Pastel Ribbon Cake Swirled Pastel Cake Recipes

CHAI AND VANILLA CAKE (EASTER CAKE)

Steps:

• Butter and line 3 x 8 inch cake pans. Preheat the oven to 325°F / 163°C.
• Place the butter, salt and white sugar in a bowl and whisk until light and creamy.
• Add the eggs (one at a time), mixing well between each addition.
• Add the milk and vanilla, and mix in well.
• Sift the flour and baking powder together. Add the flour to the wet ingredients in 2 additions and fold in to mix. Be careful not to over-mix.
• Divide the batter into two bowls and add the chai powder to ONE of the bowls. Stir gently until just mixed in.
• Dollop each of the batter into the 3 prepared cake tins evenly to create a swirled look (you can use a butter knife to swirl the batter if you like as well).
• Gently shake the pan to spread the batter evenly, and knock out any gas in the batter.
• Bake in your preheated oven for 20 - 30 minutes until the middle is springy to the touch. Check after 15 minutes to make sure you don't over-bake.
• Remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool down completely. To store for later, wrap the cooled cake layers individually in plastic wrap (or equivalent) and store at room temperature for up to 12 hours, or longer in the fridge.
• Place the butter and salt in a large bowl and whisk until light and fluffy. This can take about 10 minutes, depending on the weather. Add the confectioner's sugar, a little at a time at low speed, until it's all incorporated.
• Add the vanilla and whisk at medium high / high until the buttercream is light and fluffy. Make sure you scrape down the sides periodically.
• While the buttercream is being mixed, add half of the cream in a drizzle and whisk for 1 minute until the buttercream is light, fluffy and well mixed. Add more if you want the buttercream to be softer. Cover and set aside until you are ready to use. If the buttercream sets, whisk it to make it fluffy again before frosting the cake.
• Use an open whisk, or cut off the rounded wire tips of an old whisk to form an open whisk (see picture in the post).
• Place the sugar, corn syrup and water in a saucepan. Heat gently until the sugar is completely melted - swirl the saucepan to help the sugar melt evenly.
• Cover the pot and let the sugar syrup simmer for 1 - 2 minutes (the condensation will help wash down the sugar crystals from the sides of the pot).
• Uncover and let the sugar syrup boil, until the sugar turns into a golden amber color. You can gently swirl the pot so that the sugar caramelizes evenly.
• While the sugar is cooking, line your table top with a large piece of parchment paper, or turn a bowl (about 7 inches in diameter) upside down and lightly oil the outside of the bowl. This is a messy job, so you can lay newspapers in the area around your workspace to make clean up easy.
• When the sugar is ready, use a whisk to dip into the caramel and then gently fling caramel threads on to the bowl / parchment paper.
• Shape the caramel into a bowl-like (nest-like) shape, and let the caramel set.
• Store in an airtight container (with some desiccant to make sure it lasts longer).
• Place one cake layer (flat side down) on a cake tray. Add ½ - ¾ cup of the buttercream frosting on top and spread it evenly. Repeat with all the cake layers, with the last layer placed with the flat side up.
• Apply a thin coating of vanilla frosting on the sides and on top to form a cake crumb layer, and to fill in the sides of the cake layers. Refrigerate for a few minutes until the coating has set.
• Once set, generously spread frosting on the sides and on top (this will be the frosting layer). Use a cake scraper or spatula to smoothen the sides and the top so that you have clean straight surfaces. Refrigerate to set.
• Add about ½ cup each of buttercream into two bowls and color them with pink and yellow.
• When the cake has set again, dot the surface of the cake with pink, yellow and white frosting, and smoothen the sides again to form a watercolor frosting effect with the pastel colors.
• Refrigerate until you're ready to serve the cake.
• Transfer the cake to a cake serving platter, and pipe a border along the bottom of the cake.
• The cake can be served as is, or decorated with chocolate on top.
• Place Easter eggs along the top border of the cake. Top with the caramel nest in the middle and fill it up with chocolate eggs and bunnies, just before serving. Enjoy!