Hi, friends! Thanks for sticking it out with me as I figure out my new blog venture. Should it be weekly? Biweekly? Monthly? Posted on Sundays? Thursdays? No set schedule? Feel free to cast your vote in the comments! (Seriously, engagement makes me feel like I’m not just shouting into the void here, so help a chef out!)
As we ponder on the best frequency for me to impart baking knowledge and silliness, let’s discuss what I made last week: a heart cake! My very first one!
For Valentine’s Day, I asked my Man Candy™ what kind of cake he would like for Valentine’s Day. Truthfully, I fully expected him to ask for something like a chocolate mousse cake with chocolate dipped strawberries, or a cookies and creme cake… you know, something Valentine’s Day themed. I wish you could have seen my face when he requested a tootsie roll cake.
And let’s be honest, I truly had no idea how to pull that off, but he left it open to interpretation so I completely improvised. The closest thing I could think of (aside from melting down tootsie rolls into a bowl of goop to make a filling) was to make a chocolate caramel from scratch. Because, why not? I also paired it with my classic vanilla cake, my uber delicious maple bourbon frosting, and actual tootsie roll roses.
Also, for Christmas, I was gifted a Frost Form cake decorating set that allows me to pour a liquid frosting over a stacked cake which is such a HUGE time saver (trust me, I could spend hours and hours trying to smooth out every last crease and imperfection in my buttercream. It’s like a stressful zen garden.)
I used it for the first time making this heart shaped cake, and while it didn’t go perfectly, I have to say that I am really excited to make more heart shaped cakes in the future! Anyway, since I have one freshly made, let’s chat about it.
First things first, I did not heed the warning on their box about using oil based cakes for the Frost Form. Apparently butter based cakes like mine are too soft and don’t withstand the cutting technique (basically a cookie cutter, but for cake) that this system requires. Call me crazy, but I would rather my tasty cakes made with butter than a less tasty cake made with oil that cuts well. So after kinda sorta pretty much fully breaking the first layer of cake with the cake cutter, I placed the heart shaped cutter on top of my second cake layer and used a serrated knife to carve the heart shape into the cake instead of pressing the cutter into it and letting it crumble.
(Real talk: I was about to link to their website to share their warning about butter vs. oil based cakes, but I literally cannot find it anywhere. Did I dream this up? I'm not sure. But either way, I will stick to using butter in my cakes and buttercreams.)
Secondly, I tried their butter ganache recipe from their website (this one is real, I swear!). I was cautiously optimistic because while I don’t really like white chocolate, it was a recipe to make a white chocolate ganache with butter.
And if anything can make white chocolate taste better, it’s butter. (And maybe next time, some extracts or flavoring.)
Plus, using a white chocolate ganache allowed me to dye the cake a pretty pink color instead of just brown from a regular chocolate ganache. (Although I’m sure that would have been pretty tasty, too!)
Interestingly enough, the chocolate caramel that I made was a very similar technique to a ganache, which seems to be the theme of this cake anyway. I made the most delicious French caramel like I always do, but when I transferred it out of the pot I cooked it in, I poured it into a bowl full of couverture instead of an empty bowl (I prefer Callebaut, which is a Belgian chocolate, but Guittard and Valrhona - both are French brands - are also delicious).
The method for making a ganache is really quick and simple: heat your cream in a small pot until you see bubbles form around the edges of the pot, then pour your cream into a bowl containing your couverture. Let the cream sit for a minute or two to heat up the chocolate, then whisk together until fully combine. Et voila! You have a ganache!
I’ve also found this super helpful infographic from Sweetly Cakes to help you decide how much of each ingredient to use in case you want to make a cake filling, cake coating, macaron filling, etc.
Anyway, let me know your thoughts on blog frequency, and as always let me know if you have any blog content suggestions to add to my bake list!
Happy eating, y’all!
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