Chocolate Stout Cake

This is the recipe I used for my chocolate stout birthday cake. It is a moist, versatile dark chocolate cake. The addition of stout gives the cake a slightly pleasant bitter, beery flavor.

Chocolate Stout Cake

4 cups granulated (white) sugar

3 ½ cups all-purpose (plain) flour

1 ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

4 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons instant coffee

1 cup buttermilk

3 cups stout beer

1 cup canola oil

4 large eggs

4 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350◦F and grease four 8-inch round baking pans.

In a large bowl, sift together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and coffee.

Make a well in the center.

In a separate bowl, whisk together milk, beer, oil, eggs, and vanilla;

Add wet ingredients to dry, and beat until well combined. This will form a smooth, thin batter.

Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake 30-35 minutes until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then remove from pans to a wire rack to cool completely before

icing.

Pouring Beer Stein Cake

The pub where I work recently celebrated their fifth birthday, from the day they first opened their doors. We had a big celebration during service that night  - a live shucking oyster bar, special appetizers and beer pairings, live music, and of course, cake. The owner asked me to make the cake, which they would be serving to customers late in the evening for free. She did not give me a lot of guidance for the cake - mostly left it up to me. Just said that the restaurant seats 60, and we expected a full house plus for the party. Because I wanted to make sure the cake met her approval, I did give her a few samples beforehand, but didn't share my design. I spend over a week planning the cake and was very happy with how it turned out in the end.

I made a chocolate stout cake using the stout beer we brew in house. Then I made a Bailey's Irish Cream buttercream frosting to go with it. The cake was my standard chocolate cake recipe with the substitution of stout for coffee. Then my signature buttercream frosting for filling, frosting, decorating and piping - except this time I used Bailey's Irish Cream instead of milk for the liquid, for a very rich (and alcoholic, in a good way). I also made some of my candy clay/modelling chocolate for the handle and stability in the hidden pipe (under the buttercream foam).

So my cake was designed to look like a beer stein - it's an eight inch round four layer cake frosted in 'beer colored' buttercream, a candy clay handle, and some white buttercream foam on top. Then I covered a pipe inserted into the center of the cake, at an angle, with candy clay and buttercream. This pipe supported the beer can making it look like the can was being poured into the cake. I finished off the cake with a little green inscription. The cake was very well received - in fact the 50 or so pieces I cut from it disappeared very quickly, and some people were amazed by how the beer can was 'levitating'.

Birthday Cake #3

Birthday cake number three was made back home, ready for my return from my trip, by my loving parents. They always try to make me a different kind of birthday cake every year, if I am actually home anytime near my birthday or I don't insist on making my own cake. This year they made me a chocolate pound cake with a simple chocolate frosting from one of my favorite cookbooks, "Chocolate Everything". Despite being a pound cake, the cakes is not too heavy or rich, but moist and chocolaty!!

Birthday Cake #1

I celebrated my birthday this past week and was lucky enough to receive three different birthday cakes - different kinds, different locations, made from different people. Funny enough though they were all chocolate so that made me very happy! I celebrated my actual birthday away from home and got another cake when I actually came home :)

Birthday cake number one was made by my brother and decorated by his girlfriend. They made me a simple vegan chocolate cake, but were clever in deciding to use a recipe I myself had posted on this blog. That way if I didn't like it for whatever reason they could blame it on me! (Not a foolproof plan, as execution counts big time, but apparently if one burns a cake, one can blame the recipe directions for not being descriptive enough. Anyway, this didn't matter because the cake turned out just the way I would have made it! They used miniature vegan chocolate chips to frost the top and spell out my name and add some decorations which I thought was totally tasty and seriously clever!

Check out the cute homemade card in the background as well!

