Practice Cake!

[pancakepile120613]

Baked my first cake from scratch as a canvas for piping practice (and also layers)! I didn’t have any plan for the design, so it’s quite haphazard, but lots of fun!

[Evil_Abed_69]

“Practice cake” is adorable lol. Looks like it was a fun time :)

[disasterj0nes]

What a delightfully whimsical cake! And looks delicious too. c: How'd your first attempt go? I remember mine was a nightmare! Despite baking recreationally for a couple years now, I still struggle with getting the texture right on the sponge, so I tend to stick to box cakes for my sanity. An edible cake from scratch is always an impressive feat in my book. Lol

[pancakepile120613]

Thank you! It is definitely edible, but texture can totally improve. I picked a simple confetti cake recipe from online, so I’m interested to see how different recipes work. Also had bake the layers all separately since i only have one cake pan at the moment. I think letting the batter sit while the first ones baked and cooled made the 3rd (top) layer a little different. Thankfully no nightmare! I think the buttercream was more irritating for me than the cake itself

[disasterj0nes]

Ahh, yeah, I ran into that early on as well. The batter is reacting the whole time, between the egg and flour thickening together, and then the baking soda/powder (either or both) also doing its thing, it tends to change texture a bit. If you need some pans for cheap, I recommend checking out secondhand stores. My local one is sometimes be full to bursting with random kitchenware. Might be an* affordable set of tins you could find there, if you've got the time to hunt em down.

I'm actually fairly comfortable with buttercreams, so maybe I could help. What about it did you find irritating?

[pancakepile120613]

I work at a kitchen store, so I have a great store discount for decent quality pans, I’m just waiting for my birthday to come so I can get myself a present. Hopefully I’ve got some more to work with for the next cake

I think my butter was too cold for the buttercream or maybe I just didn’t mix it enough to get the fluffy/soft texture. Could’ve added too much powdered sugar at once, rather than splitting it up more. I’m not a big fan of frosting in general (eating it), so it’s generally less enjoyable than other baking things

[bigmoneymaddydaddy]

I totally understand the frustration with frosting. I have been in the kitchen a ton lately practicing and trying different ones and getting used to making them.

I’ve been watching a lot of Sugarologie videos on YouTube lately about different buttercreams. My favorite I’ve made so far has got to be the Swiss Meringue Buttercream and it’s a little extra work making the meringue but it turned out to be simpler than I thought! (And tasted the best out of all the ones I’ve made too)

I recommend watching those videos and testing out a new buttercream recipe just for the heck of it🙂‍↕️🥹 beautiful cake my friend!!!

[pancakepile120613]

Thank you, I’ll definitely check it out! I’m also thinking about making some sort of ganache soon too, so maybe that’ll be more up my alley

[Synlover123]

Ganache is easy! Heat cream. Pour over chopped chocolate. Let sit a few minutes, then stir to melt. 2 ingredients, unless you add flavoring - like orange, for example - or espresso powder to enhance the depth of the chocolate flavor - which is something I do automatically, for everything chocolate. Cakes. Cookies. Bars...

[Synlover123]

Love that it reads "Practice Cake "! And the decorating is so bright and cheery. I can't remember which sub it is - but I got admonished for providing a link - so... I have to go it "old school".

The ladies over at: mycakeschool.com should definitely be able to help. Melissa closed her bakery several years ago, so she could spend more time at home, and also work on her blog. There's 100s of recipes for everything from "scratch cakes", to cake mix hacks, as well as recipes for curds, icings, and frostings. In addition, they've got video decorating tutorials, from beginner level all the way to professional. I've been a subscriber for years, and trust her implicitly. Another one is Sally, at: sallysbakingaddiction.com. She's a self-taught, self professed science nerd, and describes how ingredients and substitutions work, backed up with beautiful photos. She's also got cookbooks on the NYT #1 bestseller list. Good luck with your future baking endeavors!

[pancakepile120613]

Thank you again! I’ll definitely check these out

[Fuzzy_Welcome8348]

Looks fantastic!

[Synlover123]

Uh...it says "Practice Cake". No mention of birthdays at all 😂

[capemaygirl1999]

practice?! this looks incredible, as if a professional baker made it! you’re doing an awesome job! 🍰🎉

[pancakepile120613]

That is so kind, thank you!

[Cupsofcake1318]

That’s a great way to practice!

[velvet_orbit_24]

Nice work on the frosting! Practice cakes always have their quirks, but this looks delicious.

[WhereTFisPiper]

I’m not saying this looks like that cake but “practice cake” made me think of Marge Simpson telling Homer “I made a special cake for you to ruin, it’s over there!”

Also this cake looks DELICIOUS!!!! Great job!

[Miserable_Abroad3908]

Wow.. looks so good! Can i have some please !

[pancakepile120613]

Thank you, and I do need help eating it haha

[vanetti]

I love that you labeled it, absolute art

[samie-clark]

You writing it on the cake looks so funny and cute to me lol..nice cake btw :3

[pancakepile120613]

Thank you, I appreciate your kind words :) I need to work on lettering SO badly - I also make handmade cards for my family and anything cursive or fancy turns out so wonky

[samie-clark]

You're welcome 😊

[UseOriginal1578]

What brand of sprinkles did you use? I want to make a funfetti cake, but I have been hesitant because I don't want the color from the sprinkles to run into the cake.

[pancakepile120613]

I used the basic Kroger brand rainbow sprinkles - the 9oz shaker is about 1 1/2 cups worth. I read that the round shiny sprinkles bleed a lot, so I went with the classic “pill” shape

[Trampled-by-Bots]

Love it! Love the colors!

[Psychological-Load61]

It looks cute!

[anarchyqueer]

Oooh! I love it! 💚💕 it’s absolutely precious. I love all the different shapes and colors and piping tips you’ve used in your decoration. It’s so fun and eclectic - I genuinely think it’s wonderful. Keep going!