Changes, hints and thoughts for the future:

- this time I used my own "trick" for keeping a semi-soft filling inside the cake -- use a ring of the outer icing around the outside of the cake layer and spread the filling inside of it...worked like a charm!

- Note: do NOT allow your cake to cool in the pans...I did this and ended up with a way too moist cake. It tasted fine (great, actually) but it was a bit difficult to work with in putting it together...live and learn, right?

 

 

 

 

Italian Meringue Buttercream

Ingredients:
1/2 cup water
2 1/4 cups sugar
12 egg whites (approximately 1 1/2 cups)
1 1/2 pounds unsalted butter at room temperature, cut into 1" pieces
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Paste Food colouring (if desired)

Velvet Underground Chocolate Cake (or any layer cake)
Coffee Mousse for filling

Yield: 8 cups

Instructions:
1. In a saucepan, bring the sugar and water to a boil. Use a clean pastry brush and cold water to wash down any sugar crystals that form on the sides of the pan as the water heats. When it comes to a boil set a timer for seven minutes, and let boil.
2. After four or five minutes, in the bowl of an electric mixer, begin to whip egg whites at high speed. Whip until stiff (they should be done when the timer goes off).
3. With the mixer on high speed, slowly beat the sugar syrup into the egg whites, pouring the syrup to the side of the bowl to avoid the whip.
4. Continue to beat until the bowl is cool to the touch, about 10 minutes.
5. Slowly add the butter pieces. When the buttercream begins to jump out of the bowl (trust me, you'll notice), reduce the speed to low and mix the vanilla in at low speed.
5. Beat until light and fluffy. At some points the mixture might look curdled. Just keep beating; it will become smooth again.
6. If desired, reserve one third of icing and leave white. Colour the rest of the icing with blue or pink or whatever colour you want the base colour of the cake to be.

Coffee Mousse

Makes 4 1/2 cups

2 cups heavy (whipping) cream
6 tablespoons confectioner's sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons espresso powder dissolved in 2 tablespoons hot water

In the bowl of an electric mixer at high speed, whip the cream, confectioner's sugar and vanilla until stiff. Gently fold the coffee/water mixture into the whipped cream.

Assemble cake with coffee mousse filling and buttercream icing. Use uncoloured icing with a small round icing tip to make swirls on top and sides of cake (fun!).

Pictures of finished cake.