Just Baking

I’ve got wedding on the brain.  I’m hearing strains of Canon in D in my sleep and brushing up on my waltz around the house.  Is it perhaps because it’s Spring and love is in bloom at every turn?  Could be.  More likely though, it’s because my own sashay down the aisle will commence in six months.  So in all the usual ways I am planning and prepping and primping as every girl must do – but it’s the baker in me that has me approaching this wedding fever in a more atypical manner: I’m baking wedding cakes.

Since my one-and-only dropped down on one knee ever so gallantly, friends have all been asking me if I plan to make my own wedding cake.  To which I have replied without hesitation, “Are you kidding?”  In a word, “no”.  That’s more pressure than any bride needs.  Yet I’ve always been fascinated by the grand architecture and fastidious craftsmanship that these masterpieces derive from.  And I’ve often wondered if my home-grown baking prowess could stand up to the ultimate challenge of flour, butter, eggs, and sugar.  So in the spirit of nuptial anticipation – and with a soundtrack of Baroque music to accompany me – I dove into this little weekend project.

First, I chose a recipe from the esteemed pages of Bon Appetit that also passed the Epicurious.com test with glowing reviews.  I felt confident that the lemony confection directions would be a boon to my little experiment. 

My first stumbling block came when I failed to make it to my trusted baking supply store before they closed up shop for the weekend, which rendered me sans cake pans – or at least, without the 12-inch and 14-inch kind I was hoping to walk out with.  The supply I have in my home pantry tops out at 10-inch, so I had to re-assess my plan.  Miniature it would be.  My cake would thus consist of four adorable tiers – from 4-inch at the top to 7-inch at the base.  Certainly not enough to feed a thriving party of 150 hungry chicken-dancers, but enough for a table of twelve to eat generously.  Besides, multiple, personalized wedding cakes seem to be the dessert trend du jour, according to my library of bridal magazines.

Having cut the recipe to a third (a somewhat risky endeavor, walking the delicate high-wire of baking science; I like to throw caution down the drain in my kitchen) I set out cutting rounds of parchment paper and buttering my pans (which sounds like it should be a cheeky double entendre, no?).  Diminutive recipe in hand, I began beating eggs and sugar with glee.  A flurry of lemon zest feathering from my rasper here; a sputter of milk and sugar on the stove there; an aerating pillow of ethereal egg whites in syncopation with the music.  The process inspired me to sing.

Baking the cakes themselves was a simple and reliably pleasant experience.  Mixing up the lemon curd and cream filling got my mojo working.  I threw together a simple lemon syrup like a true artiste and then, the frosting – a marathon whipping session (those poor stickers of butter didn’t see it coming).  Compiling all of the components to the cake was the easy part; I subscribe to the mise en place school of thought and I felt satisfied to see my fridge full of bowls containing the fruits of my efforts.  It’s the assembly that always brings on the jitters.  I’ve long been wanting to take a course in cake decorating, as it’s the vulnerable spot in my kitchen repertoire.  Though I am pretty consistent when it comes to delivering on flavor, the appearance of my desserts tends to border on the rustic side.  Which is perfectly appropriate for a galette, but not so for a wedding cake.  I found the frosting a little less than ideal for spreading, but did my best to slather on the mandatory crumb coating and then chill to a firm glossy surface before polishing each tier with another layer of buttery wallpaper.

The most precarious – though also most rewarding – part of the process was assembling the tiers together.  I had built the 7-inch and 6-inch tiers on top of one another on a 7-inch cardboard round, and did the same double-decker with the two smaller tiers.  With three dowels placed inside the larger stack for support, I ceremoniously topped them off with the smaller stack and voila!  Presto wedding cake!  A few decorative bubbles of pink and brown frosting gave the whole tower a modern and whimsical flair.

So suffice it to say, it wasn’t exactly the masterpiece I hope to have at my own wedding reception.  Still, the project was worth it for the sheer victory of starting and finishing an elaborate baker’s feat.  Next time, I’ll try it with the proper pans and craft the cake to feed fifty.  The biggest challenge will be figuring out who to serve it to.

If you’d like to try the same baking experiment in your own kitchen, here’s the modified recipe I used:

LEMON WEDDING CAKE
For cake
6 large eggs
2 ¾ cups sugar
1 1/3 cups vegetable oil
1 1/3 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
2 tbsp grated lemon peel
2 tbsp orange liqueur
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
4 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp salt

For lemon filling
3 large eggs
¾ cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
¾ cup sugar
½ cup fresh lemon juice
2 tsp grated lemon peel

1 ½ cups chilled whipping cream
3 tbsp sugar

For lemon syrup
2/3 cups water
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup sugar

For frosting
4 large egg yolks
1 ¼ cups plus 3 tbsp sugar
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons milk (do not use low-fat or nonfat)
2 tsp grated lemon peel
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into large pieces, room temperature
1/3 cup water

3 large egg whites

Make cake:
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Butter bottom of each pan (4-, 5-, 6- and 7-inch, each with 2-inch high sides) and line bottom of pans with parchment paper.

