Homemade Piping Gel

Piping gel can be purchased in any cake supply or craft store, but it's easy and less expensive to make your own.  Piping gel comes in very handy when decorating a cake that does not have any leftover buttercream for writing, and it can piped on the surface of a cake frosted with a whipped cream icing, such as this strawberries and cream cake.

Uses for piping gel include:
1.  Writing on cakes - thin with water to desired consistency
2.  Stabilizing whipped cream - add 1 tablespoon at the end of whipping for every cup of whipping cream used
3.  Cake decorating when a representation of water is needed (dyed blue to resemble the water in a pool, lake etc)
4.  Edible "glue" for decorations on cakes.  It doesn't dry too quickly which allows for placement adjustment
5.  Adding sheen to fondant decorations

Piping Gel

from Craftsy blog 

Yields 1 cup

• 1/4-cup cold water
• 1/4-cup corn starch
• 1/2-cup light corn syrup
• 1 tsp clear flavor extract (optional)
• Gel food coloring (optional)

Combine the cold water and corn starch in a small saucepan. Whisk until smooth. Whisk in the corn syrup.

Heat until thickened.   Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature before adding flavoring or color.

If the piping gel becomes too thick, add a tiny amount of water until you achieve your desired consistency. Store piping gel refrigerated in an airtight container for up to three months.

Kate Spade Inspired Bridal Shower

My neighbor held a bridal shower and asked me to provide the desserts.  The theme was inspired by the pink, black and white designs by Kate Spade.  The cake is two-tiered with vanilla cake on top and chocolate cake with chocolate ganache filling on the bottom.  It is covered with white fondant and decorated with black fondant stripes.  At the host's house, we swapped this artificial flower with a beautiful hot pink rose (see below).

Table ready for guests.  My neighbor, Kristen, has real talent!  So beautiful!

The dessert table included light pink rosette-frosted cupcakes, raspberry parfaits made with whipped cream and raspberry sauce, the chocolate and vanilla cake, cotton candy in martini glasses, and candies to match the color scheme.  (I made all the desserts except the candies.)  What a special and elegant event!

Ghosts and Pumpkins Halloween Cake

Boo!!!!

I made these cute little ghosts out of meringue which I baked in the oven until dry.  Then using a small paintbrush and black food coloring, I painted the eyes and mouths onto the ghosts.  The pumpkins and letters are made from colored fondant.  So cute!!

Happy Halloween!!

Meringue Ghosts
adapted from Joy of Baking

3 egg whites
3/4 cup superfine sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp vanilla, optional
black food coloring
tiny paintbrush

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and have ready a large piping bag fitted with a 1/2 inch round tip.

Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer and using the whisk attachment, whisk the whites until frothy.  Add the cream of tartar and mix well.  On high speed, whisk the egg whites while adding the sugar a little bit at a time, then whisk until the meringue holds very stiff peaks.  Whisk in vanilla if desired.

Transfer the meringue to the pastry bag and, holding the bag perpendicular to the cookie sheet, pipe mounds of meringue to the desired shape and size.

Bake the meringues for 1 1/2 hours, then turn the oven off and leave the ghosts in the oven for several hours or overnight.

Paint eyes and mouth using black gel food coloring and a small paintbrush.

Chocolate Birthday Cake {grain-free}

You absolutely cannot tell that this cake is made without any flour or refined sugars.  It is a wonderful option for anyone who cannot have gluten or grains.  There are recipes for frosting out there that have no refined sugar, but I opted to go with my standard Swiss meringue icing.  I'm sure I'll be trying out those other icing recipes before too long!  If you make this cake, please let me know if you like it as much as I did!

Wanna bite?  I know you do!!

Grain-free Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Buttercream
adapted from Deliciously Organic
makes 2 9-inch rounds

8 ounces dark chocolate (I use Callebaut dark chocolate)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 tablespoons unrefined coconut oil or 4 more tablespoons butter
2/3 cup maple syrup
6 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

4 cups almond flour (I use Costco’s Kirkland brand)
2 teaspoons coconut flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoon baking powder (grain free)

Preheat oven to 350 ºF and adjust rack to middle position. Place the chocolate, butter and coconut oil in the bowl of a double boiler. Melt, stirring occasionally. Set aside to cool (the mixture needs to cool for at least 10 minutes before adding the egg mixture below). 

