Ingredients
-
2 cups finely chopped pecans, toasted and divided
-
1 lb butter, softened
-
3 cups sugar
-
6 large eggs
-
4 cups all-purpose flour
-
1/8 teaspoon salt
-
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
-
3/4 cup milk
-
2 tablespoons grated orange rind
-
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
-
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
-
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-
1 teaspoon orange extract
-
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
-
-
1 large orange
-
1 cup sugar
-
-
1 cup pecan halves
-
1 teaspoon lemon extract
Instructions
- Sprinkle 1 1/4 cups finely chopped pecans into a generously buttered 10-inch tube pan; shake to evenly coat bottom and sides of pan. (The food processor is great for chopping those nuts!)
- (Excess nuts will fall to bottom of pan. Make certain nuts are in an even layer in bottom of pan.) Set aside. Preheat oven to 300°F.
- Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; gradually add sugar, beating well.
- Add eggs, 1 at a time; beating until blended after each addition.
- Combine flour, salt and baking powder; add to butter mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
- Beat at low speed until blended after each addition.
- Stir in remaining 3/4 cup pecans, grated orange rind, cinnamon, nutmeg, and next 4 ingredients.
- Spoon batter evenly into prepared pan.
- Bake at 300°F for about 1 1/2 hours or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
- While cake is baking, prepare Orange Syrup (see below).
- Cool in pan on wire rack for 20 minutes.
- Remove cake from pan; invert cake, pecan crust-side-up onto a wire rack.
- While cake is cooling, bake Glazed Pecan Halves (see below).
- Brush top and sides of pound cake gently several times with hot Orange Syrup, using a pastry brush and allowing cake to absorb the Orange Syrup after each brushing. (Do not pour syrup over the cake).
- Let cake cool completely on wire rack.
- Arrange Glazed Pecan Halves around top of cake, if desired, or place on each piece as they are served.
- For Orange Syrup: Remove rind from orange with a vegetable peeler, being careful not to get the bitter white pith.
- Set orange rind aside.
- Squeeze orange to get 1/2 cup juice.
- Combine orange rind, juice and sugar in a small saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.
- Bring mixture to a boil over medium high heat, and boil 2 minutes.
- Makes about 1 cup.
- For Glazed Pecan Halves: Combine pecan halves and corn syrup, stirring ot coat pecans.
- Line a 15- x 10-inch jellyroll pan with parchment paper; coat with cooking spray.
- Arrange pecan halves in an even layer in a pan.
- Bake at 350°F for 12 minutes; stir using a rubber spatula.
- Remove from oven, stir, arrange in an even layer on wax paper and let cool completely.