Mom’s Birthday Stacking Vanilla Cake
This is a dense cake good for stacking tall cake layers.
Note: We Doubled this recipe for making Mirabel Doll Cake and with extra cake batter we made cupcakes
Special Supplies:
*2 round 3-inch or 6-inch Cake Pans, I used 3-inch for this cake
*2 round 8-inch Cake Pans
*Cake Leveler/Serrated Knife and Serrated Knife
**2-inch round sturdy Biscuit Cutter with handle, also needs to be 1 and 1/2 inches deep See picture below.
*Large Icing Tip, found at Walmart
*Offset Spatula
*Oil Based Food Colorings, red, blue, turquoise, yellow, blue and Lime Green and other colors as desired
*Decorating flowers, leaves and Walmart’s Great Value Magical Sprinkles Mix Tub,10.48 oz. or decorations of choice.
*Decorating Bags and tips, as desired
*Doll of choice or Mirabel Doll, found at Walmart, with plastic wrap, wrap-up doll from the waist down
*Preheat oven to 350*F. Then when adding cakes turn down to 325 F. Bake cakes for 30 to 40 minutes depending on cake pan size. Bake 2 cake pans at a time, middle rack in oven leave air-space around cake pans.
Vanilla Cake
Ingredients:
*1/2 cup Butter, slightly soften
*1 and 1/2 cups Sugar
*4 Egg Yolks, save egg whites in medium mixing bowl for beating later
*1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
*3 cups All-Purpose Flour
*3 teaspoons Baking Powder
*1 cup Milk, room temperature not cold
*2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
*4 Egg Whites, Beaten to soft peaks
Instructions:
In a stand mixer cream together the butter and sugar. Add the egg yolks and salt, mix until incorporated.
In a separate bowl sift together the flour and baking powder.
In measuring cup add the milk and vanilla.
Alternate adding the flour and milk mixture 1/3 at a time to the creamed mixture and mix just until all ingredients are combined. Then fold in beaten egg whites.
Note: Beat egg whites in a bowl until soft peaks and fold into cake batter 1/3 at a time.
Spray pans with cooking spray and dust pans with flour, fill pans a little over 2/3rds full. Bake as directed above.
Remove cakes from oven and cool completely. I like to plastic wrap and freeze the cake layers (individually) at this point. then when frozen remove cakes from freeze unwrap and cut out the centers with 2-inch biscuit cutter.
Note: Fill any remaining batter in cupcake liners 3/4 full in cupcake/muffin pans. Bake cupcakes 25 to 30 minutes
Stabilized Butter Cream
Note: I like to Double this frosting recipe to make sure I have plenty of frosting.
Ingredients:
*1 cup Butter, out of the fridge 30 minutes
*1/4 cup Butter Flavored Shortening or if you want a whiter frosting use regular white shortening
*1 pound Powdered Sugar, around 3 and 1/2 to 4 cups, more or less as needed
*1 tablespoon Cornstarch
*1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
*1/4 teaspoon Almond Extract
*1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt, to taste
*1-2 tablespoons Heavy Whipping Cream or as needed
Instructions:
In a bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment add the butter and shortening and beat on medium-low speed until light fluffy color. Mix in salt, vanilla and almond extracts, just until incorporated. Then add corn starch and powdered sugar a cup at a time. Beat on medium speed for 30 seconds making sure all powdered sugar is incorporated. Mix another 30 seconds add more cream f needed for a good spreadable consistency, mix more if needed. Do not over mix it will make a lot of air bubbles you will have to hand-stir them out.
Divide frosting into bowls, making the most turquoise and for all other colors use 1/4 cup frosting for each color.
Add frosting to bottles or piping bags with small tips cut of the ends or use small piping tips at the end of bags. Refrigerate frosting as needed if it gets to soft while frosting/piping.
Assemble and Decorate the Cake:
Use a 10-inch cake round cardboard disk and put the brown side down and put a small amount of frosting on top white side of the cardboard and spread a little frosting in a circle in the middle of the board.
Make sure each of the cake layers are flat for layering and frosting, you may need to cut off the top of each cake layer with a knife to make them level or use cake leveler.
Place the first layer of 8-inch cake round the top cut side down on prepared cake round cardboard disk and pipe or spread on dollop frosting, and then add the second cake layer. Repeat for the next two 3-inch cake layers.
Cut with serrated knife little thin slices/shavings of the cake straight down the cake sides forming a dress shape.
Then frost the sides of the cake with the frosting and then the top. This is your crumb coat so you frost with a thin layer of frosting. Use your cake scraper or offset spatula to make the sides and top smooth.
Freeze your cake for about 15 to 20 minutes or longer if needed. Then frost the whole cake. Note: If frosting or cake becomes too soft place back in fridge or freezer just until cake and frosting is cold again but not frozen.
Note: You may want to return the cake to freezer after frosting cake for another 15 to 20 minutes so when You decorate the cake it won’t get too soft while decorating
Pipe on design on cake as desired, making wavy or zigzag motions and straight piping.
Add decorative purchased flowers as desired.
After decorating add the plastic wrapped doll into the center of the cake. Make sure the plastic wrap is high enough, so you can finish decorating the dress waist.
Lindy
