This White Mountain Wedding Cake is a fusion of something old and something new. A heritage cake gets a trendy coating of Swiss Meringue Buttercream and Mirror Glaze!
The White Mountain Wedding Cake is a response to the Groom’s Cake I posted about a few weeks back. While the June Afternoon Groom’s Cake represents that looming thunderstorm amid swelling afternoon heat, while the White Mountain Wedding Cake symbolizes the morning of the wedding. You can paint the picture. Cornflowers’ periwinkle petals still lay dormant, and heat hangs low, like lazy wisps of mist.
Not that I know. I can only imagine this cake to represent some quaint well-put-together wedding in the backyard of some well-put together-family’s manicured home. Right of the pictures of a Martha Stewart decorating book.
Now back to the recipe—the cake is a classic white mountain cake. What is White Mountain Cake? The cake gets its name from it’s appearance: tall fluffy layers are supported by egg whites and baking powder. An equally pale frosting smothers the classically three layered cake.
Here I ventured off and finished this old style cake with a modern design and tastes. The neutrality of the Swiss Meringue Buttercream balances out the sweetness of the white chocolate in the Mirror Glaze.
There are many recipes out there for mirror glaze. I followed the recipe and instructions of Chef Iso . Since I didn’t have an immersion blender, I simply strained the mixture twice.
This White Mountain Wedding Cake’s monotone styling is timeless without being flat. The varying textures and balance of sweetness provide a well rounded and satisfying bite!
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- For the Something-Old White Mountain Cake:
- 3 cups cake flour
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- ¾ cup (12 tablespoons, 6 ounces) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 5 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1 ¼ cup whole milk, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- For the Cream Cheese Filling:
- ½ cup (1 stick, 4 ounces) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 pound powdered sugar, sifted
- pinch of fine sea salt
- For the Swiss Meringue Buttercream:
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons egg whites
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups (4 sticks, 1 pound) unsalted butter, room temperature and cut into cubes
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- For the White Mountain Wedding Cake:
- 1 batch Mirror Glaze
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three 8-inch cake pans with baking spray, set aside. Sift cake flour, baking powder, and salt together 3 to 4 times, set aside. In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter on medium speed until pale, white, and fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add granulated sugar and cream for an additional minute. With the mixture on medium-low, gradually add egg whites.
- Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl and paddle down. In a spouted measuring cup, whisk milk and extracts together. With the mixer speed on low add the dry-mixture in three batches alternately with the wet-mixture in two batches, mixing until the dry or liquid just disappears into the batter, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Give the batter a few folds and stirs by hand.
- Divide batter between prepared pans and bake for 25 to 28 minutes, rotating halfway. The can should start to pull away from the pans, it will not brown. A toothpick inserted will come out with a few moist, not wet, crumbs. Do not over bake this cake. After a minute rest in their pans, invert cakes onto a wire rack to coo completely.
- Put the butter and cream cheese in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat on a medium-high speed until pale in color and lump free. Add the vanilla and then scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- With the mixer’s speed on low, slowly add the powdered sugar, scraping the bowl as needed. Add a pinch of salt. Add the milk cereal, a tablespoon at a time, until the frosting becomes a sturdy to but too thin consistency. Beat again on a medium-high speed for a final 1 to 2 minutes.
- Put the egg whites in a stand mixer’s bowl laying above water simmering in a small sauce pot, creating a double boiler. The bowl should not have contact with the water below. Lightly whisk the egg whites and sugar until a thermometer reads 160 degrees F. Fit the bowl to the stand mixer.
- Using the whisk attachment, whip the egg white mixture on a medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 8 to 10 minutes. At this point the mixer’s bowl should have cooled down to room temperature. Switch the whisk to the paddle attachment.
- Turn the mixer back on, this time to a low speed. Add the butter, a few tablespoons at a time, followed by the vanilla. Once added, raise the speed to a medium-high speed and beat until silky, smooth, and lump free, about 3 to 5 minutes. Refrigerate until ready to assemble.
- Use a serrated knife to level off the cakes.
- Dollop a bit of frosting onto the cake board or plate. Place one cake layer onto the cake board and spread some of the Cream Cheese Filling onto that cake layer. Place the second cake layer onto top, spread more frosting, and top with the final cake layer. Coat cake with Swiss Meringue buttercream and freezer for 4 hours, preferably overnight. Apply mirror glaze over cake.