One month, 6 office birthdays which will ultimately equal 6 different desserts. Oh and somehow it passed me by, but it's been FOUR years now here whisking away...holy cow! This will mark my 278th post; there have been about 252 recipes to go through this blog and my kitchen, plus I have been able to have several friends stop by and share their recipes with you. You have gotten to travel with me to a few bakeries to hear how their owners started and travel with my as I stuff my face. It has been a lot of fun the entire way! So thank you for reading and being a part of my baking adventures. Please, please feel free to comment anytime. I LOVE hearing from you out there!
Also never forget the words of Steve Jobs...this was on one of my work notebooks for the longest time.
Okay so lets talk about the first cake for 2015. First we started with an almond cake with raspberry filling and butter cream frosting. I have to admit that this wouldn't be a pick I would make, but it's what the birthday girl wanted! The flavors came together to fit almost naturally and the cake it self had a nice sponge to it. So, if you enjoy the almond flavor and love a good raspberry filling, give this cake a try and Enjoy!
About 1/4 cup sliced almonds chopped
and later folded into the batter.
A side profile...(We have to cut cake at the office now like it is wedding cake, so that I can actually feed everyone with a 9" square cake.)
Almond Cake:
4 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoons salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 large eggs at room temperature
2 cups buttermilk, well-shaken
1/4 cup sliced almonds, chopped
Raspberry Filling:
3 tablespoons raspberry jam
2 teaspoons water
Vanilla Buttercream:
1 cup of salted butter
3 teaspoons of vanilla
4 cups of icing sugar
4-5 tablespoons of coffee cream
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line three 9" cake pans or two square 9" cake pans with parchment paper on the bottom and spray the sides with non-stick cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt
3. In another large bowl, cream together softened butter and sugar
4. Add in eggs one at a time to the butter-sugar mixture, mixing well between each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl ofetn. Then whisk in the vanilla and almond extracts.
5. Add dry ingredients and buttermilk to the wet ingredients, alternating between the dry ingredients and buttermilk, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Scrap down the sides of the bowl using a spatula and then fold in the chopped almonds.
6. Pour the batter evenly between the three pans (or two square pans), and give them each a quick knock on the counter to remove the air bubbles.
7. Bake for 24-28 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to completely cool on cooling racks. While the cakes are baking, prepare the raspberry sauce.
8. In a small sauce pan over medium heat, combine the seedless raspberry jam and water. Heat until jam has dissolved. Let cool for just a few minutes...this is the perfect time to make the frosting.
9. Using a stand mixer, whip the butter, with a paddle beater (if you have a hand mixer just use the normal beaters). Add in half of the powdered sugar. Then add in the cream and vanilla extract until combined. Next add in the remaining powdered sugar and keep mixing it until fluffy and thoroughly combined.
10. Once the cakes are cooled, place the bottom layer on your cake plate/server and cut off the top to make flat, also removing the parchment paper. Then frost with a thin layer of buttercream, but add a thicker layer around the edges so that the raspberry filling doesn't seep out when you place the next layer on top. (If the raspberry filling has cooled too much you can quickly reheat it, just make sure it is not too liquidy or hot.) Next, top the thin layer of buttercream with raspberry filling, not going all the way to the edge, but staying within the boarder you created with the frosting. Next, cut the top off of the next layer (This is the top of the 9" square cake.) and place on top. If this is your third layer repeat with the thin layer of buttercream and raspberry filling. If it is your top layer frost the cake with the remaining frosting. If you have them time you can do a crumb coat, refrigerate the cake for 15-20 minutes and the finish frosting for a smooth look. If you want to get creative and have almond slices left, you can even do some almond flowers on top. Store cake at room temperature, serve and Enjoy!
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