Rainbow Swirl Cake

First up is my personal favorite: my Rainbow Swirl Cake. If you’ve been here a while, then I know many of you have seen this one. It’s a couple of years old, but it continues to be one of the most popular cake designs. So many of you have recreated this cake and I’ve just loved seeing every single one!

I recently made this cake again with Kelly Clarkson on her show, Kelly Clarkson Show. And last year I had the privilege of making it with Savannah Guthrie and Jenna Bush Hager on The Today Show. Both clips will give you tutorials for making this cake, or you can find the full step-by-step picture tutorial HERE.

Lucky Charms Cake

If you’re looking for something a bit more simple, this Lucky Charms Cake is so fun and truly the easiest of the bunch. Since you’re adding Lucky Charms marshmallows over the entire cake, you really don’t have to worry too much about getting your sides totally smooth. Plus, your kids will love helping with this cake. Win-win!

Carved Rainbow Cake

Did you catch my video on Instagram for THIS CAKE? I actually did two sides because I couldn’t decide which design I liked best. The first side is this rainbow with sprinkles.

On the second side, I tried out stripes and clovers.

I think the rainbow side is my favorite, but I truly loved designing both. Do you have a favorite?

Make sure to watch the video and read THIS POST to find out all my tips for carving buttercream.

Rainbow Dot Cake

Another new one I designed this year was my Lucky Charms-inspired rainbow cake. I love that the rainbows aren’t in traditional rainbow order, but it still screams St. Patrick’s Day with the colors coordinating with our beloved Lucky Charms cereal.

You can watch the video and read more about this cake HERE.

Not done yet! More St. Patrick’s Day cake ideas are still to come!

Green Velvet Rainbow Cake with Coins

Up next, a cake with a surprise inside! This is another cake from a couple of years ago, but still a classic and one that’s sure to wow a crowd!

I piped the buttercream around this Green Velvet Cake and then used my scraper to smooth it out.

But the real star of the show isn’t what’s on the outside! It’s what’s on the inside! Using round cookie cutters, I cut holes in two layers of my cake. As I stacked the cake layers, I added gold coins in the empty space. I then continued to frost and decorate the cake, hiding the coins until we cut into it. The kids loved the surprise!

Rainbow Stripes

If you love bold and vibrant colors, this next color palette is for you! I went with very traditional rainbow colors to create this striped cake.

For all the details about making the cake layers and decorating the cake, make sure to check out THIS POST.

Green Ombre

Or, if you want more green for your St. Patrick’s Day cakes, these next few cakes are for you. First up in this bunch is my ombre cake.

When I’m making my colors for an ombre buttercream, I always start with the darkest shade first. Once I have my darkest color created, I place a bit of the dark buttercream in another bowl and add a bit of white buttercream. Once that’s mixed, I add a scoop of the lighter shade to a third bowl of white buttercream for an even lighter shade.

Check out the video demo HERE.

Four Leaf Clover Cake

My next design is made with a #2 and a #4 Wilton piping tips. You can see in the picture below that the leaves are made by simple swipes and the stem is made with a little line.

Gingham Cake

And last, but certainly not least, is my new Gingham Cake. This was such a fun cake to design and while it does take some time, it’s not a hard cake to make. Watch the video HERE and see what you think!

Alright! What do you think? Are you feeling inspired to make a St. Patrick’s Day Cake? Sure hope so and I can’t wait to see what you make! Be sure to tag me on Instagram with #cakebycourtney and @cakebycourtney so I can see all your beautiful work.

St. Patrick’s Day Flavor Inspiration

Need some more inspiration? Here are a few more cakes that have flavors and colors that you’ll love for St. Patrick’s Day.

• Grasshopper Pie Cake
• Golden Oreo Cake
• Mojito Cake
• Pistachio Chocolate Chip Cake with Hint of Lime

The post 10 Fun and Easy St. Patrick’s Day Cake Ideas first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Valentine’s Cake Designs

For this year’s Valentine’s Cake collection, I found color inspiration from a felt ball collection from Hello Maypole and the My Mind’s Eye Valentine’s Collection. I love monochromatic pinks, with a hint of red and peach.

Felt balls from Hello Maypole

Decor from My Mind’s Eye

Simple stripes with funfetti buttercream

Simple piping with the Wilton 1m tip

Floral piping and XO hand painting with edible art paint

Pink buttercream with red Wilton heart sprinkles

Buttercream lips made with a simple acetate paper stencil

Bubble Tape hearts

Buttercream hearts

Favorite Cake Flavors Perfect for Valentine’s Day

Pink Velvet

Pink Velvet Cake with Raspberry Buttercream – Tender pink velvet cake with raspberry buttercream and fresh raspberries.

Unlike a traditional red velvet cake, my pink velvet cake isn’t chocolate based. Instead, I went with a vanilla base and used the idea of a “velvet” as part of the texture. So tender and velvety!

Red Velvet

Red Velvet Cake with Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting – A new spin on the traditional red velvet cake, made with red velvet emulsion, toasted marshmallow filling and chocolate sour cream frosting.

I have a confession to make. I used to be a red velvet cake addict. It was all thanks to the red velvet cupcake and cake at Susie Cakes that was about five blocks from my house in Santa Monica. I honestly think I got a red velvet cupcake every week. No joke! So I knew I wanted to make it count when I created my own red velvet cake. I wasn’t just going to offer up any ol’ red velvet cake. It needed to be something special.

Dark Chocolate Strawberry Truffle Cake

Rich dark chocolate cake layers with fresh strawberries, strawberry buttercream and chocolate ganache.

This strawberry frosting is incredible. My mom took one bite of it and immediately compared it to the strawberry truffle at See’s Candies. It’s not just a strawberry frosting, it’s more like a strawberry and cream frosting. It’s so flavorful and fluffy and pairs perfectly with this slightly bitter dark chocolate cake and chocolate ganache.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

A rich, decadent chocolate cake, made with just 7 ingredients!

This may be a flourless dessert, but you don’t need to be gluten-free to enjoy this cake! Nope. This Flourless Chocolate Cake is for any kind of chocolate lover! It Made with only 7 ingredients, this decadent cake is not only easy to make, it’s also incredibly delicious.

Creme Brulee Cake

Layers of vanilla bean cake baked on a graham cracker crust, filled with vanilla bean custard and covered in a vanilla bean buttercream.

I know a traditional creme brûlée doesn’t have any kind of crust, but I’ve had one before that used a graham cracker crust and it was heavenly. Plus, you know how much I like a little crunch and texture in my cakes! For this cake, I used my graham cracker crust that you’ve seen in other cakes like my Ultimate S’mores Cake and my Coconut Key Lime Pie Cake. This cake definitely adds extra fun as your Valentine’s Day cake!

Chocolate Strawberry Nutella

Rich chocolate cake layers with fresh strawberries and Nutella frosting.

For the cake layers, I use my go-to dark chocolate cake. It’s a fool-proof recipe perfect for your Valentine’s Day cake that gets rave reviews in every cake you’ll make with it. I like using dark chocolate because it’s a good balance to all the sweet elements we add to the cake, like the Nutella and the frosting.

Are you looking for something more? Check out this post HERE for more Valentine’s cake inspiration.

The post 14 Valentine’s Day Cake Designs and Flavors You’ll Love first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

The Best Chocolate Zucchini Cake Recipe

Looking for a way to use up all your zucchini from your garden? I’ve got you covered! My Chocolate Zucchini Cake is as easy as it is delicious! It’s a recipe from Ryan’s family and a fan favorite around here. 

The zucchini adds moisture to the cake, but you can’t even tell it’s there once the cakes are baked. I also added some lemon zest to the cake to carry that flavor throughout each bite.

I also added a bit of lemon to the cream cheese frosting. Chocolate and lemon may seem a bit unusual to some, but it’s oh-so-good!

Can this cake be made in a sheet pan?

Absolutely! Just like all of my cakes, you can simplify them by baking them in a 9″ x 13″ baking pan. In fact, Ryan’s parents used to serve this cake with chocolate chips sprinkled on top. The frosting is my addition  

To bake in a rectangular baking pan, don’t change a thing except the baking time. You’ll add about 10 minutes to my suggested time below. 

Tips for Making Chocolate Zucchini Cake

1. Choose Fresh Zucchini

• Use Fresh Zucchini: Fresh zucchini will provide the best texture and moisture. Smaller zucchinis are often less watery and have more flavor.

2. Prepare the Zucchini Properly

• Grate Finely: Use a fine grater to grate the zucchini. This helps it blend seamlessly into the cake batter.
• Drain Excess Moisture: After grating, lightly squeeze the zucchini to remove excess moisture. This prevents the cake from becoming too wet.

3. Enhance the Chocolate Flavor

• High-Quality Cocoa Powder: Use high-quality unsweetened cocoa powder for a rich chocolate flavor. I recommend Extra Brute Cacao Barry Cocoa Powder.
• Add Chocolate Chips: Stir in a generous amount of chocolate chips or chunks for extra decadence.

4. Proper Mixing

• Don’t Overmix: Mix the batter just until the ingredients are combined. Overmixing can lead to a dense cake.

5. Baking Time and Temperature

• Correct Temperature: Bake at the temperature recommended in your recipe, usually around 325°F.
• Check for Doneness: Use a toothpick to test the cake. It should come out with a few moist crumbs but not wet batter.

6. Let It Cool

• Cool Completely: Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes before transferring it to a wire rack to cool completely. This helps it set and makes it easier to frost or serve.

7. Frosting

• Pair with the Right Frosting: Cream cheese frosting, chocolate ganache, or a simple dusting of powdered sugar can complement the cake well. I’m adding a hint of lemon to my cream cheese frosting and it’s delightful!

8. Storage

• Keep It Fresh: Store the cake in an airtight container. It stays moist for several days and can be frozen if needed.

How to Assemble this Chocolate Zucchini Cake

With only two layers to handle, the assembly of this cake is incredibly easy. The first time I made it, I actually didn’t even frost the outside of the cake and made it a naked cake.

This time around, I created a rustic look with my straight icing spatula. You can easily get this look with just a regular kitchen knife too. Check out my tutorial for this technique HERE.

I love the simplicity of this cake, but the flavor is really the show-stopper!

Enjoy!

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Chocolate Lemon Zucchini Cake

Moist chocolate zucchini cake layers with lemon cream cheese frosting.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Cake

Keyword chocolate, Chocolate Cake, Chocolate lemon zucchini cake, cream cheese buttercream, Lemon, Zucchini

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Inactive Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 45 minutes minutes

Servings 1 2-layer, 8-inch cake

Ingredients

For the Cake

• 2 1/4 cup (270 g) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (50 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon (4 g) baking soda
• 1 teaspoon (6 g) salt
• 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup (113 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup (109 g) vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon (4.2 g) pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup (120 g) buttermilk, room temperature
• 2 cups (300 g) grated unpeeled zucchini, about 2 1/2 medium
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

For the Buttercream

• 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, slightly chilled
• 4 oz. cream cheese, slightly chilled
• 5 cups (625 g) powdered sugar, measured and then sifted
• 1 teaspoon (4.2 g) lemon extract
• Pinch of salt

Instructions

For the Cake

• Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Spray your two 8-inch round cake pans, line with parchment paper and spray the parchment. Set aside.
• Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl. Set aside.
• In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the sugar, butter, and oil until well blended.
• Add the eggs, one at a time, beating for about 30 seconds after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.
• Mix in the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, starting and ending with the dry ingredients.
• Mix in the grated zucchini and lemon zest.
• Pour the batter evenly into the two cake pans and bake for about 35-40 minutes.
• Cool completely in pan. 

