Dessert

Beautiful bouquet cake

This beautiful bouquet cake is the perfect addition to your next morning tea, garden party, or other special occasion. Delicious and easy to recreate, this dessert is a winner!
8
1H
1H
2H

Ingredients

Equipment
Butter cake (x 2 quantities)
Passionfruit curd
Butter cream
Decorations

Method

Beautiful bouquet butter cake

1.Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease and line base and sides of two 20cm deep round cake pans with baking paper. Baking paper should extend 5cm above sides.
2.Make two quantities of cake batter: Beat butter, extract and sugar in bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time.
3.Transfer mixtures to larger bowls; stir in sifted flour and milk, in two batches. Spread mixtures into two 20cm deep pans.
4.Bake cakes for 1 hour. Cover cakes with foil halfway through baking if over-browning.
5.Test cakes by inserting a skewer into the centre. If cooked, skewer will be clean. If there is cake mixture on the skewer, bake cake a further 10 minutes before testing again.
6.Stand cakes in pans for 10 to 30 minutes, depending on size of the cake, before turning top-side down, onto wire rack to cool.
7.Make passionfruit curd and butter cream.

Passionfruit curd

8.Combine all ingredients in a medium heatproof bowl over a medium saucepan of simmering water (don’t let water touch base of bowl); stir until mixture thickly coats the back of a wooden spoon. Cover, cool; refrigerate.

Butter cream

9.Beat the butter in a small narrow bowl with an electric mixer until the butter is as white as possible.
10.Gradually beat in half the sifted icing sugar, then the milk, then the remaining sifted icing sugar.
11.Beat until the buttercream is smooth and spreadable. Keep scraping down the side of the bowl during beating.

Assembling and decorating cake

12.Trim cakes; split cakes in half. Secure one cake layer to cake board with a little butter cream.
13.Fit piping bag with tube. Fill the bag three-quarters full with butter cream. Pipe a ring around the outside edge of the 3 bottom cakes. This forms a ridge to prevent the curd running down the side of the cake. Refrigerate until frosting ridges are firm.
14.Divide curd between these three cakes. Stack cakes on top of each other, finishing with the plain cake. Make sure cakes are evenly placed and straight.
15.Spread top and side of cake with remaining butter cream. Using a scraper, scrape excess frosting from side of cake to show some of the ‘naked’ cake beneath.
16.Position flowers on top of cake.

Assemble and complete the cake 3 hours ahead. Ask your florist to make a bouquet of organic flowers that can be secured to the top of the cake. Match the flowers and colours to your theme. Unfilled cakes can be frozen for up to 3 months. Passionfruit curd can be made 2 weeks ahead; keep covered in the fridge. Lemon curd would also be delicious in this cake; simply swap the passionfruit pulp for lemon juice.

Note

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