A cake decorated to look like a Christmas present is cut to reveal an ornament hiding inside.
Course:
Dessert
Cuisine:
American
Keyword:
cake, Christmas cake
Servings: 8
Author: Beth Klosterboer
Ingredients
2Betty Crocker SuperMoist™ white cake mixplus eggs, water, and oil called for on cake mix packages
Gold or yellow food coloring
Red and green food coloring
2-3tubs Betty Crocker™ Whipped white frosting(or homemade frosting)
4ouncesred fondant
4ouncesgreen fondant
Splash of vodka or clear vanilla extract
2pinchesTylose powder
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Make one Betty Crocker SuperMoist™ white cake mix according to package instructions.
Scoop out ¾ cup of batter and color it using gold or yellow food coloring. Equally divide the remaining batter and color one half red, the other green.
Spray one 6-inch square pan and three 4-inch round springform pans with baking spray. Pour gold batter into square pan and bake for 10 minutes.
Pour some red batter in one half of a 4-inch springform pan and green in the other half. Use a skewer or toothpick to swirl the colors slightly. Repeat in the other two pans. Go back and add layers of color, swirling, until you use up all the batter.
Bake cakes for 26-30 minutes. The tops will look moist but should be baked through.
Cool cakes for 10 minutes, then remove from pans.
Cut the gold cake into three ¾-inch by 2-inch strips. Cut the domes off each of the red and green cakes, making them 2 inches thick. Reserve the cake scraps for another use.
Spray three 6-inch square baking pans with baking spray. Set one round cake in the bottom of each pan.
Make another Betty Crocker SuperMoist™ white cake mix.
Spread just a tiny bit of batter along one edge of a gold cake strip and press that up against the top of one of the round cakes, creating the top of the ornament. Repeat, then equally divide the batter among the three pans, pouring it around the ornaments.
Bake the cakes for 30-35 minutes until they are golden brown on top and when you press down around the edge with your finger, the cake bounces back.
Allow cakes to cool completely, then freeze for one hour. Once the cakes are firm, carve off all the browned cake, making three level cakes.
Stack the cakes together, with the ornaments lined up. Carve off more cake if needed to make straight sides. Press the cakes to make sure they stick and freeze for another hour.
Stand the cake upright, and frost. Smooth out the frosting to create the look of a box.
Roll 2 ounces of red and 2 ounces of green fondant into logs, brush one side lightly with vodka, and stick the two ropes together. Twist, flatten, and roll out. Cut into two 1 ½-inch by 15-inch pieces.
Drape one piece from front to back over the center of the cake and the other from side to side. Cut the excess fondant at the bottom edges of the cake.
Mix the remaining red fondant and green with a pinch of Tylose powder. Repeat above, cutting two 2-inch by 4-inch strips. Fold one strip over, into a loop, attaching the ends together with a bit of vodka. Roll up a small amount of paper towels and insert it into the loop. Pinch the ends and allow the loop to dry until it holds its shape. Repeat. Once dry, remove the paper towels. Cut the folded ends and stick the two loops together, forming a bow. Cut another small piece of fondant and wrap it around the center of the bow. Also cut two 5-inch long pieces for the ribbon. Attach pieces to cake using more vodka.
To serve the cake, cut across the cake to reveal the Christmas ornament hiding inside.