Best Tennessee Stack Cake Recipes

TENNESSEE MOUNTAIN STACK CAKE

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and place the rack in the middle position.
• 2. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.
• 3. Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on medium speed until wet and grainy.
• 4. Add the molasses. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a flexible spatula to get all of the molasses into the mixture.
• 5. Add the eggs one at a time. Scrape all the way to the bottom of the bowl and mix on low speed.
• 6. Alternately add the buttermilk and the dry mixture about a quarter at a time. Stop the mixer to scrape the bowl and turn it on again on low speed for about 10 seconds. The mixture should be stiff like a soft cookie dough.
• 7. Shape the dough into a ball and wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• 8. Divide the dough into 6 or 8 equal portions and place each one on a round piece of parchment paper a little larger than a 9-inch cake pan. Roll out the dough to the size of the parchment. Place the cake pan over the disk and trim away the excess around the edge.
• 9. Leaving the parchment paper underneath, lift the disks onto baking sheets and bake them for approximately 10 minutes, or until the top surface appears dry and a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
• 10. Slide the disks off the baking sheet onto a flat surface to cool.
• 11. To make the filling, combine all the ingredients in a large, heavy-bottom saucepan and bring to a light simmer. Immediately transfer to the work bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and pulse into a thick paste.
• 12. To assemble the cake, spread about 1 cup of the filling onto each layer, taking care to center each disk on top of the one beneath it. Repeat until all the layers are used. Do not put apple filling on top of the cake.
• 13. Wrap the cake well and refrigerate it for up to 24 hours. This gives the apple filling time to work itself into the cake. Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve chilled.

TENNESSEE STACK CAKE

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, combine 4 cups of dried apples and water. Bring to a boil, and let simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes, or until apples are very soft. Mash the apples slightly, and stir in the sugar. Set aside to cool.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• In a large bowl, cream together the shortening and 1 1/4 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the buttermilk, baking soda, baking powder, salt and ginger. Mix in the flour about 1 cup at a time to form a stiff dough. Divide dough into 5 equal portions. Pat each portion of the dough into a 9 inch circle on greased cookie sheets.
• Bake for 6 to 8 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are golden. Carefully remove layers to a cooling rack.
• Stack the layers onto a serving plate, spreading about 3/4 cup of the apple filling between each layer. Spread the rest of the filling over the top layer, and arrange dried apple slices on top for garnish. Let stand overnight before serving.

TENNESSEE STACK CAKE

Steps:

• For the filling:
• Bring the apples and water to cover to a boil in a medium saucepan.
• Reduce the heat and simmer until the apples are completely softened, about 10 minutes.
• Drain the apples and let cool until just warm, about 15 minutes.
• Puree the apples in a food processor until smooth.
• Transfer to a bowl and stir in the brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice. (The filling can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.).
• For the layers:
• Adjust two oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray.
• Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
• Whisk the buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla in a large measuring cup.
• With an electric mixer at medium-high speed, beat the butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl until fluffy, about 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl as necessary.
• Add the flour mixture and buttermilk mixture alternately in two batches, beating after each addition and scraping down the bowl as needed until combined. (The dough will be thick.).
• Divide the dough into 8 equal portions.
• Working with 2 portions at a time, on a lightly floured surface, roll each out into a 10-inch circle about 1/4 inch thick.
• Using a 9-inch cake pan as a template, trim away the excess dough to form 2 perfectly round 9-inch disks.
• Transfer the disks to the prepared baking sheets and bake until golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating and switching the baking sheets halfway through the baking time.
• Transfer the disks to a rack and cool completely, at least 1 hour.
• Repeat with the remaining dough. (The layers can be wrapped tightly in plastic and stored at room temperature for up to 2 days.).
• To assemble the cake:
• Place one layer on a serving plate and spread with 1 cup filling.
• Repeat 6 times.
• Top with the final layer, wrap tightly in plastic, and refrigerate until the layers soften, at least 24 hours or up to 2 days.
• Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve. (The fully assembled cake can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.).
• Be sure to let the cake sit at least 24 hours, as the moisture from the filling transforms the texture of the cookie-like layers into a tender apple-flavored cake.

