Cake Cooperation

Let's say you have tasked yourself with baking a birthday cake.

And let's say that it's Sunday and you need it for Monday.

And then let's say that one of your two cake layers totally fails. For reasons you don't understand. They're both from the same batter. Why? And we're not taking subtle Clark Kent and Superman differences. It's like I baked up the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde of cake layers. Side note: Not to be a rain cloud on the Superman parade, but how did a single pair of glasses throw everyone for a loop?



Hmm?

But the failure of my 2nd cake layer was far more obvious than Dwight/Superman. It's like the butter/sugar mixture was not properly incorporated into the batter, and then crystallized on half of the cake layer. Tragedy and total failure. My baking self esteem was in pieces. I couldn't even contemplate making a replacement layer. I even thought not to.

But a single layer cake is not a birthday cake.

And so, it was back to the drawing board on Monday morning. Cake layer #3 baked up nicely. Thankfully. Failure is especially unpleasant pre-6:00AM.

I know this because the sour cream frosting was a near disaster.



After you chop 18 ounces of chocolate only to melt it into a silky ganache. Then mix in sour cream and corn syrup to form the most wonderfully sweet and tart chocolate sour cream frosting.



And then to realize that you didn't let the chocolate cool enough and your fresh out-of-the-fridge sour cream has caused your chocolate to harden into itsy bitsy little chocolate chips!!! See the beaters on the top right? Decidedly not the creamy chocolate sour cream frosting I was planning on. Luckily, the microwave saved the day. The chocolate melted into the tasty frosting seen on the whisk. My new whisk!

Cake decor was the last thing to contemplate. But that was for later. I had enough cake excitement for one morning.



I can't believe I ever doubted the need for a second layer.