Kentucky Bourbon Pecan Cake

Kentucky Bourbon Pecan Cake
MAKES ONE 9-BY-13-INCH CAKE, OR ONE 10-INCH TUBE CAKE

This is a chocolate cake that has been made in Kentucky for
generations. Flavored with bourbon and studded with pecans, the
native nut, it is baked either as a sheet cake or a tube cake.

2 cups sifted cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
l/2 cup unsalted butter
2 cups granulated sugar
4 squares (4 ounces) unsweetened chocolate, melted
2 eggs, separated
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons bourbon
11/2 cups milk
1 cup chopped pecans
Powdered sugar (optional)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-by-l 3-inch oblong cake pan or
a 10-inch tube pan.
In small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. In the
large bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter with the granulated
sugar until smooth. Add the melted chocolate and egg yolks; beat
until light. Add the vanilla and bourbon. Blend the flour mixture into
the creamed mixture alternately with the milk, mixing until smooth.
Whip egg whites until stiff. Fold in the egg whites and pecans. Turn
batter into the prepared pan. Bake 25 to 30 minutes in the oblong pan,
or 55 minutes to 1 hour in the tube pan, or until the cake tests done.
This is a very moist cake, and it will stick slightly to a cake tester. Do
not overbake or the cake will be dry. Remove from oven and cool on
rack. If desired, dust with powdered sugar.