PINK VELVET LAYER CAKE

Posted in Cake by sallybr

Perfect for Valentine’s Day, but wonderful for any other celebration, this is a real adorable design and not too complicated to make. However, it helps to have a smooth frosting to start with, and that can make a baker hyperventilate a bit. Don’t ask me how I know….

PINK VELVET LAYER CAKE
(slightly modified from I’ll Bring the Cake)

¾ cup buttermilk
⅔ cup sour cream
⅓ cup vegetable oil
4 egg whites
1 tablespoons raspberry emulsion (I used this one)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons freeze-dried raspberries, powdered in a food processor
1 box white cake mix
pink gel food dye, a couple of small drops

for the vanilla buttercream:
3 sticks (1½ cups) unsalted butter
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup heavy cream (plus more if needed)
7 to 8 cups powdered sugar

Heat the oven to 325°F. Prepare three 6-inch round cake pans covering the bottom with parchment and spraying baking spray on the sides and bottom. Reserve.

In a large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, sour cream, oil, egg whites, raspberry emulsion, vanilla and freeze-dried raspberries until thoroughly combined. Sift in the cake mix and pink foo dye, whisk until just combined. Split the batter evenly among the prepared pans.

Bake for 25 to 27 minutes, until the center is baked through. Let the cakes cool in the pan for about a minute before flipping them out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Wrap and transfer the cakes to the freezer for 30 minutes before proceeding with frosting. You can also save them in the fridge to continue the following day.

Make the buttercream: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until it’s light and fluffy. Add the salt, vanilla, and heavy cream and beat again until thoroughly combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. With the mixer on low speed, add the powdered sugar about ½ cup at a time. Add a little more heavy cream if needed, then flip the mixer to high speed and beat until the buttercream is lighter in color and texture, about 2 minutes. Separate one cup of frosting to dye pink, leave the rest plain.

Assemble the cake: Place a cardboard cake round on a cake turntable. Dot a little bit of buttercream in the center of the round and spread it out with an angled icing spatula. Place the first chilled cake layer in the center. Add a layer of buttercream. Place the next cake layer on top, then repeat, making sure to line the layers up evenly. After adding the top cake layer, crumb coat the cake by spreading a thin layer of buttercream around the entire cake. Freeze the cake for 5 minutes.

To the reserved buttercream, add 1 drop of soft-pink gel coloring and stir to incorporate. Pipe hearts and little blobs, using a round tip for the hearts, and an open star to the little blobs. Cover the top with sprinkles and add a decorative border with a 1M piping tip.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This recipe is an example of “doctored cake mix”, in which you start with a box cake component but add bells and whistles to it. Many will twist their noses, I honestly do not see anything wrong, I can bake a cake from scratch, but don’t mind taking a little shortcut here and there. I donated the cake whole, and I don’t feel like asking volunteers to take pictures for me, they have a lot to think about during the dinners, so I cannot show you the inside. It got very nice reviews, though, so I am confident about sharing the recipe with my readers. The pink color I used is my all-time-fave, Dusty Rose. Every chance I get, I incorporate it into my bakes.

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9Jun2026

LEMON DOT CAKES

Posted in Cake, Desserts, Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

Have you heard of these? It all started at a bakery in Roslyn, New York, called -quite appropriately – The Dotcakes. They sell them in many different formats, including the popular cupcake, The whole idea behind them is a soft cake inserted in a paper or glass cup, filled to the brim with buttercream, and topped with nonpareils. Simple and effective. Apparently dot cakes are going viral on TikTok, I would not know because I never had the patience for the platform. But Susan, from The View from Great Island, recently made those and I jumped on that project shortly after reading her post. Well, first I had to visit The Super Evil Empire to get me some paper cups. THEN I jumped on it.

LEMON DOT CAKES
(from The View from Great Island)

15 ounce lemon cake mix, prepared according to box directions.
1 cup salted butter, at room temperature
6 cups powdered sugar
8 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
nonpareil sprinkles

Preheat the oven to 350F and grease a 10×15 jelly roll pan.

Prepare the cake mix according to its directions and spread into your prepared pan. Bake for about 18 minutes, or until it springs back when lightly touched in the center. A toothpick will come out without wet batter on it. Set aside to cool.

To make the frosting beat the softened butter until fluffy in a large bowl. Slowly add the sugar, a cup at a time, along with the lemon juice and vanilla. Beat until smooth and silky.

