Holiday Treats – Chelsweets

Chocolate Raspberry Mother’s Day Cake

Mom’s deserve something special. They deserve something just as sweet and wonderful as they are! This cake is inspired by my Mom, who is a big fan of both chocolate and fresh berries.

To this day, my Mom still grows the most delicious strawberries and raspberries in our garden. I can’t see a berry and not think of my Mom! I wanted to make a cake that was packed with fresh raspberries and chocolate, but wasn’t too sweet or heavy. I ended up making a chocolate sponge cake, filled with a whipped chocolate buttercream and fresh raspberries, and frosted with a dark chocolate ganache. The recipe and some more Mother’s Day cake inspiration can be found below:

Make the dark chocolate ganache first, as it needs at least a few hours to cool and set. To make, simply place the chocolate (about 2 bags of dark chocolate chips) and heavy cream in a heat proof bowl, and heat it for 30 second increments (stirring between). Usually after about 2 minutes of heat, all the chocolate is melted. Once the mixture is fully incorporated, place plastic wrap over the top of the ganache, and let it sit at room temperature. Before adding the room temperature ganache to a cake, I give it a slow stir with a spatula.

I also recommend making the chocolate simple syrup in advance. It needs time to cool before it can be used, and preparing it ahead of time makes the following day a bit easier. Place the sugar and water in a pot, and bring to a simmer. Once the sugar has dissolved, mix in the cocoa, and turn off the heat. Place in a sealed Tupperware container in the fridge overnight.

Bake 4, 8-inch round cake layers using my chocolate cake recipe and instructions. I baked my 8 inch layers for about 32 minutes. Allow layers to cool fully before leveling with a serrated knife. Place pans into the freezer for 45 minutes, to accelerate the cooling process, and lock in the moisture.

While the layers bake, make the whipped chocolate buttercream. Begin by melting the cup of chocolate chips. Heat it in the microwave for 1 minute at half power in large heat proof bowl, or over a double boiler. Stir until smooth, then set aside briefly to allow it to cool just a bit (not more than 5 minutes).

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter on a medium speed for 30 seconds with a whisk attachment, until smooth. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time. Alternate with small splashes of cream. Scrap the sides of the bowl with a spatula, to ensure all the powdered sugar is mixed in. Add in any remaining heavy cream, then whip on high for about 1 minute. Next, add in the melted chocolate. Beat on high again, until the chocolate is fully incorporated. Pour in the egg whites, and beat on high again for about 30 seconds. Add in the vanilla and salt, and mix until fully incorporated. The frosting should be rather thick, like whipped topping!

After the cake layers are baked and fully cooled, level the cakes by cutting off the tops using a serrated knife. I like to “taste test” the cake tops with any left over frosting or ganache once I’ve decorated the cake! The cake tops can also be used to make cake balls. Use a large, sterile paint brush to douse the cake layers with a generous coat of chocolate simple syrup.

Next, it’s time to assemble the cake! Place the ganache into a piping bag, and pipe a ring around the perimeter of the cake layer.

Scoop a few spatulas of whipped buttercream into the center of the cake layer, and use an offset spatula to evenly spread it out to the ganache boarder.

Press a generous amount of raspberries into the whipped chocolate frosting. Repeat until all layers are stacked.

Repeat this process with the remaining cake layers. Once stacked, cover the cake with a thick layer of chocolate ganache, and smooth with a patterned bench scrapper (I got these Wilton “icing combs” on amazon).

Pipe a boarder around the top of the cake using a small French tip, and fill the top of the cake with remaining whipped chocolate buttercream.

This cake is just as delicious as it looks! It feeds about 16 people, so be sure to gather your whole family around to enjoy it. Happy Mother’s Day to all the amazing mother’s out there!!

