This is a cake and a present wrapped up in one – when you cut into it, you get a cascade of colorful candies! And an avalanche of alliteration. #55: Hidden Gem Cake

Do any of you remember that riddle from the Hobbit? ‘A box without hinges, a key or a lid, but golden treasure inside is hid.’ If you sort through all your candies and just select the yellow gold ones, this cake could be an answer! But if that’s too much effort, we can stick with Gollum’s original answer: eggs.

This cake can be as grand or as simple as you want. I leaned farther towards the simple side this week, but next time I’m going in the opposite direction: multiple layers, in possibly neon shades, ombre frosting and who knows what candy surprise inside! For now, it’s a red velvet cake from All Cakes Considered (by Melissa Gray) with decadent cream cheese frosting, filled with a colorful waterfall of candied sunflower seeds.

I had mis en place, I promise. Just forgot to take a pic for photo evidence.

 

Here are the gems! They’re chocolate covered sunflower seeds. YUM. If you’ve never tried them, get thee to Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods or wherever you get fancy pants candy and buy yourself a tub of them. Warning: you might eat handfuls at a time. They are that delish.

 

It looks like cookie dough more than cake batter!

 

Pretend this is red. In order to make red velvet cake, you’re supposed to add an insane amount of food dye. Since I used a darker dutch-process cocoa powder in this cake, it was a doomed to be more magenta from the get-go.

 

Breaking out the mini pans again! They’re turning into my favorite cake pans. Spring release is like the elastic waistband of the kitchen utensils – very forgiving.

 

Time to make the frosting: cream cheese, butter, vanilla and plenty of sifted powdered sugar. The sifting took longer than I’d like, but nobody likes lumpy frosting!

 

I used a small circle cookie cutter to create the doughnut shape. The doughnut holes are perfect for cake pops!

 

Hiding the treasure. Poof, gone.

 

All dressed up and ready for the big moment.

 

Happy munching!

 

Cake recipe from: All Cakes Considered, by Melissa Gray