Taking Space and Making Cakes!

It just dawned on me that my quick start blogging had taken a bit of a hiatus.  How shocking!  Heh.  Frequently, in the world of social media, I think we (and I say we because it makes me feel better about my social media obsession) as a society feel the pull to constantly be in contact with everyone, via every social media tool, every minute of the day.  That sometimes if we don't express something -good or bad, that we'll just explode.  I'm sorry.  I don't really care to continue along that path.  It's overwhelming.

One of my new favorite bloggers, Beauty That Moves, posted not too long ago about how she's trimming the iPhone fat.  She has been successful, and I greatly admire that.  Seeing as I do basically everything on my iPhone I think it's time to do that too.  The exceptions being, of course, when I'm using it to cook...and talk to my women...and...take pictures...and....update my blog....  UGH!  *face palm*  I will overcome the urge.  

{Picture 1}

Anyway, I'm trying to take space for myself.  Through, as you already know, cooking/baking, yoga (I totally fell over today...scared the dog...heh), and tea-time-meditation.  It's working!  I am continuously shocked by how wonderful that space and silence is.  No TV, no iPhone, no radio.  Just pure unfiltered silence.  *swoon*  If you're not into silence, you should try it.  Seriously -a musician is telling you to try silence...?  Must mean it's good.  Just sayin'....

*cough*

Philosophy stint over.  Now -on to the food!

Tis' the season for birthdays!  I LOVE birthdays!  Mine is a particular favorite, but coming in a VERY close second is TMV's, which was just last week.  He had multiple celebrations, but I only made one cake.  One FABULOUS cake.  *swoon*  It was this precious little tasty in picture 1.  Spice cake.  

This has been one of the most gratifying baking projects thus far.  Not because it was for TMV, which is definitely a bonus, but because it was a hot mess.  Yes.  A hot baking mess.  I managed to plan ahead (a HUGE accomplishment for me -short attention span + plus large project = recipe for disaster...anyway...) and create something that was spectacularly edible.  I'm still at that, "yay it's edible phase" even though I've been majorly successful.  Thank ya', Geezus!

Right...I digress...distractions...

{Picture 2, of Shame}

So, in the process of this cakey goodness I managed to do this...Picture 2 (see how I made it small?  It's because it's a picture of shame...)!  I got SO excited by it's aroma that I dropped an entire cake pan on the floor.  GAH!  Of course after I panicked, I rescued what was left in the pan and managed to only have to scrub my mat for 10 minutes (there was crisco in that cake mix....*sigh*).  Don't worry -I didn't feed anyone icky-mat-cat-haired-cake batter...except the cat.  Who, despite her plumpness, is quite fast.  She didn't mind the cat hair.....

All's well that ends well because the cake turned out beautiful AND tasty!  I learned a little about my own rhythm, which has helped me SO much.  If you haven't found your prep rhythm you should do it.  It's amazingly helpful.  And totally came through in this production.  I'll write about that next, since I think it's interesting to watch others prep and execute!

So -the good stuff.  You've been been so patient, so I'll get on with it.  :)  This recipe is from Pinterest, from a blog called Portuguese Girl Cooks, from a cook book.  It's a long string of locations, but I managed to make it just as wonderful with a few adaptations of my own.

Here she is, folks:

Holiday Spice Cake with Eggnog Buttercream

Prep Time: 40 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Yield: One 8-inch 3 layer round cake

A rich and moist gingerbread spice cake filled and frosted with an old fashioned eggnog buttercream frosting.