Recipes:

1 batch of my go-to chocolate layer cake recipe (trimmed cake tops crumbed and reserved)
1 cup chocolate simple syrup (1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar dissolved together, + 1 TBSP cocoa)
1 batch dark chocolate ganache (650 grams dark chocolate, melted down with 325 grams heavy cream) – to be made in advance
1 batch whipped chocolate frosting
3 pints fresh raspberries

May 9, 2018July 13, 2018

Chelsweets6 Comments

Lime Tequila Cake

May really snuck up on me this year, but every year I like to make some type of cake to celebrate Cinco De Mayo! In the past I’ve made a giant donkey pinata cake, and a margarita trifle, and this year I decided to stick with an easy ruffle cake! I filled the center with some fun sprinkles, to make for an exciting cut. This cake is made with lime cake layers, drizzled with a tequila lime simple syrup, and frosted with a tequila buttercream. The recipe can be found below:

Lime Cake Layers:

1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), room temperature
1/2 cup egg whites (about 4 large egg whites)
3/4 cups buttermilk, room temperature
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
zest of 1 small lime
juice of 1/2 small lime

Tequila Lime Simple Syrup

2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 Tbsp tequila
juice of 1 small lime
zest of 1/2 small lime

Tequila Lime Buttercream Ingredients:

6 sticks (3 cups) unsalted butter, room temperature
12 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp tequila
juice of 1 small lime
bright orange, pink, green, yellow, and blue gel food coloring

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line four 6” round pans.

Mix together all dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt) in a stand mixer with a paddle until fully combined.

Mix chunks of room-temperature butter slowly into the dry mix, on a low speed. Continue to mix until no large chunks of butter remain, and the mixture becomes crumbly.

Pour in egg whites, and mix on low until just incorporated. Mix in the buttermilk in two installments, on a low speed. Add in lime juice, lime zest, and oil, and mix at a low speed until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, then beat on medium high for about 30 seconds.

Divide evenly between the prepared cake pans. Bake for 28-30 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then run an offset spatula around perimeter of the pan to separate the cake from the pan. Place cake layers on a rack to finish cooling. Once fulled cooled, use a serrated knife to level the layers.

While the cake layers bake and cool, prepare the simple syrup. Place the sugar and water in a heat proof pan, and heat on a medium high heat until boiling. Reduce the heat to allow the mixture to simmer until all the sugar is dissolved (2-3 minutes). Add in the tequila and lime juice, and remove from heat. Add lime zest. Allow the mixture to cool, then pour over the trimmed cake layers.

Next, make the tequila lime buttercream. Beat the butter on high for 30 seconds with a paddle attachment, until smooth. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time. Alternate with small additions of tequila and lime juice. Add salt, and beat on medium low until the ingredients are fully incorporated, and the desired consistency is reached. If the frosting is too thick, add in more tequila (1 teaspoon at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar (quarter of a cup at a time).

NOTE: When making frosting for a cake, it is important to mix the buttercream on low at the end of the process for a couple minutes, to get out any extra air that might have be incorporated during the mixing process. This will make it easier to get super smooth sides on your cake!

Place 3/5 of the buttercream into a separate bowl, and color lime green. Divide remaining frosting between four bowls, and color bright green, pink, yellow, and blue! Place each color into its own piping bag, fitted with a petal tip (wilton 103 or 104).

Once the cake layers have cooled, use a 2.5 inch circle cookie cutter to cut out the center of two cake layers. Stack and frost layers on a grease-proof cardboard cake round. Frost an even layer of green buttercream on the base (uncut) cake layer. Add the cut out cake layers as the 2nd and 3rd layer of the cake. Frost the cut out section with a thin layer of buttercream, using a small offset spatula. Fill the center fully with your favorite sprinkle blend, then top with the remaining, uncut cake layer.

Apply a thin layer of frosting (crumb coat), and place in freezer to chill for 5 minutes. Place remaining green buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a wilton 104 tip.

Once the crumb coat is firm to the touch, begin piping on the ruffles! Alternate colors in the same pattern, to create a uniformed look. Begin at the base of the cake, moving the piping tip slowly from side to side, to create the ruffle pattern. The thicker side of the frosting tip should be placed against the crumb coat.

It should lightly graze the crumb coat as you pipe, to ensure the buttercream ruffles anchor onto the cake. Try to keep the width of each ribbon consistent while piping. Repeat until you reach the top of the cake, carefully ending each ribbon by dragging the piping bag to the right. Continue until the entire cake is covered.

Decorate the top of the cake with buttercream flowers. Pipe ruffle flowers onto parchment squares using the remaining buttercream, and place in the freezer for 10 minutes. Once firm to the touch, carefully peel off the parchment paper and place on one quarter of the cake.

