ORANGE-PECAN-SPICE POUND CAKE

Steps:

• Sprinkle 1 1/4 cups finely chopped pecans into a generously buttered 10-inch tube pan; shake to evenly coat bottom and sides of pan. (The food processor is great for chopping those nuts!)
• (Excess nuts will fall to bottom of pan. Make certain nuts are in an even layer in bottom of pan.) Set aside. Preheat oven to 300°F.
• Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; gradually add sugar, beating well.
• Add eggs, 1 at a time; beating until blended after each addition.
• Combine flour, salt and baking powder; add to butter mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
• Beat at low speed until blended after each addition.
• Stir in remaining 3/4 cup pecans, grated orange rind, cinnamon, nutmeg, and next 4 ingredients.
• Spoon batter evenly into prepared pan.
• Bake at 300°F for about 1 1/2 hours or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
• While cake is baking, prepare Orange Syrup (see below).
• Cool in pan on wire rack for 20 minutes.
• Remove cake from pan; invert cake, pecan crust-side-up onto a wire rack.
• While cake is cooling, bake Glazed Pecan Halves (see below).
• Brush top and sides of pound cake gently several times with hot Orange Syrup, using a pastry brush and allowing cake to absorb the Orange Syrup after each brushing. (Do not pour syrup over the cake).
• Let cake cool completely on wire rack.
• Arrange Glazed Pecan Halves around top of cake, if desired, or place on each piece as they are served.
• For Orange Syrup: Remove rind from orange with a vegetable peeler, being careful not to get the bitter white pith.
• Set orange rind aside.
• Squeeze orange to get 1/2 cup juice.
• Combine orange rind, juice and sugar in a small saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.
• Bring mixture to a boil over medium high heat, and boil 2 minutes.
• Makes about 1 cup.
• For Glazed Pecan Halves: Combine pecan halves and corn syrup, stirring ot coat pecans.
• Line a 15- x 10-inch jellyroll pan with parchment paper; coat with cooking spray.
• Arrange pecan halves in an even layer in a pan.
• Bake at 350°F for 12 minutes; stir using a rubber spatula.
• Remove from oven, stir, arrange in an even layer on wax paper and let cool completely.