When I used to bake and decorate wedding and birthday cakes, I would use different types of frosting depending on who was eating the cake. Most wedding cakes were frosted in egg- based recipes such as Italian or French meringue but for children’s cakes or cupcakes I usually frost cakes in American buttercream frosting. Made with powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, and milk, this is a basic, easy recipe for classic vanilla buttercream frosting. This frosting works great for spreading on cakes, cupcakes, and/or for decorating. Some frosting recipes will call for shortening. Although you could easily substitute some of the butter for shortening, your frosting will taste greasy. But if you must have a true bright white frosting or need to stabilize it, shortening and clear vanilla extract flavoring would work fine. I prefer using all butter and occasionally substituting the vanilla extract for other flavors such as almond, coconut, milk, or lemon. The color of the buttercream is slightly off white but the taste of whipped buttery frosting makes it entirely worth it. Also, the frosting can be easily tinted with food paste gel or food coloring. [click to continue…]
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One of my m0st favorite desserts to make for Valentine’s Day or special occasions are molten lava cakes. If you’re not familiar with these special chocolate cakes you’re in for a real treat. Each cake is baked in individual cups (or cupcake tin) and served warm with a melt in your mouth chocolate liquid center (lava).
Don’t let the photo intimidate you from making these miniature decadent chocolate cakes from heaven. This recipe is really easy, quick to prepare and bake, forgiving, and will make you look like a rock-star. As a warning, if you dust them with a little powdered sugar, whipped cream, or a scoop of vanilla or mint ice cream, you may earn a reputation as a “Dessert Diva” and will be required to make these every time company comes over. And if you are a guy making this for your sweetie… trust me on this, chocolate is the way to a woman’s heart. [click to continue…]
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This recipe has been around longer than I have. Chances are your granny or great granny may have made this in the Depression era. Some may know it as “Wacky cake” or “Depression Cake”. During the Great Depression, someone figured out how to make a moist, delicious cake without eggs, milk, or butter because these ingredients were expensive and hard to get. I call this a timeless generational recipe – passed down from generation to generation.
Since then, this cake has become quite popular for people who are vegan or allergic to dairy… like my daughter, Abigail. She is allergic to dairy and like her mama, she loves her cake but can’t always eat it. This cake taste remarkably good with great flavor and texture – very similar to chocolate cakes made with boxed cake mix. [click to continue…]
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Earlier this week I posted a tutorial on how to make Fall gum paste leaves. I had used the Fall leaves for a cake I baked and decorated for the Daring Bakers Cake Challenge. I was 2nd runner up; I think the winning entry was spectacular! Congrats Katie!
Well today I would like to show you how to frost a 2 layer cake using my Fall cake as your guide. I am going to share with you some simple and practical tips so your cakes will look as good as they are to eat! I realize there are countless ways to frost and decorate cakes, I’m just sharing you mine. Keep in mind this is not a “How to decorate a cake” tutorial -this is a frosting tutorial (but I will give instructions on how to re-create this Fall cake below). So grab a mug of salted caramel hot chocolate and lets get this party started! [click to continue…]
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