Champagne Cake with Blackberry Buttercream

CAKE:

1. Heat oven to 350°F.  Prepare three 6-inch round baking pans with baking spray with flour or grease bottom and sides with butter and lightly flour to coat; set aside. 

2. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking powder and salt; set aside. 

3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on high setting, whip shortening until glossy and smooth, about 30 seconds.  Gradually add flour mixture in 3 parts alternating with champagne or sparkling wine. Whip in eggs and vanilla. Pour batter in even portions among the 3 prepared baking pans.

4. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or a few crumbs remain. 

5. Allow cakes to rest in the pans for 5 minutes before inverting them out of the pan and onto a cooling rack.  Ensure each cake has cooled to room temperature before covering each cake separately in plastic wrap; chill in fridge before frosting.

COMPOTE:

1. In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stir in blackberries, sugar and water together until blackberries begin to swell and burst, about 2 minutes.  Lightly mash any remaining blackberries to breakdown and release its juice for another 5 minutes giving a few stirs.  Decrease heat and allow to simmer until syrup has thickened, about 5 to 7 minutes.  Remove from heat. 

2. In a small bowl run compote through a fine mesh sieve to remove any skins and large pieces; discard. Set blackberry juice to the side to cool to room temperature.  Note: the juice may firm to a jelly state which can be used for frosting.

BUTTERCREAM:

1. In a large bowl using an electric mixer, whip butter until light in color and smooth.  Gradually add 3 cups of powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, and continue to whip until each addition becomes smooth.  Add in blackberry compote and continue to add the remaining 3 cups of powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, whipping the buttercream after each addition. 

2. If a light pink color is desired, reserve 2 cups of buttercream to frost between cake layers.  Mix in black food color gel to the remaining buttercream to be used for the fault line and exterior of cake. 

ASSEMBLY:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

1. Remove cakes from fridge and using an angled spatula, frost about 1/3 cup of pink buttercream over 2 of the cakes.  Stack all three cakes leaving the unfrosted cake, on top. Gently frost the top and sides of cake. Place in fridge to allow buttercream to dry; about 30 minutes.

2. Once buttercream has dried, remove from fridge and place cake into a 9 x 13 baking pan.  Frost a thin band of the black buttercream, max 2-inches wide, around the center of the cake.  Be sure the band is not too wide. Grab a handful of sprinkles and begin coating from the bottom of the fault line band by sliding your hand in an upward motion while gently inserting the sprinkles into the frosted band.  NOTE: some sprinkles will fall into the pan; you may reuse these sprinkles. Once the entire band is covered in sprinkles, place cake in the freezer to allow sprinkles to set in place, about 15 minutes.

3. If by the slightest touch, the sprinkles do not move, the cake is ready for the final frosting.  Place cake on a turntable, using an angled spatula, frost the top and sides of the cake with remaining black buttercream.  Be sure to only overlap the top and bottom of the fault line a maximum of 1 cm to achieve the best look. Alternatively, you may fill a piping bag and frost top and sides for a more even coat.  Using a long angled spatula or bench scraper, smooth out the sides and top of the cake. Place cake in fridge to allow buttercream to dry before painting the gold rim. 

4. Once buttercream has dried, using a small food-safe flat brush, lightly dip brush in gold paint and paint the rim of the fault line.  If your cake has a raised rim at the top, you may paint this as well. Allow to dry.  

5. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, microwave 1/4 cup of chocolate in 30 second intervals, stir.  Once all chocolate is melted, spoon into a flexible silicone mold set of 2 and 0. Run a toothpick through the coated mold to remove any air bubbles.  Scrape off excess chocolate and place molds in fridge for 10 to 15 minutes to allow chocolate to harden. Gently remove chocolates from mold and repeat process one more time. 

6. Using the same flat brush, paint the front and sides of the 2’s and 0’s. NOTE: best to use tweezers to grab the molds as fingertips may cause the chocolates to melt. Once dried, gently insert into the softened buttercream on top of the cake. Toothpicks may be used to hold in place, if needed.  Slice cake and ENJOY!