Sunday 21 June 2015

Elsa Birthday Cake

I made this cake for Poppy's 5th birthday.  I think we'd done a similar doll cake before, but no photos exist to convict the guilty.

First make the cakes and cut the tops and sides off.  Bottom two are 7" round, with 3 egg/190g, top was a 2l bowl, 4 egg/250g.

Cut down to size, lots of cake to keep the troops marching.

I was relying on the buttercream to get enough height, cutting each layer in half to be able to add more icing between each layer.

Made up 1kg buttercream, some left over.

Made a stand out of the roll out icing at the bottom of the hole, her feet stuck into that to get the height right, and more stability - the icing padding didn't quite add enough height to the cake. Rolled out 1kg pre-coloured icing, ended up discarding a third, but wouldn't really want to place it on with less. The 'ribbon belt' covered up the top which wasn't so neat.  This was made with an off-cut of the blue icing.

Grace did all the decorating, full credit to her for taking the time and creativity. All the skirt is decorated, with different designs on the sides and back.


Saturday 13 June 2015

Lesson 7: Pâte à Linzer / Mon Linzer

We had guests for this dinner, and like a fool I tried something new.  I can't now remember who it was, so apologies if it was you...


The pastry was fine, although I think I ran out before having excess to put a lattice over the top.

Now with the jam inside.  I thought I'd followed the guidelines, but I don't think the jams were boiled hot enough to be able to set properly.

As a result, it looked basically fine, but cutting into it made the jam just leak everywhere rather than actually going with the portion.  Tasted okay, if you could use a spoon...

Notes for next time

  • Treat the jam like jam and use a jam thermometer to make sure it's cooked hot enough to set.  I've no idea whether this will be sufficient, but it stands a better chance...
  • Make sure the pastry has enough left over for the topping.