Happy May to you!
Before I chat about this springy cake, I want to say thank you so much for all of your enthusiasm and kind words about my Sweetapolita cookbook news. Between twitter, facebook and blog comments, I felt some serious baking-book-love and support! I’m so excited to share more of those details along the way. A book filled with all new, inspired cakes and confections–it’s kind of, sort of, totally and utterly my dream come true.
So, it’s been a busy few weeks around here (and quiet on the blog–sorry!). I’ve started working on the book, of course, and I also managed to sneak in a much-needed trip to San Francisco, where I was thrilled to connect with my friend, Shauna (and her gorgeous newborn baby boy), for an afternoon of sweets and girl-talk. After two and a half years of blogging, this was actually my first-ever virtual friend meet-up, but I knew it would be as though I’d known her forever. And it was. She’s just as funny, warm and all-around-awesome as I expected. (And she has amazing taste in bakeries.) We spent most of our time in a cozy window seat at the lovely new (and highly celebrated) b.patisserie, talking blogs, babies and books over the most incredible kouign amann, fancy vanilla cake, cremeux, and sugar brioche tart. (And yes, that is 4:2 dessert to girl ratio–we don’t mess around.) We topped off the visit with a trip to Miette, where I bought an array of the most delightful sweets for, you know, later.
After an amazing (and fattening) journey to SF, I returned home just in time to get working on the festivities and cake for our little cakelet Reese’s 6th birthday. Now, millions of people might say that a dozen 4-6 year old princesses in one tiny room armed with paintbrushes and fueled with cake might be pure, unthinkable craziness . . . and they’d be exactly right. But we made it. Nah, it wasn’t so scary and besides, what’s a little chaos, when your child has “the best birthday ever?”
So now that we’re back to “normal,” I was able to bake a sweet and simple cake that was completely inspired by the joy that is spring. It’s actually more of a summer cake, but where there is spring . . .
The cake is a super-moist vanilla buttermilk cake, filled with a light-as-air vanilla whipped cream filling and fresh strawberry & lavender compote, and frosted in a creamy, sweet lavender frosting (the same frosting I made for these). I did something I rarely do, which is top the cake with fresh flowers, but it felt right. (I’m no florist, so I kept it simple, but if you’ve got some florist wizardry in your blood, the possibilities are endless for topping a cake with fresh flowers.)
The cake itself is a very slight adaptation of this cake, but I made a few changes to the mixing technique after reading more about using cold butter in my preferred two-stage mixing method on baking911. Gradually adding cold (they have to be cold) pieces of butter to the dry ingredient mixture and letting it mix long enough to become a cornmeal consistency before adding the wet ingredients, seems to create an even lighter, fluffier cake. Loved this cake.
I went with a whipped cream filling because, aside from being one of my favourites, it’s ideal when your frosting on the cake is very sweet, as with this lavender frosting. And who doesn’t love whipped cream and strawberries? So essentially this cake is sort of a frosted version of lavender & strawberry shortcake. Infusing lavender into the strawberries and frosting gives it a strangely addictive and unexpected flavour, and if you’re not sure about lavender in your baked goods, just know I wouldn’t steer you wrong. If you know you don’t like the subtle taste that lavender brings to a dessert, you could simply omit it completely from both the compote and frosting. (Oh, but it’s so good.)
Either way, it’s sweet, fluffy, creamy, fruity burst of summer.
- 4 whole eggs room temperature
- 2 egg yolks room temperature
- 1-1/4 cups 297 ml buttermilk, shaken
- 2 teaspoons 10 ml pure vanilla extract OR Princess Bakery Emulsion
- 3 cups 345 g cake flour, sifted
- 2 cups 400 g sugar
- 1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon 17 g baking powder
- 1 teaspoon 5 g baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon 4 g salt
- 1 cup 227 g unsalted butter, cold and cut into small even pieces
- 2 cups fresh strawberries washed, hulled and sliced
- 1/2 cup 100 g sugar
- 1 tablespoon 15 ml lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dried culinary lavender
- Pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoons 30 ml cold water
- 2 teaspoons 10 ml unflavoured gelatin (such as Knox brand)
- 1-3/4 cups 420 ml whipping cream (35-37% fat), cold, divided
- 1/4 cup 30 g icing/confectioners' sugar
- 1 teaspoon 5 ml pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup 59 ml whole milk
- 1 teaspoon dried culinary lavender
- 3 sticks + 2 tablespoons 375 g unsalted butter, softened and cut into cubes
- 4 cups 500 g icing/confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 1 teaspoon 5 ml pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- Few drops purple gel colour
- Medium or Large Pastry Bag fitted with plain round tip a resealable Ziploc bag will do in a pinch
- Small Offset Spatula
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Preheat the oven to 350° F. Butter the bottoms and sides of three 8-inch round cake pans, line bottoms with parchment round, butter the rounds and dust with flour.