Place the maple syrup and eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.  Whisk for 5-6 minutes until pale yellow and fluffy.  Slowly whisk in the cooled chocolate mixture.

Sift almond flour, coconut flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and baking powder over egg mixture. Gently fold to incorporate. Divide batter between two buttered 9-inch cake pans lined with a round piece of parchment paper. Bake cakes for 20-25 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. Cool cakes for 10 minutes, run a knife around the edges and then remove the cakes from the pans. Cool completely.

Chocolate Buttercream
6 ounces egg whites
12 ounces granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 sticks or one pound butter at cool room temperature 
1 teaspoon vanilla
4  ounces melted and cooled dark chocolate

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine eggs whites, sugar and salt.  Set the bowl over a pot of simmering water.  The bowl should not touch the water.   Whisk constantly until the mixture reaches 160 degrees. Remove from the heat and place the bowl onto your stand mixer and whisk at med-high speed until the mixture comes to room temperature (feel the outside of the bowl to gauge the temp).   Replace the whisk with the paddle attachment and reduce the speed to medium.  Add butter one tablespoon at a time. When all of the butter is added, turn off the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl (at this point the buttercream might look curdled, but don’t worry, it will turn creamy). Whisk the mixture on high until light and fluffy. Reduce speed again and slowly pour in the melted chocolate and the vanilla, and mix until incorporated.

To assemble:
Place one cake layer on a cake stand and top with one third of the frosting. Spread frosting evenly on the cake. Place second cake layer on top and use remaining frosting to frost the top and sides of the cake.

Chinese New Year Dragon Cake

Happy Chinese New Year!

And have a great weekend!

Chocolate Peppermint Ganache Layer Cake

Valentine's Day is quickly approaching and I can't think of a better way to show love than a chocolate peppermint ganache layer cake.  This recipe always gets rave reviews from family and friends.

I made this cake gluten-free by using Cup4Cup gluten-free flour substitute and it turned out great. You'd never know it was gluten-free.

Make a heart on top by sprinkling crushed peppermints in the shape of a heart (use a stencil or template made of parchment for the perfect heart shape).   Have a Happy Valentine's Day!

Chocolate Peppermint Ganache Layer Cake
Make one 3-layer 6-inch cake

For the chocolate cake:
1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons dark unsweetened cocoa
1/2 cup plus 2 Tablespoons hot water
1/3 cup sour cream
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour (substitute Cup 4 Cup flour for gluten-free version)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
10 Tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
peppermint ganache, recipe follows
peppermint buttercream, recipe follow
crushed peppermint candies for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, or 325 degrees for convection setting.

Coat three 6-inch round cake pans with spray oil, line the bottoms with rounds of parchment, and spray the parchment.

In a bowl, combine the cocoa, hot water, and sour cream with a whisk and set aside to cool.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugars and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well, and scraping the sides of the bowl as needed.

While the mixer is running on low speed, alternate adding the flour mixture in 3 additions and the chocolate mixture in 2 additions, beginning and ending with the flour.  Increase the mixer speed to medium and mix until just combined.  Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix again until batter is homogenous.

Divide the batter evenly among the 3 pans and bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, about 25 minutes.  Allow to cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then remove the cakes from the pans and cool completely.

For the peppermint buttercream:
3 large egg whites
3/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
2 sticks or 1 cup unsalted butter, at cool room temperature
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

Fill a medium saucepan with about an inch of water and bring the water to a boil, then reduce to a simmer (this will be your double boiler).

Whisk together the egg whites, sugar, and salt in the metal bowl of your stand mixer and place the bowl over the simmering water but do not let the bowl touch the water.  Whisk the mixture while cooking until the mixture reaches 140 degrees F.

Remove the bowl from the double boiler and place it in your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.  Whisk the egg mixture on medium high speed until the outside of the bowl is room temperature.

