Red Mirror Cakes for Red Cross Month

Photo Credit: Earthables

I am really excited to work on our supposedly last dessert before the project ends. Taking inspiration from Rosanna Pansino, a Youtuber who displays creative baking creations on her channel, Zhou and I are planning to make mini “mirror” cakes for the class. Mirror cakes are cakes that have a very shiny glaze on them, giving it a reflective appearance. With our idea of Red Cross Month, we have decided to make approximately 30 mini cakes using three flavors: vanilla with half of the cakes with no filling and the other half with nutella, and strawberry with a nutella filling. First, we will gather our ingredients: a large baking tray, mixes for the two flavors (vanilla and strawberry), ingredients required to make the three cakes (most likely water, oil, and eggs), red gel food coloring, parchment paper, nutella, vanilla frosting, large plastic bags (to use as for piping), a round cookie cutter, white chocolate, sugar, cold water, light corn syrup, sweetened condensed milk, powdered gelatin, an icing spatula, a whisk, and cupcake tins (large enough to hold the cakes). Then, we will prepare and bake our cakes, dying all of them red before leveling off the top and dividing the cakes in half. Afterwards, we will assemble our cakes by placing the fillings in each layer before covering the whole cakes in red-dyed frosting and smoothing it out using a big off-set spatula. Once completely frosted, they must be placed in the fridge to set for two hours. Then Zhou and I will begin the process of making the glaze. Blooming the 5 teaspoons of powdered gelatin is the first step. We will add ½ to cold water to the gelatin and stir it together before setting it off the side to allow it to bloom for approximately 5 to 10 minutes. Then in a saucepan, ¼ cup of water, 1 cup sugar, and ½ cup light corn syrup will be combined using a whisk and placed on the stove top for 7 to 8 minutes to dissolve all the sugar. While the sauce is still hot, the gelatin must be added whisked, as well as the sweetened condensed milk. Once the mixture is melted, the chocolate will be added to the sugary syrup to soften and melt the 8 ounces of white chocolate. After the chocolate is completely melted, Zhou and I will split the mixture into different bowls (each bowl per color) before adding quantities of food coloring and mixing them in. To begin the process of glazing, the first cake must be placed on top of something in order to allow the glaze to drip off onto the parchment paper-lined baking sheet. We will carefully pour the colors on top of the cake and allow it drip all over the sides. Then, if we are going to use multiple colors, we can use the spatula to gently brush out the top and evenly blend in the colors. Once all the cakes are done, we need them to sit for around 20 minutes to set. Then they are done! Zhou and I need to be super careful when handling them and transferring the cakes to school, as they are very sticky. Another thing to remember is if the glazes are too cold, we can place them into the microwave to heat up for about 20-30 seconds. Best of luck to us!