Chocolate Jelly Roll Cake

Chocolate Jelly Roll Cake
4 large eggs
2/3 cup granulated (white) sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup all-purpose (plain) flour
4 teaspoons water

Preheat oven to 400◦F. Line a 10x15 inch jelly-roll pan with parchment paper.
Beat eggs and sugar until thick and pale. Beat in vanilla.
Sift in the cocoa and flour and fold in with the water.
Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.
Bake about 12 miunutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Immediately invert cake onto a clean tea towel dusted with sifted icing sugar. Peel off parchment. Dust top of cake with icing sugar. Roll up hot cake in tea towel from short end and leave to cool.

Once cool, unroll cake, spread with filling, reroll, and garnish as desired.

Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate Roll

This is the chocolate cake I made for my mom for Mothers' Day this year.She requested a simple plain chocolate cake, and since we didn't need a large cake, I decided to make a jelly roll. The cake is just a basic chocolate jelly roll cake recipe. The filling/frosting and glaze on top I made using an instant chocolate pudding mix we had on hand, some milk, icing sugar, and vanilla extract. I used the frosting to spread on the cake then rolled it up, poured it with chocolate glaze, and piped on some additional chocolate frosting. Simple, tasty, and easy to do.

Happy Mothers' Day!!!

Layered Chocolate Birthday Cake

This is the chocolate birthday cake I made for my brother for his birthday today. He didn't really have any requests, but he loves chocolate, so I stuck with the chocolate theme.
This cake consists of my signature chocolate cake recipe baked in two eight inch round cake pans, each sliced in half horizontally. Each layer is filled with my basic chocolate fudge frosting. The entire cake was frosted with two tones of chocolate fudge frosting - one light and one dark, and then I used a frosting comb to go around the cake to show the two tones of frosting. I then glazed the cake in dark chocolate mocha ganache. I added some caramelized white chocolate crumb around the base of the cake, and made a light cocoa icing to pipe some borders and the message. 

It was extremely hot and humid while making this cake, so the cake was extra moist and dense and I had trouble with the icing sliding, but although it may not look perfect, it was super moist, chocolaty, fudgey, and delicious!!!

Month Early Birthday Cake

So because I was away from home and busy on my birthday this year, my parents decided we would celebrate a month early, on May 4th instead of June 4th. I told them we could not do that, as it was Star Wars Day, but we did nonetheless. Here is the cake they made for me: it is a vegan chocolate cake with a vegan chocolate icing. Simply and tasty.

Chocolate Coffee Cake

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there! For Mother's Day this year, I decided to combine two of my mother's favorite flavors, chocolate and coffee, into her cake. I didn't want to make a frosted, piped and decorated cake this year, so I went for something different. I would call it zuccotto-style, but certainly not a true zuccotto. Zuccotto is a semi-frozen dessert consisting of cake, liquor, a cream filling, and usually a glaze. It is a dome-shape.

For this cake, I baked two eight inch round moist chocolate cake layers. Once cool, I pressed one into a plastic-wrap lined bowl. I filled it with a coffee cream filling, then topped it with the other cake layer. I froze it to firm the filling, then inverted it onto a plate. I glazed it with a simple chocolate glaze, and decorated it with chocolate truffles, and coffee icing.

Chocolate Banana Nut Dessert

Here is a plated dessert featuring more components I was trying out for upcoming competitions. I must use dark and white chocolate, at least one fruit, and at least one nut. The plate must also feature a sauce and a garnish. Here are the components:

• Dark Chocolate Cake Base
• Brown Butter Dark Chocolate Pave
• Raspberry Banana White Chocolate Ganache
• Peanut Tuile Spiral and Cup
• Banana with Nougatine
• Dark Chocolate Peanut Truffle
• Cinnamon Banana White Chocolate Emulsion

One Bowl Vegan Chocolate Cake

One Bowl Vegan Chocolate Cake
2 1/2 cups all-purpose (plain) flour
2 cups granulated (white) sugar
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups warm water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2/3 cup  oil
2 teaspoons vinegar

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease or line desired cake pans.
In a large bowl, mix together the first five dry ingredients. Add the remaining liquid ingredients and mix well. Divide batter among prepared pans and bake until cake tests done.


