Pretty in Pink Confetti Cake

 

Doesn't this Pretty in Pink Confetti Cake just bring a smile to your face?  It just screams Festive! and Fun!, right?  I made this beauty for my friend's birthday using Cake By Courtney's white vanilla cake recipe and then adding rainbow sprinkles to the batter.  Note: I baked the cake layers using three 6-inch round pans and had enough batter leftover for six cupcakes.  For the frosting I used my favorite Swiss meringue buttercream recipe. 

 

Cream Tart

 

Often times people will ask me where I get baking inspiration from and my usual answer, "anywhere and everywhere," probably sounds a bit disappointing, but it's true!  I can't pinpoint anything in particular that inspires me.  Sometimes it's tasting an amazing pastry and wanting to replicate it at home or a friend texting me to to say they've seen a particular dessert and asking if I could make it.  

 

 

In the case of the Cream Tart, it was seeing an Instagram post that was the inspiration.  If you're on social media I'm sure you've seen these cakes before, normally shaped into numbers or letters.   Apparently cream tarts have been popular since 2018, but to be honest I never really paid much attention to them.  After seeing that Instagram post I did some research and discovered that cream cakes weren't so difficult to make. 

 

 

When deconstructed, the tart was comprised of shortbread and some type of filling, then decorated with fresh fruit, meringues, macarons, flowers* and anything else your heart desired.   Once all the components were compiled the actual cake assembly was quite simple.  But you would never think that when you look at the finished cake...so visually stunning and very Instagram worthy!  [*Make sure the flowers you use are safe to put on food! For the "S" cake I mistakenly put a few sprigs on baby's breath but DO NOT DO THIS!  Baby's breath are toxic when consumed. They were immediately removed after taking the photo.]

 

 

I could easily see these cakes being the star dessert for a birthday, baby shower, bridal shower or any kind of party.  Since so many of my friends have birthdays in September (including my own!) they just might be getting a cream tart to celebrate.  

 

Yellow Sheet Cake with Chocolate Frosting

 

September is my birthday month (along with seven other friends/family!) so I thought I'd make the quintessential cake to celebrate us Virgos.  When I was a kid my mom normally made us a yellow cake with chocolate frosting.   As a busy mother raising six children she used a boxed cake mix and pre-made frosting and we adored it!  Those memories are part of the reason why I think I still love cake mixes to this day.   There's no shame in getting a little help from Betty Crocker or Duncan Hines, but when I saw that Cook's Illustrated's Sep/Oct 2020 issue featured a recipe for Yellow Sheet Cake with Chocolate Frosting I had to try the "from scratch" version of the birthday classic.

Granted, there are more ingredients required than the standard eggs, oil and water you would use with a boxed mix, but I think you'll find it's worth it.   There are quite a few eggs (4 whole + 2 yolks!) along with buttermilk in the batter which yields a rich and moist cake.  The batter is made using the reverse creaming method where the cake flour, leaveners and sugar are mixed first, then the fats (butter and oil) are added and finally the liquid and eggs are mixed in.  This technique minimizes gluten development which results in a super tender crumb.  

 

After having a slice I have to say this is probably one of the best homemade cake recipes I've ever tasted.  There's absolutely no pretense with this cake and that's what I love about it.  Makes me so nostalgic for my childhood; those were the days!

Sending a September birthday shout out to Len, Will, Satya, Nicholas, Maria, Brian and Cheri!

Happy Bee-Day Cake

How cute is this Happy Bee-Day Cake?  I really love how it turned out.  The occasion was for Laura's birthday party and her mom Julia had sent over some ideas with a bee theme.  I've been making celebration cakes for Laura even before she was born so I was happy to continue the tradition and make one for her second birthday.  Here's what baby shower and first birthday cakes looked like.

The cake is comprised of Stella Parks' White Mountain Layer Cake and Swiss Buttercream in vanilla and strawberry flavors.  Stella's white cake recipe is one of my absolute favorites.  The crumb is so moist and tender.  If you haven't already bought her cookbook you need to!  The buttercream is a traditional Swiss meringue style.  I flavored half of the frosting with ground up freeze-dried strawberries which gives you an intense fruit flavor without the additional moisture.  The perfect balance of sweet and tart. 

Happy Birthday Laurita!

Milk Bar's Birthday Cake

Here's my second attempt at making a Milk Bar recipe for this blog, the first being their Crack Pie.  While the latter was pretty straightforward to make (with ingredients you probably already have), I forewarn you that wasn't necessarily the case with the former. 

