Snickerdoodle Cake

A cake?  Weird.

Why is this weird?  Well, if you happen to know me, then you know I hate making cakes.  Hate.

My grandma even said something when she found out I made a cake.  "I was so surprised, because I know you don't like to make them."

Couldn't be more true.  However...

I love the idea of cake.  And when I saw this cake over at Foodie with Family, I thought, "Oh my, does that look good!"

But my OCD kept telling me not to do it...Don't do this to yourself.  You know how you get when the layers aren't perfectly aligned.  You know how you start to twitch if the frosting isn't smooth.

Against my nature, I decided to go forward and wisely chose to only make a double layer.

Cutting each layer into two?  Puh-lease.  I'd end up with cake crumbs and crying in the corner of my kitchen.

Snickerdoodle Cake with Brown Sugar Buttercream
adapted from Foodie with Family

Cookie Mama's Notes:
* You will need to get things room temp!  Butter!  Eggs! Milk!  So plan ahead.
* I use Wilton Cake Release on my pans, or you can use Baker's Joy, Pam Baking Spray, or plain old butter and flour.  Make sure to tap out any extra flour though!
* I just shared this, but I bring my eggs to room temp by placing them in a bowl and adding warm water and letting them sit for a half hour or so.
* I always bake with whole milk, but that's because I demand all baked goods be the highest level of fat possible.
* Since I wasn't stressing about my cake, I eyeballed the amount of batter in each pan. You can weigh or scoop out with a measuring cup to get a perfectly even amount in each pan.
* I used an offset spatula to get the tops flat, this probably isn't necessary-you could just tap them on the counter.
* I had a lovely sugar/cinnamon shell over the top of my cakes, find a crack in the top of that shell to check the cakes for doneness, because that shell can make it hard to determine if it's done.  35 minutes was the perfect amount of time for mine.

Snickerdoodle Cake
- 1 1/2 c. all-purpsose flour
- 1 1/2 c. cake flour
- 1 Tbsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 Tbsp. cinnamon
- 1 c. unsalted butter, softened
- 1 3/4 c. sugar
- 4 eggs, room temp.
- 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 c. milk, room temp.
- 3/4 c. sugar
- 2 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven 325 degrees.  Prepare 2, 9 inch round baking pans with baking spray or butter and flour.

In a bowl, whisk flours, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.  Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  With mixer on low, add eggs one at a time, combining well after each addition.  Add vanilla.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then beat again until fluffy and creamy.

With mixer on low, add a third of flour mixture, mix until just incorporated.  Add half of the milk, stirring until just incorporated.  Repeat flour, milk, and then flour.  Stirring the batter until everything is combined, but do not over mix!

Pour, scoop, weigh or measure batter evenly into prepared pans. Tap pans on counter to make even tops.

In a bowl, combine 2 tsp. cinnamon and 3/4 c. sugar, sprinkle evenly onto top of both cakes.

Bake for 32-35 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.

Let cool on wire rack until pans cooled to touch.  On separate sheets of parchment paper, turn cakes out onto paper.  Let cool completely.

Brown Sugar Buttercream
- 2 1/4 c. unsalted butter, softened (4 1/2 sticks)
- 1 c. light brown sugar, packed
- 2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 7-8 c. powdered sugar
- 2 tsp. vanilla
- 1/2 c. half & half ( I did 1/4 c. milk, 1/4 c. heavy cream-I'm sure if you just have milk it will be okay)

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt.  Cream until light and fluffy.  Scrape down sides of bowl, and add 6 cups of powdered sugar and vanilla.  With mixer on low then to high, mix until combined and creamy-it will be thick.  On low, add your half & half, slowly increase the speed of your mixer to high and beat until fluffy.  Scrape bowl and add additional cups of powdered sugar to reach your desired consistency.  Mix until fluffy...or fluffy-ish.

To Assemble

Once cakes are cooled, find your cake stand/plate you want to have your cake on.  Line the edges of plate with wax or parchment paper.

The first layer you want the cake to be cinnamon/sugar side up.  Add a nice mound of buttercream and use an offset spatula to move it evenly around cake.  You will get sugar/cinnamon crumbs in the frosting. This is your crumb coat.  Let it sit until frosting starts to "set"/harden.  Go back and add more buttercream,  making sure to get a nice amount on the top, as this will be the filling.

Add your second layer, this time sugar/cinnamon side down.  Repeat with a crumb coat.  Sit, and then finish with the remaining buttercream.

Remove wax/parchment paper, and you'll have a clean plate!  Yay!

And if it's not perfect, that's OKAY.  You can say it's "rustic" and it actually adds charm and character.  Sometimes I actually think "messy" frosting makes a cake look more delicious.  Dive in!