Chocolate Cake with Cocoa Buttercream Roses

Feasting period started from end October for Hubby and I. Anniversary, birthday, festive celebrations all fall during this period.

Since I baked a Japanese cheesecake for Hubby some 2 weeks back for our wedding anniversary, I decided to do a buttercream cake for Hubby's birthday this year, and because I wanted to practise piping, I added buttercream roses on the top of the cake.

How is it for a noob who has not really done much piping her whole life?  I thought it looked not too bad hehe!  Okay, more excuses to do bakes that calls for frostings. I need more practices!

Talk about frostings, I love using buttercream for cake frosting. I am never good at whipping cream, yes, even heavy cream, so I try to steer clear from them as much as I could.

I love how easy is it to make buttercream. It is almost foolproof and I have never overbeat buttercream. Divert your attention a little and you risk overwhipping cream and heavy cream, and you get that grainy texture with milk oozing out. Buttercream holds its piped shapes better too!

I made this cake 3 days earlier for the Hubby, sang him the birthday song, he made a wish, cut the cake and we digged into it right after. He loved the cake. It was good! Soft, moist and not too sweet, just how we like our cake to be hehe!

I love taking photos of birthday cakes!

Especially when candles are lit.

 

So birthday song was sang,

wish was made,

cake was cut.

What's next?

Have your cake and eat it lor :P

Chocolate Cake with Cocoa Buttercream Roses
3 egg yolks
55g cake flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
40g caster sugar
30ml canola oil
35ml milk
a pinch of salt

3 egg whites
1/4 cream of tartar
5g cocoa powder

Chocolate rice

Sugar syrup for brushing
1 tbsp sugar
2 to 3 tsp hot water
(Dissolve sugar in hot water and set aside for cake brushing)

1. Preheat oven to 150deg C.
2. Sift cake flour, baking powder and cocoa powder and leave aside.
3. Beat yolk and 1/2 tbsp sugar till sugar has dissolved and yolk mixture has turned pale.

4. Add salt and beat well before adding canola oil in 2 additions. Make sure yolk mixture is well beaten between each addition.
5. Add in milk in 2 additions and mix well before placing in sifted cocoa flour mixture. Use a spatula and mix well till batter turns thick and creamy. Set aside.
6. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites till frothy. Add in cream of tartar and continue to beat till soft peaks form, add in remaining caster sugar in 3 additions and beat till stiff peaks are formed.

7. Spoon half of white mixture into cocoa batter and fold in till well mixed. Repeat the process with remaining white mixture in 2 additions.
8. Pour folded in batter into 6-inch baking tin and drop it on a table top twice to remove excess air bubbles.
9. Place baking tin in oven to bake at 150deg for 60 min or till done.
10. Remove from oven and place it overturned on a cooling rack to cool. Prepare buttercream frosting. (Refer to bottom for steps)
11. Slice a little of the uneven cake top if top is domed shape, then slice cake to get 2 even pieces for layering.  I used 3 toothpicks to guide me with the even and equal slicing.

12. Place a slice of the cake on a cake board and set it on a turntable, brush sugar syrup all over cake. Slap on some buttercream and spread it evenly. Place the other cake on top of buttercream.

13. Brush sugar syrup all over cake, then crumb coat whole cake with a thin layer of buttercream to seal in cake crumbs so they will not get in the way during final coating, you may freeze crumb coated cake for about 15min before doing final thick coating.
14. Layer an even coat round sides of cake. (I left out the top since I will be piping on roses.) Spoon chocolate rice on to side of frosted cake.

15. Spoon remaining buttercream into a piping bag with a star nozzle and pipe the roses on the cake top, starting from outer layer to inner layer. Refrigerate and enjoy.

Cocoa Buttercream Frosting
120g salted or unsalted butter, softened (use good butter pls! I used Lurpak salted butter)
30g icing sugar
3 tbsp cocoa powder

1. Place butter into a mixing bowl, cut into smaller cubes and let it soften a little before beating.
2. Beat butter and icing sugar on low speed. Turn up speed when icing sugar has been blended with butter.
3. Beat till butter is smooth, add cocoa powder and continue to beat till buttercream is smooth, creamy and firm enough to hold its shape when piped.