Anne Byrn - The Cake Mix Doctors 25 Best Birthday Cakes

The Cake Mix Doctors

Easy Luscious Layer Cakes, Plus Frostings, Icings, Tips, and More

By Anne Byrn

Workman Publishing, New York

Copyright 2011 by Anne Byrn

The Cake Mix Doctor is a registered trademark of Anne Byrn.

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproducedmechanically, electronically, or by any other means, including photocopyingwithout written permission of the publisher.

The Cake Mix Doctors 25 Best Birthday Cakes is a compilation of selected recipes previously published in The Cake Mix Doctor, Chocolate from the Cake Mix Doctor, Cupcakes from the Cake Mix Doctor, What Can I Bring? Cookbook, The Cake Mix Doctor Returns, and The Cake Mix Doctor Bakes Gluten-Free.

eISBN 978-0-7611-6348-0

Cover design by Jean-Marc Troadec
Author photo by Deborah Ory
Cake silos Ben Fink

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Nothing says Happy Birthday like a festive birthday cake. The balloons and brightly colored decorations may indicate theres a party happening, but when the room darkens and the cake appears, candles glowing, WOW!its memorable. When I was young, I remember planning my birthday cake months in advance, selecting the flavormostly chocolatethe shape, and the decorations. My mother let us choose our special cake, and Ive continued that tradition, weaving it into our family fabric. My children know exactly what their birthday cakes will be.

Even my husband asks for his favoritecoconut cakewhich was the cake he loved and requested as a child, and since his birthday is in December, it is a cake that fits the season, the menus, and the merriment of the month. Its funny, you may try to avoid the birthday limelight when you age, but there is no escaping the wonder of your birthday cake.

How to bring these traditions into your life? Its simple. Bake my easy and delicious birthday cakes for your family and friends. They begin with a mix, but you add a few fresh ingredients and a quick homemade frosting, and ta-daa masterpiece is born. Choose traditional yellow cake with fluffy chocolate frosting or a red velvet, caramel, German chocolate; or carrot, angel food, pineapple upside-down; or possibly chocolate buttermilk cupcakes. You cant go wrong! Expect to serve up seconds (and maybe even thirds).

I hope baking my cakes becomes a yearly tradition in your household, too. After all, its not a birthday without your favorite cake, plenty of candles, and a birthday wish that may hopefully come true!

PREP: 8 minutes
BAKE: 30 to 35 minutes
COOL: 40 minutes

Heres a pretty cake to slice into; its moist and people of all ages love it. My frosting of choice for birthdays is a chocolate pan frosting, an easy cooked frosting my mother always spread on our childhood birthday cakesa little nostalgia in every bite. Serves 16

FOR THE CAKE

Vegetable oil spray, for misting the pans

Flour, for dusting the pans

1 package (18.25 ounces) plain yellow cake mix

1 package (3.4 ounces) vanilla instant pudding mix

1 cups whole milk

cup vegetable oil

3 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

FOR THE CHOCOLATE PAN FROSTING

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter

4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/3 cup whole milk, or more if needed

3 cups confectioners sugar, sifted

Make the cake: Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly mist two 9-inch round cake pans with vegetable oil spray, then dust them with flour. Shake out the excess flour and set the pans aside.

Place the cake mix, pudding mix, the 1 cups of milk, and the oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are just incorporated, 1 minute. Stop the machine and scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat the batter until smooth, 2 minutes longer, scraping down the side of the bowl again if needed. The batter should look well blended. Divide the batter evenly between the 2 prepared pans, smoothing the tops with the rubber spatula. Place the pans in the oven side by side.

Bake the cake layers until they are golden brown and the tops spring back when lightly pressed with a finger, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer the cake pans to wire racks and let the cake layers cool for 10 minutes. Run a dinner knife around the edge of each cake layer and give the pans a good shake to loosen the cakes. Invert each layer onto a wire rack, then invert it again onto another wire rack so that the layers are right side up. Let the layers cool completely, about 30 minutes longer.

Meanwhile, make the chocolate pan frosting: Melt the butter in a mediumsize saucepan over low heat, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the cocoa powder and the 1/3 cup of milk. Cook, stirring, until the mixture thickens and just begins to come to a boil, 1 minute longer. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the 3 cups of the confectioners sugar a bit at a time, adding up to cup more sugar or more milk if needed, until the frosting is thickened and smooth.

To assemble the cake, transfer one layer, right side up, to a serving plate and spread some of the frosting over the top. Place the second cake layer, right side up, on top of the first, then spread the remaining frosting over the top and side of the cake, working with smooth, clean strokes.

KEEP IT FRESH! Store the cake, in a cake saver or under a glass dome, at room temperature for up to one week. Or freeze it, wrapped in aluminum foil or in a cake server, for up to six months. Let the cake thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.

THE CAKE MIX DOCTOR SAYS: The beauty of My Favorite Birthday Cake is that it is a keeper, should there be any leftovers. It will stay moist for a week stored at room temperature (the hard frosting seals in the moisture).

If you want to add some nuts, such as chopped toasted pecans or slivered toasted almonds, to the top of the cake, do so while the frosting is still warm.

Easy Ways to Decorate a Birthday Cake

If you have never taken a cake-decorating class in your life but you want to dress up a birthday cake with more than supermarket candles here are some ideas:

• Make a letter cake. Bake a cake in a 13 by 9inch pan. When the cake is cool, cut it to form the initial of the honorees first name. Then frost the cake and cover it with grated chocolate or candy sprinkles.
• Choose a fluffy frosting. Fluffy looks more festive than a sleek ganache or silky glaze. Using a metal icing spatula, lightly frost the cake, then create a decorative effect by spreading more frosting on top in circles, as though you were waxing a car.
• Spell it out. Pipe on a happy birthday greeting using a supermarket squeeze tube of icing or a thick cream cheese frosting that has been well chilled. Dont own a pastry bag? Place the frosting in a resealable plastic bag. Seal the bag, snip off a tiny corner, and squeeze out the frosting. Practice writing first on a piece of waxed paper.