This recipe makes enough for a two-layer size cake. So that would be two eight or nine inch round or square pans, one 9x13 inch rectangular pan, one 10 inch bundt, tube, or springform pan, 24 cupcakes, 48 mini cupcakes, or some combination of those pans.

Bunny Butt Cake

Happy Easter Everyone!!!

Every year for Easter I make a decorated cake. I have done a white bunny, brown bunny, chick, basket, and egg. I always like to do a different design. I didn't have a lot of time this year, as I was busy cooking practice meals for competitions, so I went with a simpler design. I have seen this as a cake and cupcake design before and always wanted to try it.

It is a 'bunny butt cake'. Some versions have the bunny diving into a basket of candy or into some icing 'grass'. I chose just to keep my cake as a bunny. To make this, I made a standard two-layer size vegan chocolate cake recipe, baked in an eight inch round bowl, and three cupcakes (I actually made six cupcakes but reserved the other three for a different use). 

Ideally, I would have frosted the cake completely in white or brown icing to make either a white or brown bunny. But I didn't really have time to frost the sides of the bunny, and decided to go with a 'transition' bunny look - transitioning from a white winter bunny to the a  brown summer bunny.

I also made a new type of vegan icing - maple cashew, and because of the maple syrup it turned out a tan-color. 

I then dusted the entire cake with shredded coconut. The ears are just made of paper - I tried forming cupcake ears, but that didn't work either, and every version I say online used paper ears or didn't have ears at all.

Vegan Chocolate Raspberry Cake

This is the cake recipe I used for my Star Wars cakes. It's an amazing recipe - very moist and very chocolaty with a nice hint of raspberry. It's also healthier than your typical cake; yes, it's still high in sugar, but it contains less fat, as moisture comes from applesauce and raspberries and not milk and eggs. You can also make it wholewheat, as the cocoa will mask this healthiness. 

Vegan Chocolate Raspberry Cake
1 1/2 cups nondairy milk (plain, unsweetened)
1 1/2 Tablespoons white vinegar
2/3 cup canola oil
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup hot water
2 teaspoons instant coffee granules
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose (plain) or whole wheat flour, or a mix of both
1 1/3 cups granulated (white) sugar
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups frozen raspberries, thawed in the refrigerator

Preheat oven to 350◦F. Grease or line two eight or nine inch round or square pans, or one 9x13 inch rectangular pan.
Add the vinegar to the milk and let stand for 5-20 minutes.
Whisk in the oil and applesauce. Whisk the water into the coffee and add along with the vanilla. Whisk until smooth.
In a separate large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa, powder, soda, and salt, mix well. 
Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry and mix until smooth. 
Mash the raspberries in a bowl with a potato masher. They don't need to be smooth or pulverised, just broken up a bit. Stir into the batter.
Spread batter evenly in prepared pan(s). Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. Cool completely, then frost/decorate. 

R2D2 Cake

As you may be able to tell from the patches of cake not-so-covered in frosting, this is not my proudest cake accomplishment. But I won't consider it a total fail either. Here is some back story to it:

I make my boyfriend an elaborate, appropriately-themed birthday cake every year (this is the fifth one). This year, I had been planning to make an R2D2 (a 'resourceful astromech droid' from Star Wars) cake, for awhile; even before the big hype for the release of the latest Star Wars film. I had looked at several different designs - one of them just the relative shape from a 9x13 inch rectangular cake and one used a 9x13 inch rectangular cake as the base, with half a nine inch round cake as the head, and some extra side pieces. These two dimensional designs looked pretty neat, but I then came across a three dimensional design that used several layers of six inch round stacked cakes, a six inch dome cake for the very top, and a 9x13 inch rectangular cake for the arms and extra pieces. I knew after upgrading from a 2-D to a 3-d cake last year (an army tank cake), I had to continue the theme - I couldn't go back to 3-D. The design seemed simple enough, I was just slightly concerned with stability. Also, that was a lot of cake - so I scaled back the design to be slightly smaller, doubling my batch of cake to make two 9x13 inch rectangles.

