Saturday, 4 2010
kitchy weekends: pink cake
contributed by guest food blogger Sugar Crawler
Cupcakes are cute, pretty and irresistible. But sometime layers cakes are just equally cute, pretty and irresistible. Sometime a slice of layers cake is more tempting than a cupcake. Sometime layers cake screams birthday louder than a cupcake. Last Thursday was my 22nd birthday and I had a big and tall carrot cake with cream cheese frosting from my favorite bakery. I couldn’t stop adoring the layers inside the cake, they were so gorgeous and…delish.
Looking back to my birthdays in my early life. I always got a pink birthday cake, with clowns or balloons or ballerina or swans or other vintage figurines on top. The years when such things as fondant and edible picture have not exist. I love those years! When cakes were only vanilla, chocolate or lemon. When there was only vanilla buttercream or chocolate glaze. When colors were so soft.
Cake slice always have a special place in my heart, just next to a cupcake. Maybe if baking a layers cake were less messy and exhausting, I’d bake layers cake more often. Too bad, for me, baking a layers cake is always an all-day baking affair with extra buttercream mess here and there and mount of dishes. And that is why I always opted for cupcakes almost every time.
But it has been a long time since I last baked a layers cake, I couldn’t even remember what kind of cake it was. So, I think my birthday will be the right time to bake a festive layers cake, with pink buttercream and sprinkles. With simple vanilla cake and vanilla buttercream. Lets just forget the carrot cake for a while and after all, there is no such thing as ‘too much birthday cake’ right? A birthday girl can always have two or even three birthday cakes right?
So I fought with all the mess that happens every time I bake a layers cake. I used my favorite-favorite-favorite-go-to vanilla cake from magnolia bakery’s recipe and my always go-to vanilla buttercream. The result? Well, it’s a vanilla birthday cake with pink vanilla buttercream. Its special, in its own way.
VANILLA CAKE
- 1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Grease and lighly flour three 9×2-inch round cake pans, then line the bottoms with waxed paper.
3. In a small bowl, combine the flours. Set aside.
4. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the dry ingredients in 3 parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated but do not over beat. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl to make sure the ingredients are well blended.
5. Divide the batter among the prepared pans and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
6. Cool the layers in pans for 1 hour. Remove from the pans and cool completely on a wire rack before icing.
PINK VANILLA BUTTERCREAM
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup heavy cream
pink food coloring
1. cream together the vegetable shortening and butter in a large mixing bowl until creamy, add confectioners’ sugar and continue beating until fluffy. add the heavy cream, vanilla extract and pink food coloring (depends on how pink you want it), beating until you reach the desire consistency.
14 Comments
Beautiful cake! Am wondering though… how does the frosting taste with the shortening? I am having a summer party and am considering using shortening for the above stated reason, that it will stand up to the heat better.
I’ve got to try this. It’s amazing! It looks delicious!
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Too pretty!
I am making this cake for my daughter’s birthday. The light pink frosting with the way you did the sprinkles, it is simply elegant and gorgeous.
Wow, absolutely gorgeous!
Gorgeous! This cake would make any girl feel like an absolute princess.
Pretty cake! I so want an excuse to make a cake like this.
Very pretty! But, I think you mean “parchment paper,” not “wax paper” to line the cake pans. Parchment paper is coated with inert silicone and is oven safe at low temperatures and commonly used to prevent foods from sticking during the baking process, while wax paper is coated with wax and it will scorch and wax will melt on your food.
The cake is lovely!
Ya he visto algunos hay …
[url=http://www.freepornmpk.com/]DingoDogg[/url]
this is so amazingly gorgeous. i love the pink, the sprinkles and the pink cloth! simply perfect!
This is very girly and it looks delicious , thanks for the recipe
If i liked pink things, i would say that this is the prettiest cake i’ve ever seen. Well, it’s the prettiest pink cake i’ve ever seen, at least.
this cake is so so pretty!
hi Sugar Crawler….
nice pic…nice job..!!!
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[...] This cake made me have an “omg!” girly-moment. I love sprinkles and sometimes have a soft spot in my heart for pretty shade of pink. Plus it’s cake. And I love cake. Get the directions and recipe over at Dujour. [...]
[...] week’s Kitchy Weekends cake looks so good. Let us all salivate in unison. Eww, that’s [...]