Octonauts, to the rescue!

 

 

Two weekends ago, my "little" Jacob turned four years old. I know it's one of those things that everyone says, but it's true - time really flies! It feels like it was only yesterday we welcomed him into our lives. But then again, these four years have been filled with so many amazing memories and brought us countless funny stories, that it feels like he's been with us forever.

 

The birthday boy had told me that he wanted an Octonauts themed cake, since it's his favorite cartoon. For all of you out there who are not regular viewers of Disney Junior, Octonauts is an underwater rescue team that helps all living creatures in the ocean, while teaching kids facts about the different species. Our whole family loves it!

 

For this two tiered cake, I used my favorite vanilla cake recipe with a strawberry filling and crème anglais, topped with buttercream frosting, and covered with fondant. Flavors that both kids and adults can appreciate.

 

Since I'm still learning cake making as I go, and this was my first attempt at making a two tier cake, I thought I'd make this blog post about things I've learned so far. 

 

So, here's a few tips and tricks that I find helpful:

 



 

Make a schedule, since making a cake will take longer than you think. I've learned that time management is an important part of baking cakes. Cake bottoms can be made in advance, which is a great way to save time before an event. Make sure you freeze the layers tightly wrapped in saran wrap, the same day as you bake them. I usually fill and frost the cake while frozen (the night before being eaten), for a number of reasons: 1) It's easier to divide the layers if you're using a single cake pan, 2) it's easier to get a smooth finish on your buttercream when the cake is hard and doesn't crumble, and 3) the flavors from the fillings will have been absorbed more into the cake and deepened, as the cake slowly thaws in the refrigerator over night.

 



 

 

A cake turntable is an investment. It doesn't have to be a fancy one, even a spinning cheese tray will do, but this will make the world of a difference when filling, frosting, and covering your cake.

 



Choose fillings that are stable when making more than one tier. Most buttercreams and cream cheese frostings will do the trick and can be really tasty. Try chocolate, salted caramel, nutella, or strawberry to mix it up. I would make sure to use a recipe that isn't too sweet, since you want the cake to taste more than just sugar. (I know, who are we kidding, it's mostly sugar.) Mousses, custards and curds holds up well too, but try out a recipe that works for you, since I find that some of them can have too much gelatin in them.

 

Always pipe a protectant wall of buttercream along the edges of every layer to make sure the filling doesn't seep out the sides. 

 

 

 

Use some kind of support for the bottom cake. Every cake needs to stand on a cake circle or cardboard cutout that is the same size as the cake. This is to make moving the cake easier, plus you're keeping your cake platters looking nice. Cakes tend to be heavier than you think, and to give as much support as possible on the lower tier, and relieve it from the weight of the cake on top, I use either straws or wooden skewers. For an 8 inch bottom cake and a 6 inch top cake, I inserted three straws in the middle of the bottom cake, all the same height as the cake. There are special support dowel rods you can pick up at Michael's or AC Moore, but honestly, regular straws will do fine.

 

 

Use plastic gloves when coloring the fondant, especially if you need to use more than one color. Or you can just rock whatever color your hands end up being.


When working with fondant, a silicone mat will make your job so much easier. Of course a regular baking mat or a clean work surface will do too, but making sure that the rolled out fondant doesn't stick will involve some confectioners sugar or corn starch. A silicone mat will make it easier to transfer the fondant to the cake, and it's mess free.

Oh, and out of personal experience, just don't use your silicone mat when cutting out shapes with a knife, because you'll cut right through. D'oh!

If you're making fondant figurines, allow the figures to dry completely before you decorate the cake. It will take anything from two days up to a week depending on how much you're using. You will want to store them in a dark and dry place, preferably in a cardboard box. If you need the figures to be standing, mount them on a piece of styrofoam using some tooth picks.

I have heard that if you don't have that much time, you can put the figures in your oven with just the oven light on for a few hours. The tiny amount of heat from the lamp will help speed up the process. Just don't forget they're in there!

Lastly, make a pot of coffee. These figures took me a few hours to make, so put on some tunes and get comfortable!

 

 

 

 

I'm having so much fun trying new recipes and techniques as I go. It's a learning process, so thanks everyone for your support and encouragement!

 

 

 

My happy birthday boy!

 

 



Rose Cake with Strawberry and Crème Anglaise

Growing up, I was spoiled by my dad's wonderful cream cake. Every time we had a reason to celebrate - no matter if it was graduations, birthdays, or just the supermarket having a sale on strawberries - he'd make it. Even today, there's nothing like my dad's strawberry cake to me, with the sponge cake and layers of vanilla custard, some kind of preserves, and fresh strawberries. It tastes like Swedish summer.