For the Buttercream

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium-high speed until smooth, about 2 to 3 minutes.
• With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the powdered sugar, followed by the lemon extract and salt.
• Turn the mixer to medium speed and beat for about 5 minutes, until light in color.

The post The Best Chocolate Zucchini Cake with Lemon Cream Cheese Buttercream first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Step 1: Bake and Cool Your Cake Layers

1. Choose Your Recipe: Start by selecting a reliable cake recipe – any on my site will work . Ensure you have enough batter for three layers (generally 16 ounces per pan, which you’ll find is the case on most of my recipes).
2. Prep Your Pans: Spray your pans with nonstick spray, line the bottom with parchment paper and spray again to prevent sticking.
3. Even Layers: Use a kitchen scale to divide the batter evenly among the pans. Bake according to the recipe’s instructions and always use room temperature ingredients.
4. Cool Completely: Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 10 to 15 minutes, then turn them out onto wire racks to cool completely.
5. Level the Tops: If necessary, use a cake leveler or a serrated knife to trim the domed tops off each cake layer. This step ensures your layers are flat and will stack evenly.
6. Chill: For best results, wrap each layer in plastic wrap and chill them in the freeze for at least an hour.

Step 2: Prepare Your Frosting

1. Choose Your Frosting: Buttercream is a popular choice for its smooth texture and versatility. Whip up a batch of your favorite frosting recipe. I love this one.
2. Set Up Your Workspace: Have all your tools ready—offset spatula, piping bags, cake turntable (if you have one), and any decorations you plan to use.

Step 3: Assemble the Cake

1. Start with a Dab of Frosting: Place a small amount of frosting in the center of your cake board or serving platter to secure the bottom layer.
2. First Layer: Place the first cake layer on the board. Spread a generous amount (about 1 cup) of frosting on top, using an offset spatula to spread it evenly.
3. Repeat: Add the second layer, pressing gently to adhere. Spread more frosting on top.
4. Top Layer: Place the final layer , top side down, to give a flat top surface. Apply a thin layer of frosting all over the cake to create a crumb coat. This seals in crumbs and creates a smooth base for the final layer of frosting.
5. Chill the Cake: Freeze the cake for 10 to 15 minutes to set the crumb coat.

Step 4: Final Frosting and Decorating

1. Final Coat: Apply a thicker layer of buttercream, smoothing it out with your spatula. Use a cake scraper for an even finish.
2. Decorate: Here’s where you can get creative. Add piped borders, fresh fruit, sprinkles, or any decorations you like. For a professional look, consider using a rotating cake turntable.
3. Pro Tip: Check out my video below to see how I use an Acrylic Disk to get sharp edges and straight sides on my cake.

Video Tutorial

Tips for a Stress-Free Experience

• Plan Ahead: Bake your cake layers a day in advance. Chilling them overnight makes assembly easier.
• Stay Organized: Have all your tools and ingredients prepped and within reach.
• Take Your Time: Rushing can lead to mistakes. Give yourself plenty of time to stack and decorate.
• Practice Patience: If your frosting isn’t smoothing out perfectly, don’t stress. Imperfections add character!
• Embrace Simplicity: Sometimes, less is more. Simple designs can be just as stunning as intricate ones.

With these steps and tips, stacking and decorating a three-layer cake becomes a manageable and enjoyable process. Remember, practice makes perfect, and each cake you create will be a delicious success. Happy baking!

The post How to Stack and Decorate a Three-Layer Cake: Tips for a Stress-Free Experience first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

The Best Vanilla Buttercream

This buttercream is just too good not to have its own post! It’s light and fluffy, silky and smooth – and just all-around delicious.

To me, a buttercream should never be so dense that it steals the show away from the cake. In fact, a buttercream should be part of the ensemble, a complementary element to the layers and fillings. However, that’s not always the case. I grew up thinking buttercream was dense and heavy. It wasn’t until I started making homemade cakes and homemade frosting that I realized, it didn’t have to be that way.

How to Make Buttercream Frosting

To get a light and fluffy homemade buttercream frosting, I have a detailed post: HOW TO MAKE THE BEST BUTTERCREAM to give you in-depth instruction for making your buttercream unreal! Here’s an overview with a quick picture tutorial for making the best vanilla buttercream:

• Sift your powdered sugar
• Use slightly cold butter and mix on its own for 2 to 3 minutes
• Use heavy whipping cream
• Beat for 5 minutes
• Stir by hand

Before frosting your cake, make sure to stir the buttercream with a wooden spoon or spatula to push out the air pockets. This makes getting smooth sides on your cake so much easier.

Look at the transformation in color and texture in these pictures below.

You’ll be able to get nearly white in color with that extra five minutes of beating. More importantly, you’re creating a light, fluffy texture that won’t overpower your cake layers.

Full-Length Video Tutorial

Want to make this buttercream recipe together?! Check out my video for making the best Vanilla Buttercream on my YouTube channel.

Print

Vanilla Buttercream

A light and fluffy vanilla buttercream

Course Dessert

Cuisine Buttercream

Keyword easy buttercream recipe

Ingredients

For the Buttercream

• 2 cups (452g) unsalted butter slightly chilled
• 6 cups (750g) powdered sugar measured and then sifted
• 3-4 tbsp (57.75g) heavy whipping cream
• 2 tsp (8.4g) vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• *This buttercream recipe makes enough to fill and cover your cake. If you want to add additional piping, you’ll want to make an extra 1/2 batch.

Instructions

To prepare

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter for about 2 to 3 minutes. This will soften the butter without it having to be warm.
• With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the sifted powdered sugar, one cup at a time, mixing a little in between each addition.
• With mixer on medium speed, add whipping cream, vanilla and salt.
• Turn the mixer to medium-high speed and beat for an additional 3 to 5 minutes. The frosting will become lighter in color and texture.
• Before spreading on your cake, spend a couple minutes mixing the buttercream by hand with a wooden spoon to push out the air pockets.

The post The Best Vanilla Buttercream first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Understanding the Difference Between Baking Soda and Baking Powder

Baking soda and baking powder: two essential ingredients in the realm of baking that often confuse even the most seasoned home bakers. While they might seem interchangeable at first glance, these two leavening agents play distinct roles in the chemistry of baking. Understanding their differences is crucial for achieving perfect results in your baked creations.

Baking Soda: The Rising Star

Let’s start with baking soda, also known as sodium bicarbonate. This white, powdery substance is a true workhorse in the kitchen. Its magic lies in its ability to react with acidic ingredients, such as buttermilk, yogurt, or citrus juice. When combined with an acid, baking soda produces carbon dioxide gas, which creates bubbles in the batter or dough, causing it to rise.

Baking soda is incredibly powerful, so a little goes a long way. However, it’s essential to note that baking soda requires an acidic counterpart to activate its leavening properties. Without this acidic ingredient, your baked goods may end up with a bitter, soapy taste, as the baking soda will not be neutralized.

Baking Powder: The All-in-One Solution

Now, let’s turn our attention to baking powder. Unlike baking soda, baking powder is a complete leavening agent on its own. It contains both an acid (usually cream of tartar) and a base (baking soda), along with a stabilizer (often cornstarch) to prevent premature activation.

When baking powder is mixed with liquid and exposed to heat, it undergoes a two-stage reaction. First, the acid reacts with the baking soda to produce carbon dioxide bubbles, causing immediate leavening. Then, the heat from the oven triggers a second reaction, ensuring a final burst of lift during baking.

Unlike baking soda, baking powder does not require additional acidic ingredients to function properly. This makes it a convenient choice for recipes that do not contain naturally acidic components.

Now that we’ve covered what each one is and what it does, let’s talk about substitutions:

Can you substitute baking powder for baking soda?

Short answer? Yes… BUT, there’s some things to know so don’t skip this section!

While both baking soda and baking powder serve the purpose of leavening, they are not really interchangeable due to their distinct compositions and reactions.

• Strength: Baking soda is much stronger than baking powder. Using the wrong one in a recipe can lead to disastrous results. Too much baking soda can result in a metallic or soapy taste, while too much baking powder can cause your baked goods to collapse or develop a bitter flavor.
• Chemical Reaction: Baking soda requires an acidic ingredient to activate its leavening power, while baking powder contains its own acid. Substituting one for the other can throw off the balance of acidity in your recipe, affecting both the texture and flavor of your baked goods.
• Texture and Taste: Baking soda and baking powder can produce different textures and flavors in your baked treats. Baking soda tends to yield a crisper, darker crust, while baking powder contributes to a softer, lighter texture. Additionally, using the wrong leavening agent can result in an undesirable taste in your final product.

If you don’t have baking soda, you can use baking powder, but it’s not a 1-to-1 ratio. In fact if a recipe calls for one teaspoon of baking soda, you will use THREE teaspoons of baking powder. Baking powder also contains a little bit of salt, so it’s also a good idea to halve the salt the recipe calls for.

Also be aware, you might get a slightly bitter, off-putting taste from using that much baking powder.

In conclusion, while baking soda and baking powder might seem similar, they are unique ingredients with specific roles in baking. Understanding their differences and how they interact with other ingredients is essential for successful baking adventures. So next time you’re in the kitchen, remember: when it comes to baking soda vs. baking powder, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. It’s all about chemistry and finding the perfect balance for your recipe.

The post Understanding the Difference Between Baking Soda and Baking Powder first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Salted Caramel Gingerbread Cake

Using my best gingerbread cake recipe, this Salted Caramel Gingerbread Cake is an absolute crowd pleaser thanks to the homemade salted caramel drizzle and caramel buttercream.

Gingerbread Cranberry Cake

I love to pair different flavor profiles and putting a tart cranberry compote with the warmth of gingerbread and the sweetness of a white chocolate buttercream – well, it’s just perfection!

Gingerbread Latte Cake

If you love gingerbread and caramel, you’re going to go nuts for my Gingerbread Latte Cake with coffee flavored caramel buttercream and toffee bits between the layers.

Gingerbread Cookie Cake

You know my love of gingerbread cookies, so it’s no surprise I put one right in the middle of a cake! My Gingerbread Cookie Cake has layers of gingerbread cake, gingersnap cookies, boiled milk frosting, and a cinnamon buttercream.

Lemon Gingerbread Cake

We can thank my mom for this flavor combination: lemon and gingerbread! It may be a unique flavor combination, but let me assure you, it’s incredibly delicious. The lemon curd and the lemon mascarpone frosting are simply divine!

Gingerbread Pear Cake

Last but not least, gingerbread and pear! A delicious pear jam and pear buttercream accompany these tender and flavorful gingerbread cake layers.

Can’t wait to hear which one(s) you make!

The post 6 Gingerbread Cakes You Need to Make This Holiday Season first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Christmas Cake Design Ideas

With Christmas less than a week away, I’m here to help you decide on your Christmas cake! From design ideas to flavor ideas, I’ve got you covered! Let’s get this post started with Christmas cake design ideas… I’ve got a ton for you!

Colorful Christmas Cakes

This first set of cakes is from this year’s collection, inspired by the new Christmas party collection at My Mind’s Eye. As soon as I saw their new designs and color palette, I fell in love and knew I wanted my cakes to have the same look and feel.

• Garland Cake – this cake has my Classic Vanilla Buttercream with fondant cutouts. I started with basic red, pink, orange, and green fondant and then added some food coloring to achieve the exact colors I wanted.
• Colorful Pom Pom Cake – you can see the instructions and tutorial HERE.
• Christmas Tree Cake – for the trees, you can read more about this design and watch my cake video HERE.
• How to Make Colors – for the colors, make sure to watch this REELS.

Classic Christmas Colors

If you like Christmas colors that are a little more classic, these next three cakes might be for you!

I originally designed these cakes last year, and then had the opportunity to make them again this year for a fun collaboration I did with Called to Surf. We took each of these designs and put them on embroidered kitchen towels!

