Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Buttercream for a Special Day

There's this saying, 'Funny how time flies (when you're having fun)'.

I can still remember the very first time I met my husband, October 2007, just feels like yesterday. The fact is, it has been 5 years since that, and exactly 2 years since our wedding day.

So I guess I've been having fun! I thank God for this and thank you to my dearest husband ^_^

So for this special day, I made a chocolate cake with raspberry buttercream (Don't you love it when you have a reason to make pretty cakes?? ). The plan was to make a fondant cake. But then I had a change of heart, right after the raspberry buttercream was done. The color, ah, too beautiful a color to pass up! A bucket of roses with that purple color seemed just right.

The double chocolate cake is adapted from the famous Miette's Tomboy Cake recipe from Bakerella, which my friend, Bicil, told me. It's a double chocolate cake, so of course, very rich, chocolaty, and moist. I'm not complaining at all.. :)

Ah.. and I'm glad my husband likes it. That way I can officially call it our anniversary cake. Happy anniversary to us! 

Double Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:
11/2 cups all-purpose flour
11/4 cups natural unsweetened cocoa powder
11/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 ounces 70 percent (or 60 percent) cacao chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup boiling water
1 cup buttermilk (if you don't have buttermilk, you can use 1 tbsp lemon juice and add milk until the liquid reaches 1 cup volume)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup vegetable oil
21/4 cups sugar

Directions
1. Liberally butter two 6-by-3-inch regular or contour cake pans and dust with sifted cocoa powder. Tap out the excess cocoa.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

3. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a bowl and set aside.

4. Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and pour the boiling water over it. Whisk until the chocolate is melted. Let the mixture cool for 15 minutes.

5. In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and vanilla. Set aside.

6. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the eggs on high speed until foamy, about 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and slowly pour in the oil, whisking until combined, about 30 seconds. Raise the speed to medium and whisk until fully incorporated, about 30 seconds longer.

7. Reduce the speed to low and slowly pour the cooled chocolate mixture into the egg mixture. Slowly pour in the buttermilk and vanilla mixture. Add the sugar and whisk until the batter is smooth and liquid, about 2 minutes.

8. Stop the mixer. Remove the bowl and add the sifted dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated, preferably by hand, lifting and folding in from the bottom center. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix again just briefly by hand. The batter may still look a little lumpy, but stop mixing.

9. Pour the batter through a medium-mesh sieve into a large measuring cup or bowl to remove any lumps. Press against the solids in the sieve with a rubber spatula to push through as much batter as possible, then discard the lumps. Divide the batter between the prepared pans. Bake until the tops spring back when lightly pressed and a tester inserted in the centers comes out clean, about 45 minutes.

10. Transfer to wire racks and let cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. When the cakes are cooled enough to handle the pans but still a tad warm to the touch, carefully run an offset spatula around the edges of the pans to loosen them, then invert the cakes onto the racks and remove the pans. (Note: If you are making the Old-Fashioned Cake and therefore using a contour pan, just invert the pans and drop them sharply onto the racks; they should fall out cleanly. Using an offset spatula in a contour pan will mar the edges of the cake.) Let cool for about 20 minutes longer. Wrap the cakes tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate to ensure that the interiors are completely cooled before decorating, at least 1 hour or for up to 3 days. To freeze, wrap tightly in a second layer of plastic and store in the freezer up to 2 months.

Note:
We use natural cocoa powder not Dutch-processed, as the Dutch-processed cocoa has been treated with an alkalizing agent that heightens the color but gives it a milder flavor. For this recipe, it is important to use natural product such as Scharffen Berger to attain a deep, dark chocolate flavor.


Raspberry Buttercream

Ingredients:
1 cup butter (room temperature)
1 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup raspberry jam
2 pounds powdered sugar

Directions:
- Mix butter, vegetable shortening, and raspberry jam until incorporated.
- Add powdered sugar until it reaches the desired consistency (and sweetness!)

Iday and Olive Farewell Cake

Yesterday we had farewell party at my house for our friends, Iday and Olive, who is going to leave town. They have been so kind to us all this time, so I thought why not made them a special farewell cake. This is the second project for me. Last time was making birthday cake for my husband, I was not able to make the buttercream roses. But this time, I succeeded:) Just by substituting the butter with vegetable shortening.
The one thing I'll try to remember next time is to take a picture of the cake from the top!

