Red Velvet Brain Cake

I was feeling a bit festive for Halloween this year and decided to make this red velvet brain cake. The cake itself is so delicious. You will also have extra buttercream that can be stored in the freezer for up to a month. This recipe can also be found at gardengirlrecipes.com.

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Ingredients

1 tablespoon + ½ cup (113g) + 2 cups (454g) unsalted butter, at room temperature

3 tablespoons (22 grams) cocoa powder, divided

1½ cups (300g) + 1 cup (225g) + 1 3/4 cups (400g) granulated sugar

2 large eggs

8 large egg whites

3 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided

2 tablespoons (30ml) red food coloring

1 teaspoon (6g) salt

1 teaspoon (5g) baking soda

2½ cups (320g) all purpose flour, sifted

1 cup (236ml) whole buttermilk

1 tablespoon (15ml) white vinegar

1½ cup water

3½ pounds Satin Ice Buttercream Rolled Fondant

Wilton Burgundy Icing Colour

Wilton Golden Yellow Icing Colour

Wilton Black Icing Colour

Strawberry or Raspberry jam

Preheat the oven to 350F and grease 2 9-inch cake pans with the 1 tablespoon butter. Then sprinkle with 1 tablespoon (7g) of sifted cocoa powder, tapping the pans to coat.

Combine ½ cup (113g) butter and 1½ cups (300g) sugar.

Add the eggs and vanilla. Mix to incorporate.

In a separate bowl, combine the remaining 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder and the red food coloring.

Then blend into the butter mixture.

Combine the salt, baking soda, and flour.

Add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the butter mixture. Mix to incorporate.

Add the vinegar to the butter mixture. Mix until blended.

Divide batter between the 2 baking pans and bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool and store in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

Stack the 2 cakes and shape into a brain.

To make the simple syrup by boiling 1 cup (225g) sugar with 1 cup water in a saucepan until the sugar is completely dissolved. Allow the syrup to cool completely.

To make the buttercream, separate the egg whites and place them in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment.

Boil 1 3/4 cups (400g) sugar and 1/2 cup water in a saucepan over medium heat. When the sugar reaches 230F on a thermometer, start whipping the egg whites on medium high speed.

Do no over beat the egg whites. Once the sugar reaches 240F, turn the heat off and add the sugar mixture to the egg whites with the mixer running. Beat until no heat remains in the bowl. The bowl shouldn't feel warm. With the mixer still running, gradually add the butter until spreadable. Then add the vanilla extract.

Remove the cake from the refrigerator and apply simple syrup over the cake.

Apply a layer buttercream and refrigerate.

Color the fondant by mixing it with the Wilton icing colors. Mix 1 pound fondant with the Burgundy, 1 pound fondant with the Black, and 1½ pounds fondant with the Golden Yellow.

Then combine the colored fondants together to get a pale color.

Take a small piece of the colored fondant and roll it into one centimeter diameter tubes to create the wavy pattern of the human brain.

Lay the tubes onto the iced brain cake in free flowing patterns avoiding symmetry. Make sure to leave definition between the two hemispheres of your brain.

Flip the cake over, coat the bottom with some buttercream and layer with the fondant.

Use the remaining fondant to sculpt the cerebellum.

Lay the cerebellum pieces and add to the brain cake on top.

Heat some jam and the gloss the cake with it.