Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake

This vanilla cake recipe is the same as the vanilla cupcakes that I just posted. I've never found a vanilla cake recipe that I liked enough to make it again. I'm hoping this cake comes out as good as the cupcakes because they were not dry at all and were so good! I'm not making this full recipe today though - I'm just making the vanilla cake, but I wanted to post the full recipe because it sounds delicious! I love berries and mascarpone so this is definitely my kind of cake!

This vanilla cake recipe is for 3 8" round cake layers. You could also make it into 2 9" round layers or a 9x13" cake instead, which is what I made today. You just have to adjust the baking time.

The whipped mascarpone frosting sounds delicious, but unfortunately I don't have any mascarpone and it's snowing pretty heavily so I can't get to a store today. I'll be pairing my vanilla cake with this whipped frosting that I've made before and already have the ingredients for. It has cream cheese instead of mascarpone, but the general idea is the same. It's a light frosting that is so good paired with fresh fruit. Even though I'm making this in the winter, this recipe sounds perfect for spring or summer!

This is one of the easiest cakes to make. It doesn't have butter in it so you can make it last minute without waiting for butter to soften. The batter comes together so easily. I used my hand mixer for it, but you could even just use a whisk and spatula.

The bake time for my 9x13" cake was about 40-42 minutes. My cake had a big crack in it - I'm not sure why, but it will be covered with frosting anyway so it doesn't matter.

Update - I brought this to a big family celebration and everyone seemed to enjoy it, so I think I've finally found a vanilla cake recipe that I will keep making!

Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake

Recipe from “Life, Love and Sugar” Website

 

This Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake has layers of fluffy vanilla cake, fresh berry filling and mascarpone whipped cream frosting! It’s light, fruity and perfect for spring!

 

VANILLA CAKE:

2½ cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

½ cup vegetable oil

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1 cup water

 

BERRY FILLING:

1½ cups mixed berries (I used strawberries, blueberries and raspberries)

3 Tablespoons water

¾ cup sugar

3 Tablespoons cornstarch

 

WHIPPED MASCARPONE FROSTING:

2½ cups heavy whipping cream, cold

1½ cups powdered sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

16 ounces mascarpone cheese, chilled

 

 

CAKE LAYERS

Preheat oven to 350°F and prepare three 8 inch cake pans with non-stick baking spray and parchment paper in the bottom. These cakes can have a tendency to stick to the pans a bit, so I strongly recommend the parchment paper in the bottom.

Add the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to a large mixer bowl and combine. Set aside.

Add the milk, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and eggs to a medium sized bowl and combine.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and beat until well combined.

Slowly add the water to the batter and mix on low speed until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to make sure everything is well combined.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans and bake for 24-28 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.

Remove the cakes from oven and allow to cool for 2-3 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to finish cooling. These cakes can have a tendency to stick to the pans a bit so jiggle them a bit to loosen from the sides of the pan before turning the cakes out to cool.

 

BERRY FILLING

To make the berry filling, add the berries and water to a food processor and puree until smooth. You should end up with about 2/3 cup puree.

Combine the sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Stir in the berry puree.

Cook over medium heat, stirring consistently until mixture thickens and comes to a boil, about 8-10 minutes.

Allow to boil for 1 minute, then remove from heat. Refrigerate and allow to cool completely.

 

FROSTING

Add the heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract to a large mixer bowl and whip on high speed until soft peaks form.

Add the mascarpone cheese to the whipped cream and whip until stiff peaks form. It will happen fairly quickly.

 

ASSEMBLY

To assemble the cake, use a large serrated knife to remove the domes from the top of the cakes.

Place the first layer of cake on a serving plate or a cardboard cake round. Pipe a dam of frosting around the outside of the cake. I use Ateco tip 808 for the dam so that it’s tall.

Spread half of the berry filling evenly on top of the cake layer, inside the dam. It should fill the dam about half way full.

Add some additional mascarpone frosting to the top of the berry filling and spread into an even layer to fill in the remaining dam space.

Add the second layer of cake and repeat the filling layer with the remaining berry filling and additional mascarpone frosting.

Add the final layer of cake on top, then smooth out the frosting around the sides of the cake.

Frost the outside of the cake, then use an icing decorator (I use an Ateco Icing Smoother) to add a striped pattern to the sides.

Finish off the cake with some swirls of frosting and fresh berries.

Refrigerate cake until ready to serve. Cake is best for 2-3 days.

