Changes, hints, tips and thoughts :

- you could use just about anything for a filling, depending on what taste you wanted; pudding, chocolate, plain whipped cream...I could go on...

- I still can't seem to find a happy medium, natural green colour. It always goes just a bit neon on me for some reason. This green was "leaf green" but looks more like marvin the martian green to me.

 

 

Freckled Mocha Cake

* Adapted from The Whimsical Bakehouse (and Deb!)

More pics of this cake

Ingredients:
3/4 cup unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 extra-large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon + 1/4 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1/4 cup hot water
3/4 cup milk

4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chunks
Coffee Whipped Cream Filling
Ganache Icing

Instructions:
1. Grease and flour two 8x3" round pans and preheat oven to 350 F. Have all ingredients at room temperature.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. In a separate bowl dissolve the espresso powder in the hot water and add the milk to it.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar. At medium speed add egg yolks and vanilla and beat well.
4. Add buttermilk all at once and then add vanilla; beat until well blended.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the butter and egg mixture alternately with the coffee-flavoured milk, beating at medium-low speed untiil batter is smooth.
6. Fold chocolate chunks in by hand.
5. Pour into cake pans. Bake in middle of oven until a tester comes out clean, 20 - 30 minutes. Cool pans on a rack for 20 minutes, then invert cakes onto racks, and cool completely.

Steps to properly assemble a cake.

Instructions to decorate cake with roses.