Good Things Come to those that Wait

As you may or may not know- I am baking the cakes (yes, 3!) for my wedding. I am baking the cakes and freezing them in advance. Then 2 days before the wedding I am having a cake decorating party with all the ladies who will be in town already. So here is my vanilla cake recipe. Soon to follow- chocolate cake recipe :) Enjoy darlings!

Vanilla Buttermilk Cake
Recipe from Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes

Yesterday was my wedding cake practice day- for the vanilla cake. After a few easy hours, I baked two 3-layer cakes. As well as made the icing, and iced one cake for my "test". I hate to eat cake, but couldn't help to try the batter. The batter was so delicious, I had to try to the cake. And for hating cake- I was presently pleased with the outcome!

Makes one three-layer 10-inch round cake [Equivalent in batter to an 8-inch square; we scaled it up for a 10-inch square/middle tier of the wedding cake]

3 3/4 cups cake flour (sifted- this is important as it adds "fluff" to the cake! Also, note that cake flour can be substituted with All Purpose flour. Instead of cake flour, add 2 tbs corn starch to your measuring cup, and then fill the rest with all purpose flour *credit Dan Weisman)
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon plus 2 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 sticks (10 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups plus 1/3 cup buttermilk
5 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Wilton non-stick baking spray


1. Preheat the oven to 325°F.  Spray thinly and evenly with non-stick baking spray the three 10-inch round cake pans. Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment or waxed paper and spray with non-stick baking spray.

2. Combine the cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large mixer bowl. With the mixer on low speed, blend for 30 seconds. Add the butter and 1 1/4 cup of the buttermilk. Mix on low speed briefly to blend; then raise the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.













3. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the whole eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, and the remaining 1/3 cup buttermilk until well blended. Pour one-third of the egg mixture into the cake batter at a time, folding it in completely after each addition. There will be 9 cups of batter; our 3 cups batter into each pan.

4. Bake for 26 to 28 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.




5. Turn the layers out onto wire racks by placing a rack on top of a pan, inverting it, and lifting off the pan. Peel off the paper liners and let cool completely. When the layers have cooled, place a cardboard cake board on top of a layer, invert again, and lift off the rack. To make the layers easier to handle, wrap them on their boards completely in plastic, so they don’t dry out, and refrigerate them.




Swiss Butter Cream Icing:
This recipe comes from Smitten Kitchen.

For a wedding cake (or most of one, depending on the size)
2 cups of egg whites (approx. 12 large)
3 cups sugar
5 cups butter, softened (2 1/2 pounds, 10 sticks)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

For a 10-inch cake (plus filling, or some to spare)
1.5 cup sugar
6 large egg whites
39 tablespoons butter, softened (4.5 sticks plus 4 tablespoons)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the tiniest amount, if you’re just practicing (or enough to cover and fill the 4-inch cake pictured)
1/4 cup sugar
1 large egg white
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Whisk egg whites and sugar together in a big metal bowl over a pot of simmering water. Whisk occasionally until you can’t feel the sugar granules when you rub the mixture between your fingers.

Transfer mixture into the mixer and whip until it turns white and about doubles in size. (Here’s a tip: when you transfer to the mixer, make sure you wipe the condensation off the bottom of the bowl so that no water gets into the egg whites. This can keep them from whipping up properly.)

Add the vanilla.

Finally, add the butter a stick at a time and whip, whip, whip.

Note: It takes a really long time to whip this icing into shape. Give it about 15 minutes or so. If you are doing this by hand, have mercy on yourself. Otherwise, a Kitchen Aid mixer is the way to go. Set it on low, leave the room- do some chores, come back and you will find it whipped into a lovely butter cream icing to spread!

And the finished product. Drum roll please.... Dun dun dun!

I took the cake into work today, and before 11:30 a.m. it had almost vanished into thin air. Seems as though people are enjoying it thoroughly!! I think this is a good sign that this cake will be a great asset to the wedding :)

And don't forget- here is the fabulous book I got this AMAZING recipe from! Bought on Amazon.