With the mixer running on medium low speed, slowly add the butter one tablespoon at a time, allowing each piece of butter to become incorporated before adding the next.  After all the butter is added, increase the mixer speed to med-high and beat until the mixture is stiff and smooth, another minute or two.  Add the peppermint extract and mix to combine.  More extract can be added to taste.  Use at room temperature.

For the peppermint ganache:
4 ounces bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons creme de menthe liqueur or 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

Place the chocolate in a small heat-proof bowl.  Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan until just simmering around the edges of the pan.  It should be hot but not boiling.  Pour the cream over the chocolate and let stand for 2 minutes.  Whisk the mixture together briskly starting with small strokes at the center of the mixture until the mixture is shiny and smooth.  Whisk in the creme de menthe or extract and set aside to cool until the mixture is firm but still spreadable.

To assemble the cake:
Place one cake layer on a cake stand.  Spread about one half of the ganache on the bottom layer, then spread a thin layer of buttercream.  Repeat this with the second cake layer, and then place the third layer on top.  Cover entire cake with buttercream and garnish with crushed peppermint candies.

Applesauce Spice Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

It's mid-October and I have to accept that summer is gone, so I'm embracing Fall with this Applesauce Spice cake.  This is the recipe you've been searching for if you are looking for that perfect spice cake - moist and delicious with just the right combination of spices.  I haven't tried, but I bet you could change it up and add chopped apples or nuts, or substitute pumpkin puree for the applesauce.  These would be a great thing to take with you to the pumpkin patch!  Happy Fall!

Applesauce Spice Cake
Adapted from Today's Letters Blog

Make in a 13x9" pan, or make cupcakes, or 6" or 8" round layers

1 jar (24oz by weight) applesauce (I used homemade)
1/2 cup (4oz, 1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
2 cups sugar
3/4 tsp vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp allspice

Cake Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Prepare your baking pans by lining cupcake tins with liners, or lightly greasing cake pans with Pam spray and lining the bottom with parchment and lightly spray the parchment.

2.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda,  cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice.  Set aside.

3.  In a bowl of your electric mixer, beat together the butter, sugar and vanilla until fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, mixing well between additions and scraping the side of the bowl as needed.

4.  Alternate adding the flour mixture and the applesauce to the egg mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture and mix until all the ingredients are incorporated.

5.  Pour batter into pans and bake for the times listed below or until a toothpick inserted a the center of the cake comes out clean.
13x9" pan - about 50 minutes
6" or 8" round layers - about 30 minutes
cupcakes - about 20 minutes

6.  Cool completely before icing with your favorite cream cheese icing or maple glaze.

Pink Ruffle Cake

While our kitchen was being renovated, I didn't do a lot of baking.  I had an oven, but no counter space and no dishwasher.   But it was a big year for my daughter and her wonderful group of friends. Throughout the year, they were all turning sweet 16, getting driver's permits and licenses and more freedom.  (yay for them, yikes for me!)  Of course they wanted tasty and pretty cakes to celebrate so I did my best!

Here's the how-to:  I frosted the cake with a thin smooth layer of Swiss meringue buttercream icing. Then, I used an Ateco 104 tip (a petal tip) and held the piping bag at a 90 degree angle to the side of the cake with the skinny end of the tip on the top and the larger end of the tip on the bottom.  I started at the top of the cake, applying icing horizontally in a ruffly circle.  (A cake decorating turntable is great to use here.)  I repeated going down the cake, overlapping a tiny bit of the bottom of the previous circle of icing until I reached the bottom.  That's it!  Pretty ruffles for pretty girls!  

Giant Cupcake Cake!

I baked this cake for a very cute 9-year-old girl.  She loves cupcakes, and what could be better than a giant cupcake on your 9th birthday!  

I used the Wilton giant cupcake pan.  Although I will link to it here, I'm not sure I'd recommend using it.  The top and bottom cavities are connected and since they are very different shapes, they took very different times to bake.  So the top was done long before the bottom - and the bottom took forever to bake all the way through and ended up denser than pound cake.  The top half was probably a little dry and over-baked.  (good thing there was lots of icing!)

