Category Archives: Holiday Treats

Easter Basket Cake

March 19, 2018 Chelsweets 4 Comments

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:

Peppermint Candy Cane Cake

January 8, 2018 Chelsweets 2 Comments

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.

cookies, Holiday Treats, Tutorials

Marbled Christmas Tree Sugar Cookies

December 21, 2017 Chelsweets 5 Comments

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.

Cakes, Holiday Treats

Easy Buttercream Santa Cake

December 20, 2017 Chelsweets Leave a comment

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.

Cakes, Holiday Treats, Tutorials

Holiday Tree Stump Cake

December 16, 2017 Chelsweets 1 Comment

For this week’s live stream, I made my take on a Yule Log cake! It really is more a festive tree stump than a classic Buche de Noel, but I think it gets the holiday spirit across. It uses the techniques of a Swiss roll cake, but then kicks things up a notch by frosting the roll cake vertically!!

This cake is made with chocolate sponge cake layers, filled with a peanut butter buttercream, and covered in chocolate ganache. The recipe and instructions can be found below:

Chocolate Cake Batter: (recipe adapted from Love and Olive Oil)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup black cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
8 large eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter
5 ounces milk chocolate chips

Peanut Butter Buttercream:

3 sticks or 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
8 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla

Milk Chocolate Ganache:

1 bag mini chocolate chips
1 cup heavy cream

Additional Decorations:

1/2 cup chopped pistachios
Round, red sprinkles
marzipan
sliced almonds

Instructions:

Make the milk chocolate ganache first, as it needs at least a few hours to cool and set. To make, simply place both the chocolate 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.

Next, prepare the chocolate cake layers. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly butter two half sheet pans; line bottom with parchment paper and spray with non-stick spray. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat eggs and sugar until combined. Mix in vanilla and espresso powder.

Heat the butter and chocolate chips in the microwave for 2, 30 second intervals, stirring between. Let the mixture sit for one minute, then stir until all chocolate pieces are melted. If any chocolate bits remain, heat for another 30 seconds.

Slowly pout into the egg mixture while mixer is at a low speed, and scrape down the sides as needed with a spatula. Pour dry ingredients over top into the bowl in two installments, and fold together large rubber spatula. Spread evenly between the two prepared pans, offset spatula to ensure even distribution.

Bake for about 18 minutes, or until the a toothpick inserted into the center of the layer comes out clean. Remove from oven, and allow the layers to cool for 1 minutes. turn out the cake upside down onto a piece of parchment paper sprinkled lightly with cocoa. You can also use a clean dish towel, but I found that parchment paper works much better!!

Peel away parchment paper from bottom of cake, then gently roll each cake layer and place on a cooling rack. Set the rolled-up cake seam-side down, and let cool until just slightly warm to the touch, about 25 minutes.

While the layers cool prepare the peanut butter buttercream. Beat the butter and peanut butter on a 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 vanilla and salt, and beat on low until the ingredients are fully incorporated, and the desired consistency is reached.

When the layers have cooled for about 25 minutes, carefully unroll them. Don’t worry if there are a few cracks in your layers, the buttercream will fill them and once you rolls the layer back up, they wont be visible! Gently spread a thick layer of frosting over layer. Line them up so the the short sides are touching, and begin to re-roll the layers.

Continue until you get to the end of the first roll, and then carefully align the second layer, and continue rolling until both layers have been combined into one large log. This part will be messy!! Place seam side down on a cooling rack, and place in the freezer to help the cake cool into its rolled shape.

Let the cake chill for about 1 hour, then remove from the freezer. Use a sharp knife to trim about 1 inch away from both sides of the cake roll, to make them flat. Spread a large dab of buttercream into the center of the cake round, and carefully place the log vertically, securing it in the buttercream.

Frost the top of the cake with leftover peanut butter buttercream, and use a fork to create lines in the frosting to resemble tree rings.

Cover the sides of the cake in chocolate ganache, adding a bit more around the base in certain areas to resemble the roots of a tree stump. Use an offset spatula to drag ganache up the cake, to give the bark some texture. Use marzipan to make mushrooms, and add red round sprinkles to look like small berries.

Sprinkle chopped pistachios around the base, and a little bit onto the top of the stump to look like moss. The cut into the cake, and see the vertical layers created by rolling the cake layers!

