VALENTINES INSPIRED VINTAGE STYLE CAKE

Instructions

Method - Baking the Cake

1. Preheat oven to 180°C and grease 2 x 6" inch cake pans generously with baking spray, butter or baking paper and set aside
2. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and set aside.
3. Using a hand or stand mixer, cream together the butter, oil and sugar for about 2 to 3 minutes. Then add sour cream and continue mixing until it is fluffy and looks white.
4. Add vanilla.
5. Add in eggs one at a time beating well between each addition.
6. Add dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt) and mix until combined.
7. Add the milk and mix until just combined, being careful to avoid overmixing.
8. Pour batter evenly between the two cake tins.
9. Bake at 180°C for 20 to 25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out of the cake clean.
10. Remove cake from pans. To keep cakes extra moist, wrap them in glad-wrap right away and store them in the fridge until you are ready to decorate.

Method - Decorating

Reference the downloadable project sheet for project pattern diagrams.

1. Once cakes are completely cooled, use a serrated knife to cut off any round tops to create nice and flat cake layers.
2. Place your first cake layer upside down on a chopping board.
3. Microwave your Colour Mill Gloss Frost in the microwave for approximately 30 seconds to soften.
4. With your LOYAL Silicone Spoon Head Spatula, add a 0.5cm layer of Colour Mill Gloss Frost to the top of the cake and smooth out with an Angled Spatula, ensuring the layer is level.
5. Place your second cake layer on top, upside down, making sure it's secure and level.
6. Mark out a cross-section, across the top of your cake.
7. From 2 quadrants next to each other, cut a diagonal slice to create the flat edges that will form the point of the heart.
8. Take the two, rounded off-cuts and attach them with Colour Mill Gloss Frost to the opposite end of the cake to create the heart's rounded top.
9. With your angled spatula, place a small amount of Colour Mill Gloss Frost to the centre of your 12 in Round Cake Board and place your heart-shaped cake on the board ensuring it's nice and secure.
10. Fill a Colour Mill 15 in Piping Bag with Gloss Frost and cut off the end. Pipe thick zig-zags around the side and top of your cake and smooth out with a cake scraper creating your crumb coat. Once the cake is fully coated in a thin layer of Gloss Frost, place it in the fridge to set for approximately 1 hour.
11. In the meantime, divide the remainder of your Colour Mill Gloss Frost into three bowls. Colour one bowl with Colour Mill Oil Blend Red. Colour the second with Colour Mill Oil Blend Baby Pink. Leave the third bowl plain white.
12. Fill a Colour Mill 15in Piping with each colour and set aside.
13. Pull out an additional 6 Colour Mill 15in Piping Bags. Attach your 3 x Standard Couplers and 3 x Medium Couplers on each bag.
14. After 1 hour, remove your cake from the fridge. Cut the tip off your piping bag filled with Baby Pink. With a similar technique to the Crumb Coat application, cover and smooth a base of Baby Pink onto your cake a refrigerate for another 15 minutes.
15. After 15 minutes remove your cake from the fridge, it's time to decorate!
16. Add LOYAL Piping Tip #125 to a piping bag with a Medium Coupler. Cut the tip off the Red piping bag and place it inside the piping bag with the #125 piping tip.
17. With the thick side of the piping tip closest to the cake, slowly pipe a ruffle approximately 1cm away from the cake on top of the Cake Board. While piping, gently rotate the Cake Turntable and avoid stopping to create a continuous frill.
18. Place a #4B Piping Tip onto a Piping Bag with a Medium Coupler and fill with your Baby Pink Piping Bag.
19. Hold the Piping Bag on a 45-degree angle with the tip touching the frill you just piped. Squeeze, lifting your Piping Bag upwards and then slowly release pressure, pulling away to create a tail. Repeat this process around the bottom edge of the cake.
20. Place a #70 Piping Tip onto a Piping Bag with a Standard Coupler and move your Red Piping Bag into this one.
21. Slowly pipe a ruffle along the top of the #4B Shells you just piped, again, avoiding stopping to create a continuous ruffle.
22. Using a round cookie cutter, gently mark out where your rounded 'banners' are going to be piped.
23. With Piping Tip #104 attached to a Standard Coupler with your White Gloss Frost inside, with the thicker edge closest to the cake, pipe a ruffle along the cookie cutter marks.
24. Swap out the White Piping Bag for the Red and repeat this process just above the white banners you just piped.
25. With Piping Tip #21 attached to a Standard Coupler and your Baby Pink Gloss Frost inside, using the same technique as the #4B shell border, pipe vertical shells in the gap between each frilled banner.
26. With Piping Tip #20 attached to a Standard Coupler and White Gloss Frost inside, use the same technique to pipe a shell border along the top edge of the cake
27. With Piping Tip #125 attached to a Medium Coupler and Baby Pink Gloss Frost inside, pipe a ruffle border around the top of the cake.
28. Finally, with Piping Tip #2C attached to a Medium Coupler and Red Gloss Frost inside pipe a large shell border on the inside of the ruffle, followed by a #20, White Gloss Frost shell border
29. Finish the look by placing Bling Ball sprinkles on the top shell borders and vertical shells.
30. Enjoy!