Next time, I would bake multiple cake layers, assembling the layers with icing and then refrigerating until firm.  After the cake is well-chilled, I would carve all around using a serrated edge knife to make the cupcake shape.  A less-than-perfect carving job will be well disguised by the decorations.  The bottom is covered with pink tinted fondant (I made a template from parchment paper first) and the top is covered with chocolate buttercream using a Wilton 1M tip.  A fondant daisy and sprinkles top it off.

I took note of the dimensions (height and diameters) of the pan to guide me in the next giant cupcake I bake.  The cake will cut into 15-20 moderate slices.  Since the cupcake is tall, I would slice the top half separate from the bottom half.   Let me know if you try this cake!  I'd love to see your photos!

A Tennis Cake and A Shortcut: Using Candy Melts for Writing

A problem I run into when I am making chocolate ganache icing for a cake is that I have to make another icing which can be colored with food coloring for the writing on the cake.  This means thinking ahead and getting the butter out to soften, making a fraction of a recipe for buttercream, dirtying another bowl and beaters, and adding food coloring to the right shade.  

So here's a shortcut for you:  If you have candy melts on hand (such as the Wilton brand you can get a JoAnn's), you can place the melted candy coating in a decorator's bottle or a plastic baggie with a small hole cut in the corner and write away!  The candy coating is already colored so there's no need to mess with food coloring (in fact, don't try to add regular gel food coloring to candy melts, or the candy coating will seize.)

Tennis anyone?

Pittsburgh Penguins Cake

Hockey is back in Pittsburgh!

And what's better for a hockey fan's birthday than the team's logo on a traditional yellow cake with chocolate icing?

I decided to use the royal icing transfer method to make the decorations on the cake.  The advantage is that the design can be made ahead of time so you don't have to worry about decorating at the last minute.

It's just like decorating a cookie with royal icing, except you are piping directly onto waxed paper instead of onto a cookie.  The design can be printed out on paper and placed under the waxed paper so you know exactly where to pipe.

Outlines of the design need to be piped with stiff-consistency icing, allowed to dry, and then the spaces are "flooded" with 10-second icing.   10-second icing is stiff icing to which water has been added a few drops at a time until a spoon can be drawn through the icing and the icing becomes completely smooth in 10 seconds.  A good video for learning how to get the right consistency for flooding can be found here.

Let's Go Pens!

Pink and Orange Graduation Dessert Table

I just love this pink and orange dessert table.  The colors just pop against the white icing and the hot pink tablecloth.

There were lemon cupcakes with vanilla buttercream, red velvet cupcakes with cinnamon-vanilla buttercream, chocolate cupcakes with vanilla buttercream, and brownie pops - a lot of them! 

It didn't hurt that the weather was simply gorgeous that day!

Here are some behind the scenes pics of the finished pops.

And my snapware cupcake carriers from Costco came in mighty handy once again.  Costco doesn't have them anymore, but I think Martha Stewart has caught on and she is selling them at Macy's.  I also think you can get them online.  I simply love them and use them for everything.

More pops.  Save the styrofoam from the purchases you make - they are indispensible for letting the coating dry on the brownie pops.

Brownie pops swirls - my favorite way to decorate pops!

Decorating Cupcakes Using Royal Icing Transfers

A friend asked me to make cupcakes with the number "18" on them for her daughter's 18th birthday celebration.  I didn't want to pipe the 18's with icing because I didn't think they would look uniform enough, so I decided to make the "18" using royal icing.  I love the uniformity and the dimension these gives to the cupcake.

 Here's how I made these:

1.  Find a font type and size of the numbers you want to place on the cupcake and print them out on paper.
2.  Tear out strips of waxed paper and place the paper with the printed number underneath the waxed paper where you want to pipe.
3.  Using stiff royal icing and a small tip such as a PME #1.5, pipe the outline of the number.  Make sure there are no gaps in your outline.  Slide the printed number underneath the waxed paper and repeat the outlining until you've piped the desired number of outlined numbers.
4.  Fill in the outlines with flood consistency royal icing and let dry overnight.  If you are using the same color to outline and flood, you do not need to wait for the outline to dry before you flood.
5.  Once dry, carefully peel the number from the waxed paper.  I used a small, thin offset spatula to help loosen the number from the waxed paper.  Make extra, because a few may break.
6.  Ice cupcakes and set the number on top.  And voila!  Cute cupcakes!