• Pom Pom Ugly Sweater Cake – this cake was SO fun to make! It’s inspired by an ugly Christmas sweater and I just love how it turned out. The video tutorial is HERE. You’ll see the pom poms are made the same way as the pom poms from my Colorful Pom Pom Cake above.
• Joy Cake – I love the simplicity of this cake. Check out the video HERE.
• Striped Present Cake – the key to this one is the scraper! I used the striped scraper from my Essential Scraper Set on Shop.CakebyCourtney.com. You can see the video tutorial HERE.

Easy Christmas Cake Designs

The next set of cakes are some of the easiest to make.

• Holy Berry Cake – green buttercream and red fondant is all you need for this Holy Berry Cake. Video tutorial HERE.
• Sprinkles Cake – add a few sprinkles to your buttercream and get this darling, festive look! The key is to not press too hard with your scraper as you smooth out the sides. Check out the video tutorial HERE.
• Easy Winter Trees Cake – you know how much I love the Wilton 1M tip! This is another easy design using my favorite piping tip. Watch the video tutorial HERE.

Christmas Cake Flavor Ideas

This next section is all about flavor! These are my favorite Christmas cake flavors, with links to each recipe.

• White Chocolate Pretzel Peppermint Cake
• Chocolate Orange Cake
• Chai White Chocolate Raspberry Cake

• Gingerbread Latte Cake

• Gingerbread Cookie Cake
• Citrus Olive Oil Cake
• Cannoli Cake

• Citrus Cranberry Cake

• Santa’s Milk and Cookie Cake
• Cranberry Pistachio Cake
• White Chocolate Cranberry Cake
• Chocolate Peppermint Cake
• Lemon Gingerbread Cake
• Eggnog Cake

• White Chocolate Peppermint Cake

So many cakes, so little time! Which cake will you be making for Christmas this year?

The post The Ultimate Christmas Cake Guide first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Get ready for the best s’mores cakes for summer. Eating s’mores over a campfire is a classic treat that makes for some good memories with your loved ones. If this is one of your summer traditions, you are going to love any one of these cakes that takes s’mores to a whole new level! 

It all started with my original ultimate s’mores cake which quickly became a crowd favorite. After that, I had some fun creating more recipes that put a fun twist on the original s’mores ingredients. You will love these cake recipes and I can’t wait for you to try them! 

Best Summer S’mores Cake #1: The Ultimate S’mores Cake

My Ultimate S’mores Cake is one for the books. It has always pleased any crowd I’ve served it to, and I know you’ll love it too! It has a lot of elements to it, but don’t let that scare you away! I recommend splitting up the prep for this cake over the span of three days. I explain in my blog post what I do each day. As soon as you take that first bite, all the work to make this cake will be worth it. Promise!

Best Summer S’mores Cake #2: Biscoff S’mores Cake

It was only a matter of time before I combined Biscoff with a s’mores cake. My love for Biscoff runs deep and adding it to s’mores flavors only makes me love it even more! This Biscoff S’mores Cake truly is magical and I know you and those you share it with will quickly fall in love. It’s made up of a chocolate Biscoff cake baked on a Biscoff crust, a marshmallow filling, and a Biscoff buttercream. Need I say more?

Best Summer S’mores Cake #3: Banana Nutella S’mores Cake

This Banana Nutella S’mores Cake is such a fun one to make. It’s inspired by one of my friends who sent me a picture of her eating a s’more with banana and Nutella in it. She thought it was a great idea for a cake and I couldn’t agree more. I think this cake might even change your life! It includes layers of banana cake baked on top of a graham cracker crust, filled with toasted marshmallow filling, and covered in Nutella buttercream. 

Best Summer S’mores Cake #4: S’moreo Cake with Toasted Marshmallow Oreo Filling

This S’moreo Cake is a chocolate lover’s dream! I replace the graham crackers with Oreo which makes a fun twist on the classic s’more. The cake is filled with dark chocolate cake layers, toasted marshmallow Oreo filling, chocolate ganache, and chocolate cream cheese buttercream. Just the dark chocolate cake alone is going to be a cake you’ll want to eat again and again. Once you add in the other elements, you will be in absolute heaven! 

Best Summer S’mores Cookies: Brown Butter S’mores Cookies

OK, I know this last one isn’t cake, but I had to include it on this list because they are so amazing and still fall into that s’mores category! If you’re not feeling like baking cake, then these Brown Butter S’mores Cookies will do the trick. They are soft and chewy and the brown butter base adds a little campfire flavor! 

Best S’mores Cakes for Summer

Alright, which ones of these best s’mores cakes for summer will you be trying first? I can’t wait for you to enjoy summer with one of these memorable treats! And you can follow me on Instagram @cakebycourtney for more tips and recipes on all things cake! 

The post Best S’mores Cakes for Summer first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Let’s talk hosting. You either love it or, well, prefer to be an attendee at someone else’s party. That being said, it’s likely you’ll get the chance to host your own guests at some point and you’ll want to impress them! 

Besides whipping your house into shape and making sure your kids’ bedrooms are cleaned, you’re going to want a stellar menu — and by this, I’m talking about cake, of course! 

Wow your guests with a cake — but not just any cake. Take your home baking skills to the next level and decorate a cake like a professional! Don’t worry, I’ll walk you through some of my favorite and basic cake decorating tips that are sure to help you impress (unexpected or not) company. 

Helpful Cake Decorating Tips

Turning a mediocre cake into an elegant, eye-pleasing creation really doesn’t take a lot. You’ll just need a couple tools, some trial runs, and your cake will be bakery ready! I’m talking everything from the consistency of your buttercream, to that perfect drip. Cake decorating 101: let’s get into it!

It’s All in the Flavor

First things first: the flavor. If the flavor is missing, what’s the point of decorating? You can’t simply mask the taste of a dry or flavorless cake by adding all the bells and whistles. 

By mastering the flavor, you’ll automatically impress everyone — regardless of how professional it looks. People walk away remembering taste, not so much the aesthetic. That being said, once you have nailed the flavor profile, you can start adding different decorating techniques into your toolbox to take your cake to the next level. 

Take my Olive Oil Ricotta Cake for example. Yes, surprisingly cheese and cake make the perfect duo! With the fresh strawberry basil compote and olive oil cake, this combo offers a sophisticated flavor profile — one that’s easy to accomplish and will impress your guests. 

Buttercream Icing Consistency

Next item of business: buttercream. Other than the cake itself, your buttercream is a foundational element for the decorating. If the consistency of your buttercream is out of whack, you’ll either end up with droopy decorations due to soft icing, or the icing will be too stiff to spread evenly. So, here are my cake decorating tips and tricks for the perfect buttercream:

Step 1: After you’ve measured out your powdered sugar, ALWAYS sift it. This will just eliminate any unwanted lumps that can affect the texture of your buttercream. 

Step 2: Take your butter out of the fridge about a half-hour before mixing. Doing so will allow the butter to soften a bit, but not to the point of being too soft. Then, I beat the butter using a paddle attachment for a couple of minutes before adding the sifted powdered sugar. Your butter should now be lighter in texture and color but remain cold which will help you in your application. If the frosting is too soft and warm, it will slide right off your cake. 

Step 3: Next, add that heavy cream. Beat it into the butter and powdered sugar mixture for a few minutes. I typically beat it on medium speed at a 6. 

Step 4: DO NOT skip this step! Mix the buttercream by hand with a wooden spoon to get rid of air pockets. You only need to do it for a couple of minutes, but this is crucial for a nice, smooth buttercream.

If you don’t get the right consistency you’re looking for, add 1 teaspoon of liquid (corn syrup, milk, or water will do) for every cup of stiff icing. Or, add 2 teaspoons for an even thinner consistency. This will depend on whether you’re icing the actual cake or making dimensional decorations that require some stiffness.

Piping Techniques

Now that you’ve mastered the perfect buttercream, we can move on to the fun part: piping. Having the right buttercream will only make piping easier. Start with your piping bag fitted with the Wilton 1M tip, and you can create a number of looks (you can experiment with other tips, of course!). Here are a few cake decorating tips and tricks to add some texture to your cake: 

• Basic Star. I’d recommend this piping technique to anyone — beginner or not, this is a simple, elegant way to spruce up your cake. Using that 1M tip, start piping your buttercream a little way from the edge on top of your iced cake (your decorations will fall right off if you pipe along the very edge). Keep the piping bag nice and tall, and just apply a little pressure. Once you’ve placed your star, lift up quickly, pull away, and onto the next. 

• The Wave. Waves provide another effortless look that you can pipe along the whole edge of your cake top. Create a base and then push the piping bag away from you, and pull it towards you ‘til you have that wave design. Repeat all around the cake. 

• Swirl Technique. Again, give yourself a solid base, and start swirling counterclockwise. You’ll overlap from one swirl to the next to create an infinite look. You can also pipe your swirls in a clockwise motion — this will just create a different edge. 

• “McDonald’s Soft Serve Ice Cream Cone”. A personal favorite of mine! I kid you not, this piping technique looks identical to a McDonald’s soft-serve ice cream cone. YUM. Okay, back to piping. Hold the bag upright and squeeze out the buttercream to form the swirl’s center. Without releasing pressure, raise the tip and move slightly to the side to get that swirl effect. Then, in a circular motion, pipe a “C” to connect your starting and ending points. After that first rotation, move your piping bag slightly inward and repeat that circular motion. Keep on spiraling until you’ve reached your desired height. 

• Classic Rosette. Rosettes are both timeless, and easy — something you’re after to impress your guests! Start with a simple small star, and barely raise the tip to move it slightly to the side. Then, pipe an arc towards the top and create a semicircle to connect the starting and ending point. Remember to decrease pressure towards the end of the motion and pull away. 

With any of these piping techniques, you can swap out that Wilton 1M tip for any other tip to produce different sizes or textures. But, I’ve gotta say, I highly recommend having that 1M tip as a staple. I use it on nearly all my cakes! Using one of these piping techniques works perfectly with my Biscoff Cake because I stick my Biscoff cookies right in the center of each swirl! 

Ombre Style

An ombre cake is a great way to add subtle flair, and hide imperfections. This way, it’s less likely people will scrutinize every ounce of your cake. 

For the ombre design, you’ll want at least three colors of buttercream (or more) — all within the same color family. Take your darkest color and pipe a strip along the bottom of the cake, and pipe about two more strips above. Then, moving onto the next color that’s lighter in shade, pipe a couple more strips of buttercream moving up the cake. Lastly, take your lightest color and pipe around the top of your cake (this color will also be the star of your cake from a bird’s eye view). 

Finish it out by using your cake scraper as you would with any other cake. If you see any holes after you’ve gone around the cake with your cake scraper, just fill these gaps in with the right color of buttercream and scrape again until smooth. 

(Tip: always use a clean cake scraper so that you’re not dragging any dry bits of frosting through your fresh frosting.) After it’s perfectly smooth, you can either leave your cake as is or give it some texture by adding a swirl design.

The ombre design pairs nicely with my Peaches and Cream Cake because it’s light and summery — perfect for any upcoming gathering! 

Check out my tutorial here to get the full ombre effect. 

The Perfect Drip

Next on our cake decorating list: the drip. Who doesn’t love a good drip cake? Giving your cake a sleek drip finish will just add a nice, modern touch. Plus, it will have your guests circling around your cake wondering how you managed to pull that off (you can teach them later!). 

The drip technique is a WHOLE lot easier than it looks. For starters, I use either Wilton’s Candy Melts or these Guittard white cookie drops from Orson Gygi for the ganache — both of which are so easy to work with! If tinting a white chocolate drip with another color sounds intimidating or tricky, that’s where the candy melts come in. 

