Celebrating my 70th TWD with Perfect Party Cake
I’m a little late to the TWD party this week, my apologies. We’ve recently added a new family member and this little bundle of energy has taken up all of my free time. We are first time dog owners so this has been quite the experience for us both as we’re in a constant state of extreme worry and extreme joy over her. It’s been so great. Also, our three cats are responding better than we could have ever hoped.
Our new Great Dane puppy. My boyfriend named her “Kinder”, like the kinder in “kindergarten”. It means “child” in German.
Now, on to the cake. :)
I usually make mention whenever I hit a “milestone” on my blog. This time, it’s my 70th Tuesday with Dorie recipe (which is not how many week’s I’ve been participating with the group, although it’s close, but how many of the TWD selections I’ve made so far). I couldn’t think of a better choice to ring in my 70th with than this Perfect Party Cake. So thank you Carol of mix, mix… stir, stir for choosing it.
This is a white layer cake flavored with lemon and raspberry, with a swiss meringue buttercream and a sprinkling of shredded coconut.
The cakes baked up really nice. I’d never made a swiss meringue buttercream before where you heat egg whites first and then whip up a beautiful frosting with three sticks of butter (yikes!), but everything went smoothly. The raspberry filling was no more than warming up some raspberry jam.
I think I’ve finally conquered my fear of layer cakes. I didn’t have any problems with this recipe at all. My layers weren’t as uniform as I would have liked maybe, but I also kind of cut my cakes in half with reckless abandon so I guess I couldn’t expect that. It was easy to cut and serve, although at times the jam in the layers made it a little slippery.
This cake is definitely perfect for a party. I had a thought while I was tasting it that it would be a good wedding cake too, maybe minus the coconut. I shared it with our neighbors who also really liked it. I don’t think you can go wrong here and it seems like a versatile cake where you could easily change up flavors and it would still turn out great.
Thank you Carol for choosing Perfect Party Cake on pages250-252 of Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From my home to yours. Please check out the book or stop by Carol’s Blog for the recipe. Next week, the TWD logo contest winner Lisa of Surviving Oz chose Tribute to Katherine Hepburn Brownies on pages 96-97.
Leslie replied:
Wow, this looks like a huge success! I love the big fluffy layers you got. Congrats on your 70th TWD!
July 5, 2009 at 9:18 am. Permalink.
Em replied:
You did a GREAT job… and Kinder is a beautiful Dane. Having grown up with them they remain among my favorite breed… she’s a real beauty
July 5, 2009 at 3:43 pm. Permalink.
Steph replied:
Your cake looks so yummy and the crumb so fluffy and light! When you said Kinder, I was thinking Kinder suprise… chocolate is always on my mind. Kinder is so cute and I can’t wait to see more pictures later one!
July 5, 2009 at 4:34 pm. Permalink.
Mary replied:
Happy Anniversary..I can’t talk about your delicious cake because I am too mesmerized by your adorable dog.
July 5, 2009 at 5:53 pm. Permalink.
Tracey replied:
Those photos of your new dog are so beautiful! Kinder is adorable! Your cake looks terrific too
July 5, 2009 at 10:41 pm. Permalink.
Carol Peterman replied:
I am so impressed you baked this cake with a new puppy in the house. I remember the puppy days and I was a wreck from being sleep deprived from getting up in the middle of the night to take him outside for a potty break. It’s a good thing puppies are so darn cute to make it worth all the work. Kinder is adorable, and will be able to snitch entire cakes off your kitchen counter before you know it!
July 6, 2009 at 12:28 am. Permalink.
pam replied:
Kinder is beautiful! Just look at those eyes.
July 6, 2009 at 6:23 am. Permalink.
Jacque replied:
Ooh, it looks perfect! I think Dorie would be proud.
Congrats on your milestone… thatsalotta recipes
July 6, 2009 at 3:38 pm. Permalink.
Josh replied:
What a beautiful dog! Congratulations to you both. Make sure you get a lot of puppy photos and video. They grow up so fast!
July 7, 2009 at 6:53 am. Permalink.
Vibi replied:
WOW! I want one like that! Not the cake, the dog. Amazing. Okay, the cake is too… but the dog… a killer.
July 8, 2009 at 12:58 am. Permalink.
elra replied:
Beautiful gorgeous looking puppy! And the cake look absolutely delicious too.
July 13, 2009 at 9:16 pm. Permalink.
MC replied:
You got a GREAT DANE? Holy moly. That’s a huge dog and he’s GORGEOUS! Ah, puppies. They really are adorable until they destroy your home.
July 14, 2009 at 12:52 pm. Permalink.
Dawn replied:
What a cute puppy! Can I be a drag and tell you that Kinder means children, while Kind means child?
ok, having gotten that off my mind (sorry, I’m a teacher, can’t help correcting everybody, whether it’s my business or not), thanks for posting that gorgeous cake…it looks sublime!
July 21, 2009 at 10:44 am. Permalink.
Karen replied:
Dawn – LOL. Thanks for the correction. I’ll be sure to tell the boyfriend since he’s the one who picked out the name based on that and I was fighting HARD for something else.
July 21, 2009 at 4:48 pm. Permalink.
Danielle replied:
Congrats on your 70th. I am new to Tuesday’s with Dorie – waiting to make my first entry!
Gorgeous dog! He’s a puppy! Wow! Have a great time with him!
July 31, 2009 at 10:16 pm. Permalink.