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In a large measuring cup with a spout, lightly whisk the eggs, yolks, 1/4 cup of the buttermilk and the vanilla. Set aside.
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In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. With the mixer set to low speed, add the cold butter one piece at a time, about 10 seconds apart. Continue mixing on low speed until all of the butter has been blended and there are no clumps. Mixture should have a fine crumbly, cornmeal-like texture.
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Add the remaining 1 cup buttermilk to these dry ingredients, and mix on medium speed for 4 minutes. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure all of the ingredients are well incorporated. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the egg mixture; once the mixture has been added, increase speed to medium and beat for 1 minute, but no more. Gently fold batter once or twice (but no more) to ensure the egg mixture has all been incorporated.
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Divide batter evenly among the 3 prepared pans (use a kitchen scale to ensure 3 even layers). Place two of the cake pans on a baking sheet and bake until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few crumbs but no batter, about 28 minutes. Repeat with the final layer. Let the layers cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then loosen sides with thin metal spatula or knife, and carefully turn out onto wire racks, peel of the paper liners, and let cool completely.
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In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine 1 cup of the strawberries, sugar, lemon juice, lavender and salt until the berries start to break down, stirring often, about 10 minutes.
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Lower the heat and simmer until compote coats a spoon, about 15-20 minutes.
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Remove from heat and let cool down slightly. Using an immersion blender (carefully) and pulse a few times, or use a handheld masher. Stir in remaining fresh strawberries. Keep covered and chilled for up to 3 days. (Be sure it has completely chilled before using to fill cake.)
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In a small stainless steel bowl, place the cold water and sprinkle with the gelatin. Let sit for at least 10 minutes. In a small saucepan, bring 1/3 cup of the cream just to a simmer, then stir into the gelatin mixture until the gelatin has dissolved. Refrigerate, stirring frequently, until cool but not set, about 8 minutes. (Be careful to keep your eye on it, or you'll end up with Panna Cotta!)
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In a chilled stainless steel mixer bowl with a chilled whisk attachment, beat the remaining whipping cream, icing/confectioners' sugar, vanillla and salt until it thickens just slightly and soft peaks begin to form, about 1 minute. Very gradually add the gelatin mixture and continue beating until medium-firm peaks form (should be thick enough to spread). Keep covered and chilled until ready to use.
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Add the lavender blossoms to 1/4 cup (59 ml) whole milk, cover, and refrigerate overnight (or at least several hours). Strain into clean bowl/glass.
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In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip butter for 8 minutes on medium speed (I use “4″ on my KitchenAid). Butter will become very pale & creamy.
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Add sifted icing sugar, vanilla, salt and lavender milk, and mix on low speed for 1 minute, then on medium for 6 minutes. Frosting will be very light, creamy and fluffy. Tint with a few drops of purple gel colour.
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Trim any dark edges or crust from cake layers with a very sharp serrated knife. Place your first cake layer, face-up, onto a cake stand, plate or 8-inch round foil cake board. Fill your pastry bag with about 1-1/2 cups of the Whipped Vanilla Frosting and pipe a dam around the perimeter of the cake layer (this will keep our compote and Vanilla Whipped Cream Filling in place). Spread about 1 cup of the cream filling on top of the cake layer and spoon a few tablespoons of the compote and berries inside of the dam. Gently spread the filling using a small offset spatula.
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Repeat until you come to your final cake layer, which you will place face-down. If you find the cake too soft and unstable, put in refrigerator for a few moments to firm it up, then resume. If you see any spots where the compote is peeking through or starting to ooze out (ahh!), use your piping bag to squeeze more frosting over it, between the layers. Use your clean offset spatula to carefully smooth the frosting so it's flat against the cake.