His Birthday Cake

Yesterday is my husband's birthday. I made him a birthday cake, first time for me. The initial plan was to create a basket of roses. But I wasn't able to get the perfect consistency of the buttercream, and I had to get the birthday cake done soon, so I substituted the roses with flower drops. It turns out really nice and girly. But I'm still really curious on a perfect recipe to make the buttercream, so I'm gonna try to make and decorate a new cake later, for a different occasion ;)

So here's the recipe for the birthday cake

For the cake:

Classic White Cake, adapted from here

The recipe says that the batter should fill less than 1/2 full in the baking pan. It really IS should. I made two batches of the white cake. One with less than 1/2 full and one with almost full. The one with almost full had small part of batter which is still uncooked in the center bottom of the cake.

And the cake was a bit too sweet for me. I will reduce the sugar to 11/4 cups next time.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups all-purpose flour (spoon flour into measuring cup and level to rim)
2 teaspoons baking powder 
1/2 teaspoon salt 

4 large egg whites 
1 large egg
3/4 cup whole or 2% milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract 

1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cold from the refrigerator 
1 1/2 cups sugar 

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Position the oven shelf to the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two 9- x 2-inch cake pans or one 13- x 9- x 2-inch pan, and line with greased parchment paper. Set aside. Light colored, heavy NOT nonstick pans are preferred. (If you use dark, nonstick baking pans or ovenproof, Pyrex glass pans, be sure to reduce the oven heat by 25 degrees F). 

2. In a medium size mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In a large measuring cup or a bowl with a pouring spout, combine the egg whites, egg, milk and vanilla extract. Set aside.

3. Beat the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, on low until softened. (If the butter is cold, cut it into tablespoon size pieces, and then beat it; it will warm quickly from the beaters - taking about 60 seconds). Add the sugar in a steady stream at the side of the bowl. Increase speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes until light yellow and fluffy.

Stop the mixer and scrape the side and bottom of the bowl with a large rubber spatula.  

4. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in 3 equal portions, alternating with the milk mixture in 2 equal portions, beginning and ending with the flour. (If the milk is cold, the batter will curdle slightly. It's ok. It will come together when you add the flour.) 

Add the flour and liquid ingredients slowly at the side of the bowl. The minute you have finished adding one, begin adding the other ingredient type; do not wait in between additions too long as you don't want to overmix the batter. 

After completing the last addition of flour, stop the mixer, and scrape the side and bottom of the bowl with a large rubber spatula.  

Then, let the mixer run for 30 to 45 seconds on low. The batter should look light and fluffy. Then, STOP the mixer. Do NOT overmix. 

5. Remove the mixing bowl from the mixer. With a large rubber spatula, give the batter ONE or TWO quick folds to incorporate any stray flour or milk left at the sides and bottom of the bowl. Then, STOP! 

6. Divide the batter in the prepared baking pans (should fill less than 1/2 full) and lightly smooth the tops. 

7. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the top feels firm and gives slightly when touched and will shrink slightly from the side of the pan. The cake will be slightly browned. If you insert a toothpick in the middle and remove, there should be a few moist crumbs attached, but not batter. The cakes will have a slight dome and small cracks on top right when it comes from the oven, but as the cakes cool, they will flatten on top and the tiny cracks will disappear.  

Cool in pan on a wire cake rack for 10 to 15 minutes, then turn out onto a rack, remove paper. Invert right side-up and let cool completely.  

For the buttercream:

Recipe is adapted from here

This recipe can be used for filling, crumb coating, and making the basket weave or flower drops, but NOT for the roses.

Ingredients

• 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks or 1/2 pound), softened (but not melted!) Ideal texture should be like ice cream.
• 3-4 cups confectioners (powdered) sugar, SIFTED
• 1/4 teaspoon table salt
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• up to 4 tablespoons milk or heavy cream

Instructions

1. Beat butter for a few minutes with a mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed. Add 3 cups of powdered sugar and turn your mixer on the lowest speed (so the sugar doesn’t blow everywhere) until the sugar has been incorporated with the butter. Increase mixer speed to medium and add vanilla extract, salt, and 2 tablespoons of milk/cream and beat for 3 minutes. If your frosting needs a more stiff consistency, add remaining sugar. If your frosting needs to be thinned out, add remaining milk 1 tablespoons at a time.