Smith Island Treasure-ten Layer Cake Recipe (2024)

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• 80 minutes to make
• Serves 16

From the Baltimore SunSmith Island Cake is made up of 8 to 10 layers of yellow cake separated by chocolate frosting (Sun photo by Lloyd Fox // Styled by Julie Rothman / March 6, 2008)There is a movement under way to designate the Smith Island Cake as Maryland's state dessert. Read more This confection that traditionally is made up of eight to 10 pencil-thin layers of yellow cake separated by sweet chocolate frosting has become an important part of Smith Island's culture.Historically, the cake was "made from the stump" or from scratch by Smith Islanders. Nobody is really sure who first developed the concept of the Smith Island Cake, though Frances Kitching, the great doyenne of Smith Island cookery, is credited with making the first one. These days, most of the island's cooks prefer to make their cakes using a boxed mix as the base.However, during a taste test for both methods; the 'from scratch' cake had the better flavor. We could have told them that! See less

• called
• the
• smith
• island
• treasure
• chocolate
• smoth
• creamy
• delicious
• bake

Ingredients

• one 12-ounce can evaporated milk shopping list
• 1 1/4 cups whole milk, plus more if needed shopping list
• 2 boxes Duncan Hines butter-cake mix shopping list
• 2 sticks butter shopping list
• 8 eggs shopping list
• 2 teaspoons vanilla shopping list
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• ICING: shopping list
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• 2 sticks butter shopping list
• two 12-ounce cans evaporated milk shopping list
• 8 heaping tablespoons unsweetened cocoa shopping list
• 2 pounds confectioners' sugar shopping list

How to make it

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix evaporated milk and enough whole milk to make 2 3/4 cups. Place cake mixes, butter, eggs, vanilla and half of the milk mixture in a large mixing bowl. Stir very slowly to blend. Mix on low speed for approximately 5 minutes.
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• Add the rest of the milk mixture and blend on medium-high speed for 10 minutes or until the batter has a smooth cake consistency. (In 10 minutes, batter will form ribbons). Spray ten 9-inch cake pans. Spread 1 cup of cake batter into each of the pans evenly. Bake 10 minutes (will slightly brown and pull away from sides of pan). Repeat this until you have 10 layers.
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• To make the icing:
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• Melt the butter. Stir in evaporated milk (off heat). Whisk in cocoa until smooth, return to heat and cook for approximately 10 minutes. Do not boil or scorch.
• Remove from heat and whisk in confectioners' sugar slowly. Return icing to low heat and cook slowly, stirring often, until icing has thickened and will stick to back of spoon or whisk (it will form a ribbon when you drizzle a spoonful onto mixture while cooking). This will take at least 45 minutes to an hour.
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• To assemble the cake, spread 1 slightly cooled layer with cooled frosting. Add next layer and repeat the process until the 10th layer. Finish by frosting cake top and sides.
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• -- Adapted from marylandtraditions.org