 

Yield: 12-14 Slices

Combine wet & dry ingredients separately

Mix together

Add water, mix again

Pour in greased & floured pan

Bake

Frost & enjoy!

Moist Vanilla Cupcakes

My niece Emma has become quite the baker and made these delicious vanilla cupcakes a few times. I finally tried them out myself for my twin sons' 6th birthday earlier this week. I have always made them a birthday cake in the past, but it was just going to be our family of 4 eating it on their birthday, so I did not want a big cake. I made half of this cupcake recipe (12 cupcakes) and it was perfect for just us. We enjoyed them over 3 days and they tasted great each day!

The buttercream frosting was just OK - it's been a while since I've made buttercream and I was rushing to get it made before my boys returned from sledding with my husband. Next time I will try a different frosting.

These were so good that today I'm making the same recipe as a 9x13" cake for a larger celebration with more family tomorrow. I'll post that recipe separately since it has a different frosting, which I think would taste a lot better than the buttercream.

Moist Vanilla Cupcakes

Recipe from “Life, Love and Sugar” Website

 

These Moist Vanilla Cupcakes are super easy to make and so moist – for days! They are my new favorite vanilla cupcake!

 

VANILLA CUPCAKES:

2½ cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

½ cup vegetable oil

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1 cup water*

 

VANILLA FROSTING:

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

4 cups powdered sugar

1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

2–3 Tablespoons water or milk

Pinch of salt

 

Preheat oven to 350° and prepare two cupcake pans with liners.

Add the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to a large mixer bowl and combine. Set aside.

Add the milk, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and eggs to a medium sized bowl and combine.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and beat until well combined.

Slowly add the water to the batter and mix on low speed until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to make sure everything is well combined. Please note that the batter will be very thin.

Fill the cupcake liners about three quarters full and bake for 15-17 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.

Remove the cupcakes from oven and allow to cool for 2 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to finish cooling.

To make the frosting, beat the softened butter in a large mixer bowl until smooth.

Add 2 cups of powdered sugar and mix until smooth.

Add the vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon of water or milk and mix until smooth.

Add remaining powdered sugar and mix until smooth.

Add remaining water or milk, as needed, and salt and mix until smooth.

Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes. I used Ateco tip 844.

 

Yield: 24-26 Cupcakes

 

 

NOTES:

*Some people report having issues with these cupcakes. If that happens to you, you could try leaving out the water entirely.

Hershey's 5-Minute Deep, Dark Chocolate Cake & Hershey's One-Bowl Buttercream Frosting

These two recipes have been used in my family for years. It's the only chocolate cake I've ever made, and also works well for cupcakes. The buttercream frosting is also delicious - if you want a double chocolate cake/frosting recipe, look no further! I oftentimes make this with a different frosting though because an all-chocolate cake is pretty rich.

A few things that I want to remind myself when making this (since I only bake 1 or 2 cakes a year and I always forget), if making two 9" rounds, the layers will be pretty thin. This cake looks better if it's made with thicker frosting, as opposed to cream cheese frosting that is also pretty thin. I prefer to make this cake in a 9x13 rectangular pan because then it is not such a thin cake. It's also a lot easier as it doesn't need removed from the pan!

I've made this with various frostings - chocolate buttercream (recipe below), vanilla buttercream, cream cheese, whipped cream frosting (and ricotta filling), whipped frosting (the recipe I just posted earlier today).

Below are a few photos from various times I've made this cake. It's always delicious!

Hershey’s 5-Minute Deep, Dark Chocolate Cake

1¾ cups unsifted all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar

¾ cup Hershey’s Cocoa

1½ teaspoons baking soda

1½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup milk

½ cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup boiling water

 

Combine dry ingredients in large mixing bowl.  Add remaining ingredients except boiling water; beat at medium speed 2 minutes.  Remove from mixer; stir in boiling water (batter will be thin).

 

Pour into two greased and floured 9” or three 8” layer pans or one 13 x 9” pan.

 

Bake at 350˚ for 30-35 minutes for layers, 35-40 minutes for 13 x 9” pan, or until cake tester (inserted in center) comes out clean.

 

Cool 10 minutes on rack.  Remove from pans; cool completely.

 

Top with your favorite frosting.

 

 

Hershey’s One-Bowl Butter Cream Frosting

                                                           

6 Tablespoons butter or margarine, softened

Hershey’s Cocoa:

            1/3 cup for light flavor

            ½ cup for medium flavor

            ¾ cup for dark flavor

2 2/3 cups confectioner’s sugar

1/3 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

In small mixer bowl, cream butter.  Add cocoa and confectioner’s sugar alternately with milk; beat to spreading consistency (additional milk may be needed).  Blend in vanilla.