Baby Block Mini-Cakes

It's been a week long celebration of babies - from baby brownie pops, to bootie cakes for a girl or a boy.   Now on to Baby block mini-cakes!

If you make these, you'll want to leave yourself plenty of time for freezing, crumb-coating, chilling, and decorating.  Start at least 2 days in advance.

Baby Block Mini-Cakes
(makes about 15)

1.  Make a 1 and 1/2 quantity (requires a little math!) of my favorite buttermilk cake batter (I added the zest of one lemon) and divide the batter evenly among two parchment-lined rimmed half-sheet pans (like the one in the photo).  Bake at 325 degrees F convection (350 non-convection) for 16 minutes, or until done when tested with a toothpick.  Cool completely, remove from the pan and transfer the cake to another plastic wrap-lined half sheet pan.  Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze until firm.

2.  Cut out the animal shapes from marshmallow fondant and keep them in an airtight container until ready to use.

3.  Once the cakes are frozen, make the vanilla swiss meringue buttercream (recipe follows).  Unwrap one cake layer and place in a plastic wrap-lined sheet pan, apply the desired amount of icing, then place the other cake layer on top.  Chill until icing is firm.  Cut the edges from the cake (where the cake is not level) and then cut the cake into squares approximately 3 inches on all sides.  Apply a thin layer of icing to all sides of the block except the bottom (this is called the crumb coat).  I held each block on the top and bottom and coated the sides first, then set the block down and applied icing to the top.  A small offset spatula works well for this.   Chill or freeze again until icing is firm.

3.  Apply a second coat of icing to the blocks, place the fondant shapes onto the blocks where you want them.  It helps if you place a fondant shape on at least two opposing sides of the block, because you can then pickup the blocks, touching where the fondant is, and it will be easier to work on them without messing up the icing.   Carefully place the blocks onto slightly flattened cupcake papers or other liners.  Chill again until firm.

5.  Pipe the border and letters/numbers on the remaining sides using a #2 or 3 piping tip.  Chill until set.  Allow the cakes to come to room temperature before serving.


Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream

9 ounces egg whites
15 3/4 ounces granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
24 ounces (6 sticks) unsalted butter, at cool room temperature, cut into tablespoon-sized pieces
2 teaspoons vanilla
 
Place 2 inches of water in a medium saucepan and bring the water to a simmer. Choose a saucepan that your mixer bowl will fit on top of without touching the water. In your mixer bowl, place the egg whites, sugar, and salt and whisk to combine. Place the bowl over the simmering water and continue to whisk until the sugar is fully dissolved and the mixture is very hot to the touch, about 130-140 degrees F.

Remove the bowl from the double boiler and place on your stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk at medium-high speed until the outside of the mixer bowl is room temperature. It is very important that the meringue be completely cool before adding the butter.

Add the butter, a tablespoon at a time, letting each tablespoon disappear before adding the next. After all the butter has been added, switch to the paddle attachment and beat until the mixture becomes fluffy and thick. This could take up to an additional 5 minutes or so. The mixture will go through a stage where it looks curdled before it reaches the proper consistency.

Add the vanilla and beat until completely combined, about a minute.

Baby Bootie Cake

I'm celebrating babies this week!  These super adorable baby booties are made from gumpaste which I colored pink.  Gumpaste dries quite hard, so you'd not want to eat them, but they can be saved virtually forever in a dry place, so they would make a good baby shower keepsake for the mom-to-be.

I made ribbon roses and green leaves and attached them to the shoe using water and a paintbrush and let the shoes dry for about 3 days.

The template for the booties can be found at Cake Central or see below.  Enlarge the image to get the size you want.

Making ribbon roses tutorial can be found at Glorious Treats.

Ganache-glazed Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Buttercream

Happy Valentine's Day!  I hope your sweetie showers you with a gift of chocolate, raspberry, and chocolate ganache ... maybe with pink and red and white jimmies on top.  Or make this cake for someone you love - they won't soon forget it - they may even thank you with a great big hug and a kiss!