TENNESSEE MOUNTAINS STACK CAKE

Steps:

• Cream butter and sugar well.
• Add molasses,scraping cup to get it all out.
• Add eggs,one at a time,beating well after each addition.
• Sift dry ingredients together and add alternately with milk.
• Spoon batter into six greased and floured round cake pans,spreading batter about 1/3 inch thick in each pan.
• Bake about 15 mintues in 350 oven.
• When cool,put thick applesauce between the layers,and stack them up and sprinkle the top with powdered sugar.

TENNESSEE MOUNTAIN STACK CAKE, FROM UNITED CAKES OF AMERICA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F and place the rack in the middle position.
• Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.
• Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on medium speed until wet and grainy.
• Add the molasses. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a flexible spatula to get all of the molasses into the mixture.
• Add the eggs one at a time. Scrape all the way to the bottom of the bowl and mix on low speed.
• Alternately add the buttermilk and the dry mixture about a quarter at a time. Stop the mixer to scrape the bowl and turn it on again on low speed for about 10 seconds. The mixture should be stiff like a soft cookie dough.
• Shape the dough into a ball and wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Divide the dough into 6 or 8 equal portions and place each one on a round piece of parchment paper a little larger than a 9-inch cake pan. Roll out the dough to the size of the parchment. Place the cake pan over the disk and trim away the excess around the edge.
• Leaving the parchment paper underneath, lift the disks onto baking sheets and bake them for approximately 10 minutes, or until the top surface appears dry and a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Slide the disks off the baking sheet onto a flat surface to cool.

TENNESSEE MOUNTAIN STACK CAKE

Steps:

• Preparation 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and place the rack in the middle position.
• Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.
• Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on medium speed until wet and grainy.
• Add the molasses. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a flexible spatula to get all of the molasses into the mixture.
• Add the eggs one at a time. Scrape all the way to the bottom of the bowl and mix on low speed.
• Alternately add the buttermilk and the dry mixture about a quarter at a time. Stop the mixer to scrape the bowl and turn it on again on low speed for about 10 seconds. The mixture should be stiff like a soft cookie dough.
• Shape the dough into a ball and wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Divide the dough into 6 or 8 equal portions and place each one on a round piece of parchment paper a little larger than a 9-inch cake pan. Roll out the dough to the size of the parchment. Place the cake pan over the disk and trim away the excess around the edge.
• Leaving the parchment paper underneath, lift the disks onto baking sheets and bake them for approximately 10 minutes, or until the top surface appears dry and a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Slide the disks off the baking sheet onto a flat surface to cool.
• To make the filling, combine all the ingredients in a large, heavy-bottom saucepan and bring to a light simmer. Immediately transfer to the work bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and pulse into a thick paste.
• To assemble the cake, spread about 1 cup of the filling onto each layer, taking care to center each disk on top of the one beneath it. Repeat until all the layers are used. Do not put apple filling on top of the cake.
• Wrap the cake well and refrigerate it for up to 24 hours. This gives the apple filling time to work itself into the cake. Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve chilled.
• Baker's Note:Ideally, you should dry the apples yourself in a fruit-dehydrating machine. If that's not an option, go for store-bought dried apples. Don't cop out and buy applesauce, because the secret to the stack cake is not just what absorbs into the cake, but what doesn't. Jarred applesauce gets lost in the layers, leaving only a soggy stack. Although success isn't guaranteed, you can try to make dried apple slices in the oven. Peel and thinly slice 15 to 20 fresh apples (I like Gala or Cortland). Place them, without overlapping, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and bake in a 225°F oven for up to 4 hours or until dried.
• From United Cakes of America: Recipes Celebrating Every State by Warren Brown. Copyright © 2010 by Warren Brown; photographs © 2010 by Joshua Cogan. Published in 2010 by Stewart, Tabori & Chang, an imprint of ABRAMS.