Sunday, August 8, 2010

Celebration Cake

Back in January, I learned about an organization that provides birthday cakes for kids who might not otherwise receive one. Free Cakes for Kids has chapters in various cities, and I’m sure each one operates a little differently. The Austin chapter invites volunteer home bakers to deliver cakes for birthdays as well as other client agency celebrations so that those agencies’ funds can be directed to the needs of the children they assist rather than to cakes. I’ve volunteered a couple of times now to bake and deliver cakes, and it’s been a pleasure to contribute to the good work being done by this organization. Last week, I volunteered to deliver a cake for a going away party at one of the client agencies. The cake flavor was up to me to choose, so I went with what I hoped would be a universally well-like combination. I baked a yellow cake and topped it with chocolate fudge frosting. I knew I could count on any of the cakes from The Modern Baker, and that’s where I found the recipes I used here.

There’s a note in the intro to the recipe regarding the simplified technique that results in such a nice texture for the cake. Rather than separating eggs, beating the whites, and folding them into the batter, whole eggs were mixed into butter, sugar, and vanilla. Half the dry ingredients were added and briefly mixed, the mixer bowl was scraped, and buttermilk was added and mixed. Then, the remaining dry ingredients were added, and the batter was mixed continuously for three minutes. Malgieri claims that last bit of mixing is critical, and I’ll take his word for it since the cake was light as can be. For the frosting, semisweet chocolate was melted, and a combination of warmed cream and corn syrup was added to it. It was whisked until smooth, and then butter was incorporated. The frosting needed to be chilled for a bit to thicken to a good spreading consistency. I left it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before frosting the cake. It was thick and glossy and very easy to swoop about on top and smooth onto the sides of the cake.

Knowing that the cake was to be delivered and therefore I wouldn’t be able to cut into it myself, I made some extra batter and frosting so I could bake a few cupcakes to keep at home. That was out of a sense of duty, I assure you. I wanted all of you to be able to see the inside of this tender-crumbed and delicious yellow cake. Although, I usually like to experiment with new and different cake flavors, fillings, and frostings, sometimes a reliable, basic cake is exactly what you need. The yellow, vanilla layers could be paired with all sorts of different frostings, but the chocolate ganache would be hard to beat. The frosting was rich and fudgy and not too sweet or heavy. This is a classic that I know I’ll turn to for many more celebrations to come.



35 comments:

  1. This is making my mouth water. And what a sweet thing to do! Way to go.

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  2. What an incredible organization. I'm going to check to see if there's a local chapter - I'd love to bake and donate cakes for children's birthdays. Yours came out beautifully - the little sprinkles scream "celebrate"!

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  3. beautiful cake and what a great cause!

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  4. What a nice thing to do for a kid, and what a professional beautiful cake!
    I love the idea!

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  5. thank you for so generously baking extra so that we could see the proper inside of your cake! always looking out for us, you are. :) hey, it was your duty to taste test too, no? can't deliver a cake you wouldn't eat. kidding aside, it turned out beautifully and that's such a great organization. cheers to you for volunteering your time and foodie talent -- i'm certain you've made somebody's day!

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  6. That is such a great cause! Lovely cake!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  7. What a wonderful way to volunteer. Any child would be so lucky and happy to get a cake made by you daaaaaahling.
    *kisses* HH
    p.s. this would be good for me, i could bake the cake and not eat it and put on tons of weight.

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  8. What a gorgeous-looking cake! Love the swirls of chocolate frosting!

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  9. i do love a frosting that swoops about with ease. :)

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  10. What a brilliant idea, and knowing someone out there is just beaming with chocolate frosting around their mouth is priceless. I love it and of course this cake recipe sounds just about perfect.

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  11. truly a celebration! truly an awesome cake! a fine piece of work done well! :)

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  12. Beautiful cake! Thanks for sharing the information about Free Cakes for Kids. I hadn't yet heard of the organization but it sounds like a great and worthy cause. Hope they're still in need of volunteers!

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  13. You are truly sweet at heart Lisa. The cake looks delicious and beautiful!

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  14. This is a work of art--doubly so because of why you did it. I'm going to see if there's a similar organization in Los Angeles. :)

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  15. Gorgeous cake and what a sweet thing to do Lisa.

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  16. This cake is cause for celebration itself! Classic and undoubtedly delicious, those who received it must have enjoyed it tremendously. What a fantastic program - something so simple as a cake can be so special and is a great way for any of us to get involved in any bit we possibly can. Thanks for bringing this organization and concept to our attention!

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  17. Yum, I would love a bite of that right now : )
    What a great organization...do you know if they have anything in New York?

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  18. Great cause and what a nice cake :-)

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  19. My daughter just made this very cake from Nick's book, complete with the chocolate ganache, for my birthday, and I can assure you it is every bit as good as it looks.

    Great job, Lisa. Thanks for sharing with us and those in need!

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  20. I don't know what were celebrating, but count me in!! that is one great looking cake!

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  21. This is one of the many cakes I considered making for my own birthday. Kudos to you for finding such an amazing organization and making a kid's day so special.

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  22. You have been much more adventurous with that book than I have and I'm jealous! I'm glad to know that there is a perfect "birthday cake" option in there and it looks terrific.

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  23. Aww, what a cool cause Lisa! It would certainly make any child (or adult) super happy on their bday!

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  24. Such a wonderful thing to do and the cake looks just gorgeous!

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  25. What a wonderful gesture. The kid was very lucky to have a breautiful cake like this for his/her birthday.

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  26. that's really sweet of you. it looks rich and pretty, and cool of you to bake extra cupcakes so we can see the cross section :)

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  27. I've had my eye on this recipe from Nick's book (and his aunt's poundcake, too--another fascinating mixing technique). I'm so glad that it turned out well, and what a great cause. Lovely job! Love the peaks of frosting on top contrasted to the smooth sides.

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  28. That is quite possibly the best darn chocolate cake I have ever seen. Mmm...

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  29. This awesome cake is ridiculously rich. The darkness and chocolate are piercing. I really want to have a piece. I'm going to have to add this to me "To Bake" list. Once I make some Pumpkin Pie Cake then I'm on to yours. Happy Baking!

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  30. That cake just looks too good for my wellbeing.. :) As in; I want to have a slice of that gorgeous stuff right now!

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  31. That is so kind of you! How lucky they are to get this scrumptious cake! I bet everyone loved it.

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  32. this is such a sweet project to be part of. i'm inspired and will definitely bake and donate a few birthday cakes myself. thanks for sharing!

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  33. Great initiative, Lisa, Now I just wish I had the recipe :(

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