Chocolate Cake

from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking

For the cake:
3/4 Cup Dark Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1 1/4 Cups Hot Water
2/3 Cup Sour Cream
2 2/3 Cups All-Purpose Flour
2 Tsp Baking Powder
1 Tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp Salt
3/4 Cup or 1 1/2 Sticks Unsalted Butter, softened
1/2 Cup Vegetable Shortening (or substitute softened butter)
1 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar
1 Cup Firmly Packed Dark Brown Sugar
3 Large Eggs, room temperature
1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract


1. Preheat the oven to 325F.  Spray three 8- or 9-inch round cake pans with cooking spray, line the bottoms with parchment paper and then spray the parchment.  Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl combine the cocoa, hot water and sour cream. Whisk together and set aside to cool.

3. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.

4. Add the butter and shortening to a stand mixer fitted with the paddle and beat on medium until light and fluffy - about 5 minutes. Add the sugars and beat for another 5 minutes until light and fluffy.

5. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla and beat until combined. Give the sides of the bowl a scrape and give one last mix for 30 seconds.

6. Add the flour mixture in three additions alternating with the cocoa mixture in two additions, starting and ending with the flour.

7. Divide the batter equally among the three pans and smooth the tops. Bake for 35 to 4o minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool the cakes in the pans on a wire rack for 20 minutes before removing cake from the pans to cool completely.  Wrap the cake layers and freeze for 30 minutes or up to one week.  Allow to thaw slightly before applying icing.

Raspberry Buttercream

adapted from Katherine Seeley/Fine Cooking

Yields 7-1/2 to 8 cups enough to fill and frost a 9-inch four-layer cake or about 5 dozen cupcakes

5 large egg whites
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbs. light corn syrup
1 lb., 4 oz. (2-1/2 cups) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup raspberry puree, strained

Place the egg whites in the clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whisk on medium-high speed until foamy. Sprinkle in 6 Tbs. of the sugar and beat on high speed to medium peaks (the whites should be smooth, full, and shiny, and the peaks should curl a little). Turn off the mixer.

Combine the remaining 3/4 cup plus 2 Tbs. sugar and the corn syrup in a medium (3-quart) saucepan over medium high heat, stirring briefly to dissolve the sugar. Continue to cook just until the mixture comes to a rolling boil.

Immediately remove the syrup from the heat, turn the mixer onto medium-high speed, and slowly pour the syrup down the side of the bowl in a steady stream, being very careful not to let the syrup hit the whisk.

Reduce the speed to medium and continue whisking until the whites are barely warm, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the butter 1 Tbs. at a time. Add the vanilla and continue beating until the frosting is smooth and creamy.  Add raspberry puree and beat until combined.  Add additional pink food coloring if desired.  Use at room temperature.

Chocolate Ganache Glaze
from Allrecipes.com via Sweetapolita.com

9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup heavy cream

Place the chocolate in a medium heat-proof bowl.  Place the heavy cream in a small saucepan and heat until the cream starts to bubble at the perimeter and feels hot to the touch.  Pour the heavy cream over the chopped chocolate and let it sit for one minute.  With a whisk, begin whisking the mixture in the center and continue outward until the mixture is shiny and smooth.  Allow to cool 15 minutes before using.  Pour the ganache on top of the cake about 1/4 or 1/3 at a time and use a large offset spatula to cover the top and as the ganache drips down the sides of the cake, carefully spread it around the sides in a thin layer.  Decorate with jimmies.

Buttermilk Cake with Caramel French Buttercream

Christmas has come and gone and here we are at the last day of the year!  December brought a bad case of the too-busy-to-blogitis, combined with an extended case of writer's block, days too dark to photograph anything well, two kids with pneumonia, and then a terrible cold the week before Christmas - the week which I had set aside to get everything done.  So I went to the stores and shopped for hours when I should've been home in bed.  I even managed to get some Sticky Buns made - for that is a Christmas morning tradition that cannot be skipped!

I've decided that next year we're going to Key West for Christmas.  We'll leave all the Christmas hustle and bustle behind (we'll bring the sticky buns with us if necessary!)

