5T Cake

Five Years ago today, I got to meet my little Princess Runwild. It is quite an emotional greeting when you've carried this little person for 9 months. Everyone tries to tell you this, but you never realize until you experience it for yourself.... it really is the most perfect gift. An everyday miracle! I can remember my husband and I just going around for months (after having our first baby) thinking, this is absolutely miraculous and people are just walking around living their life as normal and we've just witnessed a real live miracle!! I guess people just get accustom to births, but it really is amazing. If you've ever had a baby, you know what I'm talking about..
Anyways. So little Runwild is 5 today or as she likes to say "5T", because that's what size her clothes are :)
Poor baby Runwilder did not get a homemade birthday cake this year. Her birthday was 3 days ago. She turned 2. Unfortunately, she had to settle for a store-bought cake. As fate would have it, one of those little darling Runwild Princesses decided to lick on some object that was bathed in strep. So, I've been battling it for the last several days. The girls actually fared much better than I have. Strep is much worse on adults, in my opinion. I thought I was home free on the sickness. I would snuggle the girls, but they had to point their little baby breath away from my face. Just as I thought I was in the clear, that little Runwilder sneezed right in my face. Its been downhill from there. But, we have  finally made a recovery and it was very important to my little 5T Runwild that I make her a cake today. She's the only 5T kid I know that appreciates cake as much as I do. She couldn't decide whether she wanted chocolate or white icing. So I did a little of both. I used the little princess decorations from the cake featured at the birthday party for the princesses.. This saved me from having to come up with a better plan. We'll call it being green and recycling (as opposed to lazy and unartistic). The cake itself was very good. Classic White Cake, with both chocolate and vanilla butter cream. There should be more dual icings on all cakes. Who made up the rule that you had to choose just one anyways?!?! No complaints out of my newly aged princesses. Enjoy!

"5T Cake"

White Cake

1 cup milk, room temperature
6 egg whites
1 tsp almond extract
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter (6 oz), softened

Preheat oven to 350 F.
Grease two 9 inch cake pans with vegetable shortening, line the bottom with parchment paper, grease the parchment paper and flour the pans.
Combine milk, eggs whites and extracts in a small bowl with a fork. Set aside.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in an electric mixer and mix at slow speed with a paddle attachment. Add butter. Continue beating at slow speed until mixture looks like wet sand (If you’re doing this by hand, sift the dry ingredients together and rub in butter).
Add all but 1/2 cup of milk mixture and beat at medium speed for 1 1/2 minutes. Add remaining milk mixture and beat for an additional 30 seconds, scraping the sides of the bowl if necessary. Do not overmix.
Divide batter evenly between prepared pans and gently shake to smooth batter. Bake 30-35 minutes, until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Let cakes cool in the pans for 15 minutes then invert onto racks to cool completely before frosting. Unfrosted cakes can be frozen for 1-2 weeks.

Sharon's Chocolate Crusting Buttercream:

recipe from here:

2.5 cups butter

2.5 cups shortening

Splash of vanilla

Dump in cocoa and mix all of the above till very dark brown (I do not measure it)

5 pounds powdered sugar streamed in
Coffee creamer liquid, as needed

Good at room temp for several days to weeks. Fridge or freeze also.

Sharon's Crusting Buttercream:

5 generous cups Sweetex shortening, or other brand of hi ratio shortening

5 pounds powdered sugar

4 TBS vanilla extract (or substitute your flavoring of choice in the appropriate amount)

11-12 TBS hot coffee creamer liquid 

Cream the shortening , flavorings, and hot liquid with paddle attachment until well combined and creamy. Then stream in first 3 pounds of powdered sugar with mixer running at speed one. When incorporated somewhat, stop and scrape down sides of bowl well. Stream in last 2 pounds of powdered sugar at speed one. When incorporated, turn the mixer up to speed 6 and let it beat for 5-7 minutes until very smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl very frequently while the mixer is going at speed 6. The goal is to get all of the icing down into the belly of the bowl and fill the bowl from side to side with no air gaps around the walls, as well as covering the paddle up to the springs. If the icing is making a sucking or "kissing" noise after all the sugar is in, add just a few drops more of liquid, while scraping down the sides,with the mixer running, until that stops. You should create a bowl full of icing side to side, where the paddle is completely submerged and beating in a vacuum under the icing. 5-7 minutes at speed 6 and you should have a smooth as silk and nearly airless icing. Cool before using. Keeps at room temp for weeks or fridge/freeze indefinitely. 

 Happy '5T' Birthday!!

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