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By Lyndsay // Coco Cake Land
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Teddy has been asking me to try making the viral Taylor Swift Blank Space cake – do you know this bonkers cake? It’s where you hide some sort of edible fake blood inside of a pristine white buttercream frosted heart cake, and then you proceed to stab it with a knife. YEP. Haha… I was excited that he was excited about making something together, so of course I had to do it!
So, in the Blank Space music video, Tay Tay stabs her heart cake and blood comes spurting out like a jettison. After doing some online research, the blood spray comes from a fake blood-filled BALLOON inserted into the cake, then frosted to hide it. However, I also read that the balloon gets all chopped up inside of the cake, making it pretty hard to eat with bits of balloon pieces, haha. So I wanted to try making a balloon-free zone!
Okay, warning: LOOK AT THIS GORY MESS OF A CAKE BELOW!!
It was fun to creative problem solve making this cake. Initially I thought I’d make a white chocolate sphere to hide inside the cake instead of putting a balloon in there. Then I thought – what about just a big old scooped out divot filled with “blood”? WAY EASIER! (I don’t have a microwave so melting chocolate involves saucepans and stuff.)
What you need to make this Blank Space cake!
Heart shaped cake layers: I don’t think too many folks have three identical heart-shaped cake pans. Luckily, fashioning a round cake into a heart cake is completely possible! My friend Whitney has a great Easy Heart Shaped Cake Tutorial post about cutting your round cakes into a heart shape! I also show you how to do it in the video below :)
One recipe for vanilla cake – I have a conventional recipe below, but follow one of my vegan cake recipes from Plantcakes: Fancy + Everyday Vegan Cakes for Everyone for a vegan version! (I’ll post a recipe shortly!)
One recipe for vanilla buttercream – this is my easiest recipe, and not too sweet! To make it vegan, simply replace conventional butter with unsalted plant-based butter in brick form.
Piping tips and piping bags – You’ll also need an open-star tip to pipe the shell borders, and a large open circle tip to pipe the buttercream bridge to cover the jam-filled cake hole. Additionally you’ll also need a small open circle tip to pipe your cake message! Not comfortable writing on a cake? I have a quick hack for How To Write On A Cake!
Seedless raspberry jam – I watched a lot of Blank Space cake videos to see what was poppin’ inside these cakes! Some cake makers used cherry juice or corn syrup. Upon googling edible fake blood ideas (so yucky! haha) I came across my friend Chelsey’s excellent and simple idea for Edible Fake Blood! It is a breeze to make, too, and tastes great! You can thin it out to your desired consistency, and add a bit of gel food colouring to make it extra saturated, if desired! Meet me on the other side of this video for the cake recipe and instructions!
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Easy Vanilla Cake for Blank Space Cake
By: Lyndsay // Coco Cake Land
Makes: 20
ingredients
For The Vanilla Cake
- 227 grams unsalted butter, room temperature , 1 cup, two sticks
- 375 grams granulated white sugar, 1 3/4 cup
- 4 large eggs, room temperature , approx 224 grams
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 390 grams cake flour, 3 cups
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 120 ml heavy cream, 1/2 cup
- 240 ml whole milk, 1 cup
For The Simple Vanilla Buttercream
- 454 grams unsalted butter, room temperature, 2 cups, 4 sticks – sub brick-based plant buter
- 460 grams icing sugar, 4 cups
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- pinch salt
For The Edible Fake Blood
- 125 ml Seedless raspberry jam, 1/2 cup (I used Smucker's brand)
- 1/2 tsp red gel food colouring, more as needed
- water, dilute to your preference
instructions
Make The Cake
Preheat the oven to 350 F/ 175 C. Prepare three 8×2-inch round cake pans by spritzing with vegetable oil and lining with parchment circles cut to size.
In a large bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about two minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed.
With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, until incorporated. Add the vanilla extract.
With the mixer on low speed, add one-third of the flour mixture, then half of the milk mixture. Keep alternating as you add the mixtures, finishing with the dry ingredients. Mix until incorporated, about 30 to 60 seconds – do not overmix.
Divide the batter evenly amongst the prepared cake pans. Bake until lightly golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with only moist crumbs. Let cool completely on wire racks.
Make The Buttercream
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, pulse the butter, icing sugar, vanilla and pinch of salt to combine. Once combined, beat the mixture on high speed until light and fluffy and doubled in volume, about two minutes.
Build The Cake
Using a serrated bread knife or sharp knife, carefully trim two even portions of the round cake to make a heart shape. (See my video for visuals)
Place a dab of buttercream onto a cake board or plate. Place the first cake layer down, and using the buttercream, stick the cut pieces to the round edge of the cake to form a heart shape. Don't worry if it's looking wonky, the buttercream can help spackle it all together.
Add a generous amount of buttercream to this layer, then continue with the remaining layers. Frost a crumb coat on the entire top and sides of the cake.
Using a large spoon, draw a circle where you want to cut out your divot for the fake blood to sit in.
Carve out the divot using the large spoon.
Frost the cake hole, then frost the entire rest of the cake with a second coat of buttercream and chill the entire cake for 15 minutes until firm.
Carefully spoon the jam mixture into the cake hole, but don't fill it all the way to the top so it doesn't goosh out when you're frosting the top.
Fill a piping bag fitted with a large open circle tip with the buttercream. Carefully pipe long lines across the cake hole, like you're making a buttercream bridge.
Using an offset spatula, very carefully smooth out the piped buttercream to hide the cake hole!
Fill a piping bag fitted with a small open circle tip with the buttercream. Write out your cake message! I wrote BLANK SPACE. Tip: use a toothpick to write the message first, then pipe right on top of the toothpick lines.
Fill a piping bag with a large multi-pronged open star tip, or a classic 1M tip. Pipe buttercream borders around the bottom and top edge of the cake.
STAB THE CAKE and enjoy!!!
Tag @cococakeland on Instagram or leave a star rating!
I hope this was a helpful tutorial! I know, many folks have been asking me to TRY IT WITH A BALLOON so I think I’ll attempt it, just for fun (even though I don’t love the idea of picking balloon bits out of my cake!) I’m excited to see your Blank Space cake!!! Tag me on social media if you make it, I’d love to see. Happy baking! xo Lyndsay
