Best Birthday Cake

I've been on the hunt for a really tasty & moist yellow cake, so I found this one from Smitten Kitchen. Which I have to say is pretty tasty. I notice that cakes with some sort of tangy ingredient, like sour cream, or yogurt, or buttermilk come out best. And although I usually like a swiss meringue buttercream to ice it, I was craving something super sweet and nostalgic. So I made a good old fashioned batch of American Buttercream. There was some leftover caramel filling so I mixed it with some buttercream for the filling. 

Best Yellow Layer Cake

Everyone needs a killer yellow cake recipe. This is mine, and dare I say, it should be yours too. It just works. Every time. And if you’ve ever tried a yellow cake mix and wondered why yours didn’t come out that consistently plush (but not freakishly unnatural) at home, dare I say it’s because you hadn’t made this one yet?

Yield: Two 9-inch round, 2-inch tall cake layers, and, in theory, 22 to 24 cupcakes, two 8-inch squares or a 9×13 single-layer cake (I have yet to audition the cupcakes, shame on me)

4 cups plus 2 tablespoons (480 grams) cake flour (not self-rising)

2 teaspoons (10 grams) baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon (5 grams) table salt
2 sticks (1 cup, 1/2 pound or 225 grams) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups (400 grams) sugar
2 teaspoons (10 ml) pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups buttermilk (475 ml), well-shaken

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans and line with circles of parchment paper, then butter parchment. (Alternately, you can use a cooking spray, either with just butter or butter and flour to speed this process up.)

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until pale and fluffy, then beat in vanilla. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well and scraping down the bowl after each addition. At low speed, beat in buttermilk until just combined (mixture will look curdled). Add flour mixture in three batches, mixing until each addition is just Incorporated.

Spread batter evenly in cake pan, then rap pan on counter several times to eliminate air bubbles. (I like to drop mine a few times from two inches up, making a great big noisy fuss.) Bake until golden and a wooden pick inserted in center of cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool in pan on a rack 10 minutes, then run a knife around edge of pan. Invert onto rack and discard parchment, then cool completely, about 1 hour.

Caramel Macarons

I'm not sure if I've shared this pdf with you, but since I've found the macaroon recipe, and tips I've never used another. Demystifying Macarons has great information on how to almost fool proof your baking experience. 

Caramel Fleur de Sel Filling

I found this recipe at Mad Baker and it is absolutely delicious! You could probably use this filling for cakes and other cookies. Using a digital scale helps make measuring precise. 

Sufficient quantity water
1/2 tsp pure vanilla bean paste or 1 vanilla pod
200g whipping cream, warmed
3g fleur de sel
140g unsalted butter, well-chilled and cut into cubes
1. Place the sugar in a heavy-bottom saucepan. Add just enough water to dampen the sugar.
2. Cook the sugar to 160 degrees C without stirring. The sugar syrup should take on an amber hue.
3. Take the saucepan off the heat and stir in the vanilla bean paste or the scrappings from the vanilla pod.
4. Add in the warm cream a little at a time - be very careful here as the caramel will foam up and sputter. I recommend wearing an oven mitt.
5. Add the fleur de sel and stir to make sure that all the caramel has dissolved.
6. Allow the mixture to cool to around 40 degrees C.

1. Place the sugar in a heavy-bottom saucepan. Add just enough water to dampen the sugar.
2. Cook the sugar to 160 degrees C without stirring. The sugar syrup should take on an amber hue.
3. Take the saucepan off the heat and stir in the vanilla bean paste or the scrappings from the vanilla pod.
4. Add in the warm cream a little at a time - be very careful here as the caramel will foam up and sputter. I recommend wearing an oven mitt.
5. Add the fleur de sel and stir to make sure that all the caramel has dissolved.
6. Allow the mixture to cool to around 40 degrees C.
8. Line the surface of the caramel with cling wrap to prevent a layer of skin from forming and chill in the refrigerator until needed.

Infant Baby Photography

Yesterday was a very chilly day outside in Upstate, New York, but cozy inside. We shot a new born for the first time. He was only 10 Days old and so adorable. The light was perfect and his family sweet.

Downloadable Gift Wrap Pattern

With the holidays already upon us, and gratitude in our hearts, we wanted to share an original free Humunuku design for everyone to enjoy! The very sweet Melanie of you are my fave blog, has the easy to follow instructions and design you can download from her site here. 

I've used kraft paper and metallic stamp ink, acrylic paint and white fabric for a furoshiki wrap and tissue paper and white paint. But do whatever you want to be completely original! 

Thank you so much for your readership and support. We appreciate being a part of such a wonderful creative community. Please enjoy these designs and get crazy with it!

Birthdays & Carrot Cake

This past weekend was the birthday of my brother in law and a very sweet friend.  We celebrated by having a combined dinner at our house. We made Chinese steamed dumplings & thai beef salad, and ordered veggie pad se ew and pad thai. Drank wine and had CARROT CAKE. Probably one the best recipes I've tried. The secret? Oil instead of butter keeps it moist. I'd like to try replacing vegetable oil with coconut oil one day.

Found the carrot cake recipe here. Made a few changes.

Carrot Cake

Ingredients

4 eggs

1 1/4 cups vegetable oil

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3 cups grated carrots

Icing 

8 oz cream cheese

2 sticks of butter

teaspoon vanilla 

pinch of salt

a few squeezes of lemon juice

1 lb confectioners sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.

In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir in carrots. Fold in pecans. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

Icing: In a medium bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, lemon, salt and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Frost the cooled cake.