GOLDEN

My mother’s birthday this year was a golden one of sorts. She has reached the top of the hill! After living a good number of those years raising my brother and I from screaming toddlers to angsty teenagers to almost functioning young adults, a special celebratory cake seemed to be in order. I came across this cake recipe about two weeks before her birthday while perusing some food blogs, and it seemed to be the perfect combination - white chocolate for sweetness and rose for elegance - two things my mother exemplifies every day. Here’s to 50, and many more years!

I ended up omitting the the rose water in the frosting that was called for in the original recipe to cater it more towards my mother’s taste. If I made this again, I would also omit the white chocolate chunks for the filling and just depend on the white chocolate in the batter. The chunks tend to harden quite a bit once put in the refrigerator.

White Chocolate Rose Cake with Strawberries

Adapted from Joy the Baker

Makes 1 three layer 9-inch cake

Cake

4 cups cake flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature

2 cups buttermilk

½ cup white chocolate chunks

Frosting

3 cups heavy whipping cream

¼ cup powdered sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Filling

½ cup finely chopped white chocolate chunks

1 ½ cups sliced strawberries

fresh rose petals, for topping the cake

To make cake: Place racks in the center and upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour two 9-inch round cake pans.  This is a triple layer cake, so butter and flour three 9-inch cake pans if you have them.  I only have two pans, so I baked two cakes, then baked the last cake after the first two were out of the oven. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar at medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes.  Add eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping down the bowl after each addition.  Beat in vanilla extract. Turn the mixer speed to low and add half of the dry ingredients. Add half of the buttermilk and beat until just combined.  Add the remaining flour and buttermilk and beat until just  combined.  Remove the bowl from the stand mixer and finish incorporating the batter with a spatula.  Scrape the bottom of the bowl to make sure there is no butter or flour hiding down there. Divide the batter among the two cake pans, making sure that you save enough batter for the last cake to bake off.  If you have three pans, divide the batter in three.  Spread batter evenly in each pan then rap each pan on the counter top to help the batter settle and eliminate any air bubbles.  Bake until bubbled and golden brown, about 20-25 minutes.  Insert a skewer into the center of the cake.  If it comes out dry with just a few crumbs, it’s done!  Cool cakes in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely. If you’re baking off your last cake round, be sure to re-grease and flour the pan before adding the last of the cake batter.

To make frosting: Combine heavy cream, and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.  Beat on medium speed until soft peaks form.  Once soft peaks form in the whipped cream, keep an eye on it.  Continue beating just past the soft peak stage. You don’t want to over-beat the whipped cream.  It should hold it’s shape but still be smooth and spreadable.  Also.. you can always beat the whipped cream into more shape, but you can’t unwhip it to a smoother consistency once it’s firm.

To assemble: Place three strips of parchment paper onto a cake plate or cake stand.  Place one cooled cake round atop the parchment paper.  The paper will help keep the cake plate clean while you frost the cake.  Spread a generous amount of whipped cream atop the first layer.  Arrange half of the sliced strawberries atop the whipped cream and sprinkle with half of the finely chopped white chocolate. Place another cake layer atop the frosted layer.  Top with more whipped cream, the remaining sliced strawberries, and sprinkle with the remaining white chocolate.  Top with the last cake later.  Spread whipped cream across the top of the cake and smooth along the sides.  Keep a tall glass of warm water nearby.  Rinsing the knife clean will help smooth with whipped cream more easily. To finish the cake, top with fresh rose petals.  I removed the petals from the rose stem and bud. I took the center cluster of flowers and adorned the center of the cake then arranged petals from the center outward. Store cake in the fridge until ready to serve. I’ve found that the petals will be pretty on the cake for at least a day in the refrigerator. To serve, remove a few of the petals and slice through the cake. Petals can be appreciated, adored, and then discarded.