I always ask for my boyfriend's input on his cakes, and he usually likes a surprise for the design, knowing I will come up with something cool, but this year he requested the flavor. He asked for a chocolate raspberry cake, and because I had been experimenting with a lot of vegan baking lately, he wanted it to be vegan. Easy enough, I whipped up a recipe and it turned out great. The icing was a whole different story. I could have easily made a faux buttercream using either vegetable shortening (gross) or vegan margarine, but I was trying to make a naturally vegan icing, and I also wanted it coconut flavored. I made what I thought was a yummy icing, but then assembly time came.

I froze the cakes briefly to make them easier to work with, then cut them and froze them again while snacking on the scrap pieces that confirmed this was one delicious cake. I had made the icing in advance to give it time to firm up in the fridge. I coated the individual pieces with a crumb coat, and chilled them to set it. Then I tried to put the pieces together and add more coats of icing to cover. The problem was, even after adding more icing sugar to make the icing quite thick, the icing just kept sliding off the cake. It seemed to stick, only to slide off a few minutes later. It was very strange. I am figuring it must be my new icing recipe, as I usually stick to my regular buttercream. It's hard enough to complete incase a dark chocolate cake with white frosting, but add a frosting that doesn't stick, and you've got a problem. I even tried piping the icing on in lines, which seemed to work but it still slid off later. At least the pieces were sticking together, so I covered it as best as I could, added some vegan meringue 'buttons' and piped some blue frosting on as well for details. I crumbled extra meringue, dusted it with cocoa powder, and placed it at the bottom to make some dirt from the planets. And with my leftover cake scraps, I managed to make some other Star Wars themed characters (using chocolate icing that did not slide), which I will share in another post.

The cake didn't turn out how I wanted, but it did stay in one piece, hold it's shape, and taste delicious. I will definitely have to make another R2D2 cake in the future, with a different frosting, to make the details more accurate and have it look pure white. A white fondant covering would definitely be ideal, though I am not a fan of the stuff. Nevertheless, taste is most important right? At least that's what the birthday boy told me. 
Happy Birthday my love! :)

Chocolate Fudge Cake - Vegan, Fat-Free, Whole Grain, No Refined Sugars

Chocolate Fudge Cake
3/4 cup whole wheat flour (sifted, if lumpy)
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (again, sifted if lumpy)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup unsweetened applesauce (that's three of those single-serving containers)
1/3 cup agave (maple syrup can be substituted, but a hint of maple flavor will come through)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350◦F. Grease or line an eight inch round pan.
In a large bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa, powder, and soda. Then add the applesauce, agave, and vanilla and mix well until batter is smooth. Pour batter in prepared pan.
Bake for about 25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Gently remove from pan and cool completely, if you can stand it. I personally enjoy warm cake almost as much as I enjoy warm cookies, so it's your call!

This is a really easy chocolate cake recipe because it is one bowl with only seven ingredients - and no eggs to crack, no butter to cream, etc. Despite there being no milk or water, the applesauce makes the cake incredibly moist and fudgey, as does the liquid sweetener. You won't taste the fact that it's healthy.

TIPS AND TRICKS
- This cake contains no added fat. Therefore, the texture will be somewhat softer, but still really fudgey. If you prefer, substitute some or all of the applesauce for oil.
Agave nectar is a natural sweetener about 1.5 times sweeter than table sugar. It is high in fructose but low in glucose, so although it doesn't cause spikes in blood sugar levels, it is still sugar. I would like to find an even better alternative to this, so next time I may experiment with date sugar - a natural fruit sugar.
- That being said, any type of sugar can be used for this recipe. Adjust amounts accordingly, and if you use a non-liquid sweetener, you may need to add a little water or milk of choice.
- Add some chopped chocolate or chocolate chips to make the cake a little more decadent. Chopped nuts could also be added.

