Happy Birthday, Daddy-o!

E and I are now both officially in our mid thirties. I know. That isn't old. But just saying "mid thirties" feels older. Like maybe I should stop saying "totes" and give away all of my mini skirts.

Not like anyone who bakes and eats cake like this has any right to be wearing mini skirts anyway. This delicious monstrosity is a straight to the hips, thighs, and butt cheeks delight. It was that goooood.

Jude is pretty adorable (just look at the grin!), but he's also pretty darn sweet. When we started talking about E's birthday, he said he wanted to bake a cake.

"What kind?" I asked.

"Cereal and Milk Cake. With bananas!"

Hmm. Ok, kiddo. At least he didn't say, "with sardines."

I did a little thinking and decided we would bake a roasted banana layer cake and make some Momofuku cereal milk for the frosting. It still needed something extra to put it into special birthday terrotory though. The next morning Jude asked E what his favorite cereal was when he was a kid. Cocoa Pebbles and Lucky Charms. Ick. In our house growing up, Honey Nut Cheerios were a big treat.

Jude took his first trip down the sugary cereal aisle of the
grocery store that afternoon, and he was astounded.
He had no idea what anything was. I had to answer way too many questions about cartoon Tigers and Vampires for
one day. He was so excited about the Lucky Charms
marshmallows that he could hardly keep still in the cart.
That box we wrapped up for E's birthday breakfast, but the Cocoa Pebbles were the perfect last detail for the cake.
It was crunchy and crumbly on the outside and gooey and sweet inside. The best birthday cake ever, and it was all the boy's idea.

Roasted Banana Birthday Cake with Cereal Milk Buttercream


For the Cereal Milk (from Momofuku Milk Bar)
Ingredients:
2 3/4 c. cornflakes
33/4 c. cold milk
2 Tbls. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. kosher salt

Preparation: 
Heat oven to 300 degrees. Spread cornflakes on a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer. Bake 15 minutes until toasted. Cool completely.
Pour cooled cornflakes into a large pitcher. Pour milk over and stir well. Allow to soak at room temperature for 20 minutes.
Strain through a fine seive, whisk in brown sugar and salt.

For the Buttercream:
1/4 cup cereal milk
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 c. vegetable shortening
1 lb. powdered sugar

Preparation:
In a large bowl, beat butter and shortening until fluffy. Add 1 cup of sugar and 2 Tbls. of cereal milk and beat again, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Add another cup of sugar and 2 Tbls or cereal milk and beat. Continue these additions until the buttercream reaches the desired consistency, you may not use all of the milk or sugar! I like it a bit stiff, so I use almost all of it:)

For the Cake:
2 ripe bananas
2 1/4 c. all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 1/2 c. raw sugar
1/2 c. buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1/2 c. vegetable oil (or coconut oil)
Extra Cereal Milk
2-3 c.Cocoa Pebbles

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place whole bananas on a baking sheet and roast until blackened, 15-20 minutes. Peel and cool.

Reduce oven heat to 350. Grease two 9 inch round cake pans. Sift flour, salt, soda, and powder into a medium bowl. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add bananas, oil, extract, and beat until just combined. Add eggs one at a time, beating between additions. Add 1/3 flour mixture and mix until just combined, then mix in 1/2 buttermilk. Continue mixing and add next 1/3 of flour mixture, the rest of the buttermilk, then the rest of the flour mixture. Pour evenly into pans and bake 20-30 minutes or until golden. Tester should come out with crumbs stuck to it and cake should not be dry. Let cool 5 minutes in the pans and then turn onto a rack to cool completely.

Place each cooled cake layer onto a rimmed dish. Pour half of the remaining cereal milk over each cake layer and refrigerate for an hour.

To assemble, fold 1/2 cup of Cocoa Pebbles into 1/2 c. room temperature buttercream. Place one of the chilled cake layers onto a plate. Spread buttercream mixture over this layer and top with second layer. If the cake is too soft to lift, stick it in the freezer for half an hour before continuing! Spread a thin crumb coat of room temperature buttercream over the cake and return to the fridge for half an hour. Frost with remaining buttercream and cover sides with remaining Cocoa Pebbles.