What the vanilla cake and chocolate frosting taste like
This Birthday Cake is made with three layers of my classic Vanilla Cake frosted with My Favourite Chocolate Frosting which honestly does taste like chocolate mousse. It is way less sweet and butter-dense than buttercream, so you won’t feel ill after treating yourself to a large slice of this cake. Here’s a little more about both so you can decide if this is The Birthday Cake for you too.
1. about the vanilla sponge cake
I’ve used my beloved Vanilla Cake for this Birthday Cake because it has a soft, buttery crumb that is much plusher than typical yellow cakes. The real clincher is that it stays perfectly fresh for up to 4 days, making it ideal as a make-ahead cake for occasions like birthdays, when you’ve got plenty else to juggle. Present wrapping! Party food!
2. about my favourite chocolate frosting
This is a frosting I created chasing the perfect all-rounder, and I’ve been hiding it from you for a few years (sorry!). I describe it as a cross between buttercream and whipped ganache except it’s considerably less sweet and not as rich as either of these with less than one-third the sugar and 40% less fat than the equivalent volume of buttercream.