American Baker in Germany

 Okay, I love cake. But peanut butter and cake is actually really hard to get just right. I've tried literally dozens of recipes. This is my own version. Peanut butter can dry out a cake, it can bake it crumbly, it can make it oily. This is my very best version. I hope you love it as much as I do. Peanut Butter Cake: 1/2 cup (125g) peanut butter 1/2 cup (110mL) oil 2 cups (400g) sugar 1 tbsp vanilla extract or 3 tbsp vanilla sugar 1/2 tsp salt 1 tbsp baking powder 3 cups (375g) flour 1 cup (225mL) milk 6 egg whites Cream peanut butter and oil together with the sugar.  Mix in vanilla and baking powder. Alternate flour in 3 additions and milk in two additions.  In a separate bowl, beat egg whites to stiff peaks.  Fold into the cake batter. I will be the first to admit that this is not an easy task. However, the cake batter is very heavy without it. It's probably the single most important step to making the cake delicious. So, please, take the time to fold the light and...

 This cake was for a volleyball player's 16th birthday. The young man's mother sent me a photo of a specific volleyball they wanted. I started out making a 9-inch lemon cake and lemon Swiss meringue buttercream. I took my time frosting this cake in several layers. But eventually, I was able to get it nice and smooth. Then I rolled out some dark blue fondant and covered the cake with it. Then I pressed some texture into the top to look like a volleyball. I laid some black lines around the cake to look like a volleyball net. I painted to volleyball with black stripes and black texture on it and I replaced the name of the brand of the volleyball with the birthday boy's name: Marcel. This cake is an absolute monster. It it so large. The top looks just like the volleyball photo the mother sent me and boldly states the boy's name. Happy birthday, Marcel! Watch us make this lovely birthday cake on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/zZ8uV0bew9o Schaut zu wie wir diese s...

 I am a huge cinnamon fan. I decided to make my favorite Swiss meringue buttercream with cinnamon. Cinnamon Swiss Meringue Buttercream: 7 egg whites 2 cups (400g) sugar 2 cups (500g) butter 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 cup (4 tbsp) cinnamon Whisk egg whites with sugar in a heat-proof bowl (metal or glass).  Heat over a double boiler until sugar is no longer grainy and mixture is hot to the touch. Remove from heat.  Beat until egg whites come to stiff peaks. Mixture should be cooling to room temperature. If it's not room temperature yet, allow to cool until you can't feel any heat coming from the meringue.  Slowly add the butter a tablespoon at a time, beating between each addition.  Once all the butter has been incorporated, continue to beat until mixture comes to buttercream consistency.  Beat in salt and cinnamon. Beating in is important because cinnamon prefers to stick to fat and not water, so it will be difficult to fold in. This buttercream is just the right amou...

 This cake was as a memorial for a viewer of mine who lost her son. Anyone who has ever lost a loved one knows how devastating it can be. It helps to talk about it and to do something for that person, even if they can't be there. This is my version. I frosted an 8-inch cake dummy with vegan American buttercream. I mixed up some sky blue fondant. And covered the cake with it. Then, with darker blue, I used a fondant press mold and pressed out the letters to make the phrase "too beautiful for earth". I used a feather mold to make a whole bunch of feathers and placed them on the cake to look like angel wings. Then I made some small white stars and dispersed them around the side of the cake. This cake is supposed to give a heavenly feeling. I hope I was able to achieve that. Because those we've lost are all too beautiful for earth and we who are left behind miss them. I hope someone finds comfort in my work as well. Watch us make this touching cake on our YouTube channel ...