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Cover the entire cake gently with plastic wrap (I like Press n' Seal), and then, once covered, use your hands to carefully ensure the cake is lined up straight and flattening any lumps or bumps of frosting. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
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Once cake is stable and chilled, apply an even layer of lavender frosting to the entire cake, to seal in crumbs. Chill again until frosting is firm, about 30 minutes.
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Place cake plate/board with cake onto a turntable, if possible. Be sure your remaining frosting is smooth and fluffy, working it with a rubber spatula for a few moments. You can even warm in microwave for a few seconds to soften it up. Apply a final layer of frosting to the cake. Top with fresh non-toxic flowers, strawberries, or decoration of your choice.
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Keep cake refrigerated for up to 2 days, but serve at room temperature. Remove flowers before eating.
[buttermilk cake recipe adapted from the book Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes]
Sweetapolita’s Notes:
- I used this Princess Bakery Flavor
for the buttermilk cake, which is an amazing emulsion that gives the cake a vanilla-almond sort of flavour and doesn’t lose taste when baked. You can simply use vanilla if you can’t find this.
- You can buy Culinary French Lavender
online or or in gourmet food shops.
- I use this MAC Knife
for all of my cake layering and trimming. It’s super sharp and makes clean cake layers, ideal for building not-so-crumby layer cakes.
- To achieve the lavender shade on this cake, I used 3:1 ratio Electric Purple and Violet
. It will darken once it’s on the cake, so be careful to not over-tint.
- For added richness, you can fold in 1/3 cup mascarpone cheese to the vanilla whipped cream filling (as the very last step).
- You can bake the cake layers the day before needed, keeping them wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and at room temperature.
- You can make the compote the day before needed, and keep it covered and refrigerated.
- You’ll want to keep this cake in the fridge between servings for up to 2 days, but it’s best served at room temperature and day 1.
I think I may just have to make this cake for myself for Mother’s Day!
I agree Erica.
this sounds truly lovely… buttermilk, lavender, whipped cream and strawberry… and it turned out beautifully!
your trip to SF sounded super fun … 4:2 ratio, you go, rosie!
LOVE that photo of that slice coming out… did you sent the timer on your camera?? or did a cakelet help? ^__^
Thanks, Lyndsay! That photo was actually done with the help of my 6-year-old cakelet, Reese. :) Glad you like it! xo
You forgot to say to add the powdered sugar in your directions for the frosting!
Thanks, Sarah–I’ve fixed that up.
Looks great, I think you skipped the sugar in the description of the lavender frosting preparation
also… i just went to shauna’s site… that is so cool that you guys met for the first time after being online friends… :)
Oh I love baking with lavender. Another beauty of a cake!
Thanks so much, Renee!
Wow Rosie yet another masterpiece I love this one!
Definitely making this cake! the compote instructions call for water, but water is not on the ingredient list…
Every recipe I follow of yours is a hit! Thank you
This is gorgeous!
Oh YES !!!
You have done it again. Another yummy production.
Please can you advise how you get your edges so neat, sharpe and smooth.
I can’t seem to get mine right.
Thanks in advance <3 x
That is one of the most beautiful cakes ever. It is simple but gorgeous!!
What an interesting flavor combination. This cake is beautiful!
Oh! this is so beautiful! :)
xxx
gemma@ andgeesaid.blogspot.com.au
Oh my…this is gorgeous! This just popped onto my already-mile-long what to bake for Mother’s Day list! Oh no, I’m too tempted :) xo
Oh that is beautiful! <3 Just the thing to cheer me up now that it's coming into winter down in my part of the world. I haven't been a huge fan of lavender, but for one of your recipes I could be persuaded. After all, as you say, you wouldn't steer us wrong :) I can imagine (or, er, taste in my head) that it wouldn't taste soapy at all when combined with strawberries. Now to get my hands on some strawberries in autumn…
<3
This is so gorgeous! I love the strawberries and flowers on top and all the colors! I’ve never had anything lavender flavored, but this really makes me want to try it. :)
Good gracious this is beautiful. I am making a wedding cake in a couple weeks that features different flavor combinations of strawberry, I’m almost tempted to test this out and see if it will work for a tier!