With any drip, it’s all about the ratio of heavy cream to chocolate: 

• For semi-sweet or dark chocolate, use one cup heavy whipping cream with one cup chocolate chips.
• For white chocolate or candy melts, you only need ¼ cup cream with one cup of chips. 

If you don’t have your desired consistency, either add more chocolate to thicken or if it becomes too thick, add more cream. Keep in mind: the drip will naturally thicken if it sits out to cool, so reheat it in the microwave for about 10 seconds and add a couple more teaspoons of cream.

Before you apply your drip, make sure your cake has chilled long enough — this way, your drip won’t be running all over the place. For the ganache, I like using a cheap squeeze bottle. This makes the application process SO much easier!

One of the most important things to note is how you hold the bottle. You don’t want to hold it vertically or the ganache will land in random splotches on your cake. Instead, I hold the bottle at an angle so the point is touching the edge of the cake. At that tilted angle, go around the entire edge of the cake. If you squeeze the bottle down longer, you’ll get a longer drip. If you squeeze it for a shorter time, you’ll have a shorter drip. I like to alternate back and forth for some contrast.

I love applying a rich, chocolatey drip on cakes like my Ultimate S’mores Cake because of its ooey gooey effect. Talk about an upgraded s’more!

Sprinkle Time

If you’re wanting a playful look, sprinkles all the way! (I know my kids would agree.) There’s really not a lot to it and this is a sure way to hide any imperfections. 

After your frosted cake has chilled long enough, sandwich the cake horizontally between your two palms (make sure you have cake boards on either end) to get a good grip. Then, carefully roll your cake through a bed of colorful sprinkles. I typically dump sprinkles all over the surface of a jelly roll pan, so that the sprinkles stay contained (for the most part), and the cake has an even surface to roll through.

This method will leave you with a cake dunked in sprinkles from head to toe! You can just roll the base of your cake through sprinkles if you want a cleaner look, too. Or, if you want to get creative, you can create a striped look using sprinkles as you see here. 

And don’t be afraid to branch out of the sprinkle department — you can roll your cake through cookie crumbs, toasted coconut flakes, fruity pebbles, etc.! The sky’s the limit. Check out this post for design inspo. 

(Some of my all-time favorite sprinkles are Sweetapolita from Orson Gygi.) 

Make it Your Own

Whether you want to go over the top or keep things sleek, don’t be afraid to try new things with your cake decorating! Add all the candy, chocolate bark, and piping your heart desires. Or, keep it simple with a couple of fresh berries atop! Remember: there is no right or wrong way to decorate. It’s all about the flavors. Just know that your guests will be back sooner than you hope for more cake…

To make your cake decorating experience a little more seamless, check out my go-to cake tools that are musts in my book! And for more cake decorating tips and tricks, follow @cakebycourtney on all social media to stay in the know. 

Happy cake decorating! 

The post 5 Simple Cake Decorating Tips to Impress Your Guests first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Mother’s Day is right around the corner and what better way to celebrate her (or yourself) than with cake? Here are my top 5 Mother’s Day cakes to bake for mom! And the good news is that she won’t only love it, but your whole family will too. I tried to put together a list that has a nice variety, so I hope you find one that you can’t wait to bake this Mother’s Day! 

My mom has always been one of my biggest cheerleaders. I grew up baking with her in the kitchen and several of my recipes are actually inspired by some of the things we would bake together. Those are some of my absolute favorite memories! I am so grateful for my mom and that I get to honor her this Mother’s Day! I hope you get to do the same and find a cake recipe that becomes a new family favorite. 

Mother’s Day Cake #1: Heavenly Cream Cheese Danish Cake

This cake is for the mom who loves all things cheesecake. My Heavenly Cream Cheese Danish Cake is to die for!! I’m not kidding–I based it on a Cheese Danish I tried at The Farmstead in St. George, Utah and it was pure heaven. This cake is made up of cream cheese cake layers, cream cheese filling, and cream cheese frosting. I promise this will be a cake unlike any other your mom (or you) has tried before! 

Mother’s Day Cake #2: Lemon Biscoff Cake with Lemon Buttercream

You all know that I’m a big fan of Biscoff, and I know I’m not the only one out there. If your mom is a huge fan of it too, she will love this Lemon Biscoff Cake with Lemon Buttercream! It has lemon ricotta cake layers baked on a Biscoff cookie crust and is filled with lemon curd and lemon buttercream. The flavors of Biscoff and lemon are the perfect pair because they complement each other so well! And don’t worry, if your mom loves Biscoff, but is not too thrilled about lemon in cake, she will love my Biscoff Brownie Cake! 

Mother’s Day Cake #3: Better Than Anything Cake

Chocolate cake layers, salted caramel, whipped cream, toffee candy, and chocolate caramel buttercream?! Yes, please! This is my Better Than Anything Cake (but you may have heard of this cake before by a similar name–better than sex cake). This cake was a staple in my house growing up and we’d make it really easy by buying the box cake, prepared whipped cream, and crushed-up Heath Bars. But when you make it from scratch? There’s no way your mom won’t love this cake and maybe even agree that it’s better than anything else she’s had before! 

Mother’s Day Cake #4: Peach Crisp Cake with Cinnamon Oat Crumble

When I was scrolling through to see which cake to add to this list, my Peach Crisp Cake caught my eye! Right when Mother’s Day arrives it will be the best time to buy peaches, so how could you pass up on this opportunity?! However, this cake recipe can use canned peaches as a substitute and it will still taste absolutely amazing! If your mom loves a nice peachy crumble treat, she will 100 percent love this cake. It includes tender yellow cake layers with a cinnamon oat crumble, peach filling, and whipped vanilla bean buttercream. Yum!

Mother’s Day Cake #5: Cookies and Cream Cake

I know my Cookies and Cream Cake is a fan favorite so I had to include this on the list! This just goes to show how many Oreo lovers there are out there and I am definitely one of them! This classic cake includes dark chocolate cake layers, a cookies and cream filling, and Oreo buttercream, finished off with a chocolate drip. And I have plenty of Oreo-themed cakes to choose from, so you can browse and find your mom’s favorite HERE!

Top 5 Mother’s Day Cakes to Bake for Mom

I hope you found a recipe you want to try this year from my top 5 Mother’s Day cakes to bake for mom! I wish you the best of times celebrating with your mom and family. Or if you are the one being celebrated, I hope your spouse and children shower you with all your favorite things! Here’s to us, the moms who love to bake and make the best memories with their families. Make sure to give me a follow on Instagram @cakebycourtney so you can keep getting the best tips and recipes on all things cake!

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It’s one of the most frequently asked questions that comes my way. “What is cake flour?” You’ll see it in a lot of my recipes, so let’s make sure you know exactly what it is and why it’s so crucial in certain cakes.

What is cake flour?

Cake flour is a light, finely milled (extracted) flour with a lower protein content than other flours. In fact, it has the lowest protein content out of all the baking flours. But why is the protein content important? Well, protein is what becomes the gluten. The low protein content (low gluten), is what helps your cakes become so light, tender and fluffy. Cake flour is also often bleached which means it’s lighter in color and texture than other flours.

The extra fine consistency also means it will absorb more liquid. This extra absorption allows your batter to rise a little taller – so just make sure your recipe has enough liquid in it to account for this extra absorption if you’re testing out your own recipes.

Why do we use it?

Cake flour is great for when we want to have a light and tender texture to (i.e. yellow cake, white cake, angel food cake, etc.). It’s not in every one of my recipes, but when it’s called for, I think it’s important to use it. Cake flour truly makes such a difference in the taste and texture.

My Favorite Cake Flour

My favorite brand of cake flour is Lehi Mills.

With all the cakes you’re making, this is the cake flour for you. I’ve been using Lehi Mills all-purpose flour for years and have always loved the quality and flavor of their product. 

I’m so thrilled and honored to be sharing this partnership to bring to you this incredible cake flour. We spent months testing it and making sure it’s the best of the best – both in flavor and quality.

Details:

• 5 lbs
• 22 cups (roughly 7.5 cakes)
• local (not imported)
• unbleached
• 1 year shelf-life

Is there a substitute?

You bet! While I prefer the real deal, you can certainly make your own if you’re in a pinch and can’t find pre-made. Here’s what you do:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour – 2 tablespoons
• +
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• =
• 1 cup cake flour

For one cup of AP flour, take out two tablespoons and replace them with two tablespoons of cornstarch. Then sift the mixture at least two times… a couple more would be great. You need to get the mixture as fine as possible, so don’t skip this step. This also helps to mix in the cornstarch really well.

THEN… measure 1 cup of flour from that sifted mixture.

Ok! There you have it! Everything you need to know about cake flour. Hopefully, this answers your questions, but if not, feel free to ask questions in the comments. And, you can always follow me on Instagram @cakebycourtney. Send me a dm anytime!

More Posts You’ll Enjoy

• Guilt-Free Protein-Packed Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Can I substitute regular flour for cake flour?
• The Most Delicious Coconut Caramel Cake
• Egg-Free and Dairy-Free Vanilla Cake
• Best Baking Substitutions Every Baker Needs to Know

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Spring is on its way and St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner! I’ve got 5 simple and fun rainbow cake recipes you and your family will love as you celebrate the new season and holiday! These cakes are super family and kid-friendly, so I wouldn’t be surprised if one of these became one of your new go-to recipes for birthday cakes or a similar celebration! 

I have a lot of fun creating rainbow-inspired cakes because it’s exciting to figure out different ways to incorporate the rainbow into or onto the cake. There are so many different ways to do it and the colors together always create such a beautiful cake! I can’t wait to see your take on these cakes and which one ends up being your favorite. 

Rainbow Cake Recipe #1: Rainbow Tutorial

My first rainbow cake recipe can actually have any cake flavor you prefer (green velvet would be a fun festive choice!) and then I used vanilla buttercream to cover it! I added some food coloring to make the different colors, then piped them onto saran wrap, carefully folded them, and placed them into the piping bag to prep them for piping the rainbows on the side of the cake. My original post HERE has step-by-step instructions on how to do this! 

Rainbow Cake Recipe #2: Rainbow Sherbet

My Rainbow Sherbet Cake comprises tender yellow cake layers, raspberry lime curd, and orange buttercream. I created this new recipe on a whim with my son Westin years ago when I had some leftover yellow cake layers. We raided the pantry to see what would be good together and we settled on the raspberry lime and orange flavors. As soon as I took the first bite it took me back to my childhood days when I would get rainbow sherbet ice cream at Baskin Robbins! 

Rainbow Cake Recipe #3: Green Velvet

This Green Velvet Rainbow Cake is a great choice if you’re wanting to impress your kids! I included a fun surprise on the inside of the cake and it was so fun to see my kids’ eyes glued to the cake as I cut the first slice and then see their reaction once they saw the surprise. I hid some gold coins in the middle, so it’s like the gold treasure at the end of the rainbow! Such a fun cake to make and definitely to share with my kids. I hope you enjoy this one as much as we did!

Rainbow Cake Recipe #4: Confetti (Funfetti) Cake

Funfetti has been a popular cake choice for generations and I can totally see why! It’s filled with such fun colors and tastes amazing. My version of Funfetti Cake is made up of light and fluffy vanilla cake layers, lots of sprinkles, and a whipped vanilla buttercream frosting. I’ve made some updates to this recipe that ensures super moist cake layers and an emphasis on the vanilla flavor. I know you’ll really love this one! 

Rainbow Cake Recipe #5: Cake Batter Buttercream with Rainbow Sprinkles

I call this rainbow cake the Inside-Out Birthday Cake. It is made with my classic chocolate cake recipe (that is to die for) and filled with chocolate chip cookie dough. Then, I cover it in the most delicious cake batter buttercream and finish it off with as many rainbow sprinkles as possible. This rainbow cake recipe would be such a fun and simple one to make and the flavor will have you smiling from ear to ear!