Vegan Sacher Torte

Sacher Torte is a famous Viennese cake invented in Austria by pastry chef Franz Sacher for the prince of Austria. Years later, the Sacher hotel was opened by Franz Sacher's son. The hotel soon became one of the finest in the world, and the only place that sells the original Sacher Torte. The recipe is top secret, and the authentic Sacher Tortes served at the hotel are labelled in chocolate with the name 'Sacher'. There are many, many versions of Sacher torte out their, in cafés and recipe books. The basis is chocolate spongecake, apricot jam filling, and chocolate icing. Theoretically, you could use any chocolate cake, apricot jam, and chocolate icing recipe, but more authentic versions will consists of a chocolate spongecake, the best quality apricot jam, and chocolate icing, and is often served with whipped cream. 

I have never made, or eaten, Sacher torte before, but I have always wanted to. So I decided to try a vegan, healthy version. I have no idea how authentic it is, but it was darn tasty. I began with a fudgey chocolate cake recipe, it wasn't exactly a 'spongecake' (no egg), but it contained applesauce for moisture and when combined with baking soda, it foams up a bit, think like chocolate mousse texture, so it creates a spongey, moist, and fudgey texture. The cake is whole wheat, virtually fat-free, and contains no refined sugars.

The apricot jam was a jam I found on sale at the grocery store that seemed of good quality and had no added sugar - it is sweetened with grape juice. I don't think I've ever had apricot jam before, but this one was very good and you would never guess it didn't have added sugar.

The chocolate icing was, in my opinion, the best part. I don't want to spoil things for my nexts posts which will feature the actual cake and icing recipes, but I enjoyed this frosting more than I enjoy eating chocolate mousse (too daiy-rich) or chocolate fudge frosting (too gritty with sugar), and it is actually a very healthy recipe!

In conclusion, this cake was very good and basically fat-free, dairy-free, egg-free, and refined sugar free. It is sweetened with dates and agave - which is still a form of sugar, and not the best for you, but at least a better alternative than refined sugar. I made this cake for a friend studying pastry, who told me Sacher torte is his favorite type of cake.

Basic Chocolate Sponge Cake

Basic Chocolate Sponge Cake
3.5 ounces dark chocolate
2 Tablespoons strong coffee
3.5 Tablespoons unsalted butter
3 eggs, separated
1/2 cup + 1 Tablespoon granulated (white) sugar
pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup cake flour
Preheat oven to 300◦F. Line a nine inch springform pan with parchment paper.

In a small saucepan double-boiler, heat the chocolate, coffee, and butter until melted.
Meanwhile, beat the yolks and 1/2 cup sugar until thick, pale and yellow and forms a ribbon when the beater is trailed in. Beat in the vanilla.
Beat the egg whites and salt until soft peaks form, gradually beat in one Tablespoon sugar until stiff peaks form.

Mix the chocolate mixture into the yolks. Scoop one quarter of the whites over the yolks, then sift on one quarter of the flour and fold in. Repeat this process three times. Spread batter in prepared pan. Bake for 20 minutes until puffed, firm, and risen. Wait five minutes, then remove cake from pan and cool completely.

This is the spongecake base I used for my Charlotte Russe Malakoff au Chocolat. 

Charlotte Russe Malakoff Au Chocolat

Here is the dessert I decided to make for the second European buffet. I wanted to do a dessert (of course, I would do a dessert everyday but I figure I should learn to do some savory foods as well and expand beyond my comfort zone, plus we have two days in each region), and I wanted to do something not so simple. Something extravagant that I had never done before. And what better for a dessert than something classical French.

I settled on making a Charlotte, something I had never made, seen, or eaten in person. For those unfamiliar, a Charlotte is a dessert, often classified as a cake, trifle, or icebox cake. There are, of course much like anything, many variations on this dessert. It consists of a base, either cookie, cake or bread used for lining the mold, and may also contain more layers of this. The filling is typically a mousse, custard, or gelatin. Charlottes may be decorated with fruit, additional cookies, chocolate, whipped cream, nuts, and more. There are several famous types of Charlottes. A Charlotte Russe, invented by Marie-Antoine Carme and named for famous royals, consists of Bavarian cream and ladyfingers; whereas a Charlotte Royale is lined with swiss roll instead.

