Classic Yellow Cake with Chocolate Buttercream

I'm sure just about every one of you reading this has been affected by cancer somehow. For those of us who  love one of these resilient fighters, you probably feel a lot like me. I'm generally not a violent person, but more than anything, I think, I'd like to kick cancer in the face. Really hard. And with my shoes on.

As the self-proclaimed national sponsor of more birthdays, let's celebrate another 365 days together during Cancer Control Month (hello, that would be this month...April...) with the National Cancer Society.

And what better way could there possibly be to celebrate more birthdays than with some homemade goodness? A classic yellow cake buried in rich chocolate buttercream? There is no better way, that's what.

This is one of Paula Deen's favorites, even though it lacks copious amounts of butter, and therefore, must be tried. It's a great base for so many flavor combinations and tons of bakers use it for a quick mix. It's better than a plain old yellow cake mix but doesn't take much more effort. Hooray for delicious and simple!

And believe me when I say the quality of cocoa powder you use for the buttercream makes a difference. I mean, just regular grocery store brand will make chocolate buttercream just fine, but taste something a little fancier and your tastebuds are gonna go crazy! And aren't you worth it? Oh, yes, you are!

Classic Yellow Cake with Chocolate Buttercream [click to print]

Makes one 3-layer, 9" round cake

For the Cake: 

• 1 c. unsalted butter, softened
• 2 c. sugar
• 3 c. self-rising flour*
• 4 eggs
• 1 c. milk
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the Buttercream: 

• 4 c. powdered sugar
• 3/4 c. cocoa powder
• 1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 3-5 T. milk

*Don't have self-rising flour? No problem! Whisk together 3 c. all-purpose flour, 4-1/2 tsp. baking powder and an additional 3/4 tsp. salt; substitute this where recipe says to add self-rising flour. 

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line baking pans with parchment paper or coat with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 6-8 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, incorporating well between each addition. Add flour and milk mixture alternately, beginning and ending with flour. Add vanilla and continue mixing until just combined. Divide batter in pans and firmly tap 3-4 times on counter to get rid of any air bubbles.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until done. Allow cakes to cool on wire rack about 10 minutes before removing from pans to cool completely before frosting.

For the buttercream, combine powdered sugar, cocoa, butter, vanilla and salt in mixing bowl. On medium-low speed, beat in milk gradually, one Tablespoon at a time, until it reaches desired consistency.

To assemble, center one cake layer on serving plate and frost top. Stack second cake layer and frost top. Spread remaining frosting around sides of cake and eat it up!

Source: Cake adapted from Food Network

Lemon Ombre Cake with Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream

So we're doing some major renovations at work and I am currently homeless...aka my desk got tossed and I'm now relegated to one of the overly cramped nursing stations or a single bookshelf. No, not a single bookshelf, but a single shelf on a bookshelf! But even though this sounds pretty much awful, at least I get to hang out by windows now! Can I just say, I love sunshine!

And then, last week, it was warm enough that I sat outside beneath my favorite tree while being berated by an angry squirrel for a solid three minutes (that's practically an eternity in squirrel time), enjoying some fresh, mulch-scented air. Ah, Spring!

This has got to be the best way to celebrate the very first third day (yeah, I didn't get my act together that early) of my absolute favorite season of all (besides Fall...and now that I think about it, I do quite enjoy Summer, too...and Winter, in moderation, of course). Nothing like a slice of light lemon cake smothered in a fluffy Swiss Meringue Buttercream!

The really fun part about this cake is that it's an ombre, which means with each additional layer, the color intensifies. The yellow gradation, although it's apparently a little harder to distinguish than something dark like purple, made this little guy look like it was bursting with sunshine the second I cut into it!

Lemon Ombre Cake [click to print]
Makes four 6" layers

• 2 c. plus 2 T. flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 c. buttermilk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp. lemon extract
• 1-1/2 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
• 3 large eggs
• 2 T. lemon zest (about 2 lemons)
• yellow food coloring

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line cake pans with parchment paper or coat generously with nonstick cooking spray.

Whisk together dry ingredients and set aside. In separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk and extracts; set aside.

Cream butter and sugar in mixing bowl until well blended, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, incorporating well between each addition. Alternately add flour and buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Stir in zest.

Pour 1/4 batter into one pan. Add a few drops of food coloring to batter and stir to distribute evenly. Pour about 1/3 of remaining batter in second pan. Add a few more drops of food coloring and stir to distribute. Pour half in next pan. Add another squirt of food coloring and stir. Pour remaining batter in last pan.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until center springs back when lightly touched. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream 
Makes about 8 cups

• 10 egg whites (about 1 cup)
• 2 c. sugar, granulated not powdered!
• 2 c. unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 T. vanilla extract

You're going to need a double boiler for this recipe, but if you don't have one, don't worry! I don't either. We'll use our makeshift double boilers together. All you need is a pot filled with about 2 or 3 cups of water, and a heat safe bowl (like ceramic, glass or metal) that sits comfortably on top of your pot. You don't want the bowl to sit too deep and touch the water or you'll cook your eggs and that's just nasty in meringue. Ew. 

So, now that you have your set up ready...

In bowl (not on the heat yet), whisk together egg whites and sugar until well combined. And before you have a cow from the fact that we're using egg whites here, yes, I mean you, Dad and Mama, use a candy thermometer to make sure your mixture reaches 160 F and you'll be fine. 

Anyway, when water is simmering, place bowl on pot/double boiler and heat, whisking continuously, until the sugar melts completely. Test this by rubbing a little bit of the mixture between your fingers and feeling for any grittiness. If it's still gritty, keep heating. 

Once smooth, remove from double boiler and whisk in salt. Pour mixture into bowl of stand mixer and mix on high speed with whisk attachment. If you don't have a stand mixer, a handheld is no problem. I just get bored standing around holding a mixer. Once the mixture comes to room temperature, about 10-15 minutes, you'll have a beautiful meringue that you can eat just as is, but we're making this into a buttercream, so press on!

Change to paddle attachment, if you have one, and add butter to the meringue, about 2 Tablespoons at a time. Make sure each chunk is fully incorporated before adding the next bit. Continue adding butter until all chunks are fully incorporated and mixture is smooth and creamy. 

At this point, you may be getting nervous because your buttercream is looking a little strange, but don't give up! If it's runny or soupy...stick the whole bowl in the fridge for about 10-15 minutes to firm up and then continue whipping. If it's curdled and sick...just keep mixing! It will smooth out and look delicious again. 

Once the buttercream is nice and smooth, add extract and mix to combine. 

Source: Cake adapted from Serious Eats; Swiss Meringue Buttercream adapted from Whisk-Kid

To Assemble

Center the yellowest layer on your cake plate and frost top with a thin layer of buttercream. Continue adding layers and buttercream until fully stacked. Frost sides of cake. Add copious amounts of sprinkles on top, adding extra as necessary.