Cupcakes, Holiday Treats, Sweets

Easy Buttercream Reindeer Cupcakes

December 15, 2017 Chelsweets Leave a comment

Christmas is a time for snow, reindeer, and PB&J cupcakes?! Yes, that’s right. When I was trying to think of the right flavor for these reindeer cupcakes, peanut butter was the front runner…and whenever I use peanut butter, jam usually follows suit. These cupcakes taste just as delicious as they look, and are sure to be a big hit at whatever holiday party you’re baking them for!! The recipe and tutorial can be found below:

Peanut Butter Cupcake Batter (adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction):

1 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup your favorite peanut butter (chunk or smooth)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temp
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup buttermilk

Filling: A jar of your favorite jam

Peanut Butter Buttercream:

1 stick of unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp. heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla

Additional Decorations:

12 tootsie rolls (antlers)
12 pairs of eyes (can be eye sprinkles or homemade from fondant!)
brown and red M&Ms
brown sprinkles (mouth)
leave frosting tip
piping bags
brown gel food coloring

Yield: 12 cupcakes

Bake Time: 25 minutes

Decorations: 30 minutes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line muffin tin with 12 cupcake holders.

Begin by making the peanut butter cupcake batter. Cream together the peanut butter, butter, and brown sugar at a medium speed until fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then add in vanilla. Mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl. Mix in half the flour mixture, then add in the buttermilk. Mix in the remaining dry ingredients, until just combined. Be careful not to overmix!! The batter should be pretty thick.

Use a cookie scoop to divide batter evenly between 12 cupcake tins. Bake for 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Place the muffin tins into the freezer for 20 minutes, to accelerate the cooling process, and lock in the moisture of the cupcakes.

While the cupcakes cool, make the peanut butter buttercream! Beat the butter and peanut butter on a medium speed for 30 seconds with a paddle attachment, until combined. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time. Alternate with small splashes of cream. Once fully mixed, add in the vanilla 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 1/3 of the frosting into a piping bag, and cut a 1.5 cm opening. Add a few drops of brown gel food coloring to the remaining frosting, and place into a piping bag, cutting a 1 inch opening.

Next, prepare the antlers! To make each pair of antlers, heat 2 unwrapped tootsie tolls in the microwave for 10-15 seconds, until they just being to melt. They should be warm to the touch and easy to mold. If they are to hot to handle. Let them cool for 30 seconds – 1 minutes, then try to handle them again. Shape the tootsie rolls into two logs, about 1.5 inches long. use a small knife to cut into the logs, to shape the spikes of the antlers. Set aside on parchment paper to cool. Be sure the antlers are fully hardened before inserting into the cupcakes.

Once the cupcakes are full cooled, remove the centers with a knife and fill with your favorite jam. Place the top of each cutout on top of the jam, then pipe a swirl of brown peanut butter frosting onto each cupcake.

Using the lighter peanut butter frosting, pipe a small circle on one side of the cupcakes to be the reindeer’s snout. Use an offset spatula to smooth the buttercream.

Place a red or brown M&M on top of the snout, and a brown sprinkle to be the mouth. Add on the eyes just above the snout, and then insert the antlers into the top of the cupcakes.

Use some of the remaining brown frosting and a leaf tip to pipe small ears. Freeze the ears, then quickly place them on the sides of the antlers. Then the cupcakes are ready to enjoy! While these cupcakes may be cute, they’re even more fun to eat 🙂

Cakes, Holiday Treats, Uncategorized

Holiday Feast Cakes

December 8, 2017 Chelsweets 5 Comments

People with holiday birthdays frequently find that the festive season can take priority over their special day!! In a national survey conducted by Chase Freedom, a third (32%) of those surveyed with holiday birthdays felt that they were celebrated less. In fact, the survey found that one-fifth of Americans admitted to forgetting, ignoring or deliberately downplaying someone’s birthday because it falls on or near a holiday.

I’ve recently partnered with Chase to shine a spotlight on holiday birthdays. If you didn’t know, I actually got my start by baking birthday cakes for friends, so this is a particular passion of mine. There is nothing quite like the look on someone’s face when they see the cake you’ve made just for them!

Last week, I helped host a birthday celebration at a local New York City Chase branch by creating a traditional holiday feast with a twist – they were made entirely of birthday cake, complete with sprinkles, funfetti and rainbow swirls inside! As you can imagine, guests were surprised to see cakes in the shape of a ham, a skillet of Brussels sprouts and even a cherry pie.

The recipes and tools needed are included below. If you want to try cooking up these festive cakes, please share using #ChaseFreedom:

Holiday Ham Cake

5 batches of my vanilla layer cake recipe, colored light pink
5 batches of my buttercream, +2 Tbsp Honey
1 container sprinkles
pink fondant
brown fondant
brown and pink gel food coloring
kitchen torch

To make the Holiday Ham Cake, bake two 8 inch layers, two 7 inch layers, two 6 inch layers, and one 4 inch layer. Once baked and cooled, use a 4 inch circle cutter to remove the centers from one of the 8 inch layers, and two of the 7 inch layers. Prepare the buttercream, then stack and frost the layers from largest to smallest, along the side of cake. Once the layers without centers are stacked, apply a thing crumb coat the cut out areas, and fill with sprinkles.

