ediblesf.com | 19 Pour the cake batter into the pan, and fold any leaf edges over the top of the cake. Add extra leaves, if desired, to the top of the cake. Bake according to the recipe. Let it cool before running a butter knife along the edges of the pan, being gentle enough not to rip the leaves. Turn out onto a wire rack and serve or frost once cooled. To make the fig leaf oil: Wash the fig leaves and dry them completely. This is important so it doesn’t splatter in the oil. Place the fig leaves in the oil in a small saucepan over low heat, and stir occasionally for ~30 minutes. Take the pan off the heat, steeping the leaves in the oil for a couple of hours before use. For a deeper infusion, blend the cooled oil with the leaves, and strain with a cheesecloth or fine-mesh sieve. Fold the oil into buttercream, or use it over sweet or savory dishes. To make the fruit scrap syrup: Put everything in a small saucepan and place it over a low heat. Bring to a simmer, and then let steep with a lid on for ~30 minutes. Strain the fruit scraps out, and use or store when cooled down. This syrup can be used for sweetening jams, creams, teas, cocktails, etc. To make the infused custard: Put everything in a small saucepan and place over a low heat. Bring to a gentle simmer, and then keep the pan on low for 30 minutes. Turn off the heat, and let steep with a lid on for another 30 minutes, or until the milk is cold. Strain out the solids, and then pour into a heat-proof bowl. Add in egg yolks (reserve the egg whites for omelets, meringues, etc.), sugar, vanilla extract, and whisk together. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, whisking constantly to avoid scrambling the eggs, for about 10-15 minutes. To make the caramel cereal crisp: Crush up the cereal into smaller pieces. Add the salt, sugar, and milk powder if using, and toss together. Add the melted butter and toss to coat — creating clusters. Bake in a 275-degree oven on a baking tray for ~20 minutes. This can be used as a layer in a stacked cake, mixed into cookie dough, brownies, on top of ice cream, etc. To make the roasted fruit filling: Heat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the fruit on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, and bake for 20-30 minutes, depending on the firmness of your fruit. Once slightly cooled, blend the fruit in a food processor or blender. Taste and adjust for sweetness, using a sweetener like the aforementioned fruit scrap syrup. To assemble the cake: Some steps are optional, depending on what elements you’ve created. Cut your cake horizontally, placing your palm on the top of the cake to steadily guide the knife and create even layers. Soak the cake layer evenly with a tablespoon of liquid (strawberry top syrup, fig leaf-infused milk, etc.). With a palette knife, spread a thin layer of buttercream on the cake, making sure to get to the edges. Drawing a small circle around the center of the cake, use the palette knife to make a round-shaped indentation, hollowing out excess buttercream to make room for the filling. Spoon in your fruit filling, whether roasted from pantry remnants or storebought. Gently place the other sliced cake layer on top, then run a small amount of buttercream along the sides, sealing the two layers together. Pop the “crumb-coated” cake into the freezer for 5 minutes to firm up, and then add another layer of buttercream to the exterior after, returning to the freezer again. To decorate with excess, fill a piping bag fitted with a stylized tip (I use a leaf-tip most frequently) with buttercream, colored with natural powders (turmeric, beet powder, spirulina) or spring for the last bottle of Red40 haunting grocery shelves. Gently squeeze the top of the bag with one hand, using the other to guide the piping tip. For tiered cakes, I like to run the bag from the top to the bottom, encasing the cake in a gentle cage. If I have excess filling, I like to drip it down the sides of the cake, collecting pools to add extra sour or sweet punches to the cake. For florals, I opt for ones that will expand past the cake’s frosted boundaries—check in with your florist about which blooms are cake-safe, and always wrap the stems. 3 1 Cake artist Francesca Soo 2 Soo's custom fig tree leaf cake 3 Frosting close-up
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTcxMjMwNg==