
3. Drizzle the glaze over the warm cake.

I doubled the glaze recipe because...why not! This is a very dense and moist cake.

 I've decided to perfect my pretzel making skills so each morning I will be making pretzels until I develop the best recipe. These are yesterday's attempt and though they don't look very pretzel like, they had fantastic pretzel flavor and texture.

I'll keep you posted on my progress as well as what I'll be serving with them.  I post the final recipe once I figure it out.