Top with remaining cake layers. Stacking them off center will make it easier to lay the cake on its side once it’s carved. Insert a wooden dowel through the cake to secure the layers, then use a serrated knife to carve the layers, to resemble the shape of a ham.

Trim the side of the cake closest to the dowel, to make a flat surface to lay the cake on. Carefully flip the cake onto its side, then apply a thin crumb coat of frosting. Place an 8 inch, pink fondant circle on the front of the cake. Lay brown fondant over the side of the cake, and trim excess. Score lines around the sides of the ham using a fondant tool. Add a white fondant tail bone over the exposed dowel on the back of the cake. Cut out 1 inch of pink fondant using a circle cutter. Place a white fondant ring into the cutout, to be the other end of the bone.

Use a kitchen torch to caramelize the brown fondant, to give the ham a “fresh out of the oven” look. Next, paint the brown fondant with a mixture of vodka and brown gel food coloring.

In a small container, mix together a drop of red gel food coloring with a 1 Tbsp of vodka, and lightly dab onto the pink fondant to make the ham look juicy. The last step is to pipe some dark green buttercream around the ham cake as the leafy garnish.

Brussels Sprout Cake

1 batch of my vanilla layer cake recipe, + 3/4 cup rainbow sprinkles
1 batch of my black buttercream
green fondant
black fondant
green food coloring mixed with 1 Tbsp vodka
1 paint brush
1 bag white chocolate, melted over a double boiler
kitchen torch

To make the Brussels sprouts cake, make two 10 inch funfetti cake layers. Prepare the black buttercream, and stack and frost the two funfetti cake layers. Trim the sides of the cake to taper in slightly towards the base. Scoop out about 1/2 inch from the center of the top layer, leaving a 1 cm rim.

Coat in a thin crumb coat, and chill the cake in the fridge or freezer until the frosting is firm to the touch. Add a second, thicker layer of black buttercream, and smooth using a piece of acetate sheet.

Next, prepare the Brussels sprouts! Make cake balls using trimmed cake bits and extra white frosting from the ham cake. Form twelve 1 inch balls, and freeze. Use a silicon mold to make 12 half spheres. Coat in a layer of white chocolate (you want them to have the texture of real Brussels sprouts, so they don’t need to be perfectly smooth!), and set aside to dry. Once firm to the touch, cover in a thin layer of white fondant. Create lines along the top of the cake balls to look like Brussels sprout leaves.

Paint a couple layers of bright green food coloring mixed with vodka. Then paint an additional layer of forest green food coloring to give the Brussels sprouts more dimension. Set aside to dry.

Once the food coloring has dried, arrange on top of the skillet cake. Start with the largest Brussels sprouts in the center of the cake, and work towards the edge of the cake. Fit as many as possible in the base layer, then add half of the Brussels sprouts into any remaining space, and on top of the first layer.

Carefully use a blow torch to caramelize the Brussels sprouts and avoid touching the frosting with the flame!

Cherry Pie Cake

1 batch of my vanilla layer cake recipe, divided into 6 parts and colored red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple
1 batch of my buttercream+ 2 squirts ivory gel food coloring
cherry pie filling
tan fondant
ivory food coloring + 1 Tbsp vodka
sterile paint brush

To make the cherry pie cake, bake two 10 inch cake layers, by swirling together rainbow colored batter. You can watch a full tutorial on how I make my swirled cake layers here. Prepare the tan colored buttercream, and stack and frost the two colorful cake layers. Trim the sides of the cake layers to taper.

Flip the cake over so that the widest part is facing up. Scoop out about 1/2 inch from the center of the top layer, leaving a 1 cm rim. Coat in a thin crumb coat, and chill the cake in the fridge or freezer until the frosting is firm to the touch. Add a second layer of buttercream, and smooth using a piece of acetate sheet. Cover the sides in tan fondant, and lightly score using a fondant tool. Add the cherry pie filling onto the top of the cake, leaving a 1 inch boarder around the perimeter.

Interlace 1 inch strips of fondant to create the pie crust top, and trim to fit a 10 inch circle using a cake board.

Place a ruffled fondant pie crust boarded around the perimeter of the cake, then carefully place the latticed strips on top of the cherry pie filling. Secure the strips over the crust by gently pressing them together. Paint the top of the pie with 1 drop of ivory food coloring mixed with 1 Tbsp vodka, to give the cake a golden brown hue.

Then it’s time to present the feast of cakes and cut in to reveal the birthday surprise centers!!!

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A little bit Chelsey, a whole lot of sweet!