French Toast Cake

Birthdays are an excuse for me to try some of the many cakes and desserts that have caught my eye, like this one from Confessions of a Cookbook Queen. I made this and a TimTam cake from Raspberri Cupcakes for my mother and brother's birthday celebrations, along with Father's Day. Although the TimTam cake was good, it didn't wow me like I had expected.

This, on the other hand, lived up to my expectations for it. It tastes like breakfast, in cake form. It is incredibly sweet but wonderful. My cakes turned out a bit dry, so be careful not to overbake like I did.

No pictures due to the celebrations and devouring. Check out the original blog on Confessions of a Cookbook Queen for pretty pictures.

French Toast Cake
Cake
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 sticks salted butter, slightly softened
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup milk
Frosting
1 cup salted butter, slightly softened
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 tsp. maple extract
4 cups powdered sugar
drop of yellow food color
Ganache
1/2 cup cinnamon chips
1/4 cup heavy cream
3 Tbsp. maple cream

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Butter and flour two (8-inch) cake pans, and set aside. In a small bowl, stir together brown sugar and cinnamon. In a large bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and cinnamon.

Beat butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Add vanilla.

With the mixer on medium low, add flour and milk alternately, starting and ending with flour mixture and scraping the bowl as needed. Pour about 1/4 of the batter in each pan. Divide cinnamon/brown sugar mixture between the two cakes, sprinkling evenly over the batter and then topping with the remaining batter. Bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Remove cakes from oven, and let cool in pans for about 10 minutes. Carefully remove from pans,  and finish cooling on a wire rack.

To make the frosting, beat butter, maple extract and heavy cream on medium low speed until smooth. With the mixer on low, slowly add powdered sugar, and beat on low until just barely mixed. Increase speed to high, and beat for one minute, until fluffy and smooth. Set aside a couple spoonfuls of frosting. Color the small amount of reserved frosting with a drop of yellow food coloring, and place in the refrigerator.

Place one cake top side down on a plate, and cover with frosting. Place the other cake on top, and frost entire cake. Chill for about 30 minutes before pouring ganache over the top, so it doesn't melt the frosting.

To make the ganache, heat cinnamon chips and cream in the microwave, stopping to stir every 15 seconds until smooth. Add maple cream, and stir until combined. Let sit until thickened and slightly cooled.

Pour ganache over chilled frosted, cake, spreading to the edges so it can drip down. Using a small cookie scoop, scoop chilled yellow frosting, so it looks like butter, and place it in the center of the cake.