If you follow the recipe to a tee this cake requires clear imitation vanilla extract, a 6-inch metal cake ring and acetate cake strips.  I'd venture to guess that most people won't have those things lying around in their kitchen, unlike me the crazy baking lady who already had them in her pantry.  That being said, I really had no excuse not to make this cake, my curiosity alone was enough motivation. 

Don't let any of the aforementioned deter or scare you from trying this recipe. The components can be made in advance and assembled up to a week later so time isn't a hindrance.  In my opinion the aesthetics alone of the finished cake make it a worthwhile baking project.

 

When Christina Tosi, the cake's creator, first made this popular dessert what really set the cake apart was its "nakedness," i.e., the sides were left bare without any frosting.  Nowadays that technique is pretty normal but I guess back then it was revolutionary.  The other unique element was the addition of cookie crumbs that were sandwiched between the layers of cake and frosting.

At first glance I must confess the birthday cake looked too sweet to me.  I can't help it, that's my gut reaction whenever I see a cake frosted with anything other than Swiss or Italian meringue buttercream.  But I was pleasantly surprised to find that the cake was moist and tender with just the right amount of salt to balance out the sugar.   I'm pretty sure I'll be making this birthday cake again!

Surfer Cake

Apparently I'm on a cake kick because it seems like they're all I've been making in the past few weeks.  Case in point: this post is my fourth in a row about it.  I can't help it...lots of occasions to celebrate I guess!

My friend Marcelo was having a party to celebrate not only his birthday, but also house warming.   He and his wife Juliana recently moved out of SF and found a house in the suburbs that was more dog friendly for their mini Australian shepherd.   Marcelo loves to surf and their house is just a stone's throw from the beach so I thought a surfing themed cake seemed appropriate for the celebration.

The cake consists of three layers of carrot (with pineapple and coconut mixed in) filled with boiled milk cream cheese frosting and decorated with Swiss meringue buttercream.  Ring a bell?  It should since it's basically the same cake flavors from my last post, found here.  

For the sandy beach I used graham cracker crumbs, the ocean is made of colored buttercream, and the beach towel and beach ball are made of tinted fondant.   I really love how it turned out and hope the birthday boy enjoys it too.

Yuhuuuuu....surf's up!  Happy Birthday Marcelo!!!!

Confetti Carrot Cake

I made this cake for Julia, who not only had a baby recently (check out the baby shower cake I made for her here) but was also celebrating a milestone birthday.  I wanted the cake to be something happy, blissful and festive.  I think a Confetti Cake checks all the boxes.   The rainbow of colors can't help but bring cheer to any occasion, no?

Julia's  favorite cake is carrot with cream cheese frosting so I turned to weelicious' awesome recipe.  It's the easiest thing to make and tastes fantastic!  For the cream cheese frosting I turned to my absolute favorite one from Cook's Country which uses a boiled milk paste.  Trust me when I tell you it's AMAZING and probably unlike any cream cheese frosting you've had before...super light, fluffy and not too sweet.

The best thing about this cake is how easy it is to decorate.  Once you fill and frost the cake just press the confetti sprinkles to the sides.  This technique hides a myriad of mistakes so you don't need to be a master decorator at all to get fantastic looking results.   Give it a try, you'll see!

Beijinho & Brigadeiro

The 2016 Summer Olympics conclude today in Rio so here's my final homage to the games and host country.  I had heard of the popular Brazilian candy brigadeiro, a chocolate fudge ball most associated with birthday parties, but when I mentioned I was thinking of making them my Brazilian colleague Marcelo said his favorite sweet was actually the beijinho.  Beijinho?  What the heck was that?  Beijinho in Portuguese means "little kiss" and these treats are similar to brigadeiro but made with coconut instead of chocolate.  

Both candies start with a base of sweetened condensed milk and butter.  Chocolate or coconut is stirred in and the entire thing is cooked over the stove.  You stir constantly until the mixture gets very thick and viscous.  Once cooled, the candy is formed in to bite-sized balls and rolled in sprinkles or coconut.  

Given my aversion to anything overly sweet I was a bit hesitant about candy made with condensed milk.  To my delight I found both versions had just the right amount of sweetness.  I must say that I agree with Marcelo and prefer the beijinho, but that's mainly because I pretty much love anything coconut.  The one tip I would offer is to cook the candy mixture until it's super thick.  With my brigadeiro I think they definitely could have benefited from a few more minutes on the stove to ensure a harder consistency when cooled.   But no worries, it still tasted delicious!