I’m actually not the biggest tequila fan, but I was so pleasantly surprised by how delicious this cake turned out! The tequila is well balanced with the sweetness of the simple syrup, the tang of the lime juice, and the buttermilk in the cake batter. This cake has just enough of a kick to to remind you to it’s Cinco De Mayo 😉

April 30, 2018July 6, 2018

Chelsweets6 Comments

Easter Basket Cake

I can’t believe it’s almost Easter! I’ve always wanted to make an Easter basket cake, and this year I finally got around to making one. Not only was this my first time using a basket weave technique, it also was my first time making a cake without butter!! I wanted to try a butter alternative, to ensure that my frosting was as white as possible. I used unsalted Country Crock Sticks, and was pretty amazed that they worked right out of the fridge with no softening required!! I used my go to vanilla layer cake recipe and American buttercream recipe, but swapped out butter for baking sticks (1:1 ratio). The recipes used can be found below.

Be sure to check out the workshop that I hosted with Thefeedfeed and thanks for supporting the brands that support my work, Country Crock!

Coconut Cake Ingredients:

3 1/4 cup (416 grams) all-purpose flour
3 cups (600 grams) granulated sugar
2 1/2 tsp (13 grams) baking powder
1 tsp (5 grams) salt
2 sticks unsalted Country Crock Buttery Sticks
1 Tbsp (13 grams) coconut extract
1 cup egg whites (244 grams) – about 7 large egg whites; I use egg whites from the carton to avoid wasting egg yolks
1 1/2 cups (360 grams) buttermilk, room temperature
1/8 cup (28 grams) vegetable oil

Coconut Frosting Ingredients:

6 sticks unsalted Country Crock Buttery Sticks
12 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp coconut extract
pink, purple, and yellow gel food coloring (optional)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 7” and two 8″ round pans. Begin by making the coconut cake layers. Mix together all dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt) in a stand mixer with a paddle until fully combined.

Mix chunks of the unsalted Country Crock Buttery sticks slowly into the dry mix, on a low speed. Continue to mix until no large chunks of butter remain, and the mixture becomes crumbly.

Pour in egg whites, and mix on low until just incorporated. Mix in the buttermilk in two installments, on a low speed. Add in coconut extract and oil, and mix at a low speed until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, then beat on medium speed for about 30 seconds. Using a spatula, carefully fold in sprinkles.

Divide evenly between the prepared cake pans. Bake for 35-37 minutes (or until a skewer comes out clean). Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then run an offset spatula around perimeter of the pan to separate the cake from the pan. Place cake layers on a rack to finish cooling, or in the freezer to accelerate the process. Once chilled, level the layers using a serrated knife.

While the layers bake and cool, make coconut frosting. Beat the unsalted Country Crock Buttery Sticks on medium speed for 30 seconds with a paddle attachment, until smooth. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time. Alternate with small splashes of cream. Once fully mixed, add in the coconut extract and salt, and beat on low until the ingredients are fully incorporated, and the desired consistency is reached. If the frosting is too thick, add in cream (1 teaspoon at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar (quarter of a cup at a time). Place 1 cup of frosting into a bowl and color a pastel shade of yellow using a few drops of gel food coloring. Set aside, and repeat with pink and purple gel food coloring.

Stack and frost layers on a cardboard cake round. Frost an even layer of colorful between each cake layer, using the yellow, pink, and purple frosting. Once the layers are stacked, trim in a tapered shape, to resemble a basket.

Cover the cake in a thin crumb coat, and chill in the freezer or fridge for about 5 minutes. Once the crumb coat is firm to the touch, place remaining white frosting into a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 47 tip.

Carefully pipe a basket weave pattern onto the cake. Begin by making the vertical lines, then carefully pipe the horizontal stitches.

Chill again for 5 minutes, then carefully invert the cake using an an addition cardboard cake round.

Use a spoon to remove about 1 cm from the center of the top of the cake, to make it easier to fill with easter treats.

Frost the exposed area, and pipe a border around the perimeter of the top of the cake. Fill the inside of the basket with you favorite Easter goodies. I added peeps, candy eggs, a chocolate bunny, and some buttercream flowers.

Use a bit of wire to shape the handle of the basket, and wrap with fondant. Leave at least 1 inch of uncovered wire, to allow you to securing anchor the handle into the top of the cake.