Beat eggs, sugar, and oil in large bowl of heavy-duty mixer at medium-low speed 5 minutes. Increase speed to medium and beat until mixture is very thick and falls in heavy ribbon when beater is lifted, about 5 minutes. Whisk cheese, lemon peel, liqueur, lemon juice, and vanilla in medium bowl until well blended. Add cheese mixture to egg mixture; beat at low speed until just blended. Transfer to large bowl.  Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into separate bowl. Sift dry ingredients over batter in 5 additions, whisking to blend after each addition. Transfer batter to each pan (batter should be of equal depth in all pans).

Bake cakes until golden brown and firm (tops may crack) and tester inserted into center comes out clean, rotating pans occasionally for even baking and covering loosely with foil if browning too quickly.  Baking times will be approximately as follows:

4-inch = 30 minutes

5-inch = 40 minutes

6-inch = 45 minutes

7-inch = 50 minutes

Transfer to racks; cool completely.

Make lemon filling:
Whisk eggs to blend in medium bowl. Combine butter, ¾ cup sugar, lemon juice, and peel in heavy medium saucepan. Stir over medium heat until butter melts, sugar dissolves and mixture comes to a boil. Gradually whisk lemon mixture into eggs. Return to same pan. Stir over medium heat until curd thickens and just begins to bubble, about 3 minutes. Strain curd into large bowl. Chill until cold and thick, stirring occasionally, about 4 hours.

Beat cream and 3 tablespoons sugar in medium bowl until firm peaks form. Fold into curd in 4 additions. Chill filling until very cold, about 2 hours.

Make lemon syrup:
Stir all ingredients in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat; bring to boil. Chill syrup until cold, about 1 hour. (Cakes, filling, and syrup can be made 1 day ahead. Cover cakes; store at room temperature. Cover filling and syrup; keep refrigerated.)

Make frosting:
Whisk yolks and ¾ cup sugar in large bowl to blend. Bring milk and lemon peel just to boil in heavy large saucepan. Gradually whisk hot milk into yolk mixture. Return to same saucepan. Stir custard over medium heat until thick, about 3 minutes (do not allow custard to boil). Strain custard into large metal bowl; add vanilla extract. Using handheld electric mixer, beat custard until custard lightens and cools to room temperature, about 15 minutes. Gradually add butter; beat until well blended, scraping down sides of bowl often. (If buttercream appears curdled at any time, place bowl directly over heat for several seconds. Remove from heat and beat well; repeat warming and beating as necessary to achieve smooth texture). Set buttercream aside at room temperature.

Stir ½ cup sugar and 1/3 cup water in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Attach clip-on candy thermometer to side of pan. Increase heat and boil syrup without stirring until thermometer registers 240°F, occasionally brushing down sugar crystals from sides of pan with wet pastry brush, about 7 minutes.

Meanwhile, beat egg whites in large bowl of heavy-duty mixer until stiff but not dry. Gradually add 3 tbsp sugar and beat until firm glossy peaks form. Gradually beat hot sugar syrup into egg whites. Continue to beat 2 minutes longer. Place bowl of meringue into larger bowl filled with ice and water. Using handheld electric mixer with clean beaters, continue to beat until meringue cools to room temperature, about 10 minutes. Gradually add meringue to buttercream, beating until well blended.

Assembly:
Cut around sides of cakes to loosen. Invert cakes onto surface. Peel off parchment.

Using long serrated knife, cut off doomed top of each cake to level. Cut cakes horizontally into 2 equal layers. Place bottom cake layer, cut side up, on 7-inch cardboard. Brush bottom with lemon syrup and spread with lemon filling. Place top cake layer, pressing lightly to compact. Brush with more syrup. Repeat with other tiers, also placing the 5-inch layer on a 5-inch cardboard round.

Using offset spatula, spread thin layer of frosting over top and sides of each cake to anchor crumbs. Place 6-inch cake atop 7-inch cake, and 4-inch cake atop 5-inch cake.  Refrigerate cakes on their cardboard bases until frosting is firm, about 1 hour.  Spread additional layers of frosting over each double-decker cake, running spatula over top and sides until frosting is smooth.  Chill in between spreading as needed.

Insert 1 dowel straight down into center of larger double-decker cake to cardboard base. Mark dowel about ¼-inch above top of frosting. Remove dowel and cut with serrated knife at marked point. Cut 2 more dowels to same length. Press 3 cut dowels into cake, positioning about 1 ¼ inches inward from edge of cake.  Place smaller cake atop dowels on larger cake.

Using pastry bag fitted with small plain round tip, pipe small dots or flowers of frosting decoratively around edges, as you wish.
Modified from Bon Appétit Cooking Class June 1997