OBRIGADO BRASIL!!

Vanilla Cupcakes

After 9+ hours of binge watching House of Cards Season 4 this weekend I must say I was more than happy to get off my bum and do some baking.  If you haven't seen the show yet do yourself a favor and start.  It's seriously some of the best television ever and the latest series does not disappoint in the least.

While the show is dark, cunning and ruthless these Vanilla Cupcakes are anything but; you could even call them "anti-Underwood".  I was craving something happy and light and these beauties fit the bill perfectly.  Even better, sour cream was used in the recipe, an ingredient of which I had plenty in the fridge.   The cupcake recipe can be found here on the Cupcake Project and I frosted them with Cook's Illustrated Easy Vanilla Buttercream.

I'm definitely feeling House of Card withdrawals, already!, but hopefully these cupcakes will ease the pain until next year.   Please, please, please Netflix...there MUST be a Season 5!

Rainbow Cake

This Rainbow Cake has been a long time coming - we're talking five years!  Procrastination is not a trait I am friendly with.  I'm the type that likes to cross things off my to do list as soon as possible but for some reason I waited such a long time to make this cake.   Not anymore.

I'd first seen it featured on the blog Whisk Kid and then later on the Martha Stewart Show.   I loved how the rainbow of colorful cake layers is hidden behind a veil of unassuming white Swiss meringue buttercream.   There's just something so joyful about this surprise that it always makes me smile.

For the cake layers I used the recipe from Cook's Country's Confetti Layer Cake.  I like that it contains cake flour instead of all-purpose and uses a reverse creaming method to make the batter.    I find the crumb of the baked cake is so much more tender this way.   

I have a feeling I'll be getting many requests from family and friends to make this cake again and again.  But since it makes me so happy I don't mind!

Gluten-Free Funfetti Vanilla Cupcakes

I'm making my way through ATK's amazing newest publication,  The How Can It Be Gluten Free Cookbook,  and this weekend I decided to give their birthday cupcakes a go.  It's a basic vanilla cupcake with vanilla frosting, but I funfetti-d them by adding rainbow sprinkles to the cake batter.  

If you have children who are gluten intolerant you MUST make these cupcakes for their next birthday party.  The cake itself was moist and delicious and their easy vanilla frosting tasted just like whipped vanilla ice cream.   

So far I'm batting 1000 with every recipe I've tried so far.  I can't sing it's praises enough.  Run, don't walk, to buy it!  Check out this site for a few of the recipes including buttermilk waffles, light and fluffy biscuits and chocolate chip cookies.

Gluten-Free Chocolate Layer Cake and a Giveaway

Ask anyone who knows me really well and they'd probably tell you that calling me a skeptic would be quite apropos.   I can't help it if I don't believe something right off the bat, just my nature I guess.  Which is why I couldn't wait to get my hands on "The How Can It Be Gluten Free Cookbook" when America's Test Kitchen asked me if I would like to do a review.   I was dying to find out for myself if their gluten-free recipes, especially the baking ones, were as incredible as they have touted.  Several people in my circle are gf and being able to bake for them without having to sacrifice taste and texture would be incredible.

I knew I had to test a baking recipe and it had to be something that I normally would never make from scratch without gluten.  I've dabbled a little bit in gluten-free baking before and although most of the results were pretty good they never really did compare to "normal" baking.  

A friend recently commented that I don't have enough layer cakes on my blog so I immediately honed in on the Chocolate Layer Cake.  Believe me when I tell you that this cake is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!  Not only does it bake up beautifully, with a tight and tender crumb, but it tastes just like a rich chocolate cake WITH gluten would!  I was completely stunned by how delicious it was.   To corroborate my findings I had a few friends blindly taste a slice and they enthusiastically gave it two thumbs up.  Then when I told them afterwards that the cake was gluten-free they were completely shocked...and kept on eating.  If that's not proof, I don't know what is!

I can't wait to try the other baked (and non-baked!) recipes; think the the pies are especially calling my name.   Trust me when I say that this cookbook is the real deal, but I should have already known that when it's coming from the folks at ATK!

One lucky reader will be randomly selected to receive their very own copy of The How Can It Be Gluten-Free Cookbook.  

To enter just leave a comment to this post.

