
Brown Sugar Cake Petite Fours
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1 package yellow cake mix
- 1 – 3.4 ounce package instant vanilla pudding
- 4 eggs
- 2/3 cup sour cream
- 2/3 cup water
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
Add Ons:
- 1/4 cup orange liqueur {I used Cointreau}
- 1 can milk chocolate frosting
- 1/2 cup whole pecans
Instructions
Cake:
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Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
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In a large bowl, combine yellow cake mix, vanilla pudding, eggs, sour cream, water, and oil until well combined. Add brown sugar; mix well.
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Coat a 9″ x 13″ non-stick baking pan with cooking spray. Pour cake batter into prepared pan
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Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
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Cool cake completely and remove from pan.
Assembly:
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Cut the edges off cake pieces. Using a serrated knife, level cake top. Cut the cake into quarters, and the cut each piece in half horizontally.
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Remove top from each cake piece. Brush the bottom half of the cake with orange liqueur – douse it pretty good. Top with a thin layer of frosting. Replace cake tops and press gently to “glue” the cake pieces together.
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Cut each cake piece into quarters. My cake pieces were about 1″ x 2″. If you like a square look, cut the large quarters into 1” x 1” pieces, you’ll get double the petite fours.
Frosting:
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Place remaining chocolate frosting into a microwave safe bowl. Microwave frosting for 20 seconds. Remove bowl and stir frosting. Nuke for another 20 seconds, stir frosting again. Frosting should be smooth and runny.
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Place a cake square onto a fork and hold over frosting bowl. Using a spoon, drizzle melted frosting over the cake until top and all sides are coated. Place cake square onto a cooling rack to let excess frosting run off. Top cake square with a pecan.
Recipe Notes
If frosting begins to get too thick while you’re coating the petite fours, reheat it for 20 seconds at a time – stirring each time – until frosting is smooth and runny again.

YUM!
The Cointreau gives this cake a whole new flavor level and is amazing with the chocolate.
No surprise there. Chocolate and orange is a natural pairing.
I did get impatient and also realized I didn’t have enough frosting to perfectly coat each cake square. So I didn’t a messy casual petite four for the remaining cake.
Spoon some frosting onto the cake.
Run the back of your spoon in a circle over cake top to spread frosting.
Frosting will run over the sides of the cake.
Top with a pecan.
I like the casual cakes better. They feel more approachable.
Now go eat some cake!