Cream butter and shortening. Add sugar and beat till smooth. Beat in egg yolks. Combine flour and baking soda; beat into creamed mixture, alternating with the buttermilk. Stir in the vanilla, coconut, and pecans then fold in the stiffly beaten egg whites. (Don’t over-stir.) Pour into three greased and floured cake pans. Bake at 350-degrees for 25 minutes. Cool and frost.

I used three 9-inch cake pans for thin layers with lots of cream cheese frosting in between. You could also bake this cake using just two 9-inch cake pans, or using two or three 8-inch cake pans, or a 13 x 9 pan. Or even cupcakes. Adjust the baking time accordingly.

For the cream cheese frosting:

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter
16 ounces powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
chopped pecans

Beat cream cheese and butter; add powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat till smooth and creamy. Frost cake.