I remember when I was still living at home with my parents, my dad would often be up at night baking. (Sounds familiar?) I was usually studying, when all of the sudden I'd hear him call "Evalena!" from the kitchen. He would always save me the very last of the batter for me to scrape clean with a spoon. It was the best break from studying anyone could ever have.

Even now, when I go back to visit during the summers, he still lets me lick the spoon. Some things will never change.

I came across two new recipes recently that reminded me of my dad's cake. The first one is referred to as "ice cream filling". Basically, it's a vanilla custard, also known as a crème anglaise, mixed with whipped cream. It tastes just like soft vanilla ice cream! It's not hard to make, but you have to be careful when heating the custard, since it will curdle if it gets too hot.

This was my first time making crème anglaise, and I had to keep myself from eating it all with a spoon. It's THAT good. This custard is wonderful to serve with poached fruit, puddings, or your favorite crumb pie.

The other filling I made is whipped cream and cream cheese mixed with confectioners sugar and fresh strawberries. It has a mousse-like consistency, but the fresh strawberries gives it a nice texture. I recently saw another recipe like this one that also uses freshly grated lime peel, and I think that can be a lovely addition.

I often get questions on how I make the roses out of buttercream. If you can frost a cupcake, you can also make roses, I promise! Usually when frosting a cupcake, you will start from the outside and work your way in towards the middle. Making roses work the other way around. Start from the middle and work your way around the center, and voilá, you've got yourself a rose! 

  



And since today is my dad's 77th birthday, Grattis på födelsedagen, min Pappa! I hope you eat some delicious strawberry cake for me!

Crème Anglaise

from Leila Lindholm

500 g milk (3%)

1 vanilla pod

135 g sugar

7 egg yolks

40 g corn starch

50 g butter, softened

 Directions:

1. Split the vanilla pod in half, scrape out the seeds and put both seeds and the pod in a sauce pan with the milk. Bring to a boil.
2.  Whip the egg yolks with sugar and corn starch. Pour in the hot milk, while whisking.
3. Pour the mixture back into the pot and carefully heat the liquid, while whisking. As soon as the vanilla cream has started to thicken, take the pot off the heat and pour the crème into a cold bowl.
4. Add the butter, stir until fully melted, and let it cool in a refrigerator. Stir occasionally to prevent a skin to form.

 To make the vanilla cake filling, mix one cup of the crème anglaise with 1 cup of whipped cream.

Heavenly Strawberry filling

from the cooking magazine Hembakat

400 gram heavy whipping cream

175 g cream cheese

120 g confectioners sugar

1 tsp vanilla sugar

400 g strawberries, cut into small pieces

Instructions

1. Whip the heavy whipping cream. Set aside.
2. Whip the cream cheese with confectioners sugar and vanilla sugar.
3. Fold the cream cheese mixture into the whipped cream. Add the strawberries.

 For the vanilla cake recipe, see this post, and for the buttercream recipe see this post.

Vaniljkräm

från Leila Lindholm

5 dl  mjölk, 3%

1 st  vaniljstång
1,5 dl  strösocker
7 st  ekologiska äggulor
0,75 dl  maizena
50 g  mjukt smör


Gör så här:

1. Dela din vaniljstång på längden med en vass kniv och skrapa ur fröna. Lägg både skal och frön i en kastrull tillsammans med mjölken. Koka upp.                    
2. Vispa strösocker, äggulor och maizena luftigt med elvisp. Slå över den heta mjölken under vispning.                    
3. Häll tillbaka blandningen i kastrullen och värm upp försiktigt under vispning. Så fort vaniljkrämen börjar tjockna, häll snabbt över i en kall skål.
4. Tillsätt smöret, låt smälta och kyl vaniljkrämen i isbad eller kyl. Rör då och då i såsen så att det inte bildas skinn.

Himmelsk Jordgubbsfyllning

från tidningen Hembakat

400 gram grädde

175 g philadelphiaost

2 dl florsocker

1 tsp vaniljsocker

400 g jordgubbar

Vanilla Cake with Caramelized Pear and Salted Caramel Buttercream

 

 

This past Sunday was Mother's Day, and of course every mom needs something sweet to help celebrate. Normally you'd probably buy a cake or a dessert, but since baking is one of my favorite things to do, I decided to treat my family to a yummy cake. And since I have a little boy who turns four in about a month, this was a perfect opportunity to practice working with fondant before making his special birthday cake.

 

I bought a cake book by Sweetapolita a couple of weeks back, and I have been day dreaming about her recipe for caramelized pear ever since. I had never baked with pear, but the sound of pears and caramel in a cake just sounded divine to me. 

 

This white cake is layered with a home made salted caramel sauce, that is folded into a vanilla butter cream, and topped with caramelized pear. In every layer. Yeah. This cake is something else. The pears bring a lovely texture to an otherwise smooth cake, and because of the salted caramel, it doesn't get overly sweet. It's a perfect marriage.