Utterly gorgeous! Those colors are incredible together and I could probably eat that filling by the spoonful! Now I’m getting the itch to do some cake-baking…
You truly are an artist. Every cake you make is simply beautiful! i keep remembering that story you told about the fortune tell who told you you’d make art with a spinning wheel, like a potter, she was so right. Is the book going to be available in the UK immediately or will i have to order form the US? Keep posting! xx Cecily
Oh goodness, this looks DELICIOUS. I’ll have to settle with ogling your pictures tho, because I have learned the hard way that making layer cakes is something I canNOT do. Boo.
I LOVE everything about this cake! The ingredients sound as inviting as the colours/photos look. Congrats again on the book deal – look forward to adding it to my stash!
As always, your cake looks beautiful. I love the lavender color of the cake, and the strawberry filling looks so fresh.
Yum!! This buttermilk cake is one of my favorites of yours and I make it all the time. Can’t wait to try the new modification! Thanks!
A buttermilk cake this pretty makes one beautiful post.
Just made this cake and what an awesome cake! Buttermilk cake is so yummy with the whip cream filling. Cake a little dry alone…but my butter might have been a bit more room temp than cold. I love the lavender infused icing…I think this cake was the best iced cake I have every done! The icing is sturdy but silky. Great job Rosie!
Congrats on the book deal, so exciting!! And this cake, another inspired confection!
—-GORGEOUS color.
I’ve never seen a more stunning color.
I LOoove!!!
This is soooo gorgeous! LOVE this cake!
1. I can’t think of anyone more deserving of a book deal – I can’t wait to see what you come up with and be the first in line to buy my copy!
2. This cake is gorgeous! I love that you used lavender with the strawberries!
For serious! Cheers!
Thanks so much, Meagan — so sweet!
Gorgeous cake! I love the color!
Beautiful cake! You do such nice work. I love looking at your pictures!
Oh Rosie, you’ve done it again with another stunner of a cake! So simple yet so stunning and such a lovely combination of flavours.
So you use 1.5 cups of frosting for each layer of cake?
And you interchange icing sugar and confectioner’s sugar which is confusing if a person doesn’t know they’re the same thing.
Hello Rosie,
Thank you for posting another magnificent cake! I just baked my layers and divided the full batter between four 6-inch pans. My cakes rose to the top and sunk in the middle and pulled away slightly from the sides and I’m not sure why. I did use unbleached cake flour. I’m wondering if anyone else had this problem. Would you know the cause?
The color of the buttercream is wonderful! We love lavender!
Congratulations on the cake!
Greetings ‘spicy’
I have found you through pinterest and WOW you are amazing. We owned a bakery for 20 odd years and your recipes are great especially your icing (which taste like mock cream to me) and I am so glad I have found you. You are a very impressive baker.
Thanks for the inspirations and for my jaw dropping awe at your pictures.
Theresa x
Hi! I don’t comment often but I love your blog. I made this cake from when you originally posted it, and it was really good. I loved the texture and the recipe worked perfectly, but I would increase the vanilla or use a vanilla bean to intensify that flavor (it’s great as is, I just like strong flavor!). Anyway, I was comparing this version to the old, and I noticed that you added baking soda. I am so curious as to why, and if there is any noticeable difference. I am a recipe developer by profession (specializing in healthy, savory recipes, NOT desserts!), so this stuff really interests me. Thanks.
Looks and sounds wonderful. I wonder if there is a lavender extract available that can be used instead. I might do some investigating. Great photos too!
Hi Rosie!
Before anything, I’d like to say that I’ve made this cake- and in cupcake form, and it’s just lovely. The first time I made the cake I frosted it with whipped cream (which let me just say was a disaster because I didn’t know how to properly stiffen whipped cream- I now use powdered sugar- NOT granulated sugar and Dr. Oetker’s Whip It- a stabilizer). I’m planning on making this cake and frosting it with whipped cream using the method previously mentioned, but then I remembered your vanilla whipped cream filling, and I was wondering if it ends up being stiff enough so that you can frost an entire cake with it? What do you think? I just love love love whipped cream frosting because it’s so light and not sweet! Thanks!!
Hi there!
at first thank you for the inspiration and must say that your blog and recipes are total addiction.discovered you few months ago and made couple of cakes,but my all time-favourite is Vanilla Blackberry-Mascarpone Cake for Two…made this Buttermilk Strawberry Lavander Cake two days ago for my birthday but the buttermilk cake/biscuit turns out too be to heavy,so I probably did something wrong…:(,but everything else is a heavenly!!