5 Simple and Fun Rainbow Cake Recipes

Which one of these 5 simple and fun rainbow cake recipes will you be trying first? There’s nothing like a rainbow cake to get you in the festive mood for St. Patrick’s Day or even just for spring! If you love these recipes and want to know more, follow me on Instagram @cakebycourtney! You will get the best tips and tricks on all things cake! 

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Springtime is on its way whether the weather is showing it or not! I hope all of my spring cake baking will help the sun come out and warm things up a bit! In an effort to give spring a warm welcome this year, I put together my personal favorites of the best spring cake recipes from scratch. These cakes include such fun flavors and textures that I know you’ll enjoy making and tasting them!

This list showcases the fruit that is in season for spring. It includes a nice mix of flavors, so I’m sure there will be a certain one that speaks to you! I can’t wait to find out which ones you love and how they turn out! And just a quick reminder when using any of these cake recipes, it always helps to make certain elements a day or two in advance, so you’re not having to make every single element in one sitting. Happy baking!

Spring Cake Recipe #1: Blackberry Lime Italian Soda Cake

Throwing in the Italian soda twist on this cake really took it to the next level! My Blackberry Lime Italian Soda Cake is made up of light and fluffy cake layers, sweet and tart blackberry lime compote, fresh whipped cream, and finished off with silky smooth blackberry buttercream. This cake is inspired by one of the best springtime drinks, so now you can enjoy it in cake form! I bet it’ll leave your mouth watering after the first bite as it did for me! 

Spring Cake Recipe #2: Hummingbird Cake

Have you ever heard of or tried Hummingbird cake before? It’s a traditional southern dessert that’s filled with bananas, crushed pineapple, cream cheese, and pecans. I put my own twist on this Hummingbird Cake and I am so proud of it! While I stayed pretty true to the roots of this traditional recipe, I toasted and candied my pecans and put them around the outside of the cake rather than putting them in between the cake layers. I think you’ll enjoy this new take on Hummingbird Cake!

Spring Cake Recipe #3: Apple Almond Caramel Cake

One of the best times of the year to enjoy apples is in the spring, so of course I had to include one of my apple-flavored cakes on this list! This Apple Almond Caramel Cake is made up of apple spice cake layers with almond white chocolate frosting, salted caramel, and candied almonds. This cake is the best of all the worlds! It has a sweet and salty flavor AND a smooth and crunchy texture. I can’t wait for you to try this one and find out how you like it! 

Spring Cake Recipe #4: Grapefruit Poppy Seed Cake

This Grapefruit Poppy Seed Cake is a must-try for your spring cakes! I’ve made quite a few updates to this cake recipe as I’ve continued to learn and grow over the years in my cake-baking experience. One of the main things I’ve changed is a couple of tricks to help keep the cake moist since it doesn’t call for egg yolks! I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised with how this cake turns out for you!

Spring Cake Recipe #5: Chocolate Cherry Pie Cake

Cherry is such a classic flavor for dessert, so when I thought of my Chocolate Cherry Pie Cake creation, I was so excited! I combined a Black Forest Cake recipe with a Cherry Pie recipe and got this beautiful cake! It has such an explosion of flavors from the tartness you get with the cherry pie filling, the saltiness from the pie crumbs, and the sweetness from the chocolate and frosting. I think you’ll really enjoy this one! (Just makes sure to have some acetate paper on hand to help you create this naked look.) 

Best Spring Cake Recipes from Scratch

Which one of these best spring cake recipes from scratch are you going to try first? I can’t wait to hear how your experience goes. Let me know on Instagram! I love when my people tag me in their stories after using one of my recipes! You can find me @cakebycourtney and make sure to give me a follow so you can keep getting the best tips and tricks on all things cake! 

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With citrus flavors being in season I wanted to put together this list of citrus-themed cakes for you! This is a nice mix of different flavors and I think you’ll have a lot of fun making any one of them. I love finding the right balance of sweet and tart with citrus cakes, and several of these cakes have gone through a lot of love as I’ve improved them over the years! Here are 5 easy citrus cakes from scratch. 

You may or may not have heard of some of these citrus cake recipes. If there’s one that catches your attention, make sure to click the link and it’ll take you to the original post where the recipe card is! I wish you all the luck in making them and I can’t wait to see how you make it your own!

Easy Citrus Cake #1: Citrus Cranberry Cake

If you have any leftover cranberries from the holidays, this Citrus Cranberry Cake is the perfect way to use them! This cake is made up of citrus cake layers, cranberry compote, and citrus buttercream. The cake layers are a little more dense, similar to a pound cake, but don’t let that throw you because they are delicious nonetheless! This cake is a beautiful celebration of citrus flavors with a hint of orange throughout all the elements. 

Easy Citrus Cake #2: Citrus Olive Oil Cake

This Citrus Olive Oil Cake is a very simple and humble cake compared to the other ones I usually make. I made this one in honor of Christmas and Jesus’s birth, so I thought it was the best way to showcase the night of His birth! This cake is delicious on its own, but you can serve it with a drizzle of honey or whipped cream with a little ricotta or mascarpone in it. Check out my recipe for homemade ricotta HERE. (It’s SO much better than store-bought!) 

Easy Citrus Cake #3: Chocolate Orange Cake

I feel like people either love or hate chocolate and orange together. I personally love making cakes with flavor combinations that are questionable because when you finally get the balance of flavors just right, it’s one of the best feelings! This Chocolate Orange Cake is one of my more popular recipes, so it must be worth a try! Besides, can you really go wrong with chocolate cake layers?

Easy Citrus Cake #4: Banana Lemon Cream Cake

This Banana Lemon Cream Cake with caramel sauce is one of my newer recipes and it is AMAZING! I know, banana and lemon together aren’t the typical flavor combination you hear of. But, you guys, this cake is seriously so good. And if you read the original post with the recipe you’ll see what inspired this cake recipe! This cake doesn’t require a ton of lemon, so this isn’t a full-on citrus cake, so if you’re looking for recipes where lemon is the star of the show, check out this post HERE!

Easy Citrus Cake #5: Grapefruit Poppy Seed Cake

My Grapefruit Poppy Seed Cake is such a fun recipe to try. I’ve made several updates to this one to ensure you get nice moist cake layers without sacrificing the beautiful white layers or the flavor of the cake. It’s made up of fluffy poppy seed cake layers, grapefruit curd, and cream cheese frosting. Yum! I think I need to go whip this one up right now! 

5 Easy Citrus Cakes from Scratch

Which one of these 5 easy citrus cakes from scratch will you be making first? I’m so excited for you to try them and see what you think! I love getting feedback from those who use my recipes, so I can make sure my recipes are true to the promises I make in the posts! Make sure to give me a follow on Instagram @cakebycourtney so we can stay in touch and you can keep getting the best tips and recipes on all things cake!

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Just like having the right ingredients will ensure you get a great tasting cake, having the right tools helps to ensure you end up with a great looking cake too! There are so many fun tools and gadgets you could spend your money on, but you don’t need all of them to get started.

Let’s first focus on the “essentials” and then, we’ll take a look at the “nice to haves.”

Essential Cake Decorating Tools

Turntable

To kick off our list of essential cake decorating tools is the turntable. This was one of the biggest game changers for my decorating. There are a lot of turntables on the market, so depending on how much you’re decorating cakes will help determine what type of turntable you should get. If you’re only making a birthday cake every once in a while, I think you’ll be fine with something less expensive like THIS Ateco plastic one. It’s the same one we use in my cake classes at Orson Gygi.  For the annual birthday cakes, this is my favorite go to!

If you’re making cakes pretty frequently, I think it’s worth investing in a cast iron turntable like THIS Ateco one. It’s two separate pieces, so the top spins really nicely. The base is a heavy cast iron, so it doesn’t move around or wobble. I went through a lot of plastic ones the first year or so I started my blog and then finally decided I needed something more durable. I’ve had this Ateco one for about four years now. If it ever starts to stick, I just grease it with WD40. Check out my post HERE for tips on how to move your cake from the turntable to a cake stand.

Cake Scraper

Another tool I think is a must-have is a cake scraper. A cake scraper is a tool I use to smooth out the sides of my cake. Over the years I’ve tried a lot of variations (i.e. heights, materials, thicknesses, etc.) of scrapers. They are not all created equal. For many years I settled on, and truly liked, THIS Ateco one. What I found to be the superior qualities of this scraper were the weight and thickness. However, it wasn’t quite tall enough for my bigger cakes and I didn’t like that it had textures on all sides. So last year I decided to design my own scrapers, in addition to spatulas, acrylic disks, and a few other things we’ll talk about later. As I designed my scraper set, I made sure it was just as thin and light as the Ateco one I had liked for so many years. I also added a handle and separated the textures so you have three scrapers in the set.  It’s a must-have for occasions like birthday cakes, wedding cakes, and more!

One of my favorite things to hear from customers that have bought and used the tools is how surprised they are with how lightweight they are and the major difference the tools made in their decorating!

How to Use the Cake Scraper

Check out these videos for extra tips on how to hold and use the cake scraper:

• Instagram Reel Tutorial
• Instagram LIVE
• Smooth Sides
• Assembly Demo

Icing Spatulas

To go along with the scrapers and turntable, I think everyone needs a good set of icing spatulas – one straight and one offset. I like to use the straight spatula for the sides of the cake and the offset spatula for the center and top of the cake. As I created my own set of spatulas, getting the right blade length was super important to me. Some blades are too short, which makes it difficult to frost the sides of your cakes. And then some blades are too long, which makes it difficult to control the spatula.

Acrylic Disk

Another tool that will change your world is the acrylic disk. You’ll use the disk to help you get sharp edges and straight sides. I’ve created a full tutorial on how to use the disks HERE.

Check out THIS tutorial on IG

or THIS one

and THIS one

Quality Cake Pans

One more essential to invest in to step up your cake game are quality cake pans. I recommend Fat Daddio Pans. Fat Daddio specializes in anodizing their pans – which basically means they’ve created a pan that evenly distributes heat really, really well. What does that mean for you? It means you’ll get a more even bake in your cakes.

The Nice to Haves

Ok, so now that you have the essential cake-decorating tools, let’s talk about the “nice to haves.” These are items that you can live without, but are definitely nice to have!

Cake Leveler

A cake leveler does exactly what the name implies – levels cakes. Each side has numbers on it so that you can line up the wire to create a perfectly leveled cake. I have THIS one by Wilton. 

Cake Lifter

Ever wonder how I move my cakes from the turntable to the pretty cake stand? It’s as simple as one tool! The cake lifter. I also designed my own version of this tool to match the collection. I love the color so much, this actually sits on my counter against the wall behind my trivet near the stove. 

This cake lifter is actually quite heavy and will support your cakes nicely. Just make sure you don’t rely solely on the lifter. You’ll still need to place your hand under the lifter a bit to support the cake. Stacking birthday cakes will become a piece of cake

Cake Boards

I’d also suggest getting cake boards, something you can find at your local craft store like Joann’s, Michaels or Hobby Lobby. They come pre-cut and having one under your cake will help you easily slide your cake lifter under the cake to move it. 

Parchment Paper

I think it’s also really nice to have parchment paper. Using a combination of cooking spray and parchment paper will help your cakes come out of the cake pans really nicely. You can get pre-cut parchment rounds like THESE or trace your pans on parchment paper and cut out each circle. Whichever way you decide to go, just make sure you’re spraying your pans with non-stick spray, placing parchment rounds at the bottom of the pan, and spraying the parchment with non-stick spray as well.

