Eloise and the OMBRE Cake

It happened.  It finally happened.  My good friend Kate requested this beautiful pink-shaded rosette cake for her daughter Eloise's 1st birthday.  I later discovered that this cake was referred to as a type of "Ombre" cake, named after a style of hair.  Anyway, I was SO excited to do this cake!

For the amount of people that she was hosting for the party, I recommended a 10-inch cake and 24 cupcakes.  She wanted a yellow cake and chocolate cupcakes and that was perfect for the coloring I had to do!

So I started out with yellow cake batter.  I used Martha Stewart's recipe and it was absolutely delicious, tender and moist.  I started with the darker colors first and finished with the lightest.  I split each batch of batter (I had to make two) into two pans.  They didn't bake as long and they made smaller layers, but there's no waste; no dome to cut off.  

After I finished with the four shades of pink cake (only two are shown), I stacked and crumb-coated the cake using the most delicious buttercream frosting I've ever had.  No shortening.  Pure butter.  And no confectioners sugar either!  It called for granulated sugar.  It was amazing...oh so creamy.  Not gritty AT ALL!  LOVE this stuff!!!

I stacked them starting with the darkest color on the bottom, working up to the plain yellow cake on top. 

Then I decorated the outside of the cake using Wilton tip 1M.  I made rosettes in each of the shades of pink to correspond to the shades inside the cake.  .

Then I also made some chocolate cupcakes and used the different shades of pink buttercream to decorate them as well.  Also with tip 1M.

Here's the cake and cupcakes at their destination....

 And here's the beautiful little birthday girl!

And here's what the cake looked like on the inside!

Happy 1st Birthday, Eloise!  I KNOW you enjoyed that cupcake!!!

Thanks for inviting me to your party!  I loved being a part of your special day!!