Three Layer Cake

Hey again!

So in my first post I showed a picture of the three layered cake I made for a friends birthday, in this post I'm just going to focus on the cake and the icing. So I made a promise to my friend that instead of a present I would make her a cake - I chose the character and all that jazz (and the size no one was expecting it to be massive hahaha) 

The GIR cake cut up and ready to serve.

For the inside of the cake I used 6 sheet cakes - so two for each layer - and 2 different cake recipes. 

             - Red Velvet Cake

             - Vanilla Bean Cake

So instead of writing the recipe down as I did for the last post, I'm just going to post the links to these wonderful recipes at the end of the post :)

In between the cakes and the cakes and icing, is a thin layer of buttercream icing (recipes can be found anywhere on the internet) and the icing on top creating the eyes and skin of GIR is a marshmallow fondant (I'll post the link to the recipe at the end of the post)


Tips and Tricks - Fondant
With the fondant, don't be afraid to get your hands dirty when kneading the marshmallow fondant together and when she mentions vegetable shortening, don't go straight for copha butter (for australians) go to a specialist baking or cooking store (such as How to Cook on the Sunshine Coast) and they will more than likely have vegetable shortening that will stop the marshmallow from sticking to the bench top.


Cakes
Set the timer for the cakes to 5 minutes before it is due as every oven is different in some aspect but usually it works for most recipes especially if the oven is at the right heat once you've put the cakes in. Also don't over crowd each shelf in the oven as it changes the heat of the oven and they don't cook as evenly. So a max of two trays per oven.


Enjoy!! :)


Recipes:
Red Velvet Cake: http://www.bestrecipes.com.au/recipe/Red-Velvet-Cake-L7335.html
Vanilla Cake: http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/12027/easy+vanilla+butter+cake
Marshmallow Fondant: http://whatscookingamerica.net/PegW/Fondant.htm

Brownie Fudge Flan

Hey again everyone!

So the next recipe I used was from a magazine.... I am not completely sure which magazine... I think it was WHO from a while ago. Anyway this is the recipe (with a few tweaks to the method of my own):

250g packet plain chocolate biscuits

125g unsalted butter, melted

The flan in a regular flan tin. 

Whipped cream, strawberries, raspberries to serve

FILLING

120g dark chocolate

15g unsalted butter, chopped

3/4 C caster sugar

3 eggs

1/4 C plain flour

GLAZE

1/3 C dark chocolate melts

50g unsalted butter, chopped

METHOD

1. Grease a 24cm round loose-base flan tin (or you can go my route and just eat it out of a normal flan tin) and pre-heat oven to moderately slow (160 degrees)

2. Process biscuits in a food processor until they are finely crushed. Add butter. Process until combined. Press over base and up side of prepared tin. Refrigerate until firm (or until needed later in the recipe)

3. To make filling, stir chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl (any bowl is fine really, just use a tea towel to hold it while the chocolate and butter melt) over a saucepan of simmering water until smooth. Transfer mixture into another bowl. Beat in the sugar in two batches with a handheld electric mixer (for all those whom have electric mixer stands it can be done in there too, but with a hand held you can make sure that all of the mixture is mixed in).

4. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until they are combined. Mix in flour until just combined. Do not over mix! Pour into prepared flan tin. Place in oven. 

5. Cook in oven for about 30 minutes, or until the filling is firm to touch - the filling will have taken on a lighter colour than it went in. Turn off the oven and leave the flan in the oven for another 30 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

6. GLAZE:  stir ingredients in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water until smooth, pour into middle of cooled flan. Tilt to evenly coat top. Refrigerate until set. 

and SERVE! It's pretty easy to make and make a delicious treat after dinner or for a dinner party you may be attending. 

It is honestly incredibly rich, so serve in modest slices but all in all its a fantastic dessert, easy to make!

Happy Baking!

Red Velvet Cake

Hi everyone! 

The Red Velvet Cake I made successfully with the recipe

linked. 

My first post is about a Red Velvet Cake I had the pleasure of making when a friend sent me the link to the recipe about a month ago. 

I got the urge to bake it not too long after and this was the result! After such a successful first time baking this cake and creating the incredible cream cheese icing, I began to think of other ways I could use this recipe. 

For example cupcakes, rectangular cakes for shaping, a three tier cake! The list was endless. Eventually, my best friend's birthday was soon to arrive so I took the bull by the horns and experimented with the recipe about making it a rectangular cake instead of a two layer round cake. 

Red Velvet Cake in between two regular vanilla
bean sponge cakes (Shaped like the character
GIR from Invader Zim) 

The recipe calls for 23cm round tins for the regular recipe - but if you would like to make one large rectangular cake (perfect for carving or shaping) use a 20 x 30cm rectangular cake tin. Grease the tin and lay baking paper (I can assure you, its much better than cooking spray or only greasing). Bake the cakes in a 180 degree fan-forced oven for 30 - 35 minutes. It will be brown around the edges but don't stress, you can easily cut it off or disguise it under some icing ;). 

I made two of the red velvet cakes in rectangular form and this is what they look like in the three layer cake I made for my best friend's birthday. 

Here is the link to the red velvet recipe if you would like to try yourself!

http://www.bestrecipes.com.au/recipe/Red-Velvet-Cake-L7335.html 

Happy Baking!!