Silicone Piping Bag

A reusable piping bag will come in handy when you’re ready to do some piping designs on the top or sides of your cake. We just had to make one in pink! (Check out my post HERE for the best way to fill it with your buttercream!)

Drip Bottle

And last but not least, the drip bottle! I love this little guy for applying my chocolate drips.

Cake Without the Tools

While all these tools are fun to have and certainly will make decorating your cake a bit easier, not having them shouldn’t be the reason you don’t make a cake from scratch.

You can make all the same delicious cakes in 9″x13″ pans. I recorded an IGTV that you can watch HERE.

Or, if you do a layered birthday cake, you can even decorate it on a plate with a knife like you would with a turntable and spatula.

More Posts You’ll Enjoy

• Everything You Need to Know About Buttercream Frosting 
• Best Cakes for Beginner Bakers
• The Best Way to Fill a Cake with Raspberry Filling
• A Look Inside the Heart of Our Home: Part 2
• How to Use the Cake Safe

The post My Favorite and Most Essential Cake Decorating Tools first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

4 New Year’s Cakes You’ll Love

I hope you’re enjoying the holidays and have been able to spend some time with family and friends. To help with your family time, I have 4 New Year’s cakes you’ll love! You can try them with your families or at your holiday parties this year. Cake makes any holiday party that much better–and these recipes will be a hit. 

Although I’m not one to stay up until midnight to ring in the new year, I definitely still celebrate it in the earlier evening–and there’s usually cake involved. That’s one of the great things about cake–it can be enjoyed any time of day. I hope you find a favorite cake to try for your New Year’s celebrations this year! 

4 New Year’s Cakes You’ll Love

New Year’s Cake #1: Champagne Cake

This Champagne Cake is the perfect dessert to celebrate the new year with. I love the simplicity of it, with the gold adding a celebratory look to it. This recipe will work with your favorite sparkling cider or champagne. I included a peach and raspberry puree in my cake layers to complement the Martinelli flavor I used. Feel free to switch up those flavors as well, but I recommend making the puree at least a day before and keeping it in the fridge overnight to help thicken it up. 

New Year’s Cake #2: Black and White Cake

A Black and White Cake is easily a classic celebratory cake. I used my go-to dark chocolate cake recipe and my recipe for the most amazing vanilla buttercream you’ll ever taste. This cake really captures a New Year’s look with its fun design. I included a video on the original post on how to decorate it, so be sure to check it out! 

New Year’s Cake #3: White Chocolate Cranberry Cake

My White Chocolate Cranberry Cake has a nice wintery look to it that you will love! Not to mention the flavor, this combination of cranberry and white chocolate is next level. This cake might be for those who are still holding onto their Christmas spirit at the New Year’s Eve party, but there’s still a couple more months of winter to enjoy, so this cake fits the criteria! 

New Year’s Cake #4: Marble Cake

The last cake that made it onto my New Year’s cake list is my Marble Cake. This cake is close to my heart because it’s one my son, Weston, has requested a few times now for his birthday cake. I’d recommend this cake for beginners especially! It’s a pretty simple process to create the marbling in the cake layers. Simply swirl chocolate cake batter and vanilla cake batter together. I paired my cake with peanut butter buttercream, but it can really go with several different flavors! Check out the original post to see a list of buttercreams that can go with this marble cake. 

4 New Year’s Cakes You’ll Love

I hope you enjoy celebrating with your friends and family this year with one of these 4 New Year’s cakes you’ll love! If you’re wanting to stay connected and catch my latest cake recipes and baking tips, follow me on Instagram @cakebycourtney. Have you seen my NEW cookbook yet? You can order your copy here. 

The post 4 New Year’s Cakes You’ll Love first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Chocolate Orange Cake – Dark chocolate cake layers with a hint of orange zest, covered with a chocolate orange buttercream.

Chocolate Orange Cake 

Oh, this cake was due for an update! I first came up with this recipe years ago when I went to Fox 13’s The Place, a local lifestyle show here in Salt Lake City. It was a super simple recipe back then, and still is today, but one that is totally going to win you over.

Christmastime Chocolate Orange 

My goal was to make the cake taste exactly like the chocolate orange I used to get in my Christmas stocking as a child. It’s a flavor combination that will always make me think of Christmastime. And I think you’ll really like it in cake form!

The Best Chocolate Cake

I used my go-to chocolate cake recipe and added some orange zest for a hint of flavor in the cake.

Remember: it’s super important to use room-temperature wet ingredients to get the best rise out of your cake layers.

How to Make Buttercream Frosting

It’s the buttercream, however, that I think really steals the show. To add flavor to the buttercream, I used orange emulsion by Lorann. Emulsions are a lot like extracts but are water-based. Extracts are alcohol-based. I typically lean toward emulsions because I like the flavoring better, but an extract will work too. Just sub it 1-for-1 in the recipe.

To get a light and fluffy homemade buttercream frosting for this cake, I have a detailed post: HOW TO MAKE THE BEST BUTTERCREAM to give you in-depth instructions for making your buttercream unreal! Here’s a quick overview.

• • Sift your powdered sugar
  • Use slightly cold butter and mix on its own for 2 to 3 minutes
  • Use heavy whipping cream
  • Beat for 5 minutes
  • Stir by hand

I don’t think this cake needs a lot of added decorations, but love how a little rosemary and dried oranges give the brown some contrast.

Excited for you to whip this one up!

For more Christmas cake recipes, check out this post: 10 Cakes Perfect for the Holidays.

For my cookbook and cake tools, make sure to check out Shop.CakebyCourtney.com.

Similar Recipes You’ll Love

• Florida Orange Flower Cake
• Ice Cream Inspired Cakes
• My Top 6 Favorite Christmas Cakes
• 5 Delicious Holiday Cookie Recipes
• Citrus Cranberry Cake

Print

Chocolate Orange Cake

Dark chocolate cake layers and buttercream with a hint of orange.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Cake

Keyword chocolate buttercream, Chocolate Cake, Chocolate Orange Cake, Orange

Ingredients

For the cake

• 2 cups (240g) all purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cup (350g) granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup (88g) good quality cocoa powder
• 2 tsp (8g) baking soda
• 3/4 tsp (3g) baking powder
• 1 tsp (5.6) kosher salt
• zest of two large oranges
• 1 cup (240g) buttermilk room temperature and shaken
• 1/2 cup (109g) vegetable oil
• 3 large eggs room temperature
• 1 tsp (4.2g) pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup (236g) hot water or hot coffee

For the frosting

• 2 cups (452g) unsalted butter slightly chilled
• 10 ounces (187g) good quality dark chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup (57.7g) heavy whipping cream
• 5 cups (625g) powdered sugar, measured and then sifted
• 2 1/2 tsp (8.4g) orange emulsion
• pinch of salt
• *This buttercream recipe makes enough to fill and cover your cake. If you want to add additional piping, you’ll want to make an extra 1/2 batch.

Instructions

For the cake

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Spray three 8-inch or four 6-inch round cake pans with nonstick spray. Line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper and spray the pans again.
• Combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. Add the zest and mix until combined.
• In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, coffee or water and vanilla.
• With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
• Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans and bake for about 23 t0 28 minutes.
• Cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.
• Wrap in plastic wrap and chill until ready to use. You're still going to want to level your cake layers to ensure a completely even surface for frosting and stacking.

For the Buttercream

• In a microwave safe bowl, heat the heavy whipping cream for about one minute. Pour the heated cream over the chocolate chips and stir until the chocolate chips are melted. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter on medium-high speed for 2 minutes.
  
• Turn the mixer to low and gradually add the powdered sugar, orange emulsion and pinch of salt.
• With the mixer on low speed, add the chocolate ganache. Beat for another 3 to 5 minutes on medium-high.
• Before frosting your cake, give the frosting a good stir with a wooden spoon to push out any air bubbles. 

The post Holiday Favorite Flavors: Chocolate Orange Cake first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Like many of you, Christmas is my favorite time of the year. All the shopping, decorations, baking, and especially traditions make this season so magical. A lot of the traditions I remember doing as a child were in the kitchen and I’m so grateful I’m able to continue that with my kids–and encourage it with all of you through my cake recipes! I hope you all find some new favorites with this one–the best winter cakes for any holiday party. 

This list includes a nice variety of flavors ranging from dark chocolate to citrus! You all know I love finding the best flavor combinations and when I can add some fun textures throughout the cake layers, it makes it even more exciting. These are some of my absolute favorite holiday cake recipes, so I hope you enjoy them as much as my family and I do!

Winter Cake #1: Pistachio Cranberry Cake

Everything about this Pistachio Cranberry Cake looks and tastes like Christmas! I love a pink and green color combination for Christmas which has been a popular theme over the last few years. The outside of the cake is covered with a pink cranberry buttercream and once you cut into the cake you will be pleasantly surprised with the green pistachio cake layers. The recipe recommends using pistachio pudding mix, but if you can’t find any at your local grocery store, vanilla pudding mix and green food coloring will work too! I hope your friends and family love this one as much as we do! 

Winter Cake #2: Santa’s Milk and Cookies Cake

This Santa’s Milk and Cookies Cake is a wonderful kid-friendly and family-friendly cake for any Christmas party. I created this recipe in honor of one of my favorite holiday traditions–decorating sugar cookies for Santa. Growing up, my family and I would decorate cookies every Christmas Eve and leave them out for Santa, which I have continued to do with my own kids. This cake is so fun to make and it encapsulates the best flavors of sugar cookies and milk! 

Winter Cake #3: Hot Chocolate Cake with Marshmallow Buttercream

You guys are going to love this Hot Chocolate Cake with Marshmallow Buttercream! When I was making the buttercream, I gave a taste to my daughter and she immediately started looking for more! So I think it’s safe to say the buttercream got her stamp of approval–and I bet it will have yours too soon after your first bite. This cake is made up of the most moist dark chocolate cake layers with chocolate ganache, covered in a light and fluffy marshmallow buttercream. 

Winter Cake #4: Citrus Cranberry Cake

This Citrus Cranberry Cake is a celebration of citrus cake layers, cranberry compote, and citrus buttercream. Baking has always been more than just baking to me. It’s time spent in the kitchen making memories with the people you love most. I hope this cake becomes one of those moments for you and your family. It is such a decadent dessert and the flavors really celebrate this holiday season! 

Winter Cake #5: Chocolate Orange Cake

I couldn’t end this post without including one of the most classic flavor combinations for this time of year! My Chocolate Orange Cake is made up of dark chocolate cake layers and a hint of orange zest. It’s finished off with a chocolate orange buttercream. I’ve made several updates to this cake ever since I first created the recipe. I’m sure it’ll be one that will win you over! 

The Best Winter Cakes for Any Holiday Party 

I hope you find some cakes to try from this list of the best winter cakes for any holiday party! Most of all, I hope you make some amazing memories in the kitchen this year with your loved ones. This is really the most wonderful time of the year and holiday baking makes it even better! Make sure you’re following me on Instagram @cakebycourtney. That’s where you can get the best recipes and tips on all things cake! 

The post The Best Winter Cakes for Any Holiday Party  first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Peanut Butter Obsession

By now, you probably know my deep love for peanut butter. Correction – obsession for peanut butter would be more accurate! I could eat it with just about anything. Once, I even had it on a burger at Lucky 13 in Salt Lake. And it was so good! 

One of my favorite ways to enjoy peanut butter is in a traditional peanut butter and jelly sandwich. My go-to method is with smooth Skippy peanut butter, strawberry jam and white bread. Hmmm. (I’m having flashbacks to my childhood just thinking about it). I never get tired of a PB&J sandwich! So, turning it into a cake was the obvious next move for me.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Cake

A couple years ago, I tried a couple peanut butter cake recipes, but wasn’t impressed with them. The recipes I tested came out dry and didn’t have enough peanut butter flavor. I decided to come up with my own recipe by combining ideas from others and adding a few things of my own. I’m so pleased with how the cake layers came out! 