IMPORTANT: You MUST include your email address IN your comment.  Entries without an email included in the comment will be disqualified!  Sorry, but that's the only way I can contact the winner.  Contest ends Sunday, March 23 at 11:59 PM PST.  One entry per person.  Open to US residents only.  Good luck!

CONTEST CLOSED.  Congratulations to comment #43 who was randomly selected among eligible entries.  Your cookbook will be arriving soon.

Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies

I've spoken before of my particular penchant for store-bought treats, especially the ones sold in the supermarket bakeries.  I know, I know - as a devout home baker that's tantamount to blasphemy, but what can I say I can't help it!  

Lofthouse is famous for their soft frosted sugar cookies and when I saw a homemade on Annie's Eats I knew I wanted to make them.  Now it was a question of waiting for the right occasion.  My niece's tenth birthday party seemed especially appropriate.  

I warn you that these cookies are sweet so extreme moderation is almost a requirement, but boy are they good!  The fun frosting colors and sprinkles entice the kid, or kid-at-heart, in all of us. 

Under the Sea Sugar Cookies

 

I'm not much of a fan of snorkeling which is ironic because I love to swim, especially in the ocean.  I've gone a couple of times in Hawaii and the first few minutes were great, then came the onslaught of hyperventilation and after that it was game over.

My niece was hosting a Nemo birthday party for her daughter and asked if I could make the cookie favors.  In my imagination these Under the Sea cookie creatures are what I may have come across had I managed to stay under water longer than ten minutes.  Don't the cookies' vibrant colors just scream the tropics and crystal clear waters? Yeah, I know they aren't necessarily anatomically correct but these are just cookies, people! 

Our Lil' Monster Cookie Favors

These monster cookies are from a recent commission for a little boy's first birthday party and are meant to complement the LePoppy Design invitation found on etsy.   I love the blue and lime green color combination - it's one of my personal favorites.   The monster is too cute and reminds me of the Yo Gabba Gabba cookies I've made before. 

Macaron Favors and a Packaging Obsession

If there's one thing I love as much as baking it's packaging.   In fact, it may border on an obsession.  But I figure if you've spent all this time making your delicious treats don't they deserve a beautiful presentation? There used to be a shop in San Francisco that sold a pair of macarons in the most adorable white gift box.  I was instantly smitten and wanted to replicate it at home.

Don't you think these boxes make the perfect party favor?  You can tailor the cutout to whatever occasion you're celebrating: weddings, showers (bridal or baby), birthdays, holidays, etc.  Your guests will definitely feel special when they take one of these favors home.

Chocolate and Raspberry Cupcakes

Sending birthday wishes to my dear friend Anne Marie today.  If only I could send these to you overseas!

GRATULERER MED DAGEN!

An Elmo Birthday Party

I can't believe Micah is already two years old...time does fly by so quickly.   Was it just a year ago that he had his dinosaur-themed first birthday party?  These days Micah is all about Elmo from Sesame Street so that's the theme Evelyn chose for his party.   The kid's got good taste - I love Elmo as well...he's too cute for words.  Unfortunately I couldn't attend Micah's big party this year but I made some sweet treats that he and his guests could enjoy.   

The birthday cake was four layers of high ratio chocolate butter cake filled with raspberry swiss meringue buttercream and decorated with colored fondant.  I wish I had applied the frosting a bit smoother but I ran out of buttercream.  However I am happy with how the "2" cookie favors turned out.  Their red and orange color theme were inspired by Elmo.

HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY MICAH BEAR!

Quadruple Coconut Layer Cake

Doesn't this coconut cake look absolutely delicious?  Trust me when I say it tastes even better than it looks.  Why the "quadruple" in its moniker?  Because every component of this cake is infused with coconut: the cake, the filling, the frosting and of course the outside coating.  

If you're a coconut lover you definitely need to make this cake.  In the span of one week alone I made two of them, one to celebrate my Mom's birthday and another for my friend Angel's birthday. Admittedly you'll need to dedicate some time to the process - it's not something you can throw together in two hours - but the finished product is really worth the investment.

This cake actually combines elements from two sources: Bobby Flay and Cook's Illustrated.  I've made each recipe separately but then thought marrying the two would result in the ultimate cake...I wasn't wrong! 

Halloween Giveaway Winner

The winner of the McCormicks kit is Comment #22 from Jess, who's favorite Halloween candy is Milky Ways.  Thanks to everyone who entered!