This weekend I had the pleasure of making a baby shower cake for my long-time friend Tisa. She is having her first baby and some of our high school friends were able to gather and celebrate this new beginning. Before the shower, I asked her what type of cake she wanted and her request was for Carrot Cake with the works. This recipe has excellent spiced flavors, paired with a moist crumb, sweet pineapple, golden raisins and crunchy walnuts.
Tag Archives: buttercream recipe
Mocha Almond Fudge Cake
There are times when I want something light and fluffy and there are times when I want something dark and fudgy and decadent. This Mocha Almond Fudge Cake is for those dark and fudgy kind of days. It is a rich mix of a fudgy chocolate almond-flour cake frosted with a sinful espresso buttercream and filled with silky hot fudge and crunchy salted and roasted almonds. Seriously, who can resist this combination! If Mocha Almond Fudge is your favorite flavor of ice cream and you need a fudgy chocolate fix you must try this! Continue reading
Quintessential Chocolate Cake with Whipped Chocolate Frosting
If I had to pick just one chocolate cake from my entire repertoire of cakes to eat and serve this would be the one. While my American Mud Cake is rich and decadent and amazingly delicious, this Quintessential Chocolate Cake is so versatile and all-encompassing that you could serve it to anyone for any occasion. Need a great chocolate cake for your nephew’s birthday? This is it. Need a refined cake for your cousin’s wedding? This is the one too. This cake is rich and moist and fudgy but also light and delicate. It seems contradictory but try it and you will see what I mean. Continue reading
Italian Cream Cake
I will readily admit that I love most Italian foods. I love pasta and Italian breads, slow braised meats and Tiramisu. But despite my affinity for Italian cuisine I had little acquaintance with this Italian named cake. Now I am not sure of the exact origins of this nut-filled treasure (for all I know it may not be Italian), but this light, moist, flavorful Italian Cream Cake is so delicious I have to put it amongst my Italian favorites whether it is native or not. Continue reading
Gluten-Free American Mud Cake with Triple Chocolate Frosting
Chocolate is often the default flavor that bakers go to when asked to make a gluten-free cake. It makes sense; chocolate is pronounced enough to cover any unsavory flavors that non-wheat flours present and cocoa powder can be used as a starch substitute for some of the wheat flour. But clear your mind of any preconceived notions of gluten-free chocolate cake. This is just straight forward delicious cake. This recipe is based on my American Mud Cake and boasts of the same great chocolate complexity and rich, moist, goodness! Continue reading
Orange Cake with Passion Fruit Buttercream
It is difficult to tell that we are beyond summer solstice here. The sky is gray and there is a good chance of rain. It is par for the course in June in Oregon but my heart still pines for rays of sunshine and warmth on my skin. If I cannot have the climate I hope for I will have to settle for a cake full of tropical sunshine and flavor. This Orange Cake with Passion Fruit Buttercream is not the kind of cake that you bite into and wonder what flavor one could possibly be trying to convey. It is fully and intensely orange and bright and perfumed. I need something sunny and in its full splendor! Continue reading
Banana Cupcakes with Chocolate Cream Cheese Buttercream
People make banana baked goods for one of two reasons: one, they love banana treats and will wait patiently for their bananas to ripen in order to use them; or two, their bananas did not get eaten while they were in the edible range and they hate to throw away totally usable bananas. While I am frequently subject to a bunch of declining banana I truly am a member of the former group. I am a big fan of banana bread, banana muffins and these sweet little banana cupcakes! Continue reading
Moist Chocolate Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Swiss Meringue Buttercream
It seems rather critical that every baker have a great vanilla and chocolate cupcake in his or her recipe lineup. After baking a number of chocolate cupcake recipes that seemed promising but did not deliver I came across a recipe in a cookbook that had all the makings of what I was looking for. After a serious recipe makeover, I had a chocolate cupcake that would satisfy both the young palate and the decadent chocolate lover. Continue reading
Buttermilk Chocolate Cake with Butterscotch Buttercream
I tend to place chocolate cakes into two categories: liquid fat and solid fat cakes. Liquid fat cakes contain either oil or melted butter and tend to have a more open crumb while solid fat cakes, with batter that can hold tiny air bubbles, tend to have a finer more delicate crumb. This is a solid fat chocolate cake with a tender, fine crumb and rich chocolate flavor. Continue reading
White Mocha Cake with Espresso Caramel Buttercream
If you voted on Facebook for my birthday cake of choice this was the winner! This cake is not for the faint of heart. It is loaded with white chocolate, espresso, half and half and butter; a delicious combination that results in a tender, beautifully textured cake full of my favorite flavors. If one shot of espresso is not enough, I added a buttercream infused with an espresso caramel sauce. It’s like caramel that has gone to the dark side. Together this cakey team is a force (lol!) to reckon with. Continue reading