pancake cake

most children’s books depict pancakes in stacks of ten or more, drenched in maple syrup and topped with fat pats of butter. it’s such an unrealistic image. even ihop’s silver dollar stacks fail to meet the standard; lacking in both diameter and height, they only come in piles five high.

this cake is how real pancakes SHOULD look: wide, golden brown, and in a huge stack of twenty-five. the cake is vanilla, filled with blueberry jam and maple buttercream. i wrapped strips of white fondant around it to create the illusion of thin layers, painting each with food coloring to make it look like they’d hit the skillet.

here’s a low-quality gif of the process:

i made this for a (super cute!!!) boy i babysit’s third birthday! happy birthday simon!

also, i could not have made this cake without the instruction of yolanda gampp’s amazing youtube video! thank you yolanda!

cake

• two 6 lb portions of vanilla cake, baked in six 9-inch round cake pans

filling

• meringue buttercream
• 10 oz jar blueberry jam

decoration

• 6 lbs white fondant
• ivory food coloring
• buttercup yellow food coloring
• clear alcohol or lemon extract
• maple syrup
• corn syrup

fill a piping bag (fitted with a circular tip) with some buttercream. set aside. cut the rounded tops off the [cooled] cakes using a serrated knife and a ruler. i leveled mine at one inch high. place one layer on a 9-inch cardboard cake board and use an offset spatula to spread on some of the remaining buttercream, then use the piping bag to pipe a border around the top of the layer’s perimeter (this prevents the jam from leaking out). fill with a fifth of the jar of jam. repeat with the next four layers, and top with the fifth. use a bench scraper and a large offset spatula to crumb coat the entire cake with a thin layer of buttercream, then chill in the fridge or freezer for an hour. cover with another layer of frosting. freeze until ready to decorate (can be done up to two weeks ahead).

place the cake (still on the 9-inch board) onto a 12-inch cardboard cake board. take a bit of fondant and roll it into a snake. on a piece of wax paper, roll out the snake with a rolling pin until it’s very long and about three inches wide. using a pizza cutter, cut the strip in half the long way, making the two halves uneven (one should be thicker than the other). wrap one strip around the base of the cake (cut-side in). trim it in the back so the two ends meet and press them together. dip a paintbrush in a shot of the alcohol or extract, then dip it in the food coloring. paint the top of the fondant (use the picture for reference). since lots more layers will be piled on top, you really only have to paint the outer bit. you can experiment with the ratio of alcohol/extract to food coloring to achieve your desired color. repeat this process until you reach the top of the cake. it will take a while. roll out a large circle of fondant and place it on the top. paint it.

for the butter, add a tiny bit of yellow food coloring to some fondant and roll it out into a thick circle. cut it into squares and place on top.

to serve, mix some maple syrup with corn syrup (to thicken it) and pour over the top.