Thank you,and greetings from Croatia/Europe!!!
lookin forward to your cookbook…
Hi! I really want to make this cake but I don’t have three cake tins that are the same size and I would prefer to just make one cake and cut it in two. I was wondering how long and at what temperature I would have to cook this cake for if I put all of the batter in one tin? Thanks!
This looks and sounds amazing…yum! Love the flowers and strawberries on top!
This cake looks beautiful and sounds amazing!
I made this cake for Mother’s Day and it was absolutely wonderful. To help some others out – I used lavender extract instead of culinary lavender. I only needed 1 drop in the strawberry compote and 2 drops in the frosting. Make sure you only use a little and go by taste!
I have been doing some scratch cake baking and getting better with each one. However, I would like to try the vanilla butter cake recipe as well as the lavender-strawberry one. I don’t really like buttermilk, except in biscuits and pancakes. Was wondering how this cake would turn out without the buttermilk?
How did I miss this stunner??? Such gorgeousness. So glad you had a wonderful time and Happy Belated Birthday to your angel!
Rosie:
I made this cake for my best friend’s baby shower the past weekend and every one loved it. They kept telling me how delicious it was, I just have to say THANK YOU! for sharing this wonderful recipes with us.
LOVE the combination of flavors in this cake! So exotic!
Hi Rosie, could you (or anyone who has made this cake) please tell me roughly how tall the finished product is? Thank you!
What can I say? This is beyond stunning!
made this for my moms birthday except in a gluten-free version! really yummy!
It was just under 6 inches tall.
This cake looks so yummy!
Do you think this cake is stable enough to hold another smaller cake on the top?
I love this cake! I am a very novice baker, but made this for a summer picnic and it was a total hit!
What I did differently: I only had 2 9″ round pans, so used those. I was afraid to cut them in half (although in retrospect i should have tried !) so i only had two layers, which meant loads of strawberry filling and whipped cream filling left over. But the cake was glorious! I also could not find culinary lavender nor lavender flavoring–it would have been amazing with lavender, but it was incredible without!
Thank you for such clear directions! and for helping me look brilliant! :)
I love love your blog and I come here for all your baked goods recipe. When is your cook book coming out?
Thanks, Dottie! It’s coming along, but I’m in the writing/recipe testing phase at this point, so it will be a little while. I will most definitely keep updating on the blog as to the release date. Thanks so much! xo
Hi Sweetapolita,
I baked this cake last night, and the buttermilk cake batter, all 3, collapsed in the oven. Why did this happen? I’m trying to figure it out. The bit where you say to pour in the egg mixture into the batter gradually, did this mean slowly at one stream or in small parts and let it blend in and then do it again until all egg mix is in the batter? i’m thinking something here probably went wrong. I’m not sure if the recipe you detailed above was accurate. Like are you sure it’s 4 whole eggs and 2 egg yolks? Is it 1 tsp (5ml) vanilla extract or is it 10 ml as you stated? There are things here that are bothering me and I had just spent the last 2 days working on the cake… looking horrible on the inside (sponge). Can someone help here please!
Hi Rachel,
It’s hard to say why your cakes collapsed without knowing exactly how you measured the ingredients, if your oven is perhaps running cold, etc. I do make this cake base frequently and it shouldn’t collapse. As for the egg mixture, either way wouldn’t cause your cake to collapse, but I meant slowly in a stream. (However, I’ve done it both ways.) The recipe is at it reads at 4 whole eggs and 2 egg whites and it is 2 teaspoons vanilla, which is 10 ml (you may have been looking at the frosting recipe where there was a typo for the 1 teaspoon at 10 ml). Common reasons for cakes collapsing are too much liquid, your oven not running at proper temperature (you can get an oven thermometer for accuracy), or opening the oven door before the first 20 minutes or so. Hopefully this information helps you along to discover what happened!
Hi,
Thanks for replying so quickly. Appreciate the responses and will get an oven thermometer. The surprising thing you said with the 4 eggs and 2 egg ‘whites’ – has struck a cord, because your recipe above states 2 egg ‘yolks’ with the 4 eggs and not what you just suggested. Could this have made the cake collapse? I know I never opened the oven door during the cooking process, i only added the 1 tsp of vanilla.. i must admit the batter did seem more liquidly than I’m use to… but I will try this recipe again, when I’ve gotten over the stress this cake made me go through :) I’ve never used buttermilk in cakes before.. so it’s frustrating for me. I’ll see how we go with the 2nd time round.
