Posted on 05/04/2016 3:47:13 PM PDT by Jamestown1630
I didn't have time to cook much in recent days, but did have time to peruse the web now and then; and I found a couple of fancy cakes that provide a lot of visual 'bang' but don't look too difficult to make. Either might be very nice for Mother's Day.
I've always been attracted to the fondant- and marzipan-covered cakes, but never attempted one. This one from 'Gemma's Bigger Bolder Baking' looks very easy, and the technique for the rose decoration is ingenious (there's a video, and all the recipes are linked in the blog post):
http://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/painted-cake/
Another beautiful, somewhat more complicated cake with rich fillings, is the Swedish Princess Cake:
This cake became popular after it was featured in a 1948 cookbook written by a teacher to the three daughters of a Swedish prince - hence its name. If you do a google image search on 'Swedish Princess Cake', you'll see many different ways of decorating it; and you'll notice that it is almost always a pastel green. This recipe from the 'Baking Obsession' website looks classic and clear:
http://www.bakingobsession.com/2009/02/24/swedish-princess-cake/
-JT
About a year ago, I posted a carrot cake recipe that I’ve been making for about 40 years; it has always come out well (and I’m not at all a good baker) and after icing you can decorate it any way you like, with those neat decorating things in the baking section of the grocery:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3272163/posts
This is an example of Parisian perfection....the confectioner's high art.
Gorgeous! I love figs...
-JT
Blueberries, strawberries, strawberry and vanilla ice cream looks good.
Betcha that costs a pretty penny from the Paris bake shop.
Betcha that costs a pretty penny from the Paris bake shop.
Fig, Ricotta and Lemon Crostini
METHOD Simmer/stir 30 min til almost dry; figs just
start to congeal 6 oz chp figs, tb sugar, 2 tb water.
ASSEMBLY Brush Sliced crusty French baguette w/ olive oil; grill or toast
golden; cool. Spread w/ 1/2 c ricotta, top with fig jam. Sprinkle w/ lemon zest.
GARNISH w/ some fresh fig slices.
Do you have pictures to share?
Thank you!
Carrot cake is my son’s favorite and I’ve been looking for a good recipe!
ohmygoodness...
-JT
Years & years ago a friend of a fellow I was dating ran a little restaurant with a very limited menu - mostly variations of Cornish Pasties. They served one dessert item, a Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie - like a great big Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup...
Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie
Crust is optional. This recipe uses the ‘frosting’ on the pan bottom for crust.
12 oz package Bakers Chocolate
small jar creamy peanut butter
12 oz package cream cheese
1 cube butter
6 tsp vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
1 egg
pinch of salt
small container whipped topping
Filling: Mix peanut butter & cream cheese while melting ½ cube of butter. Mixture should be room temperature for softness. Add melted butter. Stir in 3 tsp vanilla & 1 cup powdered sugar. Fold in whipped topping, add dash of salt, set aside.
Frosting: Melt chocolate w/ ½ cube of butter over very low heat. Add 3 tsp vanilla & dash of salt. Remove from heat. Stir in 1 cup powdered sugar & 1 egg until smooth. Pour half of frosting into a greased pie tin; cover with filling; spread remaining frosting smoothly over top & chill.
I’ve seen cakes like that on FoodTV and they are beautiful.
But are they really edible, with all that heavy thick fondant? I’m not a frosting person; I usually scrape mist of the frosting off a typical birthday cake, in order to taste the cake. German chocolate frosting is the exception ;)
I won’t use fondant. Would make my teeth hurt.
How about fresh flowers on cakes? Just make sure they haven’t been exposed to pesticides. And of course are non-toxic, which should go without saying, but maybe it doesn’t. Some people say you shouldn’t put anything on a cake you wouldn’t eat, but you don’t eat candles. And some people don’t eat fondant.
You can dip small flowers in egg white and then sugar. Violets, pansies, borage, calendula, nasturtium, pea or bean, roses, cornflower (Centaura), daylily and fuchsia are all edible. Some species of dianthus are also.
Sweetpea is not edible!
My mother’s birthday is at the end of May. I usually make her a cake with roses, and we often have violets on an Easter cake.
Except for grating the carrots - which you MUST do by hand! - it’s very easy.
There was a question as to which is the best vegetable oil to use in baked goods these days, and there are so many conflicting opinions out there - I think the original recipe just said ‘vegetable oil’, and as time went on, I changed it to Canola oil, when that was supposed to be healthier.
Now, my nutrition-oriented hubby tells me that Canola oil isn’t that great, and suggests Sunflower oil as a healthier alternative.
But it’s one of those things that you don’t make or eat everyday - or even eat very much of; so I’d probably still use plain old ‘vegetable oil’ from the supermarket shelf.
-JT
LOL! You and I are opposite: I eat the frosting off, and leave most of the cake :-)
As I’ve said, I haven’t made these cakes; but I do like Marzipan candies, and I would suspect that the better cakes have the fondant or Marzipan rolled out quite thinly.
-JT
You’ve hit a ‘sweet spot’ for me and my husband.
We wait for Easter, to get the Reese’s peanut butter eggs; the little cups just don’t have the same exquisite ratio of chocolate to peanut butter ;-)
(We don’t eat a lot of sweets, having generally bought-into the ‘low carb’ thing; but when we do eat sweets, we are particular about it. And speaking of candies, does anyone remember the Sky Bar? That’s been our occasional vice, lately; we found them in a local liquor store last year, and now the proprietor keeps a few in stock for us ;-)
-JT
Now marzipan is something I love - I’d eat that cake!
You know, the “flowers” on your cake look they have either skulls in the center, or clowns. Maybe one could pass for Teddy Roosevelt.
Maybe you should consult your local bunch of celery, for the inside track on this :-)
-JT
I have never heard of a Sky bar. My personal favorite is a Snickers, but I’m partial to dark chocolate & nuts in any form. What does the Sky bar have in it?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.