The Dreaming Museum: Cooking Through "The Baker's Man": American Flag Cake

There are a couple of events to celebrate this week. First, the US Men’s National Team faces Belgium in Round of 16 at 2014 FIFA World Cup. Go USA!

The second event to celebrate is my birthday. Happy Independence Day America (and happy birthday me)! What better way to celebrate than with cake?

If I was a character in The Baker’s Man and I lived in Mystic Water, Anna and I would be great friends. This might be because we have a lot in common or because I would be a constant patron at her bakery. Either way, Anna would be happy to bake a cake perfect for both events that are happening this week.

American Flag Cake

Serves: 12-14

Level of Difficulty: Difficult

Ingredients

For cakes: (makes 3 cakes)

3 sticks butter, softened

3 c granulated sugar

5 eggs, room temperature

3 c all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

½ c whole milk, room temperature

½ c buttermilk, room temperature

2 tsp vanilla extract

red food coloring or red icing gel

blue food coloring or blue icing gel

*Note: You will need to make this recipe twice in order to have 6 cakes.

*Note: 3 white cake box mixes can be used in place of homemade white cake.

For icing:

4 sticks butter, at room temperature

6 c powdered sugar, sifted

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 c heavy cream, plus more as needed

Instructions

For cake:

Preheat oven to 350º F. Prepare three 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick baking spray.
Cream together butter until light and fluffy with an electric mixer.
Slowly add sugar one cup at a time, making sure to fully incorporate each cup before adding another.
Add eggs one at a time, making sure to fully incorporate each egg before adding another.
Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.
Pour milks and vanilla into measuring cup and whisk together with a fork. Add to butter alternately with milk mixture, beginning and ending with dry ingredients.
Gently stir all ingredients until well combined. Stop mixer and scrape down sides and bottom of bowl, making sure to have all ingredients mixed well.
Weigh cake batter. Divide total weight by 3. Separate the cake batter into even thirds. Dye 2/3 of the cake batter using red food coloring or red icing gel. Leave the final 1/3 of the cake batter white.
Evenly distribute cake batter between 3 cake pans (2 red cake pans and 1 white) and place pans into oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Remove and allow to cool slightly in cake pans for approximately 10 minutes. Then cool completely on a wire rack.

*Note: When making the second batch of cakes, dye 1/3 of the cake batter blue and leave the final 2/3 of the batter white.

For icing:

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until they're light and fluffy, approximately 5–6 minutes.
Beat in the vanilla.
Add the cream gradually, mixing until you get a smooth, creamy texture.

How to Create the Cake:

Slice the red and white cakes horizontally into 2 equal-size halves. You will now have 4 red and 4 white cakes. Set aside.
Using a 4-inch round cookie cutter or a sharp knife to trace around a small 4-inch bowl, cut 1 a small circle into 1 of the red layers. Repeat with 1 of the white layers. (These small circles will be the shorter stripes that line up with the flag’s blue square.)
Use the same technique to cut a hole in the center of the blue cake. (You won't need the inner blue circle. Feel free to eat it.)
To build the cake, start with a red layer and top it with a thin coating of frosting. Keep the icing thin; otherwise you will interrupt the “stripe” effect.
Top the red layer with a layer of white cake and another thin coating of frosting.
Repeat with another red layer and another white layer so that you have four layers total.
On top of this, place the blue cake doughnut (the thick layer with a hole in the middle).
Spread a thin layer of frosting onto the small red circle, and insert it into the hole of the blue cake. Top it with a thin coating of frosting and the small white circle. Gently press the small layers into the hole of the blue cake.
Frost the cake, and you’re done!