To make sure the cake layers came out tender, I used cake flour. From the other recipes I tried, I noticed that all-purpose flour with the peanut butter created a cake that was too dense. In my recipe, I also use buttermilk, a generous serving of peanut butter and a teaspoon of cinnamon! Oh man! That cinnamon is a game changer. It’s just a hint but I think makes the cake what it is.

The cake is also moist with the perfect peanut butter flavor.

Peanut Butter Buttercream

For the filling, I use my mom’s homemade strawberry jam. There’s nothing else like it, if you ask me. If you don’t have homemade jam on hand, don’t worry. Your favorite store bought jam will work great too.

For my peanut butter frosting, I adapted one I already use and love from Annie Eats. Instead of whipping the cream and folding it in at the end, I just added a little cream at the end and whipped the frosting mixture like I usually do. It’s still creamy and smooth, and just as delicious – it just has a little more stability to it. 

One bite of this cake and I think you’ll agree, it’s definitely a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in cake form! What could be better than that? Look at these layers!

I can’t wait for you to try it out! If you love peanut butter, you’re going to go nuts for this cake!

And here’s a quick look at how to assembly this cake:

Similar Recipes You’ll Love

• Easy Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars
• The Ultimate Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake
• Peanut Butter Cake with Chocolate Buttercream
• Sweet and Savory Honey Fig Goat Cheese Cake

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Peanut Butter and Jelly Cake

Peanut Butter and Jelly Cake.

Peanut butter cake layers with strawberry jam and peanut butter frosting.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Cake

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 23 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 23 minutes minutes

Author Courtney Rich

Ingredients

FOR THE CAKE

• 3 cups (345 g ) cake flour
• 3 teaspoons (12 g) baking powder
• 1 teaspoon (5.6 g) coarse salt
• 1 teaspoon (2.6 g) cinnamon
• 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 cup (250 g) peanut butter
• 2 cups (400) g granulated sugar
• 4 eggs at room temperature
• 1 cup (240 g) buttermilk at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon (13 g) vanilla extract

FOR THE BUTTERCREAM

• 5 cups (625 g) powdered sugar, measured and then sifted
• 1 1/2 cups (339 g) unsalted butter, slightly chilled
• 1 cup (250 g) creamy peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon (13 g) pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup (57.75 g) heavy whipping cream
• Pinch of coarse salt
• *This buttercream recipe makes enough to fill and cover your cake. If you want to add additional piping you’ll want to make an extra 1/2 batch.

Extras

• Seedless strawberry jam
• Lightly salted peanuts optional

Instructions

FOR THE CAKE

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spray three 8-inch or four 6-inch pans with nonstick spray, line the bottoms with parchment paper and spray again. Set aside.  
• Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the butter and peanut butter until creamy. Add in the sugar and mix on medium for about 3 minutes. 
• Decrease the speed to low and add in the vanilla and eggs, one at a time. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
• With the mixer on low, add in half of the flour mixture, then stream in the buttermilk and mix until incorporated. Add in the remaining flour and mix until combined. 
• Evenly divide the batter between the cake pans and bake for about 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 10-15 minutes before removing the cakes from their pans.

FOR THE BUTTERCREAM

• In the bowl of electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and peanut butter. Beat on medium-high speed until smooth, about 45 seconds.
• Add the powdered  sugar to the bowl and mix in, slowly at first until incorporated, then increasing the mixer speed to high. Blend in the vanilla extract, salt and heavy whipping cream, and continue to whip on high speed until very fluffy, about 4-5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. 
• To remove air bubbles from the frosting, use a wooden spoon to stir and push out the air bubbles.

ASSEMBLY

• Place your first layer on the cake board. Spread about 1/2 cup of peanut butter frosting on the cake and then pipe a border of the peanut butter frosting around the edge to create a wall for the jam. Fill the center with about 1/2 cup strawberry jam and carefully spread it around. Don’t add too much jam or the cake will be unstable as you continue to stack and frost.
• Place the second layer of cake on top of the first layer and repeat step one.
• Place the third layer of cake, bottom side up, on the second layer and spread a thin layer of frosting around the entire cake to create a crumb coat. Freeze the cake for 10 to 15 to set the crumb coat.
• After the crumb coat is set, continue to frost the cake with the remaining frosting. 
• If you use a cake board on top of the cake like I did in my video above, you’ll want to freeze the cake again for another 20 to 30 minutes after you’ve frosted the sides and before you take the cake board off the top. This will ensure you get sharp edges when you cut it off with a knife. You’ll then add frosting to the top of the cake after you’ve removed the cake board.

The post Peanut Butter and Jelly Cake first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Decadent Peanut Butter S’mores Cake

Alright, peanut butter lovers! This cake is for you!

I made a Peanut Butter S’mores Cake YEARS ago for my sister’s birthday. It was basically my Ultimate S’mores Cake but with peanut butter buttercream instead of chocolate buttercream. It was delicious, but it wasn’t something that stood out on it’s own. I recently decided to rethink this cake and came up with a totally new version!

Graham Cracker Cake Layers

• The cake layers for this cake are my graham cracker cake layers from my Peanut Butter Graham Cake (another must-try if you love PB!). I love the hint of cinnamon these layers add to the cake.
• I then used the chocolate ganache/drip, toasted marshmallow filling and toasted graham crackers from my Ultimate S’mores Cake.
• And instead of chocolate buttercream, we’re using peanut butter!

So nothing is really new in this cake – just the combination of all these different elements. I think it’s so fun to play around with flavor combinations, and taking components from different cake recipes is the perfect way to try it out!

How to Cake It: The Perfect Drip

I know getting the perfect consistency for your drip can be tricky, so let’s talk about how to make the perfect drip!

Nail the cream to chocolate ratio

• For dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate, you’ll need more cream than any other type of baking chip. I recommend you start with 3/4 cup heavy cream for 1 cup of your chips. You may need to add an extra 1/4 cup cream to make it a little thinner.
• For any other type of baking chip, you’ll only need 1/4 to 1/3 cup heavy cream for 1 cup of the chips.

How to melt the chocolate

• To melt your chips, I suggest heating your cream first and then pouring the hot cream over your chips. Let the cream sit for a minute on the chips and then stir to create a silky, smooth texture. If the chips don’t melt all the way at this point, microwave the mixture for 10 seconds and stir again.
• If you try to heat your chocolate and cream together in a microwave, you’ll likely seize the chocolate.
• An alternative to the microwave is a double boiler.

Making sure your consistency is perfect

• When I use the drip in between the cake layers, like you see above, I let the mixture get completely room temperature – for a couple reasons: 1.) the drip thickens as it cools, and 2.) I don’t want warm chocolate in between my layers melting buttercream.
• But when I’m ready to use the drip for the actual drip, I want it to be a little thinner and slightly warmer than what I used in between the layers. To do this, I usually heat that extra 1/4 cup cream till it boils and then add it to what’s left of my room temperature drip that I used in between the layers.

How to Assemble the Peanut Butter S’mores Cake

• After you’ve chilled your crumb coated cake in the freezer for about 15 minutes, you’re ready to continue frosting your cake with the remaining buttercream and drip.

HOW TO MAKE BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

To get a light and fluffy homemade buttercream frosting, make sure you follow my tips over at: HOW TO MAKE THE BEST BUTTERCREAM

These steps are written up for my vanilla buttercream, but are supposed to be applied to any of my buttercream recipes.

• Sift your powdered sugar
• Use slightly cold butter
• Use heavy whipping cream
• Beat for 5 minutes
• Stir by hand

You’ll want to check out the post linked above for more details on each step.

Other Cakes You’ll Love

• Ultimate S’mores Cake
• Banana Nutella S’mores Cake
• Banana Peanut Butter Caramel Cake
• Peanut Butter Dream Cake

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Peanut Butter S’mores Cake

Graham cracker cake layers with toasted marshmallow filling, toasted graham crackers, chocolate ganache and peanut butter buttercream

Course Dessert

Cuisine Cake

Keyword chocolate, graham cracker, Graham Cracker cake, marshmallow, Peanut Butter

Servings 20 people

Ingredients

FOR THE GRAHAM CRACKER CRUMBS

• 3 cups (360 g) finely ground graham crackers 27 full rectangles
• 3/4 cup (170 g) unsalted butter melted
• 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar

FOR THE CAKE

• 1 cup (120 g) finely ground graham cracker crumbs 9 full rectangles
• 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 tsps. (7 g) baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. (3 g) baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. (2 g) ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp. (2.5 g) salt
• 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 2/3 cups (270 g) granulated sugar
• 4 large or extra large eggs at room temperature
• 2 cups (480 g) buttermilk at room temperature

FOR THE TOASTED MARSHMALLOW FILLING

• 24 marshmallows regular size
• 1 cup (125 g) powdered sugar measured and then sifted
• 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1/2 tsp. (2 g) vanilla extract
• 1 jar (200 g) marshmallow fluff

FOR THE CHOCOLATE GANACHE/DRIP

• 1 cup (175 g) dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 to 1 cup (170 to 230 g) heavy whipping cream

FOR THE PEANUT BUTTER BUTTERCREAM

• 1 1/2 cups (339 g) unsalted butter slightly cold
• 1 cup (240 g) creamy peanut butter I use Skippy
• 5 cups (625 g) powdered sugar measured and then sifted
• 1 tbsp. (13 g) vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup (57 g) heavy whipping cream
• Pinch of salt
• *This buttercream recipe makes enough to fill and cover your cake. If you want to add additional piping, you’ll want to make an extra 1/2 batch.

Instructions

FOR THE GRAHAM CRACKER CRUMBS

• Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Line a half sheet baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
• In a food processor, combine the graham cracker, melted butter and sugar. Blend/mix until the mixture resembles wet sand.
• Sprinkle the graham cracker crumbs onto the prepared parchment paper. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes.
• Let cool completely before using in the cake. Can be made ahead of time and stored in the freezer in an airtight container.

FOR THE CAKE LAYERS

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Spray three 8-inch or four 6-inch round cake pans with non-stick spray and then line with parchment. Spray again.
• Place the graham crackers in a food processor or blender and pulse until the cookies are finely ground and resemble flour.
• In a medium-size bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Whisk until the ingredients are well-blended. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl between each addition.
• With the mixer on low speed, add 1/3 of the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Slowly add half of the buttermilk and mix until incorporated. Continue alternating the flour and buttermilk until it has all been incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and slowly mix for another 20-30 seconds.
• Divide the batter evenly among your pans and bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs on it. Cool 10 minutes on a wire rack before inverting onto cooling racks to cool completely. 

FOR THE MARSHMALLOW FILLING

• Place the marshmallows on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Place on the middle rack of the oven, and broil the marshmallows until golden brown on top, about 30-60 seconds. Keep your eye on them!
• Remove the pan from the oven and gently turn the marshmallows over and broil them again until they are golden brown on the other side.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and powdered sugar and beat on low until blended. Add the vanilla and mix on medium speed for about three minutes.
• With the mixer on low speed, add the marshmallow cream and (cooled) toasted marshmallows, and mix for about one minute.
• Can be made ahead of time and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

FOR THE CHOCOLATE DRIP

• In a microwave safe bowl, heat the cream for about one minute.
• Pour the cream over the chocolate chips and let sit for a couple minutes. Stir until chocolate is melted. If needed, heat for another 30 seconds to melt the chocolate chips completely. Let cool to room temperature before using using in the cake.
• Follow instructions above for making the mixture thinner for the outer drip.

