Simple steps how to make perfect birthday cake

It’s all about the cake…

STEP 1: MAKE THE CAKE

Ingredients

6 eggs
170 g caster sugar
170 g self raisin-flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
pinch of salt
vanilla paste

*All ingredients should be at room temperature*

How to make it

Preheat the oven to 170ºC.
Line an 8 inch baking tin with greaseproof paper.
Separate the eggs (whites and yolks). For the foam to succeed to be stiff, the bowl in which you beat the whites must be clean and completely dry.
Beat the whites until stiff foam with a pinch of salt. At the end of whipping, gradually add half of the sugar – mix it all the time. Beat until the foam is smooth, shiny and very stiff (you can feel slight resistance under the pressure of the blades of the mixer).
In a separate bowl, add the rest of the sugar to the yolks and vanilla paste and mix it light until the yolks are bright and increase their volume twice.
Then add your whites foam to egg yolks and gently combine with a spoon or spatula, mixing from the bottom up.
Sift the flour and baking powder through to a beaten eggs and mix gently – with a spatula, only to combine the flour with foam.
Gently pour the dough into the prepared tin, put it in the oven for about 30 minutes. At the end of baking, check if the toothpick is dry and if the dough is ready.
Remove it from the oven, take it out from the tin and put it on a wire rack, leave it to cool completely.

STEP 2: MAKE THE CREAM

Mascarpone cheese (500 g or 2 cups + 3 tbsp)
Double cream (500 ml or 2 cups + 1 tbsp)
Icing sugar (80 g – add more if you like sweeter or ½ cup + 1 tbsp)
Good quality vanilla paste
Gelatin – 6 tbsp + 3 tbsp hot water (optional)

Start by mixing mascarpone cheese, vanilla paste and icing sugar for around 1 minute.
Add double cream and keep mixing until you have a thick consistency.
You can create a cream with a flavour of your choice by adding it to a vanilla mixture.

STEP 3: BUILD THE CAKE

Place the first top of the sponge cake on a plate or cardboard cake round, spread 1/3 of the jam evenly on top of the cake layer, next spread 1/3 of the cream , cover with the next top, then spread again with 1/3 of the jam and 1/3 of the cream.

Put the last sponge cake, spread the remaining jam and cream, smooth the top and sides of the cake.

TIPS

It is worth soaking the sponge with different syrups mixed with lime juice or even some liquor.

Creating the magic

The day before, you can, but it is not necessary, bake a sponge cake.

The cake is best on the day it is served, but after a few hours of cooling in the refrigerator. It can also be prepared in its entirety the day before and stored in the refrigerator.

I always make my cake the day before and leave the decorations for the next one.

The best cake is always a simple one. Don’t overdo it. It’s all about the taste, and this one is light and soft.

Enjoy ☺️

You can see more pictures here… Or on my Instagram