When the cake has cooled use your cookie cutter (in the same size as your cake cups) to cut out rounds of cake. Place a round of cake into each cup. Top with the frosting, and bring it right to the top. Smooth it out so that it is completely flat.

Place your sprinkles in a bowl and dip each cup headfirst down into the sprinkles so that they cover the whole surface.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Please do not be upset about the use of a box cake. This is a simple, humble cake that just needs to be moist and flavorful. A box cake delivers that without issues. You can of course make the cake component from scratch. But sometimes simplicity wins in my kitchen. The little cups come with a lid that is perfect to donate these babies, otherwise the nonpareils could make it a bit messy, some always seem to fall off.

I donated the whole batch but I heard they turned out delicious. Each one was donated with a little spoon attached to the lid, to make it easier for the volunteers working that meal.

If you have a party coming up, particularly with kids, consider baking a batch of these dot cakes, they will be a huge hit…
Many thanks to Susan for the inspiration!

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3May2026

LEMONS, FOUR WAYS

Posted in Cake, Cookies, Desserts by sallybr

If you are a lemon lover, this post is for you. A fantastic five-layer cake, deliciously chewy cookies, baby little “pies”, and a posset. Let’s start with the cake, maybe my favorite of this series, courtesy of Helen Fetcher, my beloved baking guru…

SPLIT LEMON LAYER CAKE
(from Helen Fletcher’s blog)

for the lemon filling, to be made the day before:
4 large egg yolks
1 ¼ cups water
1 ¼ cups granulated sugar (250 grams)
⅓ cup cornstarch (45 grams)
½ teaspoon table salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter (45 grams)
1 tablespoons lemon zest (from 1 large lemon)

for the cake:
3 large egg yolks
1 cup sour cream (225 grams)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups sifted cake flour (300 grams)
1 ½ cups granulated sugar (300 grams)
1 tablespoon 1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons lemon zest (from 2 large lemons)
¾ cup unsalted butter, softened (170 grams)

for the lemon buttercream:
1 pound powdered sugar
1 cup lemon fillng
¼ cup butter, softened (60 grams or 4 tablespoons)

Make the lemon filling: Whisk everything together in a medium size sauce pan. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Transfer to a storage container, cover the top of the filling with plastic wrap and let come to room temperature. Store in the fridge for 2 days. or at least overnight to firm up.

Make the cake: Heat the oven to 350°F. Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper and spray the paper only. Try not to spray the sides. If you do, wipe them with a paper towel. Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, ¼ cup sour cream and vanilla. In the bowl of a mixer, combine the dry ingredients and mix on low for 30 seconds to blend. Add the softened butter and remaining ¾ cup sour cream. Mix on low until moistened. Then increase the speed to medium and beat for 1 ½ minutes. Add the egg mixture in three additions, beating on medium 30 seconds each time, scraping down as necessary.

Dollop the batter in the half sheet pan. Using and offset spatula, spread it out evenly. Bake for 20 to 22 minutes until a tester comes out clean. Place on a cooling rack until cold. At this point, it can be frozen in its pan well wrapped. Or you can refrigerate and continue assembling the cake later. It is easier to deal with layered cakes when they are very cold, so keep that in mind.

Make the lemon buttercream: Add all the ingredients to a mixing bow. Beat on low to bring together. Raise the speed to medium and beat until smooth. Raise it again to high and beat for 5 or more minutes until light and smooth with no grittiness from the powdered sugar.

Visit Helen’s site for a clear visualization on how to cut the cake to obtain 5 equal layers and one extra that will be processed for crumbs. You will use 1/4 cup of lemon filling spread over the layers, and then frost the cake with the buttercream, glueing cake crumbs to the sides and making a pattern with a cake comb on top. If desired, add some piped buttercream with a 1M tip or another one of your preference. Allow the cake to to sit in the fridge for a few hours before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I urge you to visit Helen’s site to get the detailed step-by-step photos. Helen makes the most complex bakes feel simple and approachable. This cake is spectacular, and the use of cake crumbs glued to the sides makes frosting a lot less stressful. It is incredibly lemony. Thank you, Helen!

CHEWY LEMON SUGAR COOKIES

CHEWY LEMON SUGAR COOKIES
(from Scientifically Sweet)

⅔ cup (150g) salted butter, softened
1 cup plus 2 tbsp (225g) granulated sugar
2 tablespoon lemon zest
1 large egg room temperature
1 large egg yolk room temperature
1 tablespoon (15ml) lemon juice
1 teaspoon (5ml) pure vanilla extract
2 cups (284g) all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder ee notes in above FAQ section for baking powder quantity alternatives)
¼ teaspoon salt

Lemon Sugar:
3 tablespoon (40g) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon lemon zest

Combine soft butter, sugar and lemon zest in a large bowl and use a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, then add the egg and mix until well incorporated. Add egg yolk, vanilla and lemon juice then mix until smooth and creamy.

Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to blend evenly.
Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the butter mixture and fold it in until evenly incorporated. The dough will be soft but not sticky at this point.

Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for 2 hours.

Heat the oven to 350°F. Line two large cookie sheets with parchment paper. Make the lemon sugar. Combine sugar and lemon zest in a small bowl and rub it together until the sugar smells fragrant.

Use a cookie scoop to portion dough and roll into smooth balls. Roll the balls of dough in the sugar so they are evenly coated.

Place dough balls on the lined baking trays spacing them 3 inches apart and bake for 9-11 minutes until lightly golden on the edges and still slightly soft in the middle.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: These cookies are addictive, they have a super clean and bright citric flavor, and perfect texture. I made them on a Wednesday and donated two days later, so I tried one to make sure it was still ok, and had to exercise self-control to keep my taste-test to a single cookie. Make them, and you can thank me later!

BABY LEMON IMPOSSIBLE PIES
recipe can be found here

Those are simple to make, and a lot of fun to serve and enjoy… Not quite sure why they are called “pies” but whatever you call them, they won’t disappoint.

LEMON POSSET

LEMON POSSET
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

2 cups heavy whipping cream
2/3 cup granulated sugar
5 Tbsp lemon juice
blueberries, optional for serving

In a small saucepan, heat the cream and sugar, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Bring to a boil, then adjust the heat so it doesn’t boil over and keep it at a medium boil for 5 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the lemon juice, then set aside to cool for 15 minutes. Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve set over a large measuring cup with a pouring lip.
Divide the mixture between 6 ramekins, filling them about 3/4 of the volume.

Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or until fully set, then top with blueberries, if you like.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

I love lemons in sweet and savory concoctions, so I hope you’ll give some – or all – of this recipes a try…

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14Apr2026

WHIMSICAL CUPCAKES

Posted in Cake by sallybr

Today I share a small series of cupcakes that celebrate Easter and Spring…

For the cupcakes I have used either this recipe (for chocolate flavor), or this one for a basic vanilla. The buttercream used this basic recipe.

EASTER EGG BASKET CUPCAKES

The cupcakes were chocolate, and to make these more special, I made the wrapper component as a compound chocolate concoction, so the whole thing was edible. I painted aluminum foil cupcake wrappers with melted compound chocolate, in two steps, to make them sturdy. First step I left them at room temperature for 15 minutes, painted once more and put in the fridge for 10 minutes. Then carefully peeled off the paper wrapper, and laid the baked cupcakes inside. The handles were also made with compound chocolate piped on parchment sheets and carefully placed over the buttercream while still soft. I used a grass piping tip to cover the cupcakes, and placed three eggs on top.

I love the way these turned out!
.

EASTER EGG NESTS CUPCAKES

These were vanilla cupcakes, the buttercream was dyed pastel green or pink, and piped with a petal tip (#104) or a closed star tip. Little eggs added on top…

TRICOLOR SWIRL CUPCAKES

Chocolate Cupcakes were frosted with buttercream divided in three portions and dyed pink, blue and the third portion left without any color. The buttercream was laid over plastic wrap in three straight lines, closed as a sausage and piped using a 1M icing tip. Sprinkles added right after piping.

SPRINKLE BORDER CUPCAKES

Cupcakes were vanilla. Buttercream was divided in two portions, half dyed teal and half left white. Buttercream was placed in a large piping bag, piped as a border and immediately covered with sprinkles. The center was piped right after.

These technique will work with many color combinations, of course…

RED AND WHITE ROSE CUPCAKES

Cupcakes were chocolate. To get this precise two-tone effect, the buttercream was dyed in two portions, red and white. A very small amount was dyed green for the leaves. The red buttercream was carefully laid inside the piping bag covering the edges, and the white placed at the center. Piping tip 1M was used to pipe the flower. The leaf was added right after piping the rose. You can see exactly how to prepare the piping bag watching this youtube video.

SPRING CELEBRATION CUPCAKES

For these vanilla cupcakes, I made buttercream dyed pastel yellow and white, and used a variety of piping tips to pipe swirls (1M tip) and little blobs (French star tip). Golden sprinkles added a final festive look.

