White Almond Sour Cream Cake Aka Traditional New Orleans Wedding Cake Recipe 385

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour an 11x13 inch cake pan.
• Stir together the white cake mix, flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl until well mixed. Pour in the water, sour cream, vegetable oil, almond and vanilla extracts, and egg whites, and beat with an electric mix on low until all the ingredients are mixed and moistened but some lumps still remain, 4 minutes.
• Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan, and bake in the preheated oven until the top is a light golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Allow to cool before frosting.

Steps:

• For cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom of 2 9-inch round baking pans with butter. Depending on what kind of bakeware you use, you many want to use buttered parchment paper to line the pans so the cakes release easily from them. If you're using professional-grade non-stick cake pans, plain butter will work fine-no need for parchment paper. Either using a stand mixer or a medium bowl with a handheld mixer, whisk the egg whites until foamy, about 1 minute. Add 1/4 cup of sour cream, 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract and 1 1/2 tsp almond extract, whisking to incorporate. Pour into a separate bowl and set aside. In the large bowl of a standing mixer (or a large bowl if you're using a handheld mixer), add the cornstarch, cake flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt and sugar and mix on low until combined. Add the butter and the remaining 3/4 cups of sour cream, continuing to mix on low until combined. Once well combined, increase to medium speed and beat for 2 minutes, or until mixture is slightly aerated, making sure to scrape down the sides as you go. Return the mixer to low speed and incorporate 1/3 of the egg white mixture, then the second third, and then the final third, continuing to beat after each addition until combined and making sure to scape the side of the bowl as you go. Divide the batter between the two pans, smoothing out the top. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the cakes are slightly golden on the tops and spring back easily to the touch. Remove them from the oven and let cool on a wire rack for 20-30 minutes. Flip the cakes out onto a clean work surface, or if you're preparing to use the day before, wrap them in saran wrap and refrigerate until ready to frost. For frosting: While cakes are cooling, prepare the frosting. Beat the butter on low speed using a standing mixer or with a handheld mixer in a large bowl until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add the powdered sugar, salt, vanilla extract, and almond extract and return the mixer to low speed until combined. Finally, add the half and half/cream and increase the speed on the mixer to medium and beat 3 additional minutes, or until frosting is light and fluffy. Assembly: Once the cake has cooled, place the first cake layer on a cake stand or sheet. If you notice either of your cakes have jagged edges or are puffed up in the middle, use a serrated knife to even them out. Take just under 1/3 of the frosting and spread it evenly on top of the first layer. Stack the second layer on top of it and do the same for the top of the cake. Take the final 1/3 of the frosting and spread it evenly on the sides of the cake. Once cake is frosted, serve immediately.

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line three 8-inch round pans or four 7-inch cake pans with parchment rounds, then grease with nonstick cooking spray.
• Mix together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until fully combined. Mix chunks of butter slowly into the dry mixture on low speed until no large chunks of butter remain and the mixture becomes crumbly. Pour in the egg whites and mix on low speed until just incorporated. Add the sour cream, almond extract, vanilla extract, and oil and mix until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, then beat on low speed for a few more seconds.
• Divide the batter evenly among the prepared cake pans.
• Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cake layer comes out clean, 33 to 35 minutes. Allow the pans to cool for 10 minutes, then run an offset spatula around the perimeters of the pans to separate the cakes from the pans. Place the cake layers in their pans in the freezer until fully cooled, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Carefully flip the pans and remove the layers from the pans. Use a serrated knife to level the tops of the layers.
• For the almond buttercream: Meanwhile, beat the butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed until smooth, about 30 seconds. Turn to low speed and slowly add the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, alternating with small splashes of cream, until fully mixed. Add the almond extract, vanilla extract and salt and beat on low until the ingredients are fully incorporated and the desired consistency is reached. (If the frosting is too thick, add additional cream 1 teaspoon at a time. If the frosting is too thin, add more powdered sugar 1/4 cup at a time.) Add the gel food coloring, if using, and beat on low speed until it reaches the desired color.
• Stack a cake layer on a greaseproof cake board using a dab of frosting to help it stick. Frost the top of the cake layer, then continue to stack the layers, adding a thin layer of buttercream between each layer. Apply a thin coat of frosting around the sides and on top of the cake to fully cover the cake layers. Smooth using a bench scraper, then chill the cake until the frosting is firm to the touch, 20 minutes in the fridge or 5 minutes in the freezer. Add a second, thicker layer of frosting, and smooth using a bench scraper.
• Trim the stems of each flower to 1-inch long. Wrap the flower stems with floral tape, pinching and twisting at the bottoms to prevent fluids from the stems from leaking into the cake. Place the remaining buttercream in a piping bag and add a thick layer of frosting on top of the cake. Place the flowers into the frosting until the entire top of the cake is covered with flowers.

Steps:

• Place all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir together with a wire whisk.
• Add the remaining ingredients and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.
• Pour into greased and floured cake pans, filling each pan a little over half full.
• Lightly tap cake pans on counter to bring air bubbles to top.
• Bake in preheated 325° F oven until cake tests done.
• Baking time varies according to the size and depth of pans being used.
• I used Wilton's Bake Even Strips on my cake pans to ensure a level-topped cake which required absolutely no trimming-- I highly recommend these, or good quality professional baking pans.
• In 2" deep pans, this recipe makes:.
• One 14" round and one 6" round.
• or One 16" round.
• or One 12" round and one 10" round.
• or One 12 X 18" sheet cake.
• or One 12" round and one 8" round and one 6" round.
• or Two 9" squares.
• or 5 dozen cupcakes.
• Half the recipe makes:.
• Two 7" rounds.
• or Two 6" rounds and 6 cupcakes.
• For chocolate cake: use chocolate mixes and substitute 6 whole eggs for the egg whites.
• For liqueur flavors: substitute alcohol (such as champagne or Kahlua) for about 1 cup of the water in the recipe.
• For berry flavors: use frozen berries, thaw reserving the juice. Substitute the berry juice for part of the water in the recipe, and stir the berries in at the end.
• For lemon cake: substitute lemon juice for about 1 cup of the water in the recipe, use 6 whole eggs instead of the whites, stir in 1 Tblsp lemon zest, and use 1 tsp of a good lemon extract in place of the almond.
• For white chocolate: melt 8oz white baking chocolate & cool slightly. use 6 whole eggs in the recipe instead of the whites, temper the chocolate by stirring in a small amount of the batter, then add the white chocolate to the entire batter and stir well. Doesn't bake up quite as high as the original, so add a pinch more batter to the pans.