The Vanilla Bean Cake

March 22, 2021

The Vanilla Bean Cake

Ingredients:

For the cake:

* 2 + 1/2cups Cake Flour

* 1 + 2/3cups Granulated Sugar

* 1 + 1/4tsp Baking Powder

* 1tsp Salt

* 3/4cup Unsalted Butter, cooler than room temperature but not iced

* 1cup Buttermilk

* 1tbsp Vanilla Bean Paste

* 3 Eggs at room temperature

For the Buttercream:

* 2cups Unsalted Butter at room temperature

* 5 1/2 - 6cups Confectioners Sugar

* 1-4tbsp Whipping Cream

* 3 +1/2tsp Vanilla Bean Paste or Pure Vanilla Extract

* 1/2tsp Salt

* Gel Food Coloring of your choice

Toppings:

* For the Chocolate Ganache:

1cup White Chocolate chips + 2-3tbsps Whipping Cream

* Sprinkles or other toppings of your choice (coconut, almonds)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350degrees F. Grease 3 8" cake pans (round). place parchment paper on the bottom of each cake pan, and grease parchment paper.

2. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl, and whisk to mix. Set aside.

3. Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment and mix until fluffy and soft. Add in the vanilla and mix until blended. Add in the eggs one at a time and blend on medium low until blended in. Do not over beat or beat on high.

4. Add in the flour mixture alternating with buttermilk starting and ending with dry ingredients.

5. Transfer the batter to the prepared bowls. Bake for 60 minutes.

6. Once baked cool in the pans on a wire rack. Then transfer the cakes to a wire rack to cool completely.

7. To make the Vanilla bean buttercream place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and whip on medium (use whisk attachment), until pale yellow and fluffy.

8. Next, add the salt and confectioners sugar 1 cup at a time, whisking on low. Alternate adding in a tablespoon of the whipping cream between every 2 cups of confectioners sugar. Turn the beater to medium after all the sugar has been added and whisk until fluffy and the sugar has been incorporated. Add in the vanilla bean paste, whisking on medium. Add only enough whipping cream until the consistency is right for icing the cake. If it feels too soft, you can leave it in the refrigerator for awhile, or add in some conectioners sugar.

9. Place one cake on the plate you will be using, and ice it. Then add the next layer and so on. You will want to use a bench scraper to take any excess icing off. Refrigerate for 15 minutes so that the first layer of icing has time to set. Then take the cake out and ice it once more, using a bench scraper to remove excess icing and smoothen.

10. Place the white chocolate and whipping cream in a heatproof bowl, and heat at 20 second intervals until the chocolate melts. Whisk well until fully combined. Drizzle the white chocolate ganache over the cake and decorate with sprinkles of your choice. Add on the the frosted flowers of your choice or choclates (First Photo).

Note: To pipe the flowers on top of the cake, divide the icing set aside, into two. Into one add some food coloring gel (1/4tsp at most), and whisk by hand. Note: I added color into one set only, but you can pick two colors instead of white. Transfer the frosting to two piping bags with two different nozzles and pipe the icing on to the top of the cake. Leave in refrigerator for half hour to set.