Hi Rachel,
No, what I was trying to say was the way the recipe reads is correct (but you had written that the recipe reads “4 eggs and 2 egg whites”). Talk about confusing! It is as the recipe reads — 4 eggs and 2 egg yolks.
I LOVE THE Strawberry & Lavender!!!! This cake looks and sounds incredible! Love the different textures. I had featured u in the post of Top 7 Sweet Cakes for Mother’s Day on AllFreshRecipes, Except ur more beautiful recipes!
Wow Wow Wow….Simply delicious. I mean Strawberry, lavender and Buttermilk. Great thinking.
Thanks for sharing this great idea.
Cheers!
I’m about to start baking this cake, and I’m a little concerned. The recipe itself calls for two egg yolks, but in your directions above in the comments, you specifically say it’s two egg whites. Can you clarify this for me? I am making this cake for my MIL’s 51st birthday, which is the last we’ll be seeing her for quite some time as we are preparing to move across the country. It has to be baked tonight, and there is no room for error. Needless to say, I’m anxious to have these details exactly right before I begin. Please help.
Hi Meggie,
The recipe is as it reads in the recipe itself. If there are ever changes in a recipe based on comments pointing out corrections, I will always fix it in the recipe itself (I don’t think a reader should have to read all of the comments to know how to bake the cake!). In the comment above, the reader wrote that the recipe stated 4 eggs and 2 egg whites, and I was explaining to her that the recipe is as written. (Unfortunately, it looked as though I was agreeing with the egg whites — my fault for not ensuring the quoted details were as written). Long story short, the recipe is correct: 4 eggs, 2 egg yolks. (That being said, 2 egg whites would still make a lovely cake!) Best of luck!
Oh my gosh, thank you. I was rather confused and panicked :D
Cake layers are almost done baking (last one in now) and the compote is bubbling away. It smells incredible! I’ll let the lavender sit overnight and make the cream and the frosting in the morning. Thank you so much for everything. This cake is perfect for the person it’s intended for, and I spent many frantic hours searching the Internet for just the right thing before I landed here.
Just wanted to say Rosie’s recipes are far and away the most accurate and well tested blog recipes out there. I have cooked my way through 75% of her recipes on this blog and am always beyond thrilled with the outcome. If you don’t own an oven thermometer probably shouldn’t be baking anything. (And I mean that in the sweetest way) I always tell my culinary students don’t email me your questions until you have purchased an oven thermometer. ;-) They are also always stunned by how “off” their oven is when they do purchase one. On a different note, I am on countdown for your stunning book. It’s a cake girls dream come true! Mine and yours. :-)
Thank you so much, Hilary! It’s true–my oven is the worst, and the temperature is usually way off. It took me awhile to figure that out, but what a difference. xo
Hi Rosie
I’ve made this cake before for mother’s day – huge hit… Thank you!
However, I just whipped the cream with a bit of orange zest instead.
This time I want to make it again for my baby cousin’s birthday, with your vanilla whipped cream.
Do you think I can use the whipped cream to frost the cake as well? I was going to tint it with a pastel blue colour, but not sure if the cream will stay stable. His birthday is on the 22nd.
Thank you!
Takes my breath away! Tremendous photos! Especially the photo of the sliced cake!
Hi Rosie,
I made your buttermilk cake last week and it was D E L I C I O U S. Thank you for the recipe!
Rosie, I made this cake today, (exactly how the ingredients were written out.) I sampled everything from the cake itself, the strawberry-lavender compote, and of course the whipped cream filling. It is all Soooooo good!! My goal is to make every one of your cakes, I can now cross this one off the list. Rock on Rosie!!! I will also be waiting….. (patiently) for your cookbook:D
Could you tell me how you got that color for the icing? I made this cake last night and it was delicious, but I was really bummed that I wasn’t able to get that color for the icing (mine was more of a purple…like blueberry yogurt color). Thank you for the great recipe!