Then it’s time to cut in and celebrate Easter in style 🙂 The full tutorial is also included below:

March 19, 2018March 20, 2018

Chelsweets4 Comments

Peppermint Candy Cane Cake

As winter drags on, I wanted to brighten up this cold spell with this colorful, peppermint cake! I show how to create these buttercream stripes, and how to make a peppermint design between the layers!! The full recipe and tutorial can be found below:

Recipes:

1/2 batch of my vanilla layer cake recipe + 2 tsp. peppermint extract + red gel food coloring
1 batch of my american buttercream + 2 tsp. peppermint extract, divided in half, coloring 1/2 red with gel food coloring
1/2 batch of my chocolate ganache drip recipe
Peppermint Candies

Instructions:

Pour red cake batter into three, six-inch round cake pans, which have been lined with parchment paper and greased with non-stick spray. Bake layers in a preheated 350 degree F oven, for 30 minutes. Remove the pans for the oven, and run an offset spatula around the perimeter of the pans, to separate the layers from the pan. Place pans in the freezer to 1 hour to accelerate the cooling process and lock in the moisture of the cakes.

While the layers cool, make the peppermint buttercream frosting. Divide in half, and color one half a bright red using Americolor gel food coloring. If you’re having trouble achieving a true red shade, add the tiniest drop of black gel food coloring. It also helps to make it in advance, as the shade deepens overnight. Place each color of frosting into it’s own piping bag.

Next, make the chocolate ganache. Allow the ganache to cool slightly, then pour into plastic squeeze bottle. If you don’t have a squeeze bottle, you can use a spoon instead!

Once the layers are fully cooled and chilled to the touch, trim away any caramelized bits using a serrated knife. Pipe alternating colors of red and white buttercream in rings on top of each layer (resembles a bulls-eye!). This will create a striped look when we cut into the cake.

Cover the cake in a thin layer of frosting (crumb coat) to trap any run away crumbs. Chill the cake in the freezer or fridge for about 5 minutes, until the buttercream is firm to the touch. Pipe horizontal lines around the cake, alternating the red and white frosting.

Smooth red buttercream over the top of the cake, then use a bench scraper to smooth the stripes on the side of the cake. You can see a full tutorial on how to frost a cake with smooth sides here.

Add crushed peppermint candies around the base of the cake, pressing the gently against the frosting using a small offset spatula. Chill the cake in the fridge or freezer until it is firm to the touch (about 10 minutes).

Swirl together remaining red and white frosting into a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 1M tip.

Pipe buttercream swirls onto the top of the cake, leaving about an inch of open space between each swirl. Add chocolate ganache drips between the swirls, and top each swirl with a peppermint candy.

This cake is truly peppermint themed through and through! Remember that you should add peppermint extract to taste. As you add it into the frosting, do taste tests after each tsp to make sure that the amount of peppermint suites your palate! Some people prefer a strong taste, others enjoy a more subtle, mint flavor.

January 8, 2018January 8, 2018

Chelsweets2 Comments

Marbled Christmas Tree Sugar Cookies

I rarely step outside of the realm of cakes, but my office was hosting a cookie challenge and I couldn’t resist whipping something up! There is no baking blog I trust more than Sally’s Baking Addiction (every recipe she shares is MAGIC!), so I used her sugar cookie recipe as the base for these. Just like always, the recipe delivered! The cookies were soft, chewy, and most importantly they kept their shape! They didn’t spread at all, and had nice clean edges. I swapped out some of the vanilla and almond extract with maple extract to mix things up, but other than that I followed Sally’s recipe to a T.

The icing was a whole different story. I’ve never made royal icing before, so this was definitely a learn-as-you-go experience. I didn’t want to deal with a double boiler and fresh egg whites, so I decided to try a recipe by Wilton, and added some maple extract into the frosting. Making the base frosting isn’t too difficult. The hard part is getting this base to flooding consistency so you can dip the cookies into it. I found that the figure 8 test is the best way to ensure you have the right consistency (thank you Serious Eats for the tip!!!). If the figure 8 disappears in exactly 8 seconds, the icing is ready to use as a cookie glaze (more details below!).

And then there’s the design! I’d seen marbled sugar cookies on Instagram, and when I saw these beauties by Sana Sodawala (@sugarbase_) pop up on my explore page, I was totally inspired!! Below are all the recipes I used, the things I learned along the way, and a step-by-step tutorial.

Sugar Cookie Dough (adapated from Sally’s Baking Addiction)

3/4 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened to room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons maple extract
2 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Royal Icing (adapted from Wilton)

3 tbsp meringue powder
4 cups powdered sugar
5-6 Tbsp water, room temp
2 tsp. maple extract
additional water to bring to flooding consistency (I believe I used around 4 1/2 Tbsp – but this can vary!)