FOR THE BUTTERCREAM

• In the bowl of electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and peanut butter. Beat on medium-high speed until smooth, about 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add the powdered sugar to the bowl and mix in, slowly at first until incorporated, then increasing the mixer speed to high once all of the powdered sugar has been added. Blend in the vanilla extract, salt and heavy whipping cream, and continue to whip on high speed until very fluffy, about 4-5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
• Stir by hand with a wooden spoon to push out air pockets.

ASSEMBLY

• Place the first cake layer on a cake board, bottom-side down. Pipe a rim of buttercream around the edge and fill with about 1 cup of the toasted marshmallow filling.
• Sprinkle about 1/2-1 cup of the graham crackers on top and pat into place with your hand. Drizzle the chocolate drip on top, making sure to not let the chocolate go outside of the buttercream rim you piped.
• Repeat these steps with the second cake layer.
• Place the final cake layer, top side down, on the final layer of fillings. Apply a thin layer of buttercream over the entire cake. This is the crumb coat. Freeze the crumb coated cake for about 15 minutes.
• Once the crumb coat is set, finish frosting the cake and apply the drip. Remember to refer to the tutorial above for tips for the drip.

The post Decadent Peanut Butter S’mores Cake first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Are you struggling to get tall cake layers? Or, struggling with getting that light and fluffy texture you want in a cake? You could be measuring your ingredients incorrectly. When wanting to get nice and airy cake layers, the process of measuring ingredients and mixing them together is super important! Here or my quick tips on how to measure cake ingredients the right way.

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Quick Tips for Measuring Wet Ingredients

When it comes to wet ingredients for your cakes, the first thing you need to know is all of them need to be at room temperature before you mix them together and create your cake batter. Having them at room temperature will make sure your batter stays nice and smooth. Plus, your dry ingredients will better absorb wet ingredients at room temperature, giving you a taller cake layer.

If the wet ingredients are used while still too cold, this can cause your batter to have lumps in it. And when I say wet ingredients I mean, eggs, buttermilk, butter, sour cream, etc. Check out this video HERE to show you the difference between a cake layer that used room-temperature ingredients and one that used cold ingredients. The difference is insane!

Quick Tips for Measuring Dry Ingredients

The best way to measure your dry ingredients is with a scale, but if you love using measuring cups like me, it’s totally doable this way too. There’s just a right way to measure it, so you get the best cake bakes. 

Don’t: Use the measuring cup to scoop out the dry ingredient and then shake it to get the extra amount off. This will cause you to scoop too much flour and it will make your cake denser.

Do: Fluff up the dry ingredient (e.g. flour) with a fork and spoon it into the measuring cup. Then, carefully level it off with a butter knife. This will give you light and fluffy layers that are perfect for cakes.

If you’re hung up on whether a scale is necessary, just know that measuring out your dry ingredients this correct way using measuring cups will give you nearly the exact same amount as the gram measurement. 

Want to use a scale? Awesome! I’ve got you covered. Grams are included in my recipes and here’s a link to my favorite Escali scale.

How to Measure Cake Ingredients the Right Way

I hope these tips on how to measure cake ingredients the right way give you those quality cake bakes you are looking for! I have some other blog posts linked below that will answer a few more of your questions when it comes to the cake-baking process. You can also follow me on Instagram @cakebycourtney for the best tips and recipes on all things cake!

Other posts you’ll love:

• How to Bake Tall Cake Layers
• How to Bake Moist Cakes from Scratch
• The Essential Cake Ingredients I Always Have on Hand
• Tip Tuesday – Driving with Cake

The post How to Measure Cake Ingredients the Right Way first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Are you ready to brave the chocolate drip for your cake? I know the chocolate drip can seem intimidating, but once you practice it a few times you’ll be a natural! Plus, I’m going to share my tips and tricks for adding a chocolate drip to your cakes that will get you started on the right foot. So, here are my 5 steps to add a chocolate drip to a cake!

Before you can begin adding chocolate drip to your cakes, you want to make sure you have the proper tools to make it happen. I LOVE this drip bottle that I use every single time I add a chocolate drip to my cake. It makes it super easy to prep the drip and for decorating the cake too. 

I know getting the perfect consistency for your chocolate drip can be tricky, so hopefully, these 5 steps will help clear up any issues you’ve had in the past! Or, if this will be your first time adding chocolate drip to your cake, help you start with a successful drip right off the bat. Whether you’ve done a chocolate drip before or this is your very first time, these 5 steps include the tips you need to nail the recipe and application for it!

5 Steps to Add a Chocolate Drip to a Cake

Chocolate Drip Step #1: Mix your heavy cream and chocolate chips together.

The best way to mix your heavy cream and chocolate chips together is to heat up your cream in the microwave for about one minute. And then pour the cream over the chocolate chips and let it sit for a couple of minutes. Then you can stir until the chocolate is all melted and you have a silky, smooth texture. If needed, you can heat the mixture for another 30 seconds to melt the chocolate chips completely. 

Whenever you are using dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate, I recommend starting with ¾ cup of heavy cream per 1 cup of chips. You may need an extra ¼ cup of cream to make it a little thinner. For any other type of baking chip, you’ll only need ¼ to ⅓ cup of heavy cream per 1 cup of chips.

Chocolate Drip Step #2: Before decorating your cake, heat up the extra cream if needed and add it to your drip.

If you’re using the drip in between your cake layers, you want it to be at room temperature. That will keep the warm drip from melting your buttercream when assembling your cake. However, you’ll want to heat up your drip again when you add the chocolate drip to the outside of your cake. 

I usually boil an extra ¼ cup of heavy cream and pour it into my chocolate drip mixture. This heats it up again and it makes the mixture a little bit thinner which makes for better drips on my cake. Try to avoid heating up the chocolate chips and the cream together in the microwave because it may seize the chocolate.

Chocolate Drip Step #3: Hold the drip bottle at an angle when adding the chocolate drip.

When you’re ready to add the drip to your cake, make sure to hold your drip bottle at an angle, so the drip falls off the cake like a waterfall. This will help create an amazing definition for each drip along the border of your cake. I linked a few cake tutorials at the bottom of this post, so you can see in live action how I hold the drip bottle when I’m applying the chocolate drip to my cakes.

Chocolate Drip Step #4: Pull back the drip bottle in certain places to add variety.

If you want to add a nice variety of lengths for each drip, just pull back the drip bottle a bit, so the drips don’t fall as long as the others. I always like doing this because I think it makes the cake look even more beautiful and appetizing.

Chocolate Drip Step #5: Add a little bit of drip on top to blend in with the border.

The last step is super simple! Just open the lid to your drip bottle and pour the remaining drip on top of your cake. Using an icing spatula, blend in the drip with the border you’ve made along your cake. Now you can move on to finishing the rest of the decoration of your cake!

Again, make sure to check out the tutorials I linked below where I share the full recipes for the chocolate drip and how to apply it to your cake. I am excited to see how your chocolate drip cake goes for you!

5 Steps to Add a Chocolate Drip to a Cake

I hope these 5 steps to add a chocolate drip to a cake got you ready and excited to try it on your own! I know it’ll turn out so great. For more tips and tricks on all things cake, follow me on Instagram @cakebycourtney. Also, I linked several of my cakes that use a chocolate drip that includes a video tutorial, so be sure to check those out if you want a nice visual before you go for it!

Chocolate Drip Tutorials:

• Peanut Butter Smores Cake (step-by-step)
• Rocky Road Cake
• Seven Layer Bar Cake
• Almond Joy Cake

The post 5 Steps to Add a Chocolate Drip to a Cake first appeared on Cake by Courtney.

Birthday Cakes

My Avery turned 8 yesterday and I’m still trying to cope with this whole, “growing up” thing. I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to it! Avery always has grand ideas for her birthday cakes and this year was no different.

Before we get into this year’s buttercream dog cake, let’s take a little trip down memory lane!

Avery’s 7th Birthday Cake

For Avery’s birthday last year, she wanted a rainbow cake. I love a rainbow cake and the traditional rainbow order but decided to stray from the usual once I saw the candles by A Glow. They are truly something special and I loved how the order of colors felt more random but still scream, “rainbow!”. For this one, I used my Confetti Cake recipe (minus the sprinkles).

TIP: when adding food coloring to your cake batter, make sure to fold it in so you don’t over-mix your buttercream (which causes your cake to sink when it bakes).

Avery’s 6th Birthday Cake

Two years ago, Avery had one of her more “unique” requests – a bear unicorn cake. Yes, you read that right. Bear + unicorn!

This cake was chocolate cake layers with chocolate buttercream.

Avery’s 5th Birthday Cake

Three years ago, Avery was actually only concerned about the flavor of the cake. She specifically told me she wanted a peach cake that wasn’t my Peach Crisp Cake. It needed to have peach cake layers, peach filling, and vanilla buttercream. You may remember this cake… it was quite the ordeal! It took several attempts to get the peach flavor to stand out in the cake layers but was well worth the effort. My Peaches and Cream Cake is delicious and Avery loved it!

Avery’s 4th Birthday Cake

When Avery was younger, the color of her cake mattered a lot. For her 4th birthday, she wanted a blue and pink cake. To do something a little more exciting than just coloring vanilla cake, I decided to create a Cotton Candy Cake. This one is very sweet and tastes just like the fan-favorite county fair treat.

Avery’s 3rd Birthday Cake

No surprise here! Avery was a huge Elsa fan when she turned 3. Her entire party was Frozen-themed, which included the cake. I made an ombre buttercream design for the cake and then melted white chocolate, spread it on parchment paper, sprinkled it with candy pearls, and let it dry before I broke it into pieces.

Avery’s 2nd Birthday Cake

At age two, little miss already had an opinion about her cake. This was the first time she requested something specific. PINK! It had to be pink! This was also the year I started Cake by Courtney.

Avery’s 1st Birthday Cake

We had been traveling on Avery’s first birthday, so I’m gonna say it – I made a box cake mix!

Buttercream Dog Cake Tutorial and Tips

Okay! Back to this year’s buttercream dog cake! The cake itself was my Ultimate Chocolate Cake – chocolate cake layers, chocolate mousse filling, and chocolate buttercream.

How to Make a Dog Cake with Buttercream

• Trim a little cake off the top of each cake layer to use for shaping the nose and ears on the dog face.
• Stack and crumb coat cake.
• Freeze crumb coated cake for 15 to 20 minutes.
• Add a spoonful of buttercream to the cake scraps and mix well.
• Shape the cake scraps to form ears and nose area.
• Prepare TWO piping bags with grass Piping Tips.
• Fill each piping bag with chocolate buttercream (don’t fill past 2/3rds full – you’ll be alternating between the two bags as each gets a little warm from your hand).
• TIP: when your buttercream starts to soften too much, switch it for the second bag and place the first bag in the fridge for a few minutes to set the buttercream.
• Start piping the dog hair from the bottom of the cake and work your way up.
• Once the cake is covered, roll out fondant. I like to use these small packets of Fondant
• Use a 1-inch cookie cutter to cut two eyes in black fondant.
• Take a small piece of white fondant, roll a ball in your hands and press flat to make the whites of the eye.
• You’ll also want to roll out some black fondant to create the lines from the nose to the mouth and one for above the tongue.
• I simply shaped the tongue with my hands. See picture above for reference on shape.
• Gently place the fondant pieces into place.
• Candle: Meri Meri Brand

How to Cake It

Check out my post HERE for more animal-inspired cakes! Also, follow me on Instagram @cakebycourtney for tips and recipes on all things cake!

The post How to Make a Dog Cake with Buttercream Icing first appeared on Cake by Courtney.