Flower Cake Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Grease and line the base and sides of 3 x 20cm cake tins with baking parchment. In a jug, whisk the eggs, yogurt and milk. Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl, using an electric hand whisk. When you have a light and fluffy mixture, add the flour, the liquid in the jug and the lemon zest. Mix again until smooth. Divide the cake mixture between the tins, level the surfaces and bake for 40 mins.
• Mix the lemon juice and elderflower cordial. When the cakes are cooked, poke all over the surface with a cocktail stick then spoon the lemon and elderflower syrup over the cakes. Leave to cool in the tins. Once cool, you can wrap in cling film and keep for 3 days before icing.
• To make the icing, beat the butter until smooth with an electric hand whisk. Add half the icing sugar, use a spatula to mash the mixture together (this will help to prevent an icing sugar cloud) then whisk again. Add the remaining icing sugar, cream cheese and lemon zest, mash again, then whisk again until smooth.
• Stack the cakes on a cake stand with plenty of icing between each layer. Pile most of the remaining icing on top, then use a palette knife to spread it across the top and down the sides, covering the cake in swirls (don't worry about it looking too perfect). Add the final bit of icing to the top and use it to cover any patches where the cake is poking through. Decorate with fresh flowers.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Spray bottom of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray.
• In large bowl, beat cake mix, water, oil and eggs with electric mixer on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour into pan.
• Bake 28 to 33 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Run knife around sides of pan to loosen cake. Place cooling rack upside down over cake. Turn upside down carefully so cake is on rack, and remove pan. Turn upside down onto another rack, and flip cake right side up. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
• In 2 medium bowls, place 3/4 cup each of frosting. To 1 bowl, add red food color to desired pink color; to other bowl, add blue food color to desired color. In 2 small bowls, place 1/3 cup each of frosting; add yellow and green food colors to desired colors.
• Place cake, top side up, on serving platter. Spread remaining 1 1/2 cups frosting on top and sides of cake.
• Using photo as guide, decorate as follows: Fit 1 decorating bag with large size star piping tip; fill bag with pink frosting. Pipe center of a rosette flower onto top of cake. Touch piping tip to cake to attach frosting-apply steady pressure to bag while squeezing; pipe in a tight circle to make a flower about 2 inches in diameter, tapping tip to cake to complete flower, and lift off. Continue to pipe different size rosettes and stars over top of cake with pink frosting. Next add blue frosting to same decorating bag. Continue to pipe rosettes and stars with blue frosting.
• Fit another decorating bag with medium-size star piping tip; fill with yellow frosting. Pipe different size rosettes and stars around top of cake to fill in empty spaces. Fit another decorating bag with small round piping tip, and fill with green frosting. Pipe green leaves and vines to fill in spaces.
• Store loosely covered at room temperature.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush inside of each flowerpot with oil, and line bottom with parchment paper round. Brush parchment with oil, and lightly dust with cocoa.
• Sift cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add egg and yolk, 3/4 cup warm water, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla; mix on low speed until smooth, about 1 minute.
• Divide batter among prepared pots, filling each about two-thirds full. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, rotating sheet about halfway through, until a cake tester inserted into centers comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Let cakes cool completely in the flowerpots on a wire rack.
• Frost cakes with an offset spatula; sprinkle with crushed cookies. Top with candies; "plant" 1 mint sprig in each cake.

Steps:

• Place one cupcake in the center of a large platter; arrange six cupcakes around the center cupcake. Add an outer ring of remaining cupcakes, forming a flower shape., Tint frosting as desired; generously spread over tops of cupcakes. Pipe on additional frosting to define the flower petals and center. Decorate as desired.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees with a rack in the center. Butter a 13-by-9-by-2-inch cake pan. Line bottom and long sides of cake with parchment paper, allowing at least a 1-inch overhang; set aside. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda; set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. With the mixer running, add eggs, one at a time, beating to incorporate after each addition. Beat in vanilla, and lemon juice and zest.
• With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture, alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and beating until fully incorporated.
• Pour into prepared cake pan. Bake until light golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
• Place 3 cups buttercream in a medium bowl, and 1/2 cup in each of 2 bowls. Add sunset orange and blushing pink food coloring to the medium bowl, to make peach; set aside. Add golden yellow to a bowl with 1/2 cup buttercream; place in a pastry bag fitted with a #18 Ateco tip and set aside. Tint remaining 1/2 cup buttercream bright yellow, and place in a pastry bag fitted with a #6 Ateco tip and set aside.
• To assemble: Cut out 6 four-inch rounds from cake. Split each round horizontally, creating twelve layers. Spread top of one layer with 3 tablespoons of the peach buttercream. Place a second layer on top of buttercream, pressing gently to adhere. Repeat with remaining layers, creating six filled cakes.
• To make the petals, place a 3 1/2-inch round cutter 1/2 inch in from the edge of one of the cakes, and cut; discard the cut piece. Repeat with four more cakes. Reserve one uncut cake for center of flower.
• Using an offset spatula, frost each of the cakes with 1/2 cup peach buttercream. Start from the center, and work out, making sure to push the buttercream over the sides of the cake. Smooth the buttercream.
• Place the center of the flower on a serving plate or pedestal. Coat the sides of remaining cakes with sprinkles, and place evenly around the pedestal, being sure to position the cut section of each cake against the center cake to adhere.
• Using the piping bag filled with golden buttercream, pipe two rows of small stars around the perimeter of the center of the flower. Using the piping bag filled with yellow buttercream, pipe small dots onto the center of the cake until it is completely covered.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 6-inch-round and an 8-inch-round cake pan with parchment paper; coat with cooking spray. Prepare the cake mix as directed; divide between the pans and bake 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool.
• Level the tops of the cakes with a serrated knife (save the trimmings). Halve the cakes horizontally. Working on a cake board or plate, stack the 8-inch layers, then the 6-inch layers, frosting between each layer.
• Hold a serrated knife at an angle and trim the edges of the layer cake all the way around to make an upside-down pot shape. Cover the cake with all but 1/2 cup of the remaining frosting; freeze 30 minutes.
• Sprinkle 3 tablespoons cocoa powder on a sheet of parchment; put the fondant on top, make a small well in the middle and put the food coloring in the well. Knead until the color is even.
• Dust a surface with cocoa powder; roll out the colored fondant into a 24-by-6 1/2-inch rectangle, trimming the edges to make them straight. Cut off a 24-by-1 1/4-inch strip of fondant; set aside.
• Wrap the wide piece of fondant around the cake, pressing and smoothing it with your fingers. Trim the excess with a paring knife.
• Reroll the fondant scraps and cut out a 5-inch circle; press the fondant circle on top of the cake to form the pot bottom. Invert the cake onto a board. Lightly brush the thin strip of fondant with water; attach to the top edge of the cake, allowing the strip to come slightly above the edge. Trim the ends.
• Cover the top of the cake with the remaining 1/2 cup frosting, then crumble the cake trimmings on top.
• When ready to serve, stick mint sprigs and edible flowers into the cake.