Almond Cake with Almond Buttercream

I’ll take any excuse to bake, including my own birthday. Last year my fiance bought me a delicious chocolate ice cream cake from Dairy Queen (that fudge is sooo good!), but this year I wanted to make one from scratch and test out the popular naked cake. I knew that I wanted a light-colored cake with pink frosting, so this almond cake with almond buttercream was the perfect combination.

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I used this almond cake recipe from my favorite food blog, My Name is Yeh. Molly’s pictures are beautiful and I love her recipes made with unique ingredients. For this cake she used three six-inch pans, but since I used nine-inch pans I decided to double the recipe. It was moist, fluffy and flavorful! Definitely would make it again. She also include how to make the frosting, but I used my go-to buttercream recipe flavored with almond extract and colored pink. It looks and tastes like one of those “pink cookies” from coffee shops or bakeries that I loved as a kid (and still do).

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For the cake topper, I spray painted some candles that my mom (aka the birthday fairy) mailed to me with my present. They were originally a bright pink, but I gave them some shine with a single coat of gold leaf spray paint. Just make sure to cover the wick with tape before painting!

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Almond Cake with Almond Buttercream

Ingredients:

How to:

  1. Bake almond cake according to recipe, then let cool completely.
  2. In the large bowl of a standing mixer, beat the butter until creamy. Mix in the almond extract.
  3. Gradually add confectioner’s sugar (1 cup at a time) mixing on medium speed. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl each time you add a cup to make sure it is evenly incorporated. Once all of the sugar is added, the mixture will appear dry.
  4. Gradually add milk, beating on medium speed, until desired consistency is reached. It should now be light and fluffy. Add more if the buttercream is too dry, or add more confectioners sugar if it is not thick enough.
  5. Add a small drop of icing color. A little goes a long way, so start small and work your way up to prevent it from being to dark/bright.
  6. Set one layer of cake on plate or cake stand, then top with buttercream. Repeat, decorate and enjoy!

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Here is how to make the pink and gold tassel garland shown in the above pictures.