Ingredients

For the Spice Cake
• 2 1/4 cups cake flour
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup vegetable shortening, room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 large egg, plus 3 large egg whites at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups ice cold water
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
• 3 tablespoons molasses
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tarter
For the Eggnog Buttercream
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 12 ounces (3 sticks) unsalted butter, cool but not cold, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 2 tablespoons dark rum
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

For the Spice Cake
1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease three 8-inch round cake pans with butter, and line the bottoms with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together both flours, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and molasses. Set aside.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and shortening on medium high speed until creamy and well combined, about 3 minutes. Add in the sugar, and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add in the vanilla, and the whole egg, beating until just combined.
5. With the mixer on low speed, add in 1/3 of the flour mixture, then half of the water, then 1/2 of the remaining flour, then the water, and ending with the remaining flour. Scrape down the bowl, and turn the mixer to medium for a few seconds to ensure all the components are well combined. Be sure not to over mix. Add in the cinnamon molasses mixture, and mix on low speed to combine.
6. In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining 3 egg whites and cream of tarter until soft peaks form. You can simply do this by hand with a whisk. It takes a little bit of elbow grease, but it only takes about 3 to 5 minutes. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter by hand.
7. Divide the batter among the three pans, and smooth the tops. The batter may look a little bit separated. I like to weigh my batter into the pans to ensure even cake layers. Bake the layers for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Transfer the cakes to a wire rack and allow them to cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. Then turn them out and remove the parchment to cool completely.
For the Eggnog Buttercream
8. In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar and flour. Slowly whisk in the milk and heavy cream. Cook the mixture over medium heat, whisking constantly for about 8 to 10 minutes or until the mixture has come to a boil and has thickened. I find it helpful to switch to a heatproof spatula halfway through to be able to reach the edges of the pot. Remove the pan from the heat, and strain the mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer.
9. Using the paddle attachment, beat the mixture on high speed until it is cool, about 10 minutes. Reduce the speed to low, and add all the butter. Increase the speed to medium high, and beat until all the butter is combined and the mixture is light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. It may not look right at first, but keep beating it, it will come together.
10. Add in the rum, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and mix until throughly combined. Add in about 1 heaping teaspoon of lustre dust if using and combine. If the frosting is too soft, refrigerate it for about 15 minutes, then beat again until light and fluffy.
Assembly
11. Place 1 cake layer on a plate, then top with about 1 1/2 cups of frosting and smooth it to create an even layer. Repeat for 2nd and 3rd layer. Apply a thin layer of frosting to the outside of the cake to create a crumb coat. Refrigerate the cake to allow the crumb coat to set for about 10 minutes. Remove from the fridge and apply another layer of frosting to the top and sides of the cake.
12. To create the look in the photos. Try to smooth the top and sides as best you can. I like to use a small offset spatula to fill and frost the cake. Then, use a bench scraper to smooth the sides, then the small offset spatula to smooth the top. This doesn't have to be perfect.
13. Using a large angled spatula, starting at the bottom, apply slight even pressure to spatula against the cake, and turn the cake to create a slight indentation. Do this all the way up to the top of the cake. For the top, start at the outside of the cake, and work your way in without stopping the motion to create a swirl pattern. I find using a turntable is the best way to do this.
14. Sprinkle the top of the cake with some sprinkles or nonpareils of your choice, or leave it plain.

Notes

This cake will keep at room temperature covered for up to 3 days. I like to cover all my cakes with a cake dome. Otherwise, cover tightly and keep refrigerate for up to 2 days, allowing the cake to come to room temperature before serving.

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I found that her instructions yielded a wonderful product, and that she's much better at following and creating directions than I am.  So here are a few of my own notes:

1. Follow her directions.  

2. I used two 9" rounds because that's my preference.  My cakes only required 3 more minutes of cooking time, but that's probably because there was less batter due to the dropping....

3. I used two tbs of pumpkin pie spice instead of what is listed.  My cake eaters had specific preferences, so I evened the playing field a little, exception being cinnamon.  I added cinnamon additionally.

4. I am NOT ocd, and don't really care how much frosting you get in between each layer.  So just be smart, ok?  Don't let yourself run out. 

5.  Be creative!!  Yes -her cake is beautiful but yours doesn't have to look exactly like hers or like mine.  Be your own version of cakey-awesomeness, ok?

Now -go out there and cook!  I'll be back soon with a food-prep post for your enjoyment.

-XO-

ME!