My Mom’s Sock-It-To-Me Cake

March is my mother’s birthday month.  Though she is not around anymore to enjoy dessert with us, I remembered her this year by making the all-time favorite in her cake repertoire—Sock-It-To-Me Cake.  This recipe was my mother’s go-to when she wanted to brighten someone’s day with a sweet treat.  She made it for visitors, for holiday gifts, and for her family many, many times.  We were always glad when she did.

I made Buttons’ cake on her birthday this year. It just so happened that our son Aaron and his fiancée Hannah were visiting us in early March, along with Hannah’s parents.  These special people, who will soon become our family, enjoyed the cake after a dinner together.  I also gave a portion of the cake to my daughter Ellen to celebrate that her little boy was turning 6 months old.  In each case, I felt that Buttons’ love for our family was being channeled through dessert.

Groovy origins

I’ve read that the recipe for Sock-It-To-Me Cake was developed in the kitchens at Duncan Hines in the 1970s. Its name referred to the popular phrase from the late 60s and early 70s made popular by the television show Laugh-In. The mixture of a buttery batter with a bit of tang from sour cream and extra sweetness from the nut filling does sock it to anyone who tries it.

I’m not sure if Buttons discovered the recipe on the back of a Duncan Hines butter cake mix box, found it in the newspaper, or got it from a friend.  Over the years, she adapted it to be her own.  She took cinnamon out of the pecan  filling and added a bit more brown sugar as well as some granulated sugar. It ended up tasting a lot like Louisiana pralines.  She also made the cake more rich, subbing vegetable oil for the water called for in the original.

Sweet Streak

The pecan praline filling is the surprise of the cake, as you don’t guess it’s there from how the cake looks on the kitchen counter.  And Buttons achieved the surprise filling by hiding the pecan mixture in the middle of the cake before baking.

First, she poured half of the batter into the prepared Bundt pan.  Then she lightly sprinkled on the pecan mixture. Finally she carefully covered the filling with the remaining batter.

Buttons was on my mind even as I poured the last of the batter into the cake pan. My sister jokes that if there’s a place in heaven for dedicated bowl scrapers, Buttons is there.    I tried to make her proud as I scraped the bowl clean of batter.

In just about an hour, the cake finishes baking.  Once it is out of the oven, allow it to cool in the pan before inverting it onto a plate.  Sometimes it will come out cleanly, but other times bits of cake will stick to the pan.  In that case, do your best to restore missing chunks and then plan to cover any bumps with extra glaze later on!

While the cake cools, you can make the simple glaze.

Then it’s time to offer a slice of this special treat to those at your table. That ribbon of flavor from the pecans through the moist, delicious cake lends unexpected crunch.

My slice certainly brought me sweet thoughts of my mom.

Buttons' Sock-It-To-Me Cake

Sunnyside Cook

Dawn Dobie

A buttery cake with the tang of sour cream and a sweet pecan filling is a fun 70s throwback.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Cooling and glazing time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 45 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Servings 10

Ingredients

  

For the filling

• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1 teaspoon flour

For the batter

• 1 box Duncan Hines Butter-flavor Cake Mix
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ¾ cup vegetable oil
• 8 ounces sour cream
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 4 eggs

For the glaze

• 2 tablespoons butter softened
• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar sifted
• 2 tablespoons evaporated milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

 

Prepare the pan and preheat the oven

• Coat the inside of a Bundt pan with Baker’s Choice. Alternately, you can grease and flour the pan thoroughly (vegetable shortening recommended). Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Prepare ingredients for filling

• Toss chopped pecans with 1 teaspoon of flour to coat them in a small bowl. Measure out granulated sugar and brown sugar each into its own small bowl. Set the various bowls aside.

For the cake:

• Combine cake mix, ½ cup sugar, vegetable oil, and sour cream with electric mixer in large bowl. Mix together for 30-45 seconds. Add vanilla extract with the first egg, then add remaining 3 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat batter for 1 minute after last egg is added.
• Pour half of mixture into the prepared Bundt pan. Sprinkle the batter evenly with the granulated sugar, then brown sugar, then the pecans. (If there is remaining flour residue in the bottom of the pecan container, toss it out.) Pour remaining batter evenly on top.
• Bake for 50- 60 minutes or until done (toothpick inserted comes out clean). Cool the cake in the pan on rack for 20 minutes. Run a knife around the edges and the center hole to loosen the middle and sides of the cake, then invert the cake onto plate. If any of the cake has stuck to the pan, remove it with a spoon and try to repair the top as best you can. Let the cake sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes to cool down a bit.

Glazing the cake

• Cream butter with electric mixer and add half of sifted confectioners’ sugar. Mix well. Add evaporated milk and vanilla and beat with mixer. Add remaining sugar and beat until smooth. Spoon the glaze over top of cake (aiming for any repaired area first), allowing it to drip down the sides.

Notes

The cake will keep loosely covered at room temperature for up to 4 days. A tube pan can be substituted for the Bundt pan. Walnuts can substitute for the pecans.