Instructions:

Begin by making the sugar cookie dough. In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until smooth. Add the sugar and beat on high speed until light and fluffy (at least 2 minutes). Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Add the egg, vanilla, and maple extract and beat on high until fully combine, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.

Mix in the baking powder and salt. On a low speed, add about half of the flour, beating just until combined. Add the rest of the flour and continue mixing until the dough has just barely come together. If the dough still seems too soft, you can add 1 Tablespoon more flour until it is a better consistency for rolling.

Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Lightly flour the parchment paper and your rolling pin, then roll each portion out onto a piece of parchment to about 1/4″ thickness. Stack the pieces (with parchment paper) onto a baking sheet and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Chilling is what allows the cookies to keep their shape, so this step is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT.

Once chilled, preheat oven to 350°F. Line 3 large baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat (silicone baking mats work best!). The number of batches you bake will depend on how large/small you cut your cookies. Remove one of the dough sheets from the refrigerator and using a cookie cutter, cut in shapes.

Transfer the cut cookie dough to the prepared baking sheet. Re-roll the remaining dough and continue cutting until all is used. Chill the cut out shapes for another 10 minutes, then pop the trays into the oven.

Bake for 8-10 minutes (varies based on size and thickness of cookie), until the edges just begin to lightly brown. Rotate the baking sheets halfway through bake time, to ensure they’re evenly cooked. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before icing (at least 1 hour).

While the cookies cool, make the royal icing. Place confectioners’ sugar and meringue powder in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, and combine with short, slow pulses. Add in the water and maple extract, and mix on a medium speed until stiff peaks form (takes about 5 minutes). Next, add in water 1 Tbsp at a time until flooding consistency is reached. I had to add about 4 1/2 Tbsp of water, but I also think I was a bit heavy handed adding in the powdered sugar.

To test the consistency, use the Figure 8 test!! Lift up your spoon or spatula, and create a figure 8 with the run off frosting. If the figure 8 disappears in exactly 8 seconds, the icing is ready to use as a cookie glaze. If it melts away faster, thicken by adding a spoonful of powdered sugar. If it takes longer than 8 seconds to disappear, thin by adding a few drops of cream. Repeat this test, making adjustments as you go, until the figure 8 takes exactly 8 seconds to disappear.To prevent crusting, place saran wrap directly on top of the royal icing. This is very important!! If you leave the frosting exposed to air for too long, it will crust and form a chunky top layer! Be sure keep frosting covered until right before you plan to use it.

Once you’re ready to frost the cooled cookies, color 1/2 cup of the royal icing bright green, and place into a piping bag. Color another 1/2 of frosting a deep green, and place in a separate piping bag.

Cut the tips of both piping bags to create a small opening (1/4 of an inch). Drizzle both green frosting over the uncolored icing. Use a toothpick to drag lines through the colors to create a swirled pattern. Then dunk cookies in to the glaze, one at a time. Be sure to cover the entire surface of the cookie.

Allow some of the frosting to run off before carefully flipping the cookie frosting side up, and placing onto a wire rack to dry. This part can get a bit messy, so be sure to have paper towels or a hand towel nearby. After each cookie, drizzle and swirl a bit more of the green icing, to ensure every cookie is nice and colorful.

Allow the cookies to dry for at least 3 hours. The frosting should be firm to the touch, but I was still too scared to stack them on top of each other!! I placed them in a large, flat box, to bring into work.

I used a variety of cookie cutters (I have a ton of cookie cutters I’ve never used, and I wanted to break them in :P), and also made some cacti, a couple cats, and mini gingerbread shaped men.

December 21, 2017December 23, 2017

Chelsweets7 Comments

Easy Buttercream Santa Cake

Believe it or not, this is the first Santa Cake I’ve ever made! I originally made this cake to celebrate St. Nicholas Days earlier in December, but am just getting around to sharing it now! This cake is made with almond cake layers, and almond buttercream. I’m not sure it it’s from the almond cookies we enjoy around the holidays, but I always associate almond flavoring with the holidays. The recipe and tutorial can be found below:

Almond Cake Batter:

3 1/4 cup (416 grams) all purpose flour
3 cups (600 grams) granulated sugar
2 1/2 tsp (13 grams) baking powder
1 tsp (5 grams) salt
1 cup unsalted butter or 2 sticks (226 grams), room temperature
2 tsp. (9 grams) almond extract
1 cup egg whites (244 grams) – about 7 large egg whites; I use egg whites from the carton to avoid wasting egg yolks
1 1/2 cups (360 grams) buttermilk, room temperature
1/8 cup (28 grams) vegetable oil

Almond Buttercream Frosting:

6 sticks or 3 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
12 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp salt
3 Tbsp. heavy cream
2 tsp. almond

Additional Supplies:

black, white, and yellow colored fondant (1 inch ball of each)
red, green, and black gel food coloring
Wilton 1M tip
white sanding sugar
piping bags

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line four 7″ round pans with parchment rounds, and grease with non-stick cooking spray.

