Molly Cookie

Purple Class Tuxedo Cake with Raspberry Buttercream

May 23, 2010 Cakes, Chocolate, Desserts

Finally, a chocolate cake recipe!

STOP for a second. I want to explain why I thought I wasn’t that great at cake decorating. These pictures are cute and everything, but if you actually saw the cakes up close you would see the imperfections that there were. This shot of the Purple Class cake shows just how hard it was to get the icing evenly spread. Look at this cake’s side. There is a crack in the icing on the bottom in the middle, and you can see chocolate cake showing through the right edge. My polka dots all have pointy tips (not on purpose), and the dots on the edge are not at all in a straight line. Pictures can be deceiving. This one shows a little of the truth. Overall, they were cute, but I want to compliment all of the talented cake decorators out there and say that this is hard work, and I am nowhere near even close to being good at it. Hats off to people who can do this well.

I actually used the same chocolate cake recipe for both the Purple Class cake and the Blue Class cake and used different icings. Since this is the last cake recipe you won’t be hearing about these cakes anymore, I promise. The cake recipe was called Tuxedo Cake from The Pastry Queen cookbook. For the purple class cake I used the same Classic Buttercream recipe that I talked about with the Green Class cake, but I added Raspberry puree to the icing that went between the layers. The Classic Buttercream recipe is fun because you are allowed to add up to a 1/2 cup of liquid fresh fruit puree or a little bit of flavored liquor to the mix to make it a different flavor. I went with fresh raspberries, and I think it worked out pretty well. I didn’t want an overwhelming raspberry flavor though, so I used regular Classic Buttercream on the outside of the cake.

The Tuxedo Cake is paired with a whipped cream frosting and chocolate glaze in The Pastry Queen and I’m sure that tastes marvelous. I’m sure several different icings would go great with this chocolate cake recipe. I’ll just give you the one I used.

Tuxedo Cake from The Pastry Queen

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 cups water
1 cup canola oil
4 cups sugar
1 cup high-quality unsweetened cocoa powder
4 cups all purpose flour
4 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 tbs baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbs vanilla extract

Directions

For a 3-layer cake, place one baking rack one-third from the bottom of the oven and the second two-thirds from the bottom. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the cake pans with parchment paper rounds, grease with butter, and dust with flour.

Combine the butter, water, and canola oil in a medium saucepan set over medium heat. In a large bowl, stir together the sugar, cocoa, and flour. Pour the butter mixture into the sugar mixture and whisk until smooth. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, then whisk in the buttermilk. Whisk in the baking soda, salt, and vanilla all at once. Transfer the batter to the prepared pans. For a 3-layer cake, stagger the cake layers on the oven racks so that no layer is directly over another. Set 2 layers on one rack and the third on the other. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Monitor the layers carefully for doneness; each one may be done at at a different time.

Remove the cakes from the oven and cool on racks for about 15 minutes (**Molly Note: I’d give it at least 25 to 30) before inverting onto baking racks. Cool the cakes completely, at least 2 hours, before frosting.

Classic Buttercream (with a Raspberry Flare) from The Cake Bible

Makes 4 cups

Ingredients

6 large egg yolks
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 cups unsalted butter (must be softened)
Fresh raspberries, pureed (1/4 cup if only mixing into layers, 1/2 cup if using on entire cake)

Have ready a greased 1-cup heatproof glass measure near the range.

In a bowl beat the yolks with an electric mixer until light in color. Meanwhile, combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan (preferably with a nonstick lining) and heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar dissolves and the syrup is boiling. Stop stirring and boil to the soft-ball stage (238 degrees Farenheit). **Molly Note: this took about 8 minutes. Immediately transfer the syrup to the glass measure to stop the cooking.

If using an electric hand-held mixer, beat the syrup into the yolks in a steady stream. Don’t allow syrup to fall on the beaters or they will spin it onto the sides of the bowl. If using a stand mixer, pour a small amount of the syrup over the yolks with the mixer turned off. Immediately beat at high speed for 5 seconds. Stop the mixer and add a larger amount of syrup. Beat at high speed for 5 seconds. Continue with the remaining syrup. For the last addition, use a rubber scraper to remove the syrup clinging to the glass measure. Continue beating until completely cool. Add pureed raspberries and beat until combined. **Molly note: I took out half of the buttercream before I added the raspberries so that I could ice the outside of the cake with Classic Buttercream. If you want the whole thing to taste like raspberries, add the raspberries to the entire mixture. This is also the point when you can add it food coloring if you want.

Gradually beat in the butter. Place in an airtight bowl. Bring to room temperature before using. Rebeat if necessary to restore texture.