Hello friends! This week’s issue is a bit different. (If you’re new around here, you can scroll through the archive to get a feel for what a more typical issue looks like.)
This issue is a direct response from a couple of reader questions about mixing and matching cake and frosting flavors. Their questions made me think that a mix and max chart might be useful for all of the bakers out there, so that’s what you’ll see here: 20 different kinds of cake and a list of the different frosting options that you might pair with them.
If baking isn’t your thing, next week’s issue will have it’s normal smorgasbord of new recipes, stories, and photos. Even better, pass this issue along to a baker friend and ask them to bake you a cake. 😋
Before then, I have a couple of questions for those of you who are willing to answer. This newsletter is 6 months old and I’d love some honest feedback about what you like, what you’re not crazy about, and what you’d like to see in future issues.
It is very important to me that this newsletter include the kind of content you find valuable and relevant. So, thank you, thank you in advance for any feedback you are willing to offer. ❤️
Ok. Let’s talk cake.
Mix and match cake and frosting combos
Under the chart you’ll find links to each and every cake and frosting recipe along with some additional notes about many of the cakes in this list.
Cake recipes
Brown Butter Cake. I created the recipe for maple miso brown butter frosting specifically for this cake but honestly, there are few flavors of frosting that wouldn’t be delicious on this buttery, toasty, soft, and creamy cake.
Orange Poppy Seed Cake. I initially paired this cake with mascarpone frosting, but if you’re a fan of chocolate and orange combos, try it with milk chocolate buttercream or dark chocolate ganache.
Orange Olive Oil Cake. Just as with orange poppy seed cake, I love this covered in mascarpone frosting. But white chocolate ganache is a very close second and, of course, all the same things about orange and chocolate apply to this cake.
Chocolate Truffle Cake. I created this cake for serious chocolate lovers, but strip away the milk chocolate buttercream, dark chocolate ganache, and chocolate truffles and what you have is a really good chocolate cake that can be frosted with anything you like. For something different from your typical chocolate cake, try it with maple miso brown butter frosting or raspberry cream cheese buttercream.
Chocolate Almond Cake. This is one of those incredibly moist cakes that is perfectly delicious all on it’s own, no frosting required. Even still, I love it with chocolate orange buttercream, and a drizzle of simple vanilla icing or spoonfuls of chocolate ganache are a quick, simple way to dress it up. Also try this cake with vanilla ice cream and hot fudge. So good!
White Forest Cake. Ok. So, the whipped white chocolate ganache buttercream and cherry filling are what makes this cake a white forest cake. BUT, the soft and buttery white chocolate cake is a blank canvas, ready and waiting to be transformed into anything you can dream up.
Carrot Cake. I’m a sucker for carrot cake with cream cheese buttercream and a generous drizzle of caramel rum sauce (who isn’t???). BUT, I recently smeared slices of carrot cake with maple miso brown butter frosting and be still my beating heart it was SO good.
Lemon Layer Cake. While I’m partial to slathering this 8-layer cake with blackberry Italian meringue buttercream, mascarpone frosting and white chocolate ganache buttercream are also perfect for this lemony cake.
Banana Cream Cake. If you are a chocolate and banana fan, swap out the cream cheese buttercream for milk chocolate or classic chocolate buttercream and get ready to swoon.
Pistachio Cardamom Cake. This is one of the easiest cakes to make and one of the most unique. The cake includes a simple bottom crust that provides a gorgeous contrast to the rich pistachio cake. I usually cover this cake in cream cheese buttercream but all of the other options in the chart above are delicious.
Devil’s Food Cake. As with the chocolate truffle cake, this is a really good chocolate cake that’s a blank canvas for an endless number of delicious combinations.
Spice Cake. Even though it’s not very traditional, I love covering this cake in a thick layer of chocolate buttercream. But, the combo of spice cake and cream cheese buttercream is hard to beat and, as with most of the other cakes in this list, maple miso brown butter frosting is also a slam dunk.
Chocolate Spice Cake. As we have already established, I’m a huge fan of combining chocolate with the warm spices of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves. As you’ll see in the recipe, I’ve made this cake as a two layer cake frosted with chocolate orange buttercream, as a sheet cake covered in maple miso brown butter frosting, and as cupcakes topped with a generous swirl of cream cheese buttercream. Don’t even think of asking me to choose a favorite.
Apple Cider Cake. The recipe for this cake includes apple cider buttercream which is then covered in chocolate ganache. Just as with chocolate covered caramel apples, the combination of tart apples and rich chocolate is dreamy. But, the beauty of apples is that they go so well with so many other flavors,
Funfetti Cake. I’m a sucker for frosting funfetti cake with classic American buttercream, but there’s no reason to not get more creative with this fun, buttery, vanilla cake.
Vanilla Cake and Gluten Free Vanilla Cake. If you're looking for a go-to cake recipe for any and every occasion under the sun, these two recipes are it.
Red Velvet Cake. I know red velvet cake and cream cheese buttercream is the gold standard, but I gotta tell you that there are plenty of other delicious options for this rich and buttery cake.
Yellow Cake. This is another go-to cake recipe that’s perfectly paired with any kind of chocolate frosting but is also delicious with several non-chocolate buttercream options.
Champagne Cake. This cake was created to go with Italian meringue buttercream flavored with champagne, but it’s also incredible covered in raspberry cream cheese buttercream.
Caramel Cake and Gluten Free Caramel Cake. Caramel cake usually deserves caramel frosting, but try it with any chocolate frosting or maple miso brown butter frosting and you will not be disappointed.
Frosting Recipes
To scroll through more cake recipes, including bundt cakes, cupcakes, pound cakes, loaf cakes, and coffee cakes —> Cake Recipes
Thanks for reading, friends!
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See you next week!
You know I’m not a sweets person, but I loved reading through the whole thing. Some people need permission to mix and match along with the parameters that are known to work. You did just that! And the photos are gorgeous, as always. 🩵