White Chocolate Blueberry Cake

Cake

1. 1. Preheat oven 175°C (350°F). Place rack center. Grease two 15cm (6 inch) springform pans, line bottoms with parchment. Dry ingredients: sift flour, baking powder, soda, salt in bowl.
2. 2. Wet mix: whisk buttermilk, vanilla, lemon juice in separate bowl. Rest 5 minutes. Starts mild thickening. This acid reacts with soda later for lift.
3. 3. In large bowl, use electric mixer, beat sugar and oil 2 minutes until creamy but not thick. Blend egg whites one by one into sugar-oil, low speed. Avoid overbeating whites here; they’ll aerate during mixing with dry.
4. 4. Alternate folding dry ingredients and buttermilk mix into sugar-oil blend. Use low speed, uniform just until combined. Overmix ruins crumb, makes cake dense. Batter thick enough to hold blueberries but still pourable.
5. 5. Gently fold in blueberries. If frozen, toss in flour first to prevent sinking. Divide batter equally between the two pans, about 700 ml (3 cups) each. Reserve remaining batter chilled.
6. 6. Bake 40-47 minutes. Don’t rely on timer alone. Test with cake tester inserted center, should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs, not wet batter.
7. 7. Cool in pans 15 minutes, then turn out on wire racks. Cakes continue setting as they cool. Completely cool before frosting, at least 2 hours or overnight refrigerated loosely covered.
8. 8. Clean one pan thoroughly, re-grease and parchment bottom. Pour reserved batter, bake 40-45 minutes under same conditions. This third layer will be the top, so watch for even browning.

White Chocolate Modeling Paste

1. 9. Melt white chocolate gently over double boiler. Remove from heat just shy of full melt, stir off heat until smooth and no lumps remain. Overheating chocolate causes grainy texture.
2. 10. Stir in corn syrup until fully incorporated. Transfer to plastic wrap, press out air bubbles, wrap tightly. Rest 3-4 hours at room temperature, paste will firm and become pliable. Cold makes it too hard to stretch or shape.

Vanilla Buttercream

1. 11. Combine sugar and egg whites in heatproof bowl over simmering water. Stir constantly until sugar dissolves and mixture reaches 70°C (160°F) or sugar no longer grainy to touch.
2. 12. Transfer bowl to stand mixer. Whip at medium-high until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 5-7 minutes. Still warm but aerated. Add vanilla essence, mix to combine.
3. 13. Switch to low speed, add softened butter cubes gradually. Beat continuously until buttercream turns pale, fluffy and smooth, no graininess. Temperature and butter softness critical: too cold butter causes lumps, too warm makes cream thin.
4. 14. Use spatula to scrape sides and base frequently, avoid unmixed butter pockets.

Assembly

1. 15. Level cake layers by trimming domed tops with serrated knife for flat stacking. Cut and remove ‘crown’ to ensure stability during stacking.
2. 16. Tint vanilla buttercream copper color thoroughly; use gel dyes sparingly for vibrant, consistent hue. Fill pastry bag with smooth buttercream fitted with plain round tip.
3. 17. Place first cake layer on serving plate or cake board. Pipe border along edge to trap jam. Spoon half blueberry jam inside border. Repeat with second layer and remaining jam, top with third cake layer.
4. 18. Use offset spatula to apply thin crumb coat of frosting around entire cake, sealing in crumbs. Chill cake 30 minutes to set crumb coat for clean finish.
5. 19. Apply final coat of buttercream generously. Smooth sides and top with spatula held flat but gentle pressure. Aim for even coverage with slight sheen. Chill cake 1 hour to firm.

Decorating

1. 20. Divide white chocolate paste into portions: copper 60 ml (1/4 cup), pale brown 60 ml, soft pink 60 ml, black 30 ml, keep remainder neutral. Gel colors kneaded thoroughly for uniform color.
2. 21. Roll each piece 3mm (1/8 inch) thick between parchment sheets to prevent stickiness. Keep unused portions wrapped tightly to prevent drying.
3. 22. From copper dough, cut horse ears. From pink, cut inner ear shapes, press together firmly with copper base for dimension. Insert ears onto clean wooden skewers standing on plate, refrigerate to firm until assembly.
4. 23. In pink dough, cut 2.5cm (1 inch) cheek circles. Brown dough cut horse muzzle shape; form small thin sausage shapes as nostrils, press gently onto muzzle base to secure.
5. 24. Black dough cut round eyes with cutter, roll tiny worms for eyelashes. Neutral color dough cut horse forehead piece; shape 4 small round beads to place on eyes for highlights. Attach beads gently pressing into black dough for subtle glimmer.
6. 25. Position facial features carefully on cake surface: start muzzle low center, then forehead piece above. Add eyes above muzzle, fix lashes beside eyes. Place cheeks framing muzzle. Insert ears skewers on top. Add fresh flowers between ears and along top for a whimsical mane.
7. 26. Store decorated cake covered but not airtight, room temperature. Consumed within 2 days. Refrigeration causes buttercream to harden; rests at room temperature about 20 minutes before serving for best texture.

Notes and substitutions

1. Use coconut oil in place of vegetable oil for subtle coconut aroma, more stability at room temperature. Lemon juice replaces vinegar providing gentle brightness without tang. Egg whites extra for higher lift and lighter crumb, separate carefully to avoid yolk contamination which deflates batter. Frozen blueberries dusted with flour prevents sinking during bake. For modeling paste, avoid overheating white chocolate; syrup stabilizes and smooths texture. Buttercream—temperature crucial. Overwhip or cold butter makes curdled texture; warm slightly or continue beating. Cake testing with toothpick, look for moist crumbs, not cake mix. Color gels better than liquid for paste and buttercream to avoid thinning. Trim layers flat for stacking: uneven layers cause tilting, losing neat finish. If cake sinks, could be overmixed or oven temp too low. Use accurate oven thermometer. Flower decorations should be non-toxic and clean; optional but adds to rustic charm.