 

 

 



Now, color blocking might seem hard, but really, all you need is time and patience. Mostly patience. First you have to decide what colors you want the cake to have. You can use more colors than I did, but I wouldn't recommend using less than five, since you want to make sure you're not repeating the color pattern too much.

 

The next step is rolling out the fondant relatively thin, and using a ruler and a pizza slicer, cut long strands both horizontally and vertically. I used the ruler's width for the squares, because that way I didn't have to measure, and it also made making the triangles easier. For the triangles, I simply put the ruler diagonally over many squares and cut them in half. Easy peasy.

 

Now to the fun part. Cover the whole cake with white fondant. Using a small paintbrush, put a little water on the place you want the first square to go on the cake. The water will act like glue between the fondant and keep the squares in place. Then just add on squares and triangles as you go. Be creative!

 

I started at the very top of the cake, just to make sure I got a fine line and that there wouldn't be any gap. If the squares wouldn't have lined up perfectly at the bottom of the cake, I had planned on making a fondant ribbon to cover the gap. The cake I used as an inspiration actually uses ribbon. (One thing I would do differently though, would be to pay more attention to the crumb coating to make sure the top of the cake is completely flat with sharp edges, since it will give the cake a more dramatic look.)
 

 

 

You will have both salted caramel sauce and caramelized pear over after making this cake, but trust me, it's a good thing. The pears will work wonderfully on top of pancakes, French toast or even oatmeal. And the caramel sauce is perfect to use on top of ice cream or a warm apple pie. Or you can just eat it by the spoon full. It's that good.

 

 

 

Vanilla Cake

from Wilton

 

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup milk

4 egg whites

 

 

Instructions:

 

Preheat oven to 325°F. Prepare five small 6 inch pans with vegetable pan spray.
In medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In large bowl, beat butter and sugar with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg whites one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and beat well. Add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with milk; beat until just combined. Divide evenly into prepared pans.
Bake 17-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes in pan on cooling grid; remove and cool completely before icing.

 

 

 

Salted Caramel Sauce

from Sally's Baking Addiction

 

1 cup (200g) granulated sugar

6 Tablespoons (90g) salted butter, cut up into 6 pieces

1/2 cup (120ml) heavy cream

1 teaspoon salt

Instructions:
 

1. Heat granulated sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly with a high heat resistant rubber spatula or wooden spoon.
2. Sugar will form clumps and eventually melt into a thick brown, amber-colored liquid as you continue to stir. Be careful not to burn.
3. Once sugar is completely melted, immediately add the butter. Be careful in this step because the caramel will bubble rapidly when the butter is added.
4. Stir the butter into the caramel until it is completely melted, about 2-3 minutes.
5. Very slowly, drizzle in 1/2 cup of heavy cream while stirring. Since the heavy cream is colder than the caramel, the mixture will rapidly bubble and/or splatter when added.
6. Allow the mixture to boil for 1 minute. It will rise in the pan as it boils.
7. Remove from heat and stir in 1 teaspoon of salt. Allow to cool down before using.
8. Cover the caramel tightly and store for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator. Warm the caramel up for a few seconds before using in a recipe.

 

 

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

from add a pinch

1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened
3 - 4 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons vanilla
pinch salt
2-3 tablespoons heavy cream

 

 

For the vanilla buttercream recipe instructions, see this post.

 

 

 

Caramelized Pear Filling

from the Sweetapolita Bake book, page 100

 

6 firm D'Anjou or Bosc pears, peeled, cored, and finely chopped

4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Pinch of salt

 

 

Instructions:

1. In a medium bowl, toss the pears with the lemon juice.
2. In a medium skillet set over medium-low heat, melt the butter until bubbly. Add the pears and increase the heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pears begin to break down and soften, 3-4 minutes.
3. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, cardamom, cinnamon and salt. Add the mixture to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture had caramelized, the liquid has thickened, and the pears are tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool. transfer to a jar. (The pears will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week.) 

 

 

 

Tårtbottnar

från Wilton

 

5,3 dl mjöl
2 tsk bakpulver
1/2 tsk salt
113g smör, rumstemp
3 dl socker
1 tsk vaniljextrakt

1,8 dl mjölk

4 äggvitor

 

 

Salt Karamellsås

från Sally's Baking Addiction

 

200g socker

90g saltat smör, delat i 6 bitar

120ml grädde

1 tsk salt

 

 

Karamelliserade päron

Ur boken Sweetapolita Bake book

 

6 D'Anjou eller Bosc päron, skalade, urkärnade och finhackade

4 tsk färsk citronsaft

2 msk osaltat smör

2 msk farinsocker

1 krm kardemumma

1 krm kanel

Nypa salt

 

 

Vaniljsmörkräm Frosting
från add a pinch

 

220 g smör, rumstemp
7-9 dl florsocker, siktat
2 tsk vaniljextrakt
nypa salt
2-3 msk grädde



Speckled Easter Cake



 

 

Easter is one of my favorite holidays. Not only is it a key celebration in the Christian faith, but it's also such a bright and colorful holiday. The heavy jackets have been put away (depending on where you live), the trees are budding, colorful tulips and lilies are standing on our tables, and most importantly, it's a time for family to come together. Oh, and candy. Lots of candy.

