Winter Snow Cake Recipes

MAMA'S SNOW CAKE

Steps:

• In a bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks and extracts; beat well. Combine flour, baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add to creamed mixture alternately with milk. Add coconut and orange zest. In a small bowl, beat egg whites with remaining salt until stiff peaks form; gently fold into batter. Pour into three greased 9-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (if wood burning stove is used, start peeking after 25 minutes). Cool in pans for 10 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. , For icing, combine sugar, egg whites, water and corn syrup in a heavy saucepan or double boiler. With a portable mixer, beat on low for 1 minute. Continue beating on low speed over low heat until frosting reaches 160°, about 8-10 minutes. Pour into a bowl; add vanilla. Beat on high until stiff peaks form, about 7 minutes. Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread with frosting and sprinkle with coconut. Repeat. Top with last layer. Frost top and sides of cake; sprinkle with coconut.

WINTER SNOW CAKE

Steps:

• Cream shortening and sugar. Add vanilla. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
• Beat often each addition. Go outside and get in snow; fold in snow.
• Bake in greased and floured 8 inch square pan, at 350°F for 30 minutes or until pick inserted in center comes out clean.
• Cool in pan.
• Frost with favorite icing.

SNOWBALLS II

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Cream the butter with 1/2 cup of the confectioners' sugar and the vanilla. Mix in the flour, pecans, and salt. Roll about 1 tablespoon or so of dough into balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.
• Bake in preheated oven until bottoms are golden, about 15 minutes. Do not allow these cookies to get too brown: it's better to undercook them than to overcook them. While cookies are still hot, roll them in confectioners' sugar. Once they have cooled, roll them in confectioners' sugar once more.

WINTER WONDERLAND CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Butter and line three 18cm (or two 20cm) cake tins. Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, beating them in one at a time. Fold in the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt, then fold in the crème fraîche and chocolate and 100ml boiling water.
• Divide the cake mixture between the tins and level the tops of the batter. Bake for 25-30 mins or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Leave to cool for 10 mins in the tin, then tip out onto a cooling rack and peel off the parchment. Set aside to cool completely.
• To make the angel frosting, put the sugar, vanilla and liquid glucose in a pan with 125ml water. Bring to the boil and cook until the sugar has melted - the syrup turns clear and the mixture hits 130C on a sugar thermometer (be very careful with hot sugar). Take off the heat. Meanwhile, beat the egg whites until stiff then, while still beating, gradually pour in the hot sugar syrup in a steady stream. Keep beating until the mixture is fluffy and thick enough to spread - this might take a few mins as the mixture cools. Beat in the icing sugar.
• Spread two of the sponges with jam and some of the icing mixture, then sandwich the cakes together with the plain one on top. Use a little of the frosting to ice the whole cake (don't worry about crumbs at this stage). Use the remaining icing to ice the cake again, smoothing the side, and swirling it on top. Crush four of the candy canes and sprinkle over the cake, then add the remaining whole candy canes, meringues and sweets.