Pascale's Kitchen: Colorful birthday treats

During these difficult days of war, none of us feels like preparing special foods. 

However, I received several requests from readers whose children had birthdays coming up, and they were struggling to find a recipe for a proper birthday cake they could prepare, since like the rest of us, they are having a hard time concentrating on much of anything.

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Even though none of us feels very much like celebrating these days, we must push ourselves and maintain a certain amount of normalcy so that our children can still feel special for a few hours. 

For me, and I’m sure many children will agree with me, chocolate cake is the ultimate birthday treat. Of course, there are innumerable chocolate cake recipes, but I do have two favorite ones, both of which call for luscious chocolate icing and colorful sprinkles.

Happy birthday to all of the precious children, and may we all experience quiet days ahead.

Light and fluffy chocolate cake

Use a 24 cm. or 26 cm.-diameter pan.

• 4 large eggs
• ½ - ¾ cup sugar
• ¾ cup oil
• ¾ cup sweet whipping cream from a 250-ml. container
• 1 tsp. rum
• 1 tsp. chocolate liqueur or high-quality vanilla
• 1 packet baking powder
• 1 cup flour, sifted
• 1 cup chocolate milk powder, sifted
• Oil or butter spray 
• Flour to cover work surface

Icing:

• Leftover whipping cream from the 250-ml. container
• 1-2 tsp. milk
• 200 gr. milk chocolate or a combination of milk and bittersweet chocolate

Topping:

• Colored sprinkles

Add the eggs to the bowl of an electric mixer. Mix at medium speed with the balloon whisk attachment. While mixing, slowly add the sugar and keep mixing until the mixture is light and fluffy. While mixing, slowly add the oil, whipping cream, rum, and chocolate liqueur or vanilla. Keep mixing until the mixture is smooth.

In a separate bowl, mix the baking powder together with the flour and the chocolate milk powder. While mixing the egg mixture slowly, gradually add the dry mixture slowly into the egg mixture. Mix until smooth.

Grease your pan with the oil spray, making sure to cover all the crevices. Sprinkle a little flour on the pan, then shake the pan so that the flour covers all of the pan. Pour the batter into the pan. 

Bake the cake in an oven that has been preheated to 160° for 25 minutes. Don’t overbake the cake so it doesn’t get too dry. 

Remove the cake and let it cool completely. Later, remove the cake from the pan and turn it upside down on a wire rack.

To prepare the icing: Pour the rest of the sweet whipping cream into a glass bowl, then add the milk and the chocolate. Melt the chocolate in the bowl, a few seconds at a time, in the microwave. Take the bowl out and stir the chocolate until it is smooth. Cover the entire cake with the icing, then add the sprinkles. 

• Level of difficulty: Easy
• Time: 1 hour
• Status: Dairy

Pascale’s favorite chocolate cake

Use a large rectangular pan.

• 5 eggs, separated
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 packets vanilla sugar
• ½ cup oil
• 1 cup flour, sifted
• 6 Tbsp. cocoa powder, sifted
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 packet baking powder
• ¾ cup water

Icing:

• 50 gr. butter, cut into pieces
• 4 Tbsp. sugar
• 4 Tbsp. cocoa powder, sifted
• 2 Tbsp. water
• 1 Tbsp. brandy
• 1 tsp. rum

Topping:

• 4-6 types of colorful candies

Whip the egg yolks with an electric mixer on high speed, then gradually add half of the sugar while mixing, until the egg mixture is light and fluffy. Add the vanilla sugar and the oil and continue mixing on low speed. 

While mixing, gradually add the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and water. Mix well, then transfer to a separate bowl. 

In a clean mixer bowl, whip the egg whites at high speed. When the egg whites begin to expand, slowly and gradually add the rest of the sugar and keep mixing until stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites, gently and slowly, into the egg yolk mixture. 

Pour the batter into a greased pan, then bake it for 30-35 minutes in an oven that has been preheated to 180° – until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out dry and clean.

To prepare the icing: 

Add all the icing ingredients to a small pot and heat over medium heat. Stir continuously until the icing is smooth. 

Ice the cake while it’s still warm. Let it cool a bit, then cut it into 5 cm. x 5 cm. squares and add the colored candies on top of each square.

• Level of difficulty: Medium
• Time: 1.5 hours
• Status: Dairy or parve

Translated by Hannah Hochner.