ISO: Good Birthday Cake Recipe

[PJB]

I have only baked about 3 cakes in my entire life but I think I am going to try it again. My Dad's 50th birthday is next Saturday and I want to bring him a home made cake to celebrate. Any great recipes are welcome (they don't have to be low fat but I am open to those as well). It needs to be somewhat easy for a novice like myself and it needs to be able to serve about 10 people. Any suggestions or tips?

[Dns]

Iam just starting to get into cake decorating and have found that using the Duncan Hines cake mixes are so easy, delicious...and no one really can tell whether its homemade or not. Make it lower fat by substituting in applesauce for the fat. (there are instructions on the box). The real trick is making it look pretty, so that is what people will focus on!

[PJB]

Thanks for the tip DNS. Do you make layer cakes or just sheet cakes? Any advice on working with layer cakes and decorating cakes? I got my first decorating set for Christmas and haven't used it yet? Appreciate your advice.

[hhcowgirl]

Ireally like baking with these mixes too. My only advice, and I am sure you already know this as it is SO basic, but make sure the cake tru;y is all the way cooled before you even begin to put icing on it. I have ruined so many cakes that way. A good idea for a b-day cake (it's what I always do for my close friends' b-days) is to make a red velvet cake. One way to do it is simply to add red food coloring to the chocolate fudge duncan hines mix. Then use a cream cheese icing. Makes for easy decorating too!

[AndreaU]

Growing up, my mom always used to make Texas Sheet Cake for our birthdays. There was a lightened up version of this cake recently in CL. It's pretty easy since it's one big layer and you frost it while the cake is still warm (the frosting just kind of melts atop the cake and you spread it around). Good luck in your endeavor!
Here's the link from a previous post: http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/Forum1/HTML/001919.html

[This message has been edited by AndreaU (edited 01-14-2001).]

[SusanL]

My mother's favorite vanilla cake goes like this:

2 1/4 c flour (sift 2x)
1 1/2 c sugar
3/4 t salt
2 1/2 t b. powder
1/2 c butter
1 c milk w/ 1 t vanilla

Beat all of this together, then add

2 eggs and blend
Pour into 2 greased/floured 9" pans and bake in 350 for about 20 minutes. Watch carefully.

Use your favorite chocolate icing, tastes great even the second day!

[emilycat]

I have a wonderful recipe I'd be happy to post if you're interested. My mom used to make it for my birthday every year...as I got more health-concious, she started using angel food cake instead http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

It's not difficult, but the presentation is lovely and it's soooo delicious.
She just uses a plain Duncan Hines cake, baked in two round layer cake pans, and filled them with this cream cheese-sour cream-cool whip combo -- the icing just had more cool whip and then the topping is a blueberries, sugar and cornstarch, cooked and thickened.

If anyone's interested, I can call her and get the measurements and baking times.

Emily

[AD]

My favorite layer cake is the Better Homes and Gardens Devil's Food Cake. Ironically, it doesn't have much fat unless you use a high-fat frosting. Anyway, the thought of using a mix for anything makes me gag; mixing the ingredients is the most fun part of baking. Someone might as well go to a bakery as use a mix. Everyone's taste is different though, and you just have to find what works for you.

[Dns]

PJB--
I usually do layer cakes and in between the two layers put pudding, fruit, or preserves of some kind. The trick to this is first line the bottom cake with icing to create a sort of dam and the put the filling in. Yeah, make sure you cool them completely...I usually leave it setting overnight. Second, once you have started icing don't touch the cake or else you will get crumbs in the icing. Just use lots of icing until you get it covered and then you can pull off the excess without getting crumbs.
Good Luck!

[Melman]

I think everyone in my family has their favorite b'day cake. Some of the typical ones are Italian Cream Cake (I tried the CL version last fall but it didn't rise nearly as much as a non-CL recipe), Chocolate Pound Cake (WONDERFUL!..definitely NOT-CL), red velvet cake, and German chocolate cake. I finally figured out that the German choco cake mix topped with the real German chocolate cake frosting is really impressive. The real frosting is cooked...I seem to remember lots of butter, coconut, and pecans.

[SHERRY]

Melman....I would love your Italian Cream Cake and Chocolate Pound Cake recipes if you have time to post. I bake a lot of cakes, and love the old, full fat versions best. Especially for special occasions http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[mightyh]

Just bumping this up to get Emily's mom's recipe for the blueberry covered cake...

[mightyh]

Emily - I'd be interested in more details on the blueberry cake, if you don't mind!

Thanks,
Heidi

[PJB]

O.K., I think I am going to go for the layer cake with pudding between the layers. Thanks to everyone for the tips, I will let you know how it goes. I am really nervous but very excited to master cake making.

PJB

[Gina O]

I realize you have already made your decision but thought I would post this for others to try. Last spring either Bon Appetit or Gourmet had this stunning lemon blueberry cake on the cover. I ran out of time to follow the recipe, so I improvised this way...

I bought a lemon cake mix, cream cheese frosting (probably 2 containers) and 2 pints of blueberrys. I made the cake according to directions then mixed in one pint of the berries and baked it in two round cake pans greased, floured and lined with parchement. When cool, I inverted the layers on the cake plate, iced between and the entire outside, then covered with the other pint of berries placing them on the sides and top. It was truly stunning and delicious, and so simple that my niece actually did most of the work at my direction. Gina

[PJB]

Gina O,

What a yummy sounding cake, now I might have to change my plans for my Dad's birthday cake. If I don't try your idea for this weekend, I will try it very soon. It sounds wonderful. Thanks!

[Melman]

Here are the Chocolate Pound Cake and Italian Cream Cake recipes. Neither are CL...and I think there's a reason it's called "pound cake"!!

Chocolate Pound Cake

2 sticks butter or margarine (I use butter)
1/2 cup shortening
3 cups sugar
5 eggs
3 to 4 Tbsp. cocoa
1 cup milk
3 cups all purpose flour, sifted
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder

Blend sugar, butter and shortening. Add eggs one at a time. Sift together dry ingredients and alternately add with milk.

Bake in greased and floured tube (or large bundt) pan for 1 1/2 hours at 300 degrees. Do not open oven until time is up.

Note...I've made this cake for years with yummy results! The last time I made it, I used King Arthur all purpose flour. There was a HUGE difference in taste and texture. ABSOLUTELY incredible! Everyone kept asking what I had done different this time because they noticed it was "lighter" ....all I did was change the brand of flour.

Frosting:
5 Tbsp. butter or margarine
2 tsp. cocoa
1 box powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk

Melt butter and add cocoa. Add powdered sugar a little at a time alternately with milk. Mix until it is frosting consistency. You may not need all the sugar or all the milk.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Italian Cream Cake

1 stick margarine
1/2 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
5 egg yolks
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 small can Angel Flake coconut
1 cup chopped pecans
5 egg whites, stiffly beaten

Cream margarine and shortening. Add sugar and beat until smooth. Add egg yolks and beat well. Combine flour and soda and add to cream mixture alternately with buttermilk. Mix in vanilla. Add coconut and nuts. Fold in stiffly beaten egg whites. Pour into three 8-inch cake pans (greased and floured). Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until done. Cool and frost.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8-oz package cream cheese
1/2 stick margarine
1 box powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Beat cream chese and margarine until smooth. Add sugar and mix well. Add vanilla and beat until smooth. Spread on cool cake. Sprinkle chopped nuts on top if desired.