Wilton Class #4 - Final Cake!

Tonight was my last class of the Wilton Decorating Basics Course, and I learned how to write on cakes and the Ribbon Rose (my favorite!).  The writing was a lot easier than I expected, but the roses took some practice and getting used to.  At the request of my husband, I did a very brightly colored cake with lots of orange:

Two layer marble cake with buttercream icing, decorated with a 'bouquet' of
 ribbon roses and a shell border.

For the cake, I wanted something different, so I did Martha Stewart's Marble Cake.  It has a hint of coffee in the chocolate that I love!  Marble cake feels fancy to me (it is what I had at my wedding), but it was surprisingly easy to make. 

Martha Stewart's Marble Cake:
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pans
1 3/4 cups cake flour (not self-rising), plus more for dusting
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup milk, room temperature
1/3 cup heavy cream, room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup best-quality unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup boiling water
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder, for mocha layers
* This recipe makes 3 1/2 cups of batter.  I doubled it and had enough for two 8 inch round pans + 12 cupcakes.

Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. Combine milk and cream in a small bowl; set aside. Cream butter and sugar on medium speed in the bowl of an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs one at a time; mix well after each addition. Mix in vanilla. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the milk mixture and beginning and ending with flour. Combine cocoa and the boiling water in a medium bowl; add espresso powder. Stir 1 cup cake batter into chocolate mixture. Fill prepared pans with spoonfuls of vanilla and chocolate batter to form a checkerboard pattern. Run the tip of a paring knife or a wooden skewer through batter in a figure-eight motion to make swirls. Bake at 350 degrees until tops are golden - about 30 minutes. Let cakes cool completely in pans on wire racks.

The inside of the marble cake.

 The next Wilton course starts in September, and I will be making some much more complicated flowers - I absolutely can not wait!  Next up this week - 2 birthday cakes and my first 'Daring Bakers' challenge.
 
Happy Baking!