The Best Chocolate Pecan Cake

A sweet friend of mine gave me this recipe. I just love this cake and always get requests from family and friends to bake it. It takes a little time to prepare, but so worth the extra effort.

Cake: 1 cup butter 1/4 cup cocoa 1 cup water 1/2 cup buttermilk 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 cups sugar 2 cups all purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon salt Chocolate Ganache: 2 cups (12oz) semisweet chocolate morsels 1/3 cup whipping cream 1/4 cup butter, cut into pieces Praline Frosting: 1/4 cup butter 1 cup packed light brown sugar 1/3 cup whipping cream 1 cup powdered sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 cup chopped pecans, toasted Garnish: chopped pecans

Directions: Cook first 3 ingredients in a saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly, until butter melts and mixture is smooth; remove from heat. Cool. Beat buttermilk, 2 eggs, baking soda, and vanilla at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth; add butter mixture to buttermilk mixture, beating until blended. Combine sugar, flour, and salt; gradually add to buttermilk mixture, beating until blended. (Batter will be thin) Coat 3 8in round cake pans with cooking spray; line with wax paper. Pour batter evenly into pans; Bake at 350 degrees for 22 to 24 minutes or until set. Cool pans on wire racks for 10 minutes; remove from pans and cool layers completely. Ganache: Melt chocolate morsels, whipping cream and butter in double boiler until smooth and creamy. Spread about 1/2 cup ganache between cake layers; spread remainder on sides of cake. Chill cake for 1/2 hour. . Praline Frosting: DO NOT PREPARE THIS UNTIL READY TO FROST CAKE BECAUSE IT WILL HARDEN VERY QUICKLY Bring first 3 ingredients to a boil in a 2 quart saucepan over medium heat; stirring often; boil for one minute. Remove from heat, and whisk in powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add toasted pecans, stirring gently 2 to 5 minutes or until frosting begins to cool and thicken slightly. Pour immediately slowly over center of cake, spreading to edges, allowing some frosting to run over sides. Can garnish with extra pecans if desired.