CHERRY BLOSSOM CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cut a 9-inch round of parchment or waxed paper to line the bottom of a 9-inch (2-inch deep) round cake pan. Butter and line pan. Butter lining, then flour pan, tapping out excess.
• Make the cake: Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside. Put butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; cream on medium-high speed until pale, 2 to 3 minutes. On medium speed, add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add vanilla, and mix, scraping down sides of bowl. On low speed, add the flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with two batches of milk. Stir batter with a rubber spatula until evenly blended.
• Pour batter into prepared pan, and smooth top with a small offset spatula. Tap pan on work surface several times to release air pockets.
• Bake until a cake tester inserted into center comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack, 20 minutes. Run a knife around edge of cake to loosen. Invert cake to remove from pan, and peel off parchment. Re-invert, and let cool completely on rack. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to decorate.
• Make the buttercream frosting: Whisk sugar and egg whites in a large heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water until sugar is dissolved and mixture registers 140°F on an instant-read thermometer, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Fit an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, and beat the egg white mixture on high speed until it holds stiff (but not dry) peaks and mixture is fluffy and cooled, about 10 minutes.
• Reduce speed to medium-low, and add butter several tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition (meringue will deflate slightly as butter is added). Add vanilla; beat until frosting comes together, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat on lowest speed until air bubbles diminish, about 2 minutes. Stir with a rubber spatula until frosting is smooth.
• Assemble the cake: Trim the top of the cake with a long serrated knife to make the surface level. Using a ruler as a guide, insert toothpicks or wooden skewers into the sides of the cake at 2-inch intervals to mark 2 equal layers. Rest the serrated knife on the toothpicks, and halve the cake horizontally using a sawing motion. Carefully slide the top cake layer onto a cardboard round, and set it aside.
• With a small offset spatula, spread top of bottom cake layer with 1 1/4 cups frosting; carefully slide the second cake layer back on top of the first cake layer.
• Gently brush away loose crumbs from top and sides of cake with a pastry brush. With the offset spatula, spread about 1 1/2 cups frosting over top and sides of cake to form a crumb coat. Refrigerate cake until frosting is firm, about 15 minutes.
• With a large offset spatula, spread about 2 more cups frosting over top and sides to form a second coat. Smooth top and remove excess frosting with the large offset spatula. Smooth sides with a bench scraper. Return cake to refrigerator, and chill until second coat is firm, about 15 minutes.
• Tint 1 1/2 cups frosting pale pink (for flowers and buds). Tint 1/2 cup frosting a darker pink (for more flowers and buds). Tint 1/2 cup chocolate brown (for branches), and 1/2 cup green (for leaves). Tint 1/4 cup yellow (for dots). Set aside.
• Using a toothpick or wooden skewer, mark a pattern on the frosting to serve as a guideline for piping branches.
• Decorate cake: Follow instructions below.
• Refrigerate cake; let stand at room temperature 20 minutes before serving. Slice into wedges: To avoid crumbs on surface, make each cut with one downward motion, pulling knife back toward you (not upward) and wiping knife clean after each cut.
• Pipe thin branches using brown frosting and the #2 tip. With pink frosting and the #102 petal tip, make basic petals: Hold the bag at a 45 degree angle to the cake, with the tip's wide end down and narrow end pointed away and slightly to the left. Move the tip forward 1/8 inch and back again while you pivot the narrow end to the right. Make five or six petals, turning the cake as you go. Switch to yellow frosting and the #2 tip to pipe dots in the bloom's center. With pink frosting and the #102 petal tip, pipe two small overlapping petals on the branch for a closed blossom. With green frosting and the #3 round tip, pipe a dot, pulling upward, to make a bud; connect to branch with brown frosting. With the #349 tip, pipe tiny green leaves.