 

Make about 2 cups frosting.

9x13 Cake

Made with "Not-So-Sweet Whipped Frosting"

Made with Vanilla Butter Cream Frosting

Batter in pans

Two 9" round cakes

Made with with Ricotta Filling

Made with with Ricotta Filling and Whipped Cream Frosting

Made with with Ricotta Filling and Whipped Cream Frosting

Made with with Ricotta Filling and Whipped Cream Frosting

Made with Cream Cheese Frosting

Cupcakes

Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Not-So-Sweet Whipped Frosting

I'm always on the hunt for new frosting recipes as I just haven't found one that I love. My twin boys turned 5 years old yesterday and I was looking for something new to try. In past years I've made them vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream frosting, chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting, chocolate cake with butter cream frosting, and chocolate cannoli cake (ricotta filling and a whipped cream frosting). All of those cakes were delicious but I wanted something new for this year. I came across this Not-So-Sweet Whipped Frosting Recipe on one of my favorite baking blogs, and it looked perfect!

I made a Hershey's chocolate cake two days ago and I made the frosting yesterday. It was very easy to make. I followed the tips on the blog and my frosting whipped up perfectly. Everyone at my boys' birthday party loved it!

There are a few important things to remember when making this recipe so your frosting turns out the right way. Always use a brick of cream cheese for baking (not the kind in a tub that is meant to spread on bagels). Let it get to room temperature before starting the frosting - I usually leave mine out for 2 hours. I recommend using the paddle attachment for the cream cheese as it kept getting stuck in my whisk attachment; then switch to the whisk attachment when you are ready to whip in the heavy whipping cream. Make sure you are using heavy whipping cream and not just whipping cream, so it will firm up the right way. When you start making the frosting, put your heavy whipping cream in the freezer so it can get really cold by the time you need to add it. Make sure there are no lumps at all in the cream cheese before you add the heavy cream. When you add the heavy cream, slowly add it. After it's all in and you start to whip it on high speed, do not walk away! There is such a thing as whipping the heavy cream for too long - you avoid it by paying close attention to the formation of the soft peaks that you want - and immediately stop whipping at this point. Even a few seconds longer can result in a liquid-y mess which is difficult to salvage. Once your cake or cupcakes are frosted, refrigerate them uncovered for at least 30 minutes to set the frosting. I forgot to uncover mine, but it still ended up fine!

Lastly, the original recipe amounts were for 6 ounces of cream cheese and are listed at the end of the recipe below. I wanted to use the full 8 ounce brick of cream cheese so I put those amounts in this recipe. There was a lot of frosting on my 9x13 cake, but it was so good! This recipe is a keeper for sure!

Not-So-Sweet Whipped Frosting

Recipe courtesy “Sally’s Baking Addiction” Website

 

Made from only 4 ingredients, this lightly sweetened whipped frosting is creamy and fluffy, yet holds its shape when piped with a piping tip. For best results, review the success tips above and recipe notes below before you begin.

 

8 ounces block full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 cups cold heavy cream or heavy whipping cream (very cold!)

Tip: Freeze the heavy whipping cream when you start making the icing so it is super cold when you add it in - it needs to be very cold!

 

 

In a large bowl using a hand-held mixer or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese on medium-high speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed until creamy. Add the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla extract, and then beat on medium speed until combined and completely smooth (absolutely no lumps), at least 2 full minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed to smooth out.

 

Switch to a whisk attachment (if you haven’t already been using it). Turn the mixer to low speed and with the mixer running, carefully pour in the cream in a slow and steady stream. After all of the cream has been added, turn the mixer up to high speed and whip until thick and stiff peaks form, about 1-2 minutes. This time can vary depending on the exact temperature of ingredients, temperature in the kitchen, and even the humidity. Do not walk away during this time and do not be concerned if your frosting takes longer to whip. You’re looking for a thick, airy consistency with stiff peaks. If you were to shimmy and shake your bowl, the frosting would hardly move. If your frosting appears soupy now or at any point you are working with it, it needs more whipping to introduce more air. If your frosting appears chunky or curdled, it’s over-whipped. To fix, stir 1 tablespoon of heavy cream into the frosting by hand to smooth out again. Use more heavy cream if needed to smooth out.