This year we were invited over to our friends Brandon and Sarah's house for an Easter potluck, and I just had to bake a cake. Well, I didn't have to bake a cake, but this was a great excuse. I'm always browsing on Pinterest for some inspiration and remembered how impressed I'd been with a speckled cake I saw from the Cake Blog. It's not your traditional fluffy bunny butt cake or hatching chicken cupcake. I had never seen anything like it, and as a learning baker, I love a challenge.

 



 

 

As a base, I used this incredibly moist and rich coconut cake recipe. I baked this cake for my husband a couple of months back, and he swears it was the best cake he has ever had. To keep it light and fresh, I made a pineapple curd filling. Oddly enough, there are not a lot of recipes for pineapple curd out there (let me know if you have one!), so I tried the one that had the best reviews. Unfortunately, it came out a little too sweet for my taste, so I ended up making a lemon curd and mixed the two together. The tartness from the lemon cut the sweetness from the pineapple, and vice versa. It worked perfectly.

Now, a cake needs frosting. Before I found this buttercream recipe, I was walking around thinking I was a cream cheese frosting kind of girl. Because, frankly, how appealing does a butter spread on a cake sound? But I was wrong, it's delicious. This recipe is not overly sweet and has a nicely hidden salty note in it. It's definitely a crowd pleaser. 

 

A tip though, when using gel food coloring, be careful to not put in too much. The frosting will get darker the longer it sits. My light aqua cake turned a lot darker within just a few hours.

 

The eggs were the easy part. I just dyed some fondant and then rolled them into the shape of eggs. Make sure you put them in the fridge to cool so the fondant hardens. That way they will keep their shapes nicely when they're on top of the cake.

 

The most fun, and the messiest, part was speckling the cake to look like an egg. I used a clean paint brush and then gently dabbed it in a small bowl of water and cocoa. Then I splattered the cake to get the effect I wanted. My hubby laughed at me, because not only did I get cocoa spots all over my kitchen counter, cabinets and stove, but I also ended up looking like a polka-dotted version of myself! Next time I'll remember to put down some towels first.

 

So, if you're looking for a delicious springtime cake recipe, this one's great. It's light and has a perfect balance between sweetness and tartness. You'll love it!

 

 

 

 



Incredible Coconut Cake 

from Taste of Home

5 eggs, separated

2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
2-1/4 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups flaked coconut, chopped - I used finely shredded coconut
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar


Instructions:

1. Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. 
2. Preheat oven to 325°. In another large bowl, beat sugar, butter and oil until well blended. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in extracts. 
3. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating well after each addition. Stir in coconut. 
4. Add cream of tartar to egg whites; with clean beaters, beat on medium until stiff peaks form. Fold a fourth of the egg whites into batter, then fold in remaining whites. 
5. Transfer to three greased and floured 9-in. round baking pans. Bake 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.

 

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
from add a pinch

1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened
3 - 4 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons vanilla
pinch salt
2-3 tablespoons heavy cream


Instructions:

1. Place softened butter into the bowl of a stand mixer that has been fitted with the paddle attachment. Turn the mixer on a medium setting and cream the butter until it is smooth and has lightened in color, about 3 minutes.
2. Add confectioner's sugar, ½ a cup at a time. After each cup has been incorporated, turn the mixer onto the highest speed setting and for about 10 seconds to lighten the frosting.
3. Add vanilla and a pinch of salt and combine until well-incorporated.
4. Add heavy cream until the frosting has reached the preferred consistency. For a firmer frosting, add more confectioner's sugar, a ¼ cup at a time. For a softer frosting, add more cream, a tablespoon at a time.

 

 

Fantastisk Kokostårta

från Taste of Home

5 ägg, separerade

4,7 dl socker
113 g smör, rumstemp
1 dl veg olja
1 tsk kokosnötextract
1/2 tsk vaniljextract
1 krm mandelextract
5,4 dl mjöl
1 tsk bakpulver
1/2 tsk bikarbonat
1 krm salt
2,4 dl buttermilk (mjölk + 1 tsk vinäger. Låt stå i 10 min före användning)
4,7 dl kokosflingor

 Vaniljsmörkräm Frosting
från add a pinch220 g smör, rumstemp
7-9 dl florsocker, siktat
2 tsk vaniljextrakt
nypa salt
2-3 msk grädde