It's birthday season, better get your best cake on (such as this one, made by Sally Ward). Photo: Brittany Harrison
Having a birthday soon? You're not alone. According to Statistics New Zealand, the most common time for birthdays in Aotearoa falls between 22 September and 4 October. The most popular birthdate in New Zealand is September 29.
That's great news for avid home bakers like me, who love any excuse to whip together a favourite cake and cover it with celebratory candles and sprinkles. But if you're a bit less confident on the cake front, here are a few tips and tricks to ensure success.
Choosing a flavour
Anything is a birthday cake if you stick candles on it. A rich, tender chocolate cake is a crowd pleaser. A carrot cake may suit someone who is fond of saying "I don't like sweet things".
My go-to is this chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting. I also can't go past a chocolate cake with sprinkles. Gluten-free cakes can be challenging - I tend to opt for recipes that are gluten-free by design, such as this orange, almond and polenta cake.
If you're looking for a vegan option, I recommend this chocolate cake recipe (or check out Alby Hailes' tips on vegan baking).
Measurements matter
Don't be put off by the need to measure. Working with scales will guarantee accurate results. While you won't catch many professionals using cups, they work totally fine at home.
Metric cups are 250ml whereas US cups are 240ml. Although metric cups are more common in New Zealand, both are sold and used here so it's important to know what ones you have.
Flour and eggs provide structure for a cake, while fat helps it to be tender. Photo: Monica Grabkowska / Unsplash
Getting the most out of your oven
Preheat the oven before you start preparing the ingredients - it's important the oven is up to temperature before the cake goes in.
Cakes have three stages of baking: expansion, setting and browning.
During the expansion stage, the rising agent reacts with heat and liquid to release carbon dioxide. As a rough guide, don't open the oven during the first 15 minutes of baking. The change in temperature can interrupt that lovely rising.
If the oven is too hot, the outside of the cake will cook before the inside has finished lift off, and you'll end up with Mt Kilimanjaro in a tin. If the oven isn't hot enough, the batter will set too slowly and turn out gluggy.
If your oven is temperamental, you can get analogue oven thermometers relatively cheaply. Your oven may run hot or cold and this will help you adjust.
Carrot cake is a great birthday cake option. Photo: Sally Ward
The secret to evenly risen cakes
There isn't one. Cakes dome for various reasons depending on your oven, the ingredient make-up, the size of the cake tin and the weather.
The best thing to do is take a serrated knife and level the top once the cake is cooled. It's also a taste-test insurance policy before you serve the cake.
Some bakers use 'cake strips' - fabric soaked in water and wrapped around the tin to keep the outside cooler for a more even bake. Personally, I think this is too much faff.
How to make the best buttercream
The secret to melt-in-your-mouth frosting is air. While you can achieve a lot with a whisk, it's not recommended. You will get results with an electric hand mixer, and a stand mixer is even better.
You want the butter to be nice and soft (I microwave mine for 25 seconds). If you don't have a microwave you can put some hot water in the sink and rest a bowl of cubed butter there for five minutes or so.
If you're using a hand or stand mixer, whip the butter for at least five minutes on a low speed. It's great if you can get to 10 minutes. Or play Cher's Believe and Strong Enough back to back. By the end of the songs, you should have very pale and silky butter with a meringue-like sheen.
Sift the icing sugar (you don't want lumps). I use 250g butter to 1 cup (120 g) of icing sugar. It's a lot less sweet and won't form a crust once dry. If you live in a colder climate, you may want to add a splash of milk to loosen it up.
You can flavour buttercream with almost anything, such as nut butters, melted dark chocolate, pureed fruit, essences and instant coffee. Even Milo dissolved in cream will work.
For colouring try beetroot juice, berries, turmeric or other bright things in your pantry.
Sprinkles are an excellent celebratory touch for any birthday cake. Photo: Sally Ward
Decorating
Make sure cakes are cooled before attempting to add icing. You can put them in the fridge or even the freezer for 15 - 20 minutes if you want to speed up the process. I often make my cakes a day before I ice them.
There are lots of different styles if you're into it - rustic, smooth, down the sides, not down the sides, piped borders. A simple piped border with a 1M star tip is great for birthday cakes and not too tricky if you're a novice.
Cutting and serving
Use a long sharp knife. If you want clean slices, wipe it clean with a tea towel between cuts.
Cutting a 20-22cm round cake into triangles will get you 12 generous slices. If you're feeding more people, cut the cake into squares.
Sally Ward is a producer on Afternoons and a keen home baker.
