By CountryLiving
Candy-stick
"tent poles" and a wrapping-paper canopy form our Big-Top Carnival Cake
- made of moist chocolate layers iced with Candy-stick "tent poles" and
a wrapping-paper canopy form our Big-Top Carnival Cake — made of moist
chocolate layers iced with White-Chocolate Cream-Cheese Frosting.
Level:
Moderate
Yield:
One 8-inch 2-layer cake.
Serves:
12
Ingredients
- 1 c. cocoa powder
- ½ c. Buttermilk
- 1¾ c. all-purpose flour
- 1.26 tsp. baking soda
- ¾ tsp. salt
- 1 c. unsalted butter
- 1½ c. sugar
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs
- 5 c. White-Chocolate Cream-Cheese Frosting.
- Food coloring
Directions
- Prepare the cake pans: Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat two 8-inch cake pans with softened butter. Cut two 8-inch circles out of parchment paper and fit them into the bottom of the cake pans. Lightly coat the paper circles with butter and set aside.
- Make the batter: Combine 1 cup of boiling water with the cocoa in a medium bowl. Stir in the buttermilk and set aside. Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. Beat the butter in a large bowl until light and fluffy with a mixer set on medium speed. Add sugar and mix until combined. Add the vanilla and the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition, until the mixture is smooth and light. In thirds, alternately add the flour mixture and the buttermilk mixture, blending well after each addition until smooth.
- Bake the cake: Pour batter into the prepared pans and bake until a tester inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean -- about 45 minutes. Cool the cakes, in the pans, on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Release the cakes from pans and cool completely on the rack.
- Frost the cake: Transfer 1 cup White-Chocolate Cream-Cheese Frosting to a small bowl, stir in the color of your choice, and set aside. Place one cake layer on a serving plate and top with 1 cup of the remaining frosting. Spread frosting evenly over the first layer and top with the second cake layer. Cover the entire cake with a thin coating of frosting and chill for at least 1 hour. Remove cake from refrigerator and frost with remaining icing. Fill a pastry bag fitted with a decorating tip (such as a star or shell) with the colored icing and decorate the cake as desired. Store covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving.
