Okay, so a friend of mine has a sister who was about to celebrate her 18th birthday and she wanted me to make her a doll cake. I have to be honest, I am no chef. I am a corporate employee who just have passion for anything sweet. So, I was very intimidated, but very excited with her request.
I prepared by watching YouTube videos and researching online which cake is best for this type of dessert. Suggestions flooded my inbox and I was getting confused as days pass by.
So, instead of wasting so much time reading articles on various recipes, I have decided to get my act together and give it my all. In the end, I found that asking my customer about what they wanted is essentially helpful in creating such a customized masterpiece.
It all started with a vision...
My friend wanted to surprise her sister and she was asking for a black and pink themed doll cake. I am unfortunately not gifted when it comes to art and drawing, so unfortunately, her vision of a dreamy doll cake, looked like this when I rendered it.
Her reaction? "Wow! I love it!" I had to ensure that I am not dreaming, and that this doll cake challenge is doable.
She wanted a mocha chiffon cake with mocha icing. Her sister loves Goldilock's mocha cake and she wanted --- no, scratch that -- demanded, that the cake has to taste like that of Goldilock's.
Pressured? Definitely!
So, I searched for the best mocha cake recipe that my bestest best friend, Google, could find. I have probably tried 3 recipes until I finally found the best one ever!!!!
Let's start with the Mocha Chiffon Recipe, shall we?
INGREDIENTS:
MOCHA CHIFFON CAKE
1 3/4 Cup APF
1 1/2 Cup White Sugar
1 Tablespoon Baking powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 Cup vegetable oil
6 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
MOCHA BUTTERCREAM:
5 large egg whites
1 1/4 Cup White Sugar
2 Tablespoon instant coffee dissolved in 2 Tablespoon Hot Water
2 cups Unsalted Butter cut into cubes
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
I am no longer going to tell you how to make a mocha chiffon cake, because I will be uploading a separate blog about that.
I will however, tell you how to properly make a Mocha Buttercream, as this is very tricky.
1.) In a heat proof bowl, combine the egg whites and the sugar. Put this over a simmering water and beat it until the sugar has been dissolved. This should look soft and silky. Remove from steam and let cool.
2.) In a separate bowl, combine your cubed butter and diluted coffee.
Mix together until light and fluffy.
3.) Once your egg white mixture has cooled down, gradually beat in the coffee-butter mixture.
Viola!!! Mocha buttercream! You'd thought you are actually eating a Goldilock's Cake!
Anyway, let's move on now to the assembly of the doll cake.
1.) First, you have to measure how tall your doll is. Some bakeshops sell dolls that have no legs. It's cheaper, yes, but to me, it's not that attractive. So, I purchase a really good looking (still cheap as compared to genuine barbie dolls) doll for this cake.
If you don't want to invest on skirt pans like me, you can use your existing cake pans. I used my 8, 6 and 5 inch pans for this cake.
I actually do not really recommend using a skirt pan, because you will have to trim a lot of cake to get a nice "A-line" skirt. And if you know me, I don't really like discarding excess cake. Some may use the excess cake to make cake pops, but I guess my fridge is just too small to accommodate them all.
As I was saying, stack your cakes up and measure it against the height of your doll.
As soon as you have measured how high your doll skirt would be, we can now proceed to the next step.
2.) Since we are using a "full" doll (meaning with legs) using a long knife, you can start cutting a hole in the middle of your cake. I used a thick cookie cutter to do that. We need to do this because we will be inserting the doll at the middle. As much as possible, it would be great if you ensure that the holes are aligned properly.
3.) Now is the time to ice the cakes! Using the mocha icing recipe, frost your cakes generously. That way, your chiffon will keep moist and of course would taste great after every slice!
4.) After icing the cake, it's time to crumb coat. But before that, you need to shape your cake. Using a bread knife, carefully shape your cake. Be careful not to over trim. I only sliced the top most portion in an angle. Just picture an A-line skirt as your guide.
5.) After crumb coating, put your cake in the fridge and allow the icing to set. While that is setting, you can start icing your base cake.
After crumb coating, pop this in the fridge to allow the frosting to set.
6.) Meanwhile, let us start coloring our decorative frosting. I used stabilized SMBC frosting here with a drop of marshmallow oil for taste. My client specifically wants a combination of shocking pink, purple and black for her doll cake. I recommend using Gel food color here to maintain the stability of the icing. Here I used my Chef Master Gel in Rose Pink and Americolor in Violet.
7.) It's now time to bring out your tools. We are going to cover our base with fondant. I personally have a hard time making my own fondant, so I always buy a ready made one, I like using Petinice. Not only does it come with different colors, it also tastes pretty nice.
Okay, so with cornstarch, start kneading the fondant to make it more pliable and easier to roll out. As soon as you have rolled out enough to cover the base, you can start with the next step. I think I used up only two-thirds of this package.
8.) I have here paper lollipop sticks (one that you use for cakepops) and I will be inserting this on the base cake before covering it with fondant. Why? Because my base is made of cake, it may or may not hold a heavy doll cake on top.
Okay, I admit, it may not look much from this angle, but if you will notice, I used my fondant rolling tool to give it that "stitched up" look. I will now be using the remaining fondant and a few pink dragees to make a flow accent.
9.) Now that our base is all set, let us start assembling our doll cake shall we? Unfortunately I don't have a cling wrap available, so I used a foil to secure my doll's legs.
