This weekend was my neighbor’s birthday. Her husband asked me to bake her a decadent chocolate cake and decorate it with “Spring Flowers.” Here in MN it isn’t exactly bursting with flora yet. In fact, as I was working on this flower cake it started to snow. But Easter is right around the corner and the tulips and rhubarb are promising to come out of the ground soon. We hold our breath and hope for a greener time, soon. Her cake, like Kathy herself, had to be over the top and fantastic! I wanted it to be bright and full of life to compensate for the snow!
The chocolate layers were made up of Devil’s Food, Chocolate Pastry Cream, Bittersweet Ganache, White Chocolate Buttercream and the flowers were made from gum paste.
Happy Birthday Kathy!
Last week I was in such a rush to get my Daring Baker Challenge done in time that I forgot to give away another Le Creuset Stoneware Heart Ramekin with Cover, Red. This week I will give away 2 to make up for it. Just leave me a note below and tell me what you are making for Passover*, Easter** or whatever you are craving now that it is spring. I will pick 2 random winners next week.
Springtime Flower Cake
Follow along with the instructions and find the full recipe below. White Chocolate Buttercream by Rose Levy Beranbaum from the The Cake Bible
To make the buttercream:
In a small heavy sauce pan heat together the 3/4 cup sugar and water, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is bubbling. Turn the heat to low.
In your stand mixer beat the egg whites with the whip attachment, on low speed until they are foamy. Add the cream of tartar and beat on med/high speed until they reach soft peaks. Reduce speed and gradually add the 1/4 cup of sugar and beat until stiff peaks. Reduce speed to low.
Attach a candy thermometer to your pot and bring the sugar syrup to a boil, remove when the thermometer reads 248 degrees. Slowly pour the sugar into the egg whites, along the bowl’s edge, being careful not to hit the whip or it will splatter.
Increase the speed and allow the whites to whip until glossy and room temperature, about 2 minutes. Add the butter 1 tablespoon at a time, until all incorporated. It may go through a stage when it looks soupy, but it will come together when the last bit of butter is added and it has whipped for a minute or so.
Slowly add the rum in small amounts, whip after each addition. Then add the cooled melted chocolate and whip gently until incorporated.
To assemble the flower cake:
I split the cake into 3 layers and spread each layer with a coating of the ganache. In order to keep the pastry cream from oozing out of the cake I created a dam around the edge of the cake with the buttercream, (you could also use stiff ganache to do this), using a large plain tip in a pastry bag.
Fill the center of the flower cake with the pastry cream.
I create a crumb coat with just a thin layer of the buttercream to lock in the crumbs.
Once you have a thin layer on, refrigerate the cake for about 30 minutes so that the butter hardens. When you do your final layer of buttercream you won’t have to worry about getting dark crumbs on the outside of your cake.
Start with a large blob of buttercream on the top.
Spread it out, so that it is flat and just slightly beyond the edge of the cake. This will insure that you get a perfectly square top to your cake.
Now your want to cover the sides. Don’t worry about getting it smooth until the whole thing is covered in a nice thick layer of the buttercream.
Now you want to smooth out the sides. This can only be done well with a Turntable
To create the ferns you will need to color your buttercream with food Color and fill several pastry bags witht eh different colors. I recommend using the Disposable Pastry Bags
Create your gum paste flowers
and roses
Assemble the flower cake!
Enjoy!!!
*If you need some inspiration you should check out what Ariela at Baking and Books has put together with my recipes for Passover worthy ladyfingers. Or my Chocolate Caramel Matzo, Coconut “Haystack” Macaroons, Marzipan Cherries or Fruit Jellies!
**Here is a post I just did about Hot Cross Buns, made with 5 minute dough from my book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.
Don’t forget to leave a note to win Le Creuset Stoneware Heart Ramekin with Cover, Red
Ingredients
- Gum paste or fondant flowers Gum paste or fondant flowers
- One recipe Devil’s Food. Devil's Food
- One recipe of Pastry Cream, plus 6 ounces milk chocolate, melted. Pastry Cream
- One recipe Bittersweet Ganache Bittersweet Ganache
- White Chocolate Buttercream
- 1 pound 4 sticks unsalted butter, softened but should still be able to pick up the stick without it losing its shape.
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 5 large egg whites
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/4 cup rum optional
- 6 ounces white chocolate melted and cool to room temperature.
Instructions
To make the buttercream:
- In a small heavy sauce pan heat together the 3/4 cup sugar and water, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is bubbling. Turn the heat to low.
- In your stand mixer beat the egg whites with the whip attachment on low speed until they are foamy. Add the cream of tartar and beat on med/high speed until they reach soft peaks. Reduce speed and gradually add the 1/4 cup of sugar and beat until stiff peaks. Reduce speed to low.
- Attach a candy thermometer to your pot and bring the sugar syrup to a boil, remove when the thermometer reads 248 degrees. Slowly pour the sugar into the egg whites, along the bowl’s edge, being careful not to hit the whip or it will splatter.
- Increase the speed and allow the whites to whip until glossy and room temperature, about 2 minutes. Add the butter 1 tablespoon at a time, until all incorporated. It may go through a stage when it looks soupy, but it will come together when the last bit of butter is added and it has whipped for a minute or so.
- Slowly add the rum in small amounts, whip after each addition. Then add the cooled melted chocolate and whip gently until incorporated.
To assemble the flower cake:
- I split the cake into 3 layers and spread each layer with a coating of the ganache. In order to keep the pastry cream from oozing out of the cake I created a dam around the edge of the cake with the buttercream, (you could also use stiff ganache to do this), using a large plain tip in a pastry bag. Fill the center of the flower cake with the pastry cream.