December also brought a lot of baking, mostly Christmas cookies such as these.  But this cake is what's been on my mind to tell you about.  The combination was suggested by a friend who asked me to make this cake for her daughter's birthday. It was a fantastic combination! The basic vanilla buttermilk cake is a cake I've made umpteen times before.  This time, I made one recipe and divided the batter among six 6" cake pans to bake.  The bonus is that I could make one cake for my friend, and we could keep the other as a special treat.  Six-inch cakes are adorable and can serve a surprising number of people (you can easily get 10 more-than-big-enough slices.)

The frosting is a new addition to my repetoire and a welcome one.  This French Buttercream differs from Swiss Meringue Buttercream and Italian Meringue Buttercream in that it uses whole eggs and not just egg whites.   The caramel is brought to soft ball stage on the stovetop and poured over the whipped eggs, then the butter is added once the mixture has cooled.  It's silky and smooth and rich, but not too dense or sweet.  It was delicious!

Vanilla Buttermilk Cake

from Sky High, Irresistible Triple Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne

makes one 8-inch triple later cake or two 6-inch triple layer cakes, or about 36 cupcakes

4 whole eggs

2 egg yolks

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups buttermilk

3 cups cake flour

2 cups sugar

4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat the bottoms and sides of three 8-inch round cake pans or six 6-inch cake pans with vegetable oil spray such as Pam.  Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment or waxed paper and spray the paper.

Put the eggs and yolks in a medium mixing bowl, add the vanilla and 1/4 cup of the buttermilk. Whisk to blend well.

Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large mixer bowl; whisk to blend. Add the butter and the remaining 1 cup buttermilk to these dry ingredients and with the mixer on low, blend together. Raise the mixer speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

Add the egg mixture in 3 additions, scraping down the sides of the bowl and mixing only until thoroughly incorporated. Divide the batter among the prepared pans.

Bake the cake layers for 28-32 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the cake begins to pull away from the sides of the pan. Let the layers cool in the pans for 10 minutes; then carefully turn out onto wire racks, peel off the paper liners, and let cool completely.

Caramel Buttercream

Adapted from The Cake Book by Tish Boyle

Makes enough to fill and frost one 8 or 9-inch cake or two 6-inch cakes

1 1/4 cups (300 g) firmly packed dark brown sugar

1 1/4 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 large eggs

1 pound (4 sticks/454 g) unsalted butter, slightly softened

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In medium saucepan, combine the sugar, heavy cream, corn syrup, and salt. Place the pan over medium-high heat and cook, stirring constantly, just until the sugar is dissolved. Stop stirring, and increase the heat to high.

Meanwhile, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, begin beating the eggs at medium speed while the syrup cooks to the correct temperature. When the sugar syrup reaches 225°F on a candy thermometer, increase the speed of the mixer to high. Continue to cook the sugar syrup until it reaches 238°F on a candy thermometer. Remove the pan from the heat and with the mixer off, immediately pour about 1/4 cup of the hot syrup over the beaten eggs. Beat at high speed until blended, about 10 seconds. Turn the mixer off and add another 1/4 cup syrup. Beat at high speed for another 10 seconds. Repeat this process until all of the syrup is used. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the side of the bowl and continue to beat at medium-high speed until the egg mixture is completely cool, about 5 minutes.

At medium speed, beat the softened butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, into the egg mixture. Add the vanilla extract, increase the speed to medium-high, and beat the buttercream until it is smooth and shiny, about 4 minutes. (The buttercream must be used at room temperature.)

Fondant-Covered Purse Cake

Yup, this is a cake!  It's my first attempt at a fondant-covered cake since I took the basic fondant course at Jo-Ann's two years ago. It's not perfect, but I'm pretty proud of it.  Inside is four layers of chocolate cake filled with raspberry buttercream and frosted with vanilla buttercream under white rolled fondant.

Pumpkin Shaped Carrot Cake and a few words about Cream Cheese Icing

I was asked to make a pumpkin shaped cake for a neighbor who was having a bridal shower for her daughter. The bride loves all things Fall and pumpkin and it was the perfect theme for an October shower.

