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.
What a gorgeous cake. I wish I was talented that way
Kathy, even at the adjusted age, from where I sit, my statement stands.
Such a beautiful cake!!!
Thank you so much for the photo tutorial. Now I am tempted to try my hand at it soon!
beautiful cake! I don’t celebrate Easter or passover, but I’m going to make my niece some lemon madelines for spring.
That cake looks amazing…and so springy! Never mind looking yummy. I used to try my hand at cake decorating years ago, thanks for the inspiration!
Oh, yummy!
This is so inspiring! I love the finished effect. I have a box of gum paste that I have never used, but those flowers look doable!
This looks so much better than any cake I’ve seen at a bakery. Gum paste flowers are usually a little too sweet for me but I love buttercream frosting…how could anyone not!
For Easter, definately Pasha and Kulitsa according to orthodox inheritance.
Este ano irei fazer para o dia de pascoa um bolo com massa de avelas com com recheio de musse de chocolate e cobertura de chocolate e ovinhos de pascoa.
Your cake is beautiful!
My husband celebrates Passover, and I celebrate Easter, so I made…
RESERVATIONS for the Nye’s Polonaise brunch! 🙂
I’m making the whole wheat apple cake recipe I just posted on my site for Passover and Deborah Madison’s Lemon Pudding Cake from Savory Way for Easter. We got it all covered over here.
Amazing Cake Zoe,you are truly gifted.
Would have loved to bake the Pineapple Polenta cake for Easter, but we’ll be away Sunday on to prepare for VBS (Vacation Bible School for Kids)starting the following day…maybe once we get back…
Happy Easter in advance Zoe, have a lovely day.
Hi Zoe….your cake is just spectacular…what a lucky neighbor..it reminded me of the cakes from the Little Red Hen in New York only fancier!! What am I making for Easter…Leg of Lamb ofcourse and for dessert…the best part…a raspberry cheesecake with chocolate crust..
I don’t celebrate easter but I would still like to enter the le creuset give-away 🙂
I’m making a beef tenderloin and hashbrown casserole. I’m getting hungry just thinking about it.
Very cute spring cake! I’ve been looking for some inspiration for a cake to make a friend of mine. Thanks so much!
Beautiful cake! For easter I’m making mini cherry cheesecakes to take to our family dinner.
What a beautiful cake! My mom has been doing most of the cooking/baking for Passover but I intend to make a matzah toffee (maybe I’ll use your chocolate caramel matzah recipe!)
That is SO pretty! I’m roasting lamb for Easter, with pomegranate molasses. And I’ll make a yellow cake with chocolate frosting. Always a mix of cultures around here. :o)
This is positively gorgeous.
That cake is gorgeous! What a wonderful thing to give for someone’s birthday!
For Easter (yes yes Le Creuset!) we are making cocido, a typical Spanish boiled dinner…it is actually my mom’s birthday so it will be a double celebration 🙂
Looks delicious. I can never get a cake that smooth. I just tried the red velvet cake from Baked and got rave reviews from my tennis team. I think I will try it again for Easter.
Holy cow that’s gorgeous! This Easter co-incides with my sister’s and my dad’s birthdays, so I’m making a Neopolitan-flavoured cake (that is, a sour-cream chocolate bottom layer, French vanilla buttercream filling, and a top cake layer of strawberry pound cake) and for the decoration I’m making a deliciously edible ice-cream cone out of chocolate and peanuts!
My Mom and Dad will be joining my husband and I for our first Easter since we got married. My Mom gave up chocolate for Lent so I will be making something VERY chocolatey!!