Oatmeal Cake with Broiled Icing

Name: Oatmeal Cake with Broiled Icing
Ingredients: 1 cup (3 ounces/85 grams), quick-cooking oats; ¾ cup, water, room temperature; ¾ cup (3¾ ounces/106 grams), unbleached all-purpose flour; ½ teaspoon, baking soda; ½ teaspoon, baking powder; ½ teaspoon, salt; ¼ teaspoon, ground cinnamon; ⅛ teaspoon, ground nutmeg; 4 tablespoons (½ stick), unsalted butter, softened; ½ cup (3½ ounces/99 grams), granulated sugar; ½ cup packed (3½ ounces/99 grams), light brown sugar; 1 large, egg, room temperature; ½ teaspoon, vanilla extract; ¼ cup packed (1¾ ounces/50 grams), light brown sugar; 3 tablespoons, unsalted butter, melted and cooled; 3 tablespoons, milk; ¾ cup, sweetened shredded coconut; ½ cup (2½ ounces/71 grams), pecans, chopped

Desserts or Baked Goods
Cakes

Appears in Cook's Illustrated May/June 2008, America's Test Kitchen TV

A caramelized broiled icing is the crowning glory on old-fashioned oatmeal cake. But what good is a great icing if the cake itself is dense and gummy?

SERVES 9 (Makes one 8-inch square cake)

TIME 1½ hours, plus 1 hour cooling

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