We don’t have buttermilk in our country what is the substitute thx
If you can’t get your hands on some actual buttermilk, you can mix together 1 Tablespoon (15 mL) of white vinegar with 1 Cup (236.588 mL) of regular milk. After mixing, let it sit for five minutes and then just measure out the amount you need for your recipe. :)
I baked my very first 4 layer fondant cake last weekend and I am already addicted. I have always had a passion for baking but I do not have any professional culinary experience or any baking supplies. So now, while I try to somewhat build these things up, I find your blog and website so helpful for ideas and inspiration. I am SO excited to try this cake! Thanks for your lovely tips and inspired website. I look forward to hearing more on your blog/site and also to buying your cookbook!
me encanta tu blog, y agradezco que compartas tus recetas, veo que utilizas muchos colores, pero que son de wilton o cuales son,me puedes ayudar de que marca son. gracias
This recipe looks amazing and I will be making it for mother’s day (this sunday!!) I am from the UK and I can’t find cake flour so I don’t know if you give me a substitute for it? It would be so helpful!!
Beautiful,beautiful,colourful cake! Looking at it makes me feel so happy! xoxo :)
The next cake I make will be this. Thanks so very much for sharing! I love watching your decorating tutorials on vimeo- you should upload your videos to Youtube :)
Thanks for d recipe. Lovely cakes you make – absolutely beautiful and I must confess I use a lot of your recipes. I have a few questions pls:
1. Wld this cake hold under fondant?
2. Wld SMBC complement it well
3. Have you tried it as a tiered cake
Thank you
I love how reliable and amazing your recipes are… totally admire you. GOD BLESS you. I’mhoping you can explain to me what the difference is between using room temperature butter and beating it with the sugar then eggs one at a time till it’s fluffy vs doing it the method in the current recipe
this is the best cake! I’ve made it twice now and if you follow the directions to a T, it works perfectly!
wow this cake is so beautiful.. its almost a work of art, i wouldnt be able to bring myself to eat it!
Congratulations on the book deal!
The MINUTE that puppy is available for pre-order, please let us know!
This cake looks scrumptious.. just in time for my littlest kidlet’s birthday!
xx Danielle
Thanks so much, Danielle! The book has just become available for pre-order, actually! It’s not released until April 7th, so the cover isn’t shown yet, but you can still pre-order! Not sure where you’re located, but in the US it’s amazon.com, UK it’s amazon.uk, and in Canada it’s chapters.indigo.ca. Thanks for your enthusiasm! xo
I tried the recipe but my cake actually get burn and after cutting the burn area the cake become very slim.
Dear Rosie,
I made this cake for a birthday party yesterday and I would like to say a big thank you! It was a total success and it is a definite keeper! I used rosewater instead of lavender so if someone cannot source lavender this is a very good alternative.
Keep inspiring us!
From London with love,
Hey Honey
Hey ladies…i am making myself a birthday cake for my birthday party and decided to go with that one…. i have a little problem. I can not find fresh strawberries anywhere now so i was wondering if that could go good with blueberries also? I can buy only frozen strawberries….what do you think? should I use fresh blueberries or frozen strawberries? Thank you so much for replying :)
Hi :) This looks amazing and I plan to bake it for my friend’s birthday next month. I was just curious in Step 14 if it should read to fill the piping bag with “Whipped lavender frosting” instead of ” whipped vanilla frosting” ? I saw vanilla and went back to find the recipe for that component but couldn’t see it so wanted to check. Thanks for your help xo
3 questions:
Is the frosting stable enough to pipe rosettes onto the entire cake? I don’t want it drooping down the sides!
Does the recipe make enough frosting for piping rosettes, or should I double the frosting to have enough for that?
If I don’t have gelatin for the whipped cream, will it be stable enough if I also add in the mascarpone?
Thank you! This looks amazing!!!
Strawberry & Lavender, combination is so good. Its looks very adorable. I like the way you represent your recipe here. Thanks for sharing
This looks so amazing! Love the flavor combinations and it’s so beautiful!
Made it today! Took ALL. DAY. LONG. But, it was beautiful and delish. Thanks for the recipe!
I was thinking to make a vanilla cake with fresh strawberries and whipped cream inside, with a buttercream crumb coat and fondant icing. Every time I think I found a good recipe I always end up in your website and find the perfect one! Just love your work! :)
Now I am confused, I was going to use fresh strawberries, but this strawberry compote sounds great. Do you think the compote is a good idea for a filling if my icing will be fondant? :) I am planning to assemble the cake the same day.
Thanks!
I have a 12 inch pan and a 8 inch pan. Do I double this recipe???