Lemon and Chocolate Layered Rose Cake

Ever since I saw this rose cake on i am baker a few weeks ago, I have been dying to bake one myself.  I knew it was THE cake for my first attempt at cake making.  I had pictured it in my head - two layers of rich chocolate cake with a creamy vanilla buttercream filling, covered in stunning white roses......or maybe light pink roses?.....Or I could also make dark pink roses... Okay fine, so I had three versions of this cake in my head.  But, one thing was certain - I was ready to bake this cake.

There was just one problem...

I didn't really have a good reason to make a towering, 2-layer-high cake filled with a buttercream frosting layer, and covered in even more buttercream frosting roses.  I couldn't justify having to gorge myself on all that cakey goodness afterwards just because I simply wanted to bake this cake. Even though I outfitted my kitchen, in anticipation of my big cake day, with the basic cake making tools, like an offset spatula, a pretty cake stand, and the ultimate cake caddy fitted with a turntable, it didn't mean that I was obligated to put them to immediate use. So, I was stuck. Stuck without a good reason, but I really wanted needed one to bake that cake......STAT. So, I kinda, sorta made one up.

We all know that Thanksgiving is just around the corner, right?  But, this cake isn't a "Thanksgiving" sort of cake.  With all the lovely roses, it's more of a celebration cake.  One that you see at a wedding, or an anniversary.....or even a birthday.......BINGO!  It occurred to me that two of my very good friends celebrate their birthdays very close to Thanksgiving.  YESSSS! The only thing is that neither of them live close by.  In fact, I'd have to get on a plane in order to see either of them.  RATS!

Then, I had a brilliant idea.

I could make the rose cake, take some pretty photos of it, then dedicate a post to them in honor of their birthdays.  See? Brilliant!  So, to JulieAnn and Annie - this post is dedicated to the both of you in celebration of your birthdays.  Thank you for saving me from having a meltdown from not baking this cake.

  

In honor of the two birthday girls, I decided to make this cake with two different layers, each of their favorite flavors.  Lemon for JulieAnn and chocolate for Annie.  In between the layers is a white buttercream frosting.  That's for me.  I just felt like white buttercream frosting...hehe! Then, I made another buttercream frosting, tinted yellow, to create the roses.  Yellow roses. You know, for friendship.  So, that's the cake.  The cake that I was just dying to make.  Except this one has four different parts to it.  Yes, it's vastly different from the ones I had originally pictured in my head, but it was well worth it.  I must tell you that it was even more fun and exciting to make than I imagined, knowing it was in honor of their birthdays.  I do have to warn you, though.  This cake, while simply beautiful, is also very, very sweet (due to the 2 lbs of powdered sugar in the frosting).  But then, that is perfectly befitting of the two women whom we are celebrating.  Have a wonderful and very happy birthday, ladies!!

Lemon and Chocolate Layered Rose Cake

Chocolate Cake:
Makes two 9-inch round cakes

2 cups granulated sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water

1. Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.  Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans, line bottom with parchment paper, if desired.

2. In bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Add the eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla.  Mix for 3 minutes on medium speed.  Remove the bowl from the stand mixer.  Stir in the boiling water by hand.  Pour evenly into the two prepared cake pans.

3. Bake for 30 - 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick, inserted in the middle of the cake, comes out clean.  Remove the pans from the oven.  Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before removing the cakes from the pans.

Lemon Cake:

from Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice

Makes two 9-inch round cakes

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

3 large eggs

zest of 2 lemons

2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice

1 cup buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.  Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans, line bottom with parchment paper, if desired.

2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

3. In a bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the sugar and butter until fluffy, about 5 minutes.  Beat in eggs, one at a time.  Add in lemon zest and juice.  Add in the flour and buttermilk in three additions, alternating between the two, and beginning and ending with flour.  Pour the batter evenly into the two prepared cake pans.

4. Bake for 30 - 32 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick, inserted in the middle of the cake, comes out clean.  Remove the pans from the oven.  Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before removing the cakes from the pans.

Classic Vanilla Buttercream Frosting:

Makes 1 cup

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 - 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons milk

1. In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter for 3 minutes on medium speed.  Turn off the mixer.  Add 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar and turn on the mixer to the lowest speed (so the sugar doesn't fly everywhere) until the sugar has been incorporated with the butter.  Increase the speed to medium.  Add vanilla extract, salt, and 2 tablespoons of milk.  Beat for 3 minutes. If your frosting needs to be thinned out, add remaining milk, 1 tablespoon at a time.  If your frosting needs a more stiff consistency, add remaining sugar.

Yellow Crusting Buttercream Frosting:

1 cup plus 2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened

8 cups of powdered sugar (I used 6 1/2 cups)

3 teaspoons vanilla extract

5 tsp milk

yellow gel coloring

1. In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter for 3 minutes on medium  speed.  Turn off the mixer.  Add the powdered sugar in increments until incorporated.  Add the vanilla extract and milk.  Add yellow gel coloring to obtain your desired color.  Beat until very fluffy. Adjust the consistency of the frosting with more milk or sugar. 

Finishing the cake:

1. Trim the cakes so they are level on top.  Place the chocolate cake on the stand, with the trimmed side up.  This will be the bottom layer of the cake.  Evenly spread a 1/4 inch layer of the white vanilla frosting across the top. Place the lemon cake on top of the filling, with the trimmed side down.  Add a crumb layer to the top and side of the cake, using the vanilla frosting.

2. Fill a piping bag, fitted with a 1M tip, with the yellow buttercream frosting.  Starting at a 1/2 inch from the bottom of the cake, pipe a yellow rose, moving your wrist in a coil motion.  Repeat, going around the bottom of the cake.  Continue piping a second row of roses above the bottom row.  For the top of the cake, pipe roses around the outer circumference first, then work toward the middle of the cake.