Rainbow Birthday Cake

My dad has always said that in Minneapolis, you can never have too many coats. There’s a spring coat and a rain coat for summer. A coat for the early fall and one for when it starts getting chilly but it isn’t that cold. A coat for outdoor sports and a puffy vest that takes you from season to season (or in the case of my husband: the entire year).

Right now we are smack in the middle of full-length-down-parka-coat season. The driving may be slow and schools may be delayed but sitting in what feels like a giant snow globe is quite lovely (especially when half your office stayed home so you have the place to yourself).

This cake makes me think of snow. This cake also makes me think of the horrible taste my daughter has in cake flavors: she wanted chocolate cake with chocolate chips, marshmallows…and peaches.

I slipped in tiny chopped up peaches in the center of the cake so that I could say I both honored her request and also my dignity. Of course she hardly noticed them because she at three bites of the gigantic slice and threw the rest away.

Double Chocolate Star Wars Cake

His first birthday cake was lumberjack themed. His second birthday cake was train themed. His third birthday cake was construction themed. The only natural next theme is Star Wars.

He requested Star Wars and chocolate so I gave him four layers of rich chocolate cake covered in my new favorite chocolate frosting straight from Zoe Bakes (imagine a whipped ganache with more cream and more sugar then imagine resisting the urge to eat the entire batch).

I dyed the frosting black and splatter painted it with edible silver and gold paint. I topped it with some festive sprinkles and a mini storm trooper and voila, a Star Wars themed cake whose flavor was lost on the four-year-olds (it always is, right?!). But luckily for the adults at the party, I’m skilled at cutting very small pieces leaving more than enough for every mom and dad to have a slice.

Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Frosting
adapted from Liv for Cake and Zoe Bakes

Chocolate Cake
200 g (1 ½ cups) all-purpose flour
300g (1 ½ cups) granulated sugar
70g (¾ cup) unsweetened cocoa, sifted
1 ½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
¼ cup vegetable oil
¾ cup buttermilk
¾ cup strong brewed coffee, warm
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla

Chocolate Frosting
2 ½ cups heavy whipping cream + 2 tbsp
85g (6 tbsp) unsalted butter
2 tsp vanilla extract
335g (1 ½ cups) granulated sugar
⅓ cup honey
170g (6 oz) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
170g (2 cups) unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
¼ tsp kosher salt

Make the chocolate cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease three 6" round cake pans and line with parchment. Place dry ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Stir to combine.

In a second bowl, whisk all wet ingredients together. Slowly pour the coffee into ingredients making sure to not cook the eggs. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix on medium speed for 3 mins.

Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cakes cool for 15 minutes then remove from pan to finish cooling.

Make the frosting: In a large saucepan, heat the cream, butter, vanilla, sugar, honey, and salt over medium heat until everything has melted. Turn down the heat and stir in the chocolate. When it is smooth, add the cocoa and stir until there are no lumps. Pour it into a bowl or shallow pan, cover, and let cool in the refrigerator for a few hours.

When you’re ready to use it, bring to room temperature and whip with a paddle attachment until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes).

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Almond Cake with White Chocolate Buttercream

I had the privilege of celebrating my grandfather's 90th birthday this summer with all of my aunts and uncles and cousins from far and wide. It was a great weekend honoring a man who has a way with words. Words that include (when surrounded by all of his grandkids): this is what happens when you get drunk 60 years ago.

This man deserved a celebratory cake. One made from almonds, filled with a MN tart cherry filling, and covered in a white chocolate buttercream.

We also lied profusely to my daughter telling her the party was Sunday morning when, in fact, it was an adults only Saturday evening event. So I made her a mini cake with a bow and sprinkles. And she will never know the truth until she is old enough to read and happens upon this blog post.

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Almond Cake with White Chocolate Buttercream
adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Almond Cake
510g (4 ½ cups) cake flour
4 ½ tsp baking powder
¾ tsp salt
⅔ cup prepared almond paste (7 ounces)
535g (2 ⅔ cups) sugar
283g (2 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temp.
1 tbsp almond extract
10 egg whites
370g (1 ½ cups) whole milk

White Chocolate Buttercream
226g (1 ⅓ cups) white chocolate, chopped
339g (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp.
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
3 tbsp light corn syrup
¼ tsp salt
226g (1 ¾ cups) confectioners’ sugar

Make the cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter or spray three 8 or 9-inch cake pans. Line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. 

Place the almond paste and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on low to break up the almond paste. Increase to medium speed for about 2 minutes, or until the paste is broken into fine particles.

Add the butter and almond extract and beat well, then add the egg whites, two at a time, just long enough to incorporate. Scrape down the sides of the bowl several times to make sure it is evenly mixed.

Add one-third of the dry ingredients to the mixture and fold with a large rubber spatula until combined. Fold in half the milk. Fold in half the remaining flour mixture, followed by the remaining milk. Finally, fold in the last of the dry ingredients until no streaks of white remain. Divide the batter among the three prepared cake pans.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

Make the white chocolate buttercream:
Put 1-inch of water in a saucepan and bring to a gentle boil.

Melt the white chocolate in a double boiler; stir constantly until the chocolate is just melted. Set aside to cool.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla, corn syrup and salt and mix until combined. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the sugar. Beat until smooth. Add the white chocolate and beat on low until combined.

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