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Luscious Layer Cake Recipes

November 12, 2010
Photo: Becky Luigart-Stayner
Delicious and elegant, layer cakes are the perfect dessert for any special occasion.
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Our Best Layer Cakes

Photo: John Autry
View Recipe: Chocolate-Orange Layer Cake

Majestic layer cakes put an exclamation point on your table for holidays and special occasions and double as a stunning centerpiece. Our layer cakes lean less heavily on butter and sugar saving you and your family calories and fat without sacrificing taste.

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Vanilla Cake with Italian Meringue Frosting

Photo: John Autry
View Recipe: Vanilla Cake with Italian Meringue Frosting

Light and fluffy meringue frosting tops layers of moist vanilla cake making this a delicious and beautiful end to any meal. Associate Food Editor Julianna Grimes raves, "It's such an impressive-looking cake, and it tastes as good as (or better than) it looks."

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Pecan Spice Cake with Maple Frosting

Photo: John Autry
View Recipe: Pecan Spice Cake with Maple Frosting

Work quickly to spread the warm maple frosting over the first layer, stack the second on top, and then spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides before it sets. If you prefer, you can substitute walnuts for the pecans in this luscious cake.

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Fresh Coconut Cake

Photo: Becky Luigart-Stayner
View Recipe: Fresh Coconut Cake

Rather than knocking you out with fake coconut extract overtones, this cake offers balanced flavor and nutrition—two things you can feel good about when serving a slice to your lucky guests. Associate Food Editor Julianna Grimes comments, "This cake has tall, moist layers with the finest crumb. Plus, I'm a really big fan of fresh coconut."

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Pumpkin Pie Cake

Photo: Becky Luigart-Stayner
View Recipe: Pumpkin Pie Cake

To lighten this stunning dessert, we cut out three-quarters of a cup of oil and combined whole eggs and egg substitute. The result: 11 fewer grams of fat. We used light cream cheese for the frosting, reducing fat by an additional 7 grams. Now with only 223 calories per slice, this centerpiece is a nutritional masterpiece.

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Double-Caramel Turtle Cake

View Recipe: Double-Caramel Turtle Cake

This decadent cake, which plays off the popular Turtle candies, boasts chocolate layers and a nutty caramel glaze.

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Strawberry Layer Cake

Photo: Randy Mayor
View Recipe: Strawberry Layer Cake

For a dessert that looks as good as it tastes, this Strawberry Layer Cake is an elegant treat for any occasion. Tip: you can use fresh orange juice instead of Grand Marnier in the cream cheese frosting.

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White Birthday Cake with Italian Meringue Icing

View Recipe: White Birthday Cake with Italian Meringue Icing

This gorgeous white cake is especially great for birthdays. The fluffy meringue icing glides easily over the layers and acts as a canvas for any decoration you choose.

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Yellow Butter Cake with Vanilla Meringue Frosting

Photo: Becky Luigart-Stayner
View Recipe: Yellow Butter Cake with Vanilla Meringue Frosting

This recipe is a classic in every way: light, fluffy and moist cake with just a hint of bourbon and vanilla flavor, covered with a traditional meringue buttercream-style frosting. "This is the one thing everyone couldn't stop talking about at taste testing," says Food Editor Ann Taylor Pittman.

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Pumpkin-Orange Cake

Photo: Becky Luigart-Stayner
View Recipe: Pumpkin-Orange Cake

This dessert is simply stunning, from the auburn-colored cake to the luscious cream cheese filling to the rubylike pomegranate seeds and mandarin oranges arranged on top. With so elegant a presentation, it's sure to impress, especially since it tastes as wonderful as it looks.

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Coconut Cake with Buttercream Frosting

Photo: Becky Luigart-Stayner
View Recipe: Coconut Cake with Buttercream Frosting

This coconut cake recipe is one of our readers all-time favorites. The frosting also pairs wonderfully with other cake flavors like carrot, spice and basic white. Garnish the cake plate with sugar-frosted cranberries and rosemary sprigs.

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