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6Apr2026

A DUET OF SPRINGTIME MACARONS

Posted in macarons by sallybr

I hope you had a wonderful Easter weekend! If you’d like to see the cookies I made to celebrate the occasion, stop by my baby blog clicking here. Without further ado, here are some macarons that have Spring written all over them…

The first is a classic combination of lemon and blueberries, and I will give you the full recipe. The second is a bit unusual but worked very well and comes from a real expert macaron baker: Camila, hostess from Pies and Tacos. I used my default macaron recipe for the shells and the filing was straight from this post. I urge you to try it, easy and oh so tasty…

LEMON BLUEBERRY MACARONS
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

For the shells:
200g powdered sugar
115 g almond flour
115 g egg whites at room temperature (approx. 4 eggs)
1/8 tsp of cream of tartar (optional)
100 g granulated sugar
¼ tsp vanilla paste or extract
drops of gel food color of your choice

for the filling:
160g powdered sugar
4 tbsp unsalted butter softened
zest of half a lemon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp lemon emulsion or extract
1/2 -1 tbsp whipping cream as necessary
pinch of salt
blueberry preserves (store-bought is fine)

Line 3 heavy baking sheets with parchment/baking paper or Silpat mats. Layer the powdered sugar and almond flour in a food processor. Pulse until the mixture looks like fine meal, about 12 pulses. Pass through a sieve and transfer to a small bowl or to a sheet of parchment/baking paper. Set aside.

Place the egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Make sure that the bowl and the whisk are impeccably clean. Starting on medium speed, whip the whites with the cream of tartar until they look like light foam. The whites should not appear liquid. The foam will be light and should not have any structure.

Slowly rain in the granulated sugar in five additions, trying to aim the stream between the whisk and the side of the bowl. Turn the speed up to high. Continue to whip the meringue until it is soft and shiny. It should look like marshmallow creme (marshmallow fluff). Add the vanilla. Whip the egg whites until the mixture begins to dull and the lines of the whisk are visible on the surface of the meringue. Check the peak. It should be firm. Transfer the whites to a medium bowl.

Fold in the almond flour mixture in two increments. Paint the mixture halfway up the side of the bowl, using the flat side of a spatula. Scrape the mixture down to the center of the bowl. Repeat two or three times, then separate the mixture in two batches. Add a very small amount of pink to the first bowl, and a small amount of green to the second. Proceed to fold them two different mixtures until they slide slowly down the side of the bowl.

Line the two colors over Saran Wrap type plastic, side by side. Made a sausage with the plastic and insert in a large piping bag fitted with a round tip. Pipe shells, I like to count numbers in my head and use the same count for each shell so they end up similar in size.

Slam each sheet hard four to six times on the counter/worktop. Let the unbaked macarons dry until they look dull but not overly dry. Drying time depends on humidity. In a dry climate, the macarons can dry in 15 to 20 minutes; in a humid climate, it can take 35 to 40 minutes.

While the macarons are drying, heat the oven to 300 F. Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack. Check in 11 minutes. If the tops slide or move (independently of the ‘feet’ when you gently twist the top), then bake for 2 to 3 more minutes. Check one or two. If they move when gently touched, put them back in the oven for 1 to 2 more minutes until they don’t move when touched. Let the macaroons cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. The macarons should release without sticking.

Assemble the macarons: find two macarons similar in size and add a good amount of filling to the bottom of one of them. Place the other on top and squeeze gently to take the filling all the way to the edge. Store in the fridge for 24 hours for perfect texture. Decorate as you desire, or leave the shells plain.

Make the filling: whisk the butter for a couple of minutes, add all other ingredients except the whipping cream. Whisk at low speed first, then increase the speed until smooth. Adjust consistency with cream if needed. Match shells, add a circle of buttercream to the edge, and a dollop of blueberry preserves to the center. Allow to sit in the fridge overnight before serving or freezing for storage.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I’ve shared lemon macarons a few times in the past, this one might very well be my favorite. The combination of of blueberry preserves with the sharp lemon is a winner. To decorate, I used Royal icing in a swirl, plus a light shower of sanding sugar. A little flower-shaped sprinkle closed the deal.

GOLDEN OREO MACARONS

For the shells, use the same exact recipe. Divide it in three portions, dye one yellow, one pink, and the final one blue. Make sure to use very little dye, so that you get a pastel color. Follow this link to visit Camila’s site and make the golden Oreo buttercream. I decorated with small dots of yellow and white Royal icing, piping consistency.