I did not choose to do an exact, classical Charlotte version, but I got the base of my recipe from "The Art of French Cooking" book by Julia Child, so I figured it would be pretty authentic and successful.

I choose to use ladyfingers as my outside lining for the mold, a chocolate spongecake for the base, and Malakoff au chocolate for the filling, which is a chocolate almond mousse, but I substituted hazelnuts instead (because it reminds me of nutella). I decorated my Charlotte with chocolate whipped cream and dipped the ladyfingers in dark chocolate on one end and white chocolate on the other end.

My Charlotte did not turn out exactly as I had envisioned (just search the internet for pictures of 'Charlotte cake'. The main issue was the ladyfinger batter - I don't think the egg whites were quite stiff enough as the batter was too thin too pipe into the classic ladyfinger shape, so I ended up having to just spread it onto a sheet pan, bake it, then slice into rectangles. It doesn't give the same form of a classical Charlotte, but the taste is equivalent and I think my presentation is nice nevertheless.

Potato Chocolate Cake

Potatoes in chocolate cake? Why not! Actually, mashed potatoes (or instant potato flakes, though much more processed) are common in many sweet baked goods as a way of adding moisture, richness, texture, or simply using up leftover potatoes! I have seen mashed potatoes in cakes, cookies, breads, rolls, frostings, candies, and of course my infamous chocolate potato fudge. Bread recipes often utilizes the cooking water from the potatoes as well, as does this cake. Here I had an excess of potatoes, and I tend to eat potatoes as a side dish most days already. I also remember recently seeing this recipe, and it looked really good, so I tried it out today!

Potato Chocolate Cake
1/3 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 large eggs
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup hot mashed potatoes
1 cup warm water (from cooking the potatoes) 

Preheat oven to 350◦F. Line a 9x13 inch rectangular baking pan with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, beat together the oil, applesauce, honey, and vanilla until well blended. Beat in the eggs, two at a time. Beat in the cocoa, baking powder, and baking soda. Beat in one cup of the flour.
Meanwhile, blend the potatoes and water together to form a smooth paste. Beat half of this into the batter. Beat in the remaining flour, then the remaining potato, blend well.
Pour batter into prepared pan, bake for about 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve warm or cooled, with frosting, icing sugar, whipped cream, or simply by itself! 

Most potato baked goods simply use the potato as an enrichment, they are not actually healthier because they contain potatoes. However, this is a healthy cake recipe - it contains less fat, and the fat used is healthy coconut oil. It has less sugar and is a dark chocolate potato cake, sweetened by natural honey. Finally, this recipe is made with all whole wheat flour - but you would never know it! 

Chocolate Berry Jam Roll

I have only made a jelly/jam roll a few times before, but I never actually made it with jelly or jam. I always made a different kind of filling - such as chocolate, icing, cream, or ice cream. This is a jam roll made with a triple berry fruit jam. I cheated a little and did not actually use a jelly roll recipe. I was really busy baking for the exhibition, and since I was making chocolate cake anyway, I decided just to use that as my cake base for the jelly roll since I knew it was already an award-winning recipe that always goes over really well. Plus, I only needed a small amount of each. I whipped up the batter, than poured some of it into a five-inch round ovenproof bowl for the cake, and poured the remaining batter (which only needed to be a thin layer) into a 9x13 inch rectangular pan lined with parchment paper. Normally, a jelly roll cake would be baked in a 10x15 inch pan, but I only needed a small jelly roll. After it baked, I rolled it into a roll on a tea towel sprinkled with icing sugar, cooled it, filled it with jam, re-rolled it, and sliced it. It worked out, and the cake was delicious, but there are reasons there are certain recipes designed to be jelly rolls. i think this cake batter is a bit too moist and heavy for a really successful jelly roll. It cracked in a few places and was a bit difficult to hold together in order to be sliced, but nothing a little sprinkling of icing sugar could not hide. After I got the three slices I needed for the contest, I actually cut the cake in half vertically, and then sliced it horizontally to make smaller, less messy pieces.