 

Use it: After you make the whipped frosting, it’s ready to frost your cupcakes, cake, or other confections. After frosting a cake or cupcakes with this frosting, I strongly recommend refrigerating them uncovered for at least 30 minutes to help “set” the frosting (especially when using it on a layer cake). Then you can serve or set out for a few hours before serving. And please note that you’ll notice the frosting becomes thicker and airier the longer it sits in your mixing bowl. This is not a problem and can easily be fixed by gently stirring it to pop any air bubbles. Likewise, if you notice the frosting really airy and looking over-whipped as you pipe it with piping tips, either “massage” the frosting while it’s in the piping bag (sounds weird, but this can help deflate air bubbles) or pipe back into the mixing bowl and gently stir it. You can even stir in a splash of heavy cream to thin/smooth out if needed.

 

Serve or Make Ahead: After the 30 minutes of refrigerating to “set” the frosting as instructed in step 3, frosted confections are fine to serve or sit out at room temperature for a few hours. If you plan to serve later than that, such as the next day, I recommend storing in the refrigerator. Lightly cover as best you can. Confections topped with this frosting can be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 2 days.

 

NOTES:

Freezing Instructions: This whipped frosting freezes and thaws surprisingly well. For best results, I recommend freezing the frosting after you’ve already frosted your cake or cupcakes– as opposed to freezing the frosting in your mixing bowl or other container. Frost your baked good(s), refrigerate for at least 1 hour to really set the frosting, and then cover and freeze for up to 3 months. (Note that covering this frosting can get messy and I haven’t found a workaround for that.) Thaw your frosted baked good(s) at room temperature.

 

Can this frosting sit out at room temperature or in a warm environment? A few hours at room temperature is fine. If you’re serving your frosted confections outside on a hot day (I’ve done this a few times), refrigerate your frosted cake/cupcakes for up to 1 day. Remove from the refrigerator 30-60 minutes before serving them. This way they start out a little colder and can last longer in the heat.

 

Can I leave out or replace the cream cheese? No. Instead, I would try a different recipe.

 

Can I tint this frosting a color? Yes. This frosting holds onto food coloring nicely and I strongly recommend using gel food coloring or natural food coloring powder. If you plan to tint the frosting, it’s best to add the food coloring when you add the heavy cream. If you need to add more food coloring after the frosting is done, gently stir it in by hand. If the frosting becomes too thick, stir in a splash of heavy cream to thin out again.

 

Can I flavor this frosting? Yes. Feel free to replace up to 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract with another extract of choice such as lemon or coconut extract. If it’s a potent extract such as peppermint extract, I would only use 1/2 teaspoon. You can also turn this into a whipped strawberry frosting by replacing 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar with 1/4 cup freeze-dried strawberry crumbs/dust.

 

If your frosting begins losing shape: If your frosting becomes unstable or thins out/loses shape overtime, whip it on high speed until stiff peaks form to reintroduce more air.

 

Quantity: This recipe yields about 4-5 cups of frosting. This is enough to heavily frost 12-16 cupcakes (as pictured), a 9×13 inch quarter sheet cake, or a 2 layer cake.

6 ounces block full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature

3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1½ cups cold heavy cream or heavy whipping cream (very cold!)

 

For a 3 layer cake, I recommend slightly scaling up the recipe by using one 8-ounce block cream cheese, 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, and 2 cups heavy cream. After adding the heavy cream, you may need to whip the mixture for slightly longer.

8 ounces block full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 cups cold heavy cream or heavy whipping cream (very cold!)

 

This recipe is very easy to scale up or down. Use 2 ounces of cream cheese per 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar and 1/2 cup heavy cream. Add more or less vanilla extract. When you are whipping in the heavy cream, reduce or extend that length of time based on the volume. Whip shorter if you scaled down the recipe and whip longer if you scaled up the recipe.

Classic Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

A few weeks ago my sister made vanilla cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting for a birthday party for two of her daughters. I love icing, and this was one of the best icing recipes anyone in our family has made (in my opinion at least). Pictured below are the cupcakes she made. She found the recipe here (she used milk). I hope to try this recipe soon!

Classic Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Classic American Buttercream frosting. This recipe uses powdered sugar, butter, vanilla and milk. This is a great recipe for decorating and piping on cupcakes and cake.

1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks or ½ pound), softened (but not melted, ideal texture should be like ice cream)

3-4 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

¼ teaspoon table salt

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract (use clear vanilla extract if you have it)

Up to 4 Tablespoons milk or heavy cream

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

Photos by JoJo