Mix together all dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt) in a stand mixer with a paddle until fully combined.

Mix chunks of room-temperature butter slowly into the dry mix, on a low speed. Continue to mix until no large chunks of butter remain, and the mixture becomes crumbly.

Pour in egg whites, and mix on low until just incorporated. Mix in the buttermilk in two installments, on a low speed. Add in almond extract and oil, and mix at a low speed until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, then beat on medium speed for about 30 seconds.

Divide evenly between two bowls. Use gel food coloring to color one red, and one green. Divide evenly between the prepared cake pans, to make 2 layers of each color. Bake for 37-38 minutes (or until a skewer comes out clean). Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then run an offset spatula around perimeter of the pan to separate the cake from the pan. Place cake layers on a rack to finish cooling (or place in the freezer for 45 minutes, to accelerate the cooling process). Once full cooled, trim any caramelization from the sides of the layers using a serrated knife.

While the layers bake and cool, prepare the buttercream frosting. Beat the butter on medium speed for 30 seconds with a paddle attachment, until smooth. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time. Add the heavy cream half way through. Once fully mixed, add in the vanilla and salt, and beat on medium low until the ingredients are fully incorporated, and the desired consistency is reached. If the frosting is too thick, add in cream (1 teaspoon at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar (quarter of a cup at a time). To watch a full tutorial on how I make my frosting, you can click here. Place 1/2 cup of frosting in a separate bowl, and add ivory gel food coloring to create a flesh like color. Set aside. Place 2/3 cup of frosting into a seperate bowl, and color black with gel food coloring. Place into a piping bag fitted with a wide, flat tip. Place 1 cup of uncolored buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 1M tip. Color the remaing forsting red with a generous squirt of red gel good, plus the smallest drop of black (it helps deepen the shade). If you’re having trouble getting a deep red shade, try making the frosting a day in advance. The color will deepen overnight.

Prepare the fondant features next. Use the yellow fondant to create a rectangular belt buckle, making it slightly larger than the width you plan to pipe for the belt. Use the black and white fondant to create two eyes. Cut out a small semi-circle of black fondant to be Santa’s mouth. Also cut out two thicker semi-circles to place at the bottom of the cake, to be Santa’s feet.

Stack and frost layers using the red buttercream. Cover the cake in a thin crumb coat, and chill in the freezer or fridge for about 5 minutes.Add a second, thicker layer of red buttercream frosting. Smooth using a bench scraper. You can see a full tutorial on how to frost a cake with smooth sides here.

Next, pipe a line around the side of the cake using the black buttercream to be Santa’s belt. Carefully place the belt buckle on top of the black frosting. Next, add the black semi circles to the base, to resemble Santa’s feet. Pipe two diagonal lines from the top of the cake towards the belt buckle, for his arms.

Next, frost the top of the cake with a large circle of the skin colored frosting. Place the remaining red buttercream into a piping bag with a 1.5 cm opening. Pipe a line 3/4 up the cake, and fill in the space to create Santa’s hat. Pipe an elongate triangle on top of this, to look like the top of Santa’s hat, hanging down towards his face. Pipe small, white buttercream swirls along the base of the had to look like the hat’s fur.

Next, add on the eyes and mouth. Use the white buttercream to pipe on a mustache, and then pipe swirls around the sides of the face and chin to complete Santa’s beard. Place the remaining skin tone frosting into a piping bag and trim a 1 inch opening. Pipe a large round circle above the mustache to be the nose, and pipe two round hands onto the base of each arm.

If desired, you can also add some white sanding sugar onto the base of Santa’s hat. This cake is a perfect way to celebrate the Holidays! I even had my fiance help a little with the decoration 😛 This cake feeds 15-20 people.

December 20, 2017December 20, 2017

Chelsweets2 Comments