Three layers of vanilla cake tinted pink, filled with vanilla buttercream and raspberry jam, and decorated with lots and lots of tiny vanilla buttercream dots to make a unicorn! Serves 12-16.
Ingredients
For the vanilla buttercream:
78g (or ½ cup + 2 tablespoons) all-purpose flour
400g (or 2 cups) granulated sugar
pinch of salt
540ml (or 2 ¼ cup) milk
500g (or 2 cups + 3 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
1¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
For the cake layers:
300g (or 1⅓ cup) unsalted butter
400g (or 2 cups) granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
300g (or 2⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon) all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon table salt
200ml (or ¾ cup + 4 teaspoons) buttermilk
food coloring
For the imbibing syrup:
50g (or ¼ cup) granulated sugar
60ml (or ¼ cup) water
To assemble:
6 tablespoons of raspberry jam
gel food coloring, I used Wilton Sky Blue, Rose, Kelly Green, Golden Yellow, and Red Red
Instructions
Start with the buttercream base:
Combine flour, sugar and salt in a medium-sized saucepan. Whisk together. Add the milk and whisk until combined.
Place saucepan over low heat and allow the mixture to come to a boil, whisking continuously. Once the mixture starts bubbling, cook for 1-2 minutes, then take the pan off the heat and whisk for a minute to beat some of the heat out of the pudding.
Using a rubber spatula, scrape the pudding onto a clean plate and immediately cover it with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic wrap directly onto the pudding. This keeps a skin from forming. Allow the pudding to cool to room temperature. Once cool, place in the fridge to chill thoroughly.
Proceed with the cake layers:
Preheat oven to 175°C/350°F (standard oven setting) and line the bottom of two 18-cm (or 7-inch) round cake pans with baking parchment. Butter the sides of the pans and dust lightly with flour.
In a large bowl and using a mixer, beat butter until pale and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add the sugar and mix until well incorporated and fluffy, another 3 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Once all the eggs have been added, the batter should be thick, glossy and smooth.
In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the batter and mix on low speed until just incorporated.
(If you want to color the cake, add food coloring to the buttermilk!) Add the buttermilk and vanilla and mix for another minute on high speed or until the batter looks smooth. Again, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl every now and then.
Divide the batter evenly over the prepared pans and bake the cakes on a rack in the middle of the oven for about 45 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean and the top of the cake springs back when lightly pressed with a finger. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature. Turn the cakes out of the pans, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap (individually) and place in the freezer for 20 minutes. This makes assembling the cake a lot easier.
Make the imbibing syrup while the cakes cool:
Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan. Heat over low heat, stirring with a metal spoon until the sugar has dissolved and the syrup looks clear. Transfer to a mug and allow to cool to room temperature.
Finish the buttercream:
Once the pudding has cooled, beat the butter in a medium-sized bowl until smooth and fluffy and lightened in color, 5-7 minutes.
Add the chilled pudding (which will look like glue at this point) one tablespoon at a time, mixing well after each addition. Once all the pudding has been added, mix for another few minutes, until the buttercream looks thick, smooth and creamy.
Assemble the cake:
Using a serrated knife and keeping it perfectly level, carefully dome the cakes and split them into two even layers. Using a smaller knife, trim the sides of the cakes to get the browned edges off. This step is optional, but it makes the cake a bit prettier when you cut into it.
Place first cake layer onto a serving plate. Using a pastry brush, brush with an ample amount of syrup. Top with about a cup of buttercream, spreading it evenly over the cake layer using an offset spatula.
Carefully scrape a very thin layer of buttercream from the center of the cake layer again. You want to end up with a completely frosted cake layer, with a thinner layer of frosting in the center and a thicker layer of frosting around the edge of the cake. This thicker edge will act as a dam to keep the jam in the cake.
Spoon about two tablespoons of the jam into the 'pool' you've just created.
Top with second cake layer, pressing it down a bit. Imbibe with syrup, frost with another cup of buttercream, and add the jam. Top with third cake layer, pressing it down, imbibe the cake with the syrup, frost, and add jam again. Finally, place the last cake layer on top, pressing it down.
Crumb coat the entire cake with buttercream, then place in the fridge to allow the crumb coat to set, about 30 minutes.
Frost the cake with a nice layer of buttercream. I used a bench scraper to get the smooth sides and top. I used plain buttercream for the sides, and blue buttercream for the top of the cake to make the unicorn stand out more. Chill the cake in the fridge for about two hours.
Make the unicorn:
I used a template to make the unicorn. I found it on pinterest and printed it out to fit the cake.
Tint the remaining buttercream in your favorite colors. Fit piping bags with a very small star tip (I actually only have one small star tip, so I had to wash the piping tip after piping on each color of the unicorn) and fill the bags with the different colors of buttercream.
Cut out your unicorn template and place it on the frosted cake. Using a small sharp knife, carve a line in the buttercream to make the outline of the unicorn.
Pipe tiny buttercream dots on the unicorn outline. Cut out the manes, and, using your sharp knife again, carve the outline of the manes on the cake. Decorate away! Just make sure to make all the buttercream dots about the same size.
Cake keeps for about 4 days, stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Allow to come to room temperature before serving. This may take up to four hours.
Recipe by The Tough Cookie at https://thetoughcookie.com/2016/11/17/puking-unicorn-cake/