- Once you have a thin layer on, refrigerate the cake for about 30 minutes so that the butter hardens. When you do your final layer of buttercream you won’t have to worry about getting dark crumbs on the outside of your cake.
- Start with a large blob of buttercream on the top.Spread it out, so that it is flat and just slightly beyond the edge of the cake. This will insure that you get a perfectly square top to your cake.
- Now your want to cover the sides. Don’t worry about getting it smooth until the whole thing is covered in a nice thick layer of the buttercream.
- Now you want to smooth out the sides. This can only be done well with a Turntable and a long Spatula. hold the spatula straight up and down at a 20 degree angle from the cake. Turn the cake turn table and slowly smooth out the cake. once the sides are smooth then you will do the top. Again at a 20 degree angle you will smooth the top, starting from the outside. be sure not to sweep all the way across the cake, just to the middle. Continue all the way around until it is nice and smooth.
- To create the ferns you will need to color your buttercream with food Color and fill several pastry bags witht eh different colors. I recommend using the Disposable Pastry Bags when using this many colors. It took me about as long to clean mine out as it did to build the cake! 😉 Use a pastry bag and a #2 Plain Pastry Tip to create the center lines. Then use a Leaf #67 Decorating Tip to create the leaves. Start larger at the bottom and get smaller as you go up.
- Create your gum paste flowers and roses and assemble.
Wow…what an amazing cake!
Trying something different this year for Easter….Lamb barbacoa.
What a happy looking cake!
oh my… that cake is insanely beautiful! we don’t celebrate easter, but knowing that it will be a beautiful day we will surely bbq. it is already warm enough here that i try not to use the oven… so i’m hoping to come across some bake free desserts soon! in the meantime we enjoy fresh local fruit with yummie whipped cream :O)
Gorgeous cake. I have been decorating cakes for years, have finally mastered a Tea Rose! For Easter we are making a Rib Roast, asparagus gratin, loaded baked potatoes, and then whatever the rest of the family brings.
Nice prize too!!
LOVE the cake. As a fellow minneapolite – we need all of the color we can get! My favorite easter dish is lemon meringue pie. The lofty meringue is so fun to watch it brown up and show off a fun design. The lemon is great to bring out the spring!
This year for Easter I will be making little carrot cake “baskets”: Carrot cupcakes with green cream cheese frosting piped on like grass, complete with a Peeps bunny, jelly beans, and a Twizzler as a handle! Hopefully all the kids I will be celebrating with will enjoy them!
As the birthday girl [?] I can tell you that this cake was even more delicious than it was beautiful. Over the top is right. I’ve been the happy taste tester for so many of Zoe’s fabulous creations; it was beyond wonderful to be the recipient of this one. I was so honored–it almost made turning 29 worth it. Ha!
Fabulous cake! For Easter,
I am making no knead cinnamon raisin bread and peanut butter banana bread (need to use up huge jar of peanut butter).
we celebrate passover however i am just not in the holiday mood so i will be sending out for chinese thanks for the giveaway
I am making flourless chocolate walnut cookies!
What a gorgeous cake. Thanks for the tutorial on the fern leaves. I have a little sugar egg project that I am contemplating for Easter and I’d like to use that tip. We have ham here for Easter. Probably with au gratin potatoes and asparagus or green beans. I am trying to not go overboard! 🙂
Beautiful cake! For Easter, my contribution to the family meal is deviled eggs, on a cute new egg platter my mom gave me for Easter!
I’m bringing garlic-herb dinner rolls and corniest corn muffins to our family dinner, plus, if I’m ambitious enough this week, Easter cake pops!
Beautiful cake.
We aren’t traditional people, we like to do a big breakfast for holidays (except Thanksgiving). I will be making french toast or waffles. My hubby will make eggs and other sides.
Gorgeous Cake! I love following you on Twitter – you are so creative!
Okay, my GOAL is to make a special easter bunny cake and live to blog about it, with cupcakes to go with it. Fingers crossed!
Well I am Korean so I am going to make a Korean style barbecue. It is beef that is marinated. Called bulgogi. For dessert I was thinking carrot cake which is always a classic! Great giveaway I had fun!
Stunning cake! Great work! 🙂
I’m making a bunny cake!
Lovely cake. I love all of the flowers. You did an outstanding job!!
beautiful cake!! i’m going to be making cinnamon rolls from AB in 5 and i can’t wait! =)
That is such a beautiful cake! Makes me feel even more ready for spring!
I will probably be making either some homemade marshmallows or caramels 🙂
For Easter we are having our first BBQ of the season! Salmon and halibut, plus many veggie sides. I am making spinach artichoke baked dip for an appetizer and dessert will be Rum Cake (http://www.recipezaar.com/Almost-Tortuga-Rum-Cake-108524). Rain or shine, I’m excited!! The girls (cousins, almost 3) will find plastic eggs hidden in the yard filled with trail mix, raisins, little gifts and stickers, etc.
Beautiful work! The flowers are so delicate and pretty!
For Easter I am going to grill because we will be getting back from a road trip that morning. I will, however, bake Hot Cross Buns before we leave for the trip. I love them!
I’m still deciding.. cupcake pops or homemade peeps! What a cool giveaway. 🙂 PS- I use your fondant recipe for all of my cakes/cupcakes! Thanks for the link and tutorial!
Such a pretty cake! This year for Passover I think we are going to try a new matzo ball soup idea I’ve been thinking about.