I started by making two bundt cakes using this carrot cake recipe. The bride has a nut allergy, so I substituted coconut for the walnuts in the recipe. The stem and leaves are made of ready-made fondant mixed with a little powdered tylose for added structure. The tendrils are made of fondant/tylose strips wrapped around a straw and allowed to dry. All fondant pieces were made days ahead of the cake assembly and allowed to dry.

Then I assembled the cake as follows:

I cut each bundt cake in half horizontally so that I could layer icing between the two halves.

The first cake is placed on the board upside down and iced between the two layers. Then, because the cakes are dense and heavy, I felt that they needed more support to hold the second cake. I placed four wooden dowels, cut to size, into the bottom cake and placed a cake board on top of that. Then I placed the other bundt cake on top, right side up this time to make the top of the pumpkin, spreading some icing between the layers. This way the host of the party could cut the top bundt cake down to the cake board, then remove the board and dowels, and then cut pieces from the bottom layer (like a wedding cake is constructed) and each serving would be a more manageable size.

I filled the hole in the center with some extra cake I had from another carrot cake I was making. Then cream cheese icing, colored orange with a touch of brown, is spread over the entire cake. After icing is spread all over the cake, I used a spatula and spread the frosting from bottom to top to create the vertical lines on the pumpkin. The stem and leaves are set on the cake last.

Now for a note about cream cheese icing:

Cream cheese icing has a tendency to get soft and can be difficult to work with when you are trying to achieve a detailed look on a cake or even ice cupcakes with a decorating tip. My suggestion would be to NOT use cream cheese icing for the outside of this cake, but use maybe a cinnamon-vanilla Swiss Meringue buttercream instead.

If you must use cream cheese icing, here are some tips:

1. Use cold cream cheese and slightly softened, but still cool butter. If the cream cheese and butter have been allowed to come fully to room temperature, they will be too soft and you will end up with runny icing that does not hold its shape.

2. DO NOT overmix the frosting. There is a tendency to do this especially if there are persistent lumps in the icing, but cream cheese which has been over-beaten gets runny and soft and will not recover with chilling in the fridge. I settled for a few little lumps in the icing over having an icing which was too runny.

3. Increase the butter to cream cheese ratio in your icing recipe as butter hardens more when chilled than cream cheese does and will help your icing keep its shape. I used this recipe as is and it worked fine with cold cream cheese and cool butter. It did NOT work fine with too soft, overbeaten cream cheese and butter.

4. Beat the butter first, then add the cream cheese and beat until combined, then add the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until just combined, no more!

The Cake with a Surprise Inside (two actually)

My oldest turned 15 a month ago.  Each year on her birthday, I'm reminded of how she came into the world - 3 months early and only 2 pounds 15 ounces. Now she's teaching herself and others (via YouTube) how to play the guitar, she's making her own spending money from babysitting jobs and doing her own laundry.  And she's a year away from driving a car.   I'm. Not. Ready.

But ready or not, your kids grow up.



So let's bake a cake and forget about our kids growing up and leaving us for a minute ...one recipe of white vanilla cake batter, six 6-inch round cake pans, 6 jars of gel food coloring in the colors of the rainbow.   A rainbow cake is beautiful and makes a huge impact - the oohs and aahs you hear when you pull out that first slice!

So what is the second surprise in the cake? Well, just keepin it real -in my haste to get 6 layers of cake in the proper order all frosted and perfect, I forgot to pull the parchment paper off the yellow layer of cake. I cut into the cake, everyone waiting for the big surprise, and I felt some resistance, then I felt a bit of embarrassment. I knew exactly what the problem was. I cut through the parchment to get the first piece out, then I gently pulled the entire piece of parchment out of the rest of the cake - voila! What a relief!

It's a good lesson to learn when it's only close family around to see the blunder!

Happy Birthday Ellen!




To make this rainbow cake, I used my favorite white cake recipe  and divided the batter evenly into 6 bowls. A scale is handy for this to be sure the layers are the same size. Add the desired amount of food coloring (Spectrum or Americolor gels are easiest to use) and pour into 6 separate greased and parchment-lined 6-inch round baking pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool completely.

Layer and frost with Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream.  I used this easy method of decorating.