Will's cake n stuff

I made two cakes for Will's party because I was expecting 20+ people.  I was worried that one cake wouldn't be enough.  In usual Sara-fashion I decided to make a cake that I hadn't made before.  I do this often.  I go against the advice of not making something for the first time for a dinner party or party.  I always see it as an opportunity to try something new.  Now I did choose a recipe from a reputable author.   I made the Deeply Dark Devil's Food Cake from The Cake Book by Tish Boyle. Tish is the creator of my favourite chocolate chip cookie recipe.

I split the cakes and filled them with sliced strawberries and whipped cream.  I then put a milk chocolate glaze on top and decorated with strawberries.


Here it is on my new cake plate and dome.  The cake dome was a total score at Target for $36 on sale.  It's made by Libbey which is an American brand of everyday glassware.


We really, really enjoyed this cake.  A lot of the time I can be a bit "meh" about cake, but this was moist and delicious.  The berries and cream filling was perfect.

The cake recipe

The full recipe makes a relatively tall one-layer cake that can be sliced horizontally into two or three layers, while the half recipe makes a cake which can be used whole or sliced into two layers.

>makes one 9-inch cake (23cm)

212g (1 3/4 cups) all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
156g (11 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened
300g (1 1/2 cups) granulated sugar
61g (2/3 cup) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
320ml (1 1/3 cups) warm water

1.  Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 165C/325F.  Grease the bottom and sides of a 9x3-inc springform pan.  Dust the pan with flour (I just used a normal cake tin which I lined bottom and sides with baking paper)

2.  Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a medium bowl.  Whisk until well blended, and set aside.

3.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the butter at medium speed until creamy, about 1 minute.  Gradually add the sugar and beat at high speed until the mixture is pale and well blended, about 3 minutes.  Add the cocoa powder and beat at medium speed for 1 minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as necessary.  Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Beat in vanilla extract.  At low speed, add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating it with the warm water in two additions.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix at low speed for 30 seconds.  Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.

4.  Bake the cake for 45-55 minutes for the full recipe, 25-30 minutes for the half recipe, until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.  Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes.

5.  Remove the side of the pan and invert the cake onto the rack.  Remove the bottom of the pan and let the cake cool completely. 

Store:  at room temperature, wrapped in foil, for up to 5 days.

Now for something completely different....
A baby blanket for a friend's recent arrival.  Normally I would hand embroider the name, but I can't find my embroidery threads! 

Blue and turquoise low water immersion dyed silk and flannel blanket.  His older brother has one that is violet and turquoise, so I decided to go with blue/turquoise for baby Michael.

Now if I can manage to take photos of the three tops that I made myself last week, I can share those!