It’s time to bake a cake (again)
When you’re older, you don’t want to celebrate birthday in a big way. It’ll be nice if you’re surrounded by the ones you love and celebrate it quietly, in my case, it would preferably be with lots of good foods and a cake. I can’t have all I want in my birthday, but at least there’s always a birthday cake to eat. This year the cake is vanilla buttermilk with chocolate fudge frosting. When I was preparing things for making this cake, I realized that after all these years, I didn’t have enough 8-inch cake pan to bake a triple-layer cake. What a pity! Quietly I put these pans in my to-buy list. But, the cake making didn’t stop there. I had to improvise, even when it meant that I would have a leftover cake. To do it my way, I used three 6-inch cake pans and a 8-inch square cake pan for the leftover. The cake would be small and taller, and the rest would go in a freezer for a rainy day dessert. The chocolate frosting got a bit of booster from Kahlúa, not enough to make us tipsy but it gave a nice oomph to the chocolate.
After dinner, I shared a slice with my hubby, a good way to end a meal and a year (to be older).
Vanilla Buttermilk Cake with Chocolate Fudge Frosting
Makes an 8-inch triple-layer cake; serves 12 to 16 or makes a 6-inch triple layer cake with leftover
4 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
3 cups cake flour
2 cups sugar
4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottoms and sides of three 8-inch or 6-inch round cake pans or spray to coat with vegetable oil. Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment or waxed paper and grease the paper.
Put the eggs and yolks in a medium mixing bowl, add the vanilla and 1/4 cup of the buttermilk. Whisk to blend well.
Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large mixer bowl; whisk to blend. Add the butter and the remaining 1 cup buttermilk to these dry ingredients and with the mixer on low, blend together. Raise the mixer speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Add the egg mixture in 3 additions, scraping down the sides of the bowl and mixing only until thoroughly incorporated. Divide the batter among the 3 prepared pans.
Bake the cake layers for 28 to 32 minutes for the 8-inch cake pans, or 25-30 minutes for the 6-inch cake pans, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the cake begins to pull away from the sides of the pan. Let the layers cool in the pans for 10 minutes; then carefully turn out onto wire racks, peel off the paper liners, and let cool completely.
To assemble the cake, place one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or serving plate. Spread 3/4 cup of the fudge frosting over the layer right to the edge. Repeat with the next layer. Place the last layer on top and use all but 3/4 cup of the frosting to cover the top and sides of the cake. (If using 6-inch cake pans, you’ll have quite a bit of leftover frosting.) Place the remaining 3/4 cup frosting in a pastry bag with a medium star tube and pipe a shell border around the top and bottom edges of the cake.
Chocolate Fudge Frosting
6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
4 cups confectioners’ sugar (no need to sift)
3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 tablespoons half-and-half
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 to 1 tablespoon Kahlúa, optional
Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and pulse to incorporate. Then process until the frosting is smooth.
Source: adapted from Sky High: Irrestible Triple-Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne
lOOKS BEAUTIFUL AND DELICIOUS! We ate cake today too for our 5 yr old.
ooh nice! happy birthday to your 5-yr old too!
Comment by Rachelle ~ \ — August 9, 2008 @ 10:47 pm
Happy Birthday
thanks HBB!
Comment by Happy Homebaker — August 10, 2008 @ 6:02 am
I HOPE YOUR BITHDAY WAS AS SPECIAL AS THE CAKE YOU’VE MADE. IT LOOKS SO DELICIOUS!
oh, thanks Nina, it’s such a simple day for me
Comment by nina — August 10, 2008 @ 9:24 am
it looks awesome! mini tall cakes make me swoon. they are like little, happy cakes
I hope you enjoyed your birthday…
thank you Amanda…
Comment by Amanda — August 10, 2008 @ 9:55 am
happyyyy birthday
cake-nya sexy banget deh. welcome back!
makasih banyak Dita, you’re so sweet!
Comment by dita — August 10, 2008 @ 11:07 am
Happy birthday Liz
eh, ada Lisa disini?
thanks ya!
Comment by lisa — August 10, 2008 @ 12:29 pm
I am beginning to like these smaller, yet taller cakes! They look real elegant! You did a neat job, didn’t you?!
Happy Birthday Eliza!
aww…i did okay, still learning! thanks Pei Lin!
Comment by Mrs Ergül — August 10, 2008 @ 7:21 pm
met ultahhhhh…..:D, jadi pengen nyomot kuenya juga
silahkan di toel Sye…makasih ya
Comment by elsye — August 10, 2008 @ 7:38 pm
Ooo my! That does look delicious!
Happy Birthday!
thanks so much!
Comment by FLG — August 10, 2008 @ 11:04 pm
Happy Belated Brithday. Awesome looking cake!
thank you Lynn, you guys made my day extra special!
Comment by Mrs. L — August 10, 2008 @ 11:17 pm
I love tall 6-inch cakes, and your birthday cakes is no exception! I’m on the search for a good, no muss-no fuss chocolate frosting at the moment and I think I might have found it! Thanks for sharing!
thank you so much Mari, the frosting was really easy to make, i hope you have a chance to try it.
Comment by Mari — August 11, 2008 @ 9:29 am
Happy belated B’day dear eliza
what a sexy and yummy cake!
if i were there, sure will have the half, ha ha
thanks Ira…i’d surely give you more than half
Comment by busy little bee — August 11, 2008 @ 11:57 am
Gorgeous cake, oh and happy birthday to you
many thanks for your comment!
