This delicious and moist Vanilla Birthday Cake is topped with a creamy rich Mascarpone and cream frosting. A soft easy to make Homemade Vanilla Cake recipe.
Pre-heat oven to 350F(180C), lightly grease and flour two 8 inch (20 cm) cake pans.
FOR THE CAKE
In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
In a medium bowl at medium speed or with a stand mixer using the paddle attachment beat the butter and sugar until fluffy, add the eggs and beat to combine well. Gradually add the dry ingredients, beating on low until combined.
Add the milk and vanilla and continue beating until combined. Divide the batter into the prepared pans.
Divide batter into the prepared pans. Bake for approximately 30-35 minutes. Test for doneness with a toothpick, when it comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached its done.
Remove cake from the freezer and let sit 30 minutes.
Let cool approximately 15 minutes in the pan then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Once the cakes are completely cooled you could wrap them in plastic wrap and freeze overnight, this makes them easier to frost. This is what I did.
Remove cakes from the freezer and let sit 30 minutes before frosting.
FOR THE FROSTING
Meanwhile make the frosting, whip the cream until soft peaks appear, then add the Mascarpone and sugar, beat until thick, approximately 1 or 2 minutes.
PUTTING IT TOGETHER
Using an offset spatula and a cake turntable if you have them. With a sharp knife remove the tops of the cakes to form flat layers. Place one layer on your serving plate and top with 1/4 of the frosting, place the other layer on top and spread with the remaining frosting to cover the cake. Top with sprinkles and chocolate cut outs or decorate as desired. If not serving immediately refrigerate, remove from the fridge 30 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
CHOCOLATE CUT OUTS
Melt chocolate over a pot of boiling water (make sure water does not touch bowl), pour chocolate into cookie molds, filling 3/4 full, refrigerate no more than 15-20 minutes, remove from fridge and gently push chocolate out of the molds with the tip of a wooden spoon, then gently push in the pointed end of lollipop stick (I used kabob sticks because they had pointed ends and then I coloured the stick with edible markers). Refrigerate until needed.
Notes
To make pastry/cake flour - for every cup of all purpose flour, remove two tablespoons and replace with two tablespoons of corn starch. Be sure to sift the flour and cornstarch together a couple of times, this way it is sure to be properly combined and lump free. Cake flour in cakes will give you a very tender texture and fine crumb, it will also help the cake to rise.The cake can be made in advance, you can freeze the completely cooled unfrosted cake layers. Wrap them well in plastic wrap or foil and place in a freezer bag. They will keep for up to 3 weeks in the freezer. Let thaw 30 minutes before frosting.If you prefer you can use a basic vanilla buttercream frosting, one of my favorites, or a swiss meringue buttercream.If you don’t with to use the chocolates, you could always decorate with sprinkles, or chocolate shavings or even berries such as raspberries or blueberries.Yes you can make cupcakes with the recipe, this vanilla birthday cake recipe should make 18-24 standard size cupcakes. Of course the baking time will be less, approximately 15-20 minutes.As long as the cake is unfrosted it should be kept at room temperature. Keep it in a cake container or well wrapped. It will keep for up to 2-3 days. If you store it in the fridge, wrap tightly to keep it from drying out. It will keep for up to 5-6 days in the fridge.If the cake is frosted then I usually keep it in the fridge, and I bring it to room temperature before serving.The unfrosted cooled cake should be wrapped well in plastic then rewrapped in foil, place it in a freezer safe bag or container. It will keep up to 3 months in the freezer.If you wish to freeze the frosted cake, then place it on a cookie sheet and freeze until firm, then wrap it and place in a freezer safe bag or container. It will last up to 3 months in the freezer.To thaw remove the cake from the container, but leave wrapped. Let it thaw in the fridge. Then bring to room temperature to serve.