Since Valentine’s Day is right around the corner I figured I should probably post something fun to make for your special somebody. While everyone else is posting beautiful layer cakes I’m channeling my inner child. I have been wanting to make some knock-off Little Debbie/Hostess snacks lately so I took my usual route and did some online researching to see what recipes were out there. Needless to say I wasn’t really happy with any of them. I just don’t do box cake mix and most of the recipes started out that way. I knew I wanted vanilla cake layers and a really nice cream filling. A great vanilla cake has been one of the biggest obstacles I have faced as a home baker. They come out too dense, too dry, or worse they don’t taste like anything. I just haven’t gotten it right. Until this weekend. I came across the Cook’s Illustrated White Layer Cake recipe on Epicurious. I made two batches of this recipe. One with cake flour which is what the recipe calls for, and one with regular all-purpose flour. I’d like to say this was done on purpose to test how the cakes compared but no… This was more a lack of planning on my part and I only had enough cake flour for one batch. Turns out both flours worked well. I also used a combination of 3 whole eggs and an egg white (to get the 3/4 cup measure called for in the recipe). While my cake was not pure white, I didn’t need it to be and frankly I didn’t feel like separating 6 eggs. Lazy, yes. Did it affect the cake? Nope, not a bit. I thought this one one of the best vanilla cakes that I’ve made. Andy even approved. So did the dogs, though we know their tastes are questionable.
So I had the cake part down. My plan was to split a batch of the batter between two half-sheet pans. That way, I could frost one side of the sheet cake, flip the other one on top and then I could cut out my heart shapes from there. Easy. I was wrong. So, so very wrong. As I sit here writing this I am asking myself why I felt the need to “flip” the second cake. What is wrong with me?!?! Needless to say, since the cake layer was on the thinner side, it couldn’t stand up to the flip. I fixed as best I could and figured I was going to cover it up with candy melts anyway so it would be fine. Ugh… Wrong again. Due to the second layer breaking down a bit, crumbs managed to get into the candy melts while I was dipping so the end result is not as smooth as I would like. Sometimes I luck out and my ideas work the very first time. Not the case this time. Oh well, live and learn.
I’m told they were delicious. And I had to restrain myself from eating all of the filling. It is so good. Andy said it tasted like the Hostess Orange Cupcake filling. These were my favorite of the Hostess line. The flavor came from Fiori di Sicilia. This is a citrus and vanilla flavoring. Craftsy had a major sale recently and this was something I had been eyeing at King Arthur Flour, along with their Cake Enhancer, but I didn’t want to shell out full price for them. I used the Fiori di Sicilia in the cake and in the filling. Seriously, splurge and try this if you haven’t already. Yes, it is a wee little 1 ounce bottle but a little goes a very long way. I used about an 1/8 of a teaspoon in the filling along with a teaspoon of vanilla and it was perfect.
Even though the execution was less than stellar and I’m not the happiest with the photos, at least the cake-wiches taste good. And isn’t that all that matters??
Happy Valentine’s Day
Ann