Comment by holler — August 11, 2008 @ 2:35 pm
Happy B’day Liz
moga tambah sukses selalu. satu potong kue buat gw pls? wink
of course!
thanks ya Dwi…
Comment by dwiana — August 11, 2008 @ 3:12 pm
What a beautiful cake! I have to get some of those 6-inch cake pans. Happy bday!
yes, those pans actually are very handy! thanks Lori!
Comment by RecipeGirl — August 11, 2008 @ 8:14 pm
I love the height on that cake, it’s gorgeous!
And Happy Birthday!
thank you, thank you Brilynn!
Comment by brilynn — August 11, 2008 @ 8:21 pm
Happy Birthday!
It looks like a mini personalized cake!
Yes. I like to celebrate my birthday quietly too.
Is that cake for one?
i wish i could make one for you too!
Comment by tigerfish — August 12, 2008 @ 12:19 am
Beautifully decorated cake! I wish I had as much patience as you…
oh, Michelle, i’m not that patient either, that’s why i always choose simple cake decoration!
Comment by Michelle — August 12, 2008 @ 5:09 am
Happy birthday, darling!
This is a lovely way to celebrate it. I have that book and have had an eye on this cake for quite a while now…
xoxo
thanks Pat!
i love that book! though i use it only for a special occasion
Comment by Patricia Scarpin — August 12, 2008 @ 12:31 pm
That cake looks really good!
thanks Kevin!
Comment by Kevin — August 12, 2008 @ 5:46 pm
happy belated birthday! lovely pictures and delicious looking cake!! great piping skills too!
thanks for the comment on my site, and to answer your question about the cocoa powder, i think the lighting made it look more red than light brown. and though i wish it was a higher quality cocoa powder, all i had was plain old hershey’s from the grocery store 
have a great week!
thanks. don’t you see one of the star is crooked?
ah…i was suspecting the light must be the culprit, but it never hurts to ask
Comment by missy — August 12, 2008 @ 9:07 pm
Eliza Happy Birthday! The cake is just beautiful with all those layers.
thank you Cathy!
Comment by Noble Pig — August 13, 2008 @ 12:46 am
Happy B’day.. cakenya cantik dan imoet
thanks Yin, imut sih gak hahahha…tapi tinggi.
Comment by Ayin — August 13, 2008 @ 4:20 am
Happy Birthday again, Liz
All the best yaaaaaa
Itu kue nya cantik n tinggi….sayang nggak ikutan icip icip
thanks again Mar…iya coba deket bisa bantuin ngaibisin
Comment by Mariena — August 13, 2008 @ 5:01 am
looks good, meng-icingnya rapiii sekalee
happy bday to u
samaan dong kita leoooo roarrrrr
makasih Foni…sama2 ya, happy bday juga!
Comment by foni — August 13, 2008 @ 11:37 am
Happy belated b’day, Liz. Sori ya baru online lagi.
Kadang aku pikir lucu deh, kita ini suka baking. Nah, begitu kita ultah, ‘terpaksa’ harus bikin kue ultah sendiri. Asyiknya kalo ada yg mau nyumbang kue ultah…hehehe.
Btw, dari dulu aku juga pengen banget bikin cake tinggi kayak gitu. Tapi sama kayak kamu, nggak punya loyangnya…huhuhu. Mungkin mesti bikin wishlist juga nih
.
makasih Sheil…
aku sih maunya ada yg bikinin martabak manis
Comment by Sheila — August 14, 2008 @ 2:10 am
Happy Birthday to you too!!
thanks so much Jaden!
Comment by Jaden — August 16, 2008 @ 7:16 pm
This cake looks beautiful. Happy Birthday!
thank you so much!
Comment by Alexa — August 20, 2008 @ 2:47 pm
How lovely! Vanilla cake with chocolate frosting will always be my favorite birthday cake. Happy Birthday to you!!
thank you! i was in the mood for vanilla caake, usually it’s chocolate, chocolate, chocolate!
Comment by PaniniKathy — August 20, 2008 @ 2:52 pm
Looks like the perfect birthday cake! Great job!
thank you for coming and giving me a birthday pat
Comment by My Sweet & Saucy — August 20, 2008 @ 9:30 pm
Because of the foodblogs, I was more inspired to try new and different foods, I am learning a lot and also thanks for sharing your ideas because at the same time I am also trying my best to learn how to prepare (decent meals
Busby SEO challenge
KabonFootPrint
Comment by kabonfootprint — August 28, 2008 @ 3:34 am
Elizaaaaa…! Congrats ya, fotonya dapet badge DMBLGIT. Keren banget emang fotonya, Liz. Bener2 menggiurkan.
thank you Sheil
Comment by Sheila — October 6, 2008 @ 12:55 am
Liz… selamat ya say menang DMBLGIT September 2008, you deserve it, fotonya emang cantik dan bikin laper
makasih ya Sefa…kamu juga menang tuh, kita pesta yuk? hhahhahaa
Comment by Sefa — October 6, 2008 @ 1:53 am
congrats Liz for d award n belated happy bday to u too! sorry br mampir skrg jd super telat ucapan ultahnya…
oh, terima kasih juga Lid….
Comment by Lidia — October 6, 2008 @ 8:22 pm
fotonya memang cantik
aku sudah coba resep nya, tapi blom sempet ke foto dah ngilaaang…!! thanks for sharing ya Liz..
oh ya? kamu suka gak?
Comment by fitri — October 21, 2008 @ 4:57 am