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Southern-Style Buttermilk Cake with Sweet Pecan Glaze

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By Joseph Kelly on May 6, 2025. Updated May 6, 2025

No ratings yet
Servings 1 9" cake
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour

Want tips, step-by-step photos, and more advice? Read the full post below

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Southern-Style Buttermilk Cake with Sweet Pecan Glaze

joemade recipes icon

By Joseph Kelly on May 6, 2025. Updated May 6, 2025

No ratings yet
Servings 1 9" cake
Prep 15 minutes
Cook 45 minutes
Total 1 hour

Want tips, step-by-step photos, and more advice? Read the full post below

A close-up of a Southern-Style Buttermilk Cake with a golden interior and pecan glaze, one slice being lifted from the whole cake, displayed on a reflective metal cake stand.
Bake up this moist and fluffy buttermilk cake topped with a buttery brown sugar pecan crunch. A Southern-inspired dessert that’s rich, tender, and incredibly easy to make—perfect for that leftover buttermilk before it expires!

Southern-Style Buttermilk Cake with Sweet Pecan Glaze

Equipment

  • 1 9" round cake pan the deeper the better (the pecan glaze can drizzle over the sides in the shallow ones)

Ingredients 

Cake

  • ¼ cup butter softened
  • ½ cup light brown sugar
  • ½ cup dark brown sugar
  • 1 egg large
  • 1 cup buttermilk choose a whole fat buttermilk if you can get it
  • 1 Tsp vanilla extract
  • ¾ Tsp baking soda
  • ½ Tsp salt
  • 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

Topping

  • 1 cup pecans chopped
  • Tsp salt
  • ¼ cup half and half warmed
  • 4 Tbsp butter melted
  • ½ cup light brown sugar

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 325℉. Line a 9" round cake pan with parchment paper.

Wet and Dry

  1. In a medium bowl, whisk the dry ingredients — flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  2. In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugars on medium speed until smooth. Add the egg and mix well. Then mix in the buttermilk and vanilla extract.

Combine

  1. Add the dry ingredients in two parts, mixing on low speed until just combined.

Bake

  1. Spray the bottom of the cake pan. Cut out a 9" circular piece of parchment paper and place it in the bottom.
  2. Pour the batter into the pan and bake the cake for 30 minutes.

Prepare pecan topping

  1. In a medium bown, make the pecan topping by stirring together the pecans, melted butter, brown sugar, salt, and a splash of half and half (warmed) in a bowl until smooth.

Top the cake

  1. After 35 minutes, remove the cake from the oven and top the cake with the pecan mixture after the first bake. Return it to the oven for 10 more minutes.
  2. Cool and enjoy once the topping has set (usually about 30 minutes).

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 3854kcal | Carbohydrates: 520g | Protein: 50g | Fat: 184g | Saturated Fat: 75g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 27g | Monounsaturated Fat: 70g | Trans Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 458mg | Sodium: 2211mg | Potassium: 1621mg | Fiber: 15g | Sugar: 340g | Vitamin A: 3725IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 774mg | Iron: 16mg
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