Three-Layer Pineapple Cake

Over the past couple months I've been really into cakes. I've never really been a cake lover either, I'm more of a pie girl. But lately! Lately I've just had an itch at making these sweet, layered, beauties. It is a well known fact on this blog that anything coconut-y (or with the potential to become coconut-y) is an immediate favourite in my books. Add that hint of coconut flavour to a moist, pineapple cake, smothered in whipped cream and you've got yourself a winner. I found this recipe on one of my regular browses through Pinterest and as soon as I got home that night I headed straight to the kitchen and began baking away! Though there are quite a few steps involved, this cake comes out stunning and delicious. I'll be surprised if it's not the best cake you've ever had. Here's my take on the three-layer pineapple cake:

For the cake:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 eggs

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon coconut extract

3/4 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt

20 oz can crushed pineapple, drained

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Prepare 3- 8 inch cake pans, greased and lined with parchment paper. In a medium sized bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, soda and salt. In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs and sugars on medium speed, until creamy. Add in the vegetable oil and coconut extract. Gradually add in the yogurt and dry mixture, alternating between the two until just combined. Gently fold in the drained, crushed pineapple. Evenly distribute the batter between the cake pans, and bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

For the filling:

20 oz can crushed pineapple

1.5 tablespoon sugar

2 tablespoon water

In a small saucepan, heat the pineapple, sugar and water, until the liquid has evaporated and the mixture is thick.

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup water

1/4 dark rum

In a small saucepan, bring the sugar and water to a boil. When the sugar has evaporated, remove from heat. Allow to cool and stir in the rum.

2 cups whipping cream

1/2 cup icing sugar

Whip the cream and icing sugar together until stiff peaks form. Allow to chill.

3/4 cup toasted coconut

Once the cakes have completely cooled, you can begin assembling the cake. Starting with one cake as the base, soak the top of the cake with the rum syrup. Next gently spread a few tablespoons of the crushed pineapple mixture on top. Spread about 3/4 cup of whipped cream on top and lightly dust with toasted coconut. Continue these layers until your cake is completely assembled. Allow the cake to chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. For serving, gently saw with a serrated knife, making sure not to crush the cake. 

I know this cake will be the perfect summer dessert and am already dreaming up some cupcake versions of it to bring to parties and BBQs!  

Earl Grey Cake with Honey Buttercream

Remember that time I said I was going to lessen the food and just up the overall happy? Well food makes me happy and lately I've been baking up a storm so here's another recipe! Believe it or not I've actually been baking more than both the blog and Instagram might suggest - which really means I've been going baking crazy because there has been no shortage of food posts on either. 

The Pastry Affair is probably the best food blog out there. All the recipes I've tried are easy and delicious. She always has cute quotes to accompany the gorgeous food pictures and the ingredients are usually already in my cupboard - A++! That being said whenever I need some baking inspiration the Pastry Affair is where I go. Within a couple clicks I'm guaranteed to feel the creative juices flowing. Last week I really wanted to make cake but wanted it to be a bit "jazzier" than regular ol' chocolate or vanilla. Enter tea cake. A simple cake recipe with a deliciously light tea flavour, and honey buttercream frosting on top combine to give you one of the best ideas ever - tea you can eat!

Here's the recipe (adapted from the Pastry Affair): 

Ingredients

1 cup 2% milk

2 tablespoons Earl Grey Tea
(I used David's Tea 'The Earl's Garden')

1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350 F and lightly grease two 9-inch round cake pans.

In a small saucepan, warm the milk until simmering and stir in the Earl Grey tea. Remove from heat and allow to cool. In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs, until well incorporated. Add in the vegetable oil and vanilla until fully combined. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Gradually mix into the butter mixture until combined. Finally, stir in the tea and milk until the batter is is smooth (you can choose to leave the tea leaves in or out - I put in about half). Evenly spread the batter into the two cake pans and bake for 20-24 minutes, or until a tooth pick comes out clean. Allow to cool before icing or serving. 

For the honey buttercream, I completely followed the recipe on the Pastry Affair, with the addition of about 2 tablespoons of milk. 

I love the look of a naked cake, with the icing only in the middle and on top. There's something so rustic and cozy about the simplicity of it. If you're feeling fancy pipe a few designs on the top to make it extra pretty - I attempted some buttercream roses but they're more like swirlies. I just loved this cake, finally I can drink my tea, and eat it too! 

Chocolate Birthday Cake

Last Friday a few of us got together for my good friend Amanda's birthday to enjoy a night of guacamole, drinks and of course, cake. I can't imagine celebrating a birthday without cake, and even if it isn't in its traditional form there are so many cupcake and ice cream options! I decided to whip up one of my favourite chocolate cake recipes - this one by Ina Garten - and as much as I love chocolate on chocolate I always think it looks so pretty with white icing. I also attempted some decorations (A Beautiful Mess inspired) by melting some chocolate and piping it into Eiffel Towers (Amanda is a big France fan) and they looked great! Only problem was when it came to putting them on the cake they melted instantly and I lost all but four! Even those lonely four didn't make it very far, as soon as I stepped outside in the humidity their peaks collapsed - but lucky for me Eiffel Towers also look a lot like capital A's - win. I shaved some chocolate on the top and it looked just as nice. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

3/4 cups cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup coffee

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease two round cake pans and line with parchment, grease again and lightly dust with flour. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, soda, power and salt. In a separate bowl beat together the buttermilk, oil, eggs and vanilla. On low speed gradually add the wet ingredients into the flour mixture until combined. Add in the coffee stirring just until mix and being sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl. Evenly pour the batter into each of the pans and bake for 30-35 minutes, until a tooth pick comes out clean. Allow to cool for at least thirty minutes before removing from the pans. Place them on a rack until cooled all the way through.

For the icing, I used a really old recipe from my Nana's collection that is a simple buttercream - sugar, butter and heavy cream. Either of the recipes from Ina or a Beautiful Mess will work great! The cake was enjoyed by all and their were many exclamations of "This cake is so moist!!" - which is completely true. Happy Birthday Amanda!

Chocolate Brownie Cakes

The past couple weeks have been very chaotic and so a baking/blogging break was needed as I try and get into a rhythm of working two jobs, keeping up with hobbies and maintaining some form of a social life. I've also been trying to find recipes that aren't super indulgent but are a little on the healthier side. I saw this recipe for Whole Wheat Brownies on Martha Stewart's Pinterest boards a few weeks ago and decided to give it a go. Given that there is still a decent amount of butter and sugar in these, they are in no way a healthy snack. However, compared to the brownie recipes I've tried before, there are fewer eggs, and less butter and sugar overall - I will definitely use the reasoning "but they have whole wheat flour!" to deem them slightly nutritious. All this being said, they are not your typical dense, fudgey brownie, and lean a little towards the cakey side, while still give you that much needed chocolate fix!

Ingredients 

3/4 stick salted butter (6 tbsp)

1/2 cup white flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 cup brown sugar

1 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 egg

8 ounces semisweet chocolate

Preheat your oven to 350 F. Grease a 9-inch square pan and line it with parchment paper. In a bowl mix together the flours, cocoa, baking powder, and baking soda. In a second bowl combine the sugar, applesauce and egg. Melt together 6 ounces of chocolate and the butter (either in the microwave or using a double-boiler). Combine the chocolate with the sugar mixture. Gradually add in the flour mixture. Pour into the pan and sprinkle the remaining 2 ounces of chocolate on top - I actually used some milk chocolate chips instead. Bake for 30-40 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

These are perfect with a glass of milk and could be made even better with some peanut butter chips or walnuts sprinkled in!