Food with JP passion: Easter Vanilla Cream Celebration Cake
By JP Kennedy
This year for Easter I am moving away from a traditional Chocolate cake or creation and opting for this alternative Easter Celebration Cake.
That said it does feature some chocolate in that it is adorned with shavings of white chocolate chunks at the very end.
I use my vanilla cupcake recipe (my two nephews favourite cake recipe) to form the sponge and icing and have added a delicious layer of vanilla double cream for the filling. This cake reminds me of eating really good quality vanilla ice-cream.
I made this cake on Sunday for dessert and sent some over to my nephews. Ben who is 6, later this month, sent me the cutest voice message saying how gorgeous the cake was and could I make it for his birthday later this month – He’s a really tough critic so it must be good if he liked it!
The sponges are light and fluffy and the vanilla icing is decadent, creamy and mouth-watering. Perfect to celebrate Easter this year.
Ingredients:
- 225g unsalted butter softened
- 250g caster sugar
- 260g plain flour
- 2 teaspoons of baking powder
- 4 large eggs
- 225ml milk
- 1 teaspoon of good vanilla extract
Icing:
- 225g unsalted butter softened
- 600g icing sugar
- 110ml milk
- 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
- Sprinkling of hundreds and thousands
- 50g white chocolate shavings or chopped up chunks
Filling:
- 300ml double cream
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons of icing sugar
Method:
1. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees and grease and line with baking parchment paper two 20cm sandwich cake tins.
2. In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar – I always use my free standing mixer here! Add the sugar gradually and beat until the mixture is nice and fluffy.
3. Add the eggs one at a time and mix to fully incorporate.
4. Add the flour and baking powder and mix well then gradually add the milk and vanilla extract.
5. Before scooping the mixture into your cake tins scrape the mixture down and ensure it is all fully blended and mixed well together.
6. Place both cake tins on the middle shelf of your oven and then bake for 20 – 25 minutes until nice and golden brown and the sponge springs back to the touch.
7. Let your cakes cool completely before icing and adding the cream filling.
8. For the icing – add the butter along with 400g of the icing sugar into a large bowl followed by the milk and vanilla extract. Use an electric mixture to combine all the ingredients together. Then gradually add the remaining 200g of icing sugar beating well until the icing mixture is of a good spreading consistency – You may not need to add all of the icing sugar to achieve this.
9. For the filling – in a large mixing bowl whip together the cream with the vanilla extract and icing sugar.
10. Lather one sponge generously with the vanilla icing and the other with the cream filling and carefully place the layer with the cream on top of the one with the vanilla icing. Use the remaining vanilla icing to ice the top of the cake, sprinkle on hundreds and thousands and your shards of white chocolate – Serve and Enjoy!
This is quite a sweet and luscious cake so less is more but it’s simply decedent and delicious.
This is what I will be making this Easter for Sunday lunch along with a delicious roast turkey – Nobody in my family is a fan of Easter Spring Lamb. Again, while we find ourselves still living with restrictions this Easter; I can’t think of a better reason to get into the kitchen and make some delicious food to celebrate the occasion.
This cake is something to look forward to and will become a firm favourite among my family. Happy Easter!
Contact JP On:
Twitter: @JPKCooking
Email: JPKCooking@gmail.com
Instagram: jpkennedy.kennedy