10.) Set the doll aside, bring our the skirt cake and put it on top of your base. Insert the doll in the middle of the skirt cake to check whether there is still a need for you to further trim down your cake.
I prepared by watching YouTube videos and researching online which cake is best for this type of dessert. Suggestions flooded my inbox and I was getting confused as days pass by.
So, instead of wasting so much time reading articles on various recipes, I have decided to get my act together and give it my all. In the end, I found that asking my customer about what they wanted is essentially helpful in creating such a customized masterpiece.
It all started with a vision...
Her reaction? "Wow! I love it!" I had to ensure that I am not dreaming, and that this doll cake challenge is doable.
She wanted a mocha chiffon cake with mocha icing. Her sister loves Goldilock's mocha cake and she wanted --- no, scratch that -- demanded, that the cake has to taste like that of Goldilock's.
Pressured? Definitely!
So, I searched for the best mocha cake recipe that my bestest best friend, Google, could find. I have probably tried 3 recipes until I finally found the best one ever!!!!
Let's start with the Mocha Chiffon Recipe, shall we?
INGREDIENTS:
MOCHA CHIFFON CAKE
1 3/4 Cup APF
1 1/2 Cup White Sugar
1 Tablespoon Baking powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
2 tsp Instant coffee powder (I used Cafe Puro)
3/4 Cups Hot Water1/2 Cup vegetable oil
6 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
MOCHA BUTTERCREAM:
5 large egg whites
1 1/4 Cup White Sugar
2 Tablespoon instant coffee dissolved in 2 Tablespoon Hot Water
2 cups Unsalted Butter cut into cubes
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
I am no longer going to tell you how to make a mocha chiffon cake, because I will be uploading a separate blog about that.
I will however, tell you how to properly make a Mocha Buttercream, as this is very tricky.
1.) In a heat proof bowl, combine the egg whites and the sugar. Put this over a simmering water and beat it until the sugar has been dissolved. This should look soft and silky. Remove from steam and let cool.
2.) In a separate bowl, combine your cubed butter and diluted coffee.
Mix together until light and fluffy.
3.) Once your egg white mixture has cooled down, gradually beat in the coffee-butter mixture.
Viola!!! Mocha buttercream! You'd thought you are actually eating a Goldilock's Cake!
Anyway, let's move on now to the assembly of the doll cake.
1.) First, you have to measure how tall your doll is. Some bakeshops sell dolls that have no legs. It's cheaper, yes, but to me, it's not that attractive. So, I purchase a really good looking (still cheap as compared to genuine barbie dolls) doll for this cake.
If you don't want to invest on skirt pans like me, you can use your existing cake pans. I used my 8, 6 and 5 inch pans for this cake.
I actually do not really recommend using a skirt pan, because you will have to trim a lot of cake to get a nice "A-line" skirt. And if you know me, I don't really like discarding excess cake. Some may use the excess cake to make cake pops, but I guess my fridge is just too small to accommodate them all.
As I was saying, stack your cakes up and measure it against the height of your doll.
As soon as you have measured how high your doll skirt would be, we can now proceed to the next step.
2.) Since we are using a "full" doll (meaning with legs) using a long knife, you can start cutting a hole in the middle of your cake. I used a thick cookie cutter to do that. We need to do this because we will be inserting the doll at the middle. As much as possible, it would be great if you ensure that the holes are aligned properly.
3.) Now is the time to ice the cakes! Using the mocha icing recipe, frost your cakes generously. That way, your chiffon will keep moist and of course would taste great after every slice!
5.) After crumb coating, put your cake in the fridge and allow the icing to set. While that is setting, you can start icing your base cake.
6.) Meanwhile, let us start coloring our decorative frosting. I used stabilized SMBC frosting here with a drop of marshmallow oil for taste. My client specifically wants a combination of shocking pink, purple and black for her doll cake. I recommend using Gel food color here to maintain the stability of the icing. Here I used my Chef Master Gel in Rose Pink and Americolor in Violet.
Okay, so with cornstarch, start kneading the fondant to make it more pliable and easier to roll out. As soon as you have rolled out enough to cover the base, you can start with the next step. I think I used up only two-thirds of this package.
8.) I have here paper lollipop sticks (one that you use for cakepops) and I will be inserting this on the base cake before covering it with fondant. Why? Because my base is made of cake, it may or may not hold a heavy doll cake on top.
Okay, I admit, it may not look much from this angle, but if you will notice, I used my fondant rolling tool to give it that "stitched up" look. I will now be using the remaining fondant and a few pink dragees to make a flow accent.
9.) Now that our base is all set, let us start assembling our doll cake shall we? Unfortunately I don't have a cling wrap available, so I used a foil to secure my doll's legs.
10.) Set the doll aside, bring our the skirt cake and put it on top of your base. Insert the doll in the middle of the skirt cake to check whether there is still a need for you to further trim down your cake.
As you can see, I had to trim down the skirt a little more, I think it's not nice to have the illusion that the doll has "wide hips."
11.) My doll cake is slowly coming to life, and I am really excited to be finishing this cake. Have your frosting ready as we will be piping the skirt design next. I used a small open star tip for the rosette skirt and a small round tip for the skirt accent and trimming.
11.) My doll cake is slowly coming to life, and I am really excited to be finishing this cake. Have your frosting ready as we will be piping the skirt design next. I used a small open star tip for the rosette skirt and a small round tip for the skirt accent and trimming.
Now, to finish off the cake, just sprinkle it with colorful sprinkles and dragees. Viola!!! Your very own doll cake!
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