Cakes celebrate many milestones and celebrations throughout the year. A big sheet cake for graduation, a beautiful Bundt pound cake for Mother’s Day, a heart-shaped chocolate stunner for Valentine’s day all are cakes worthy to plan and execute. But the cake that makes us turn on the oven most frequently is the birthday cake. I love making birthday cakes for those who really love a good cake. The people who are happy with a cake from Safeway are welcome to it.

Throughout the years, I’ve figured out who’s who and have happily settled into the habit of turning out birthday cakes that will either surprise those who like to be surprised or making old favorites for those who have decided on one kind.
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With that in mind, I’m embarking on a year of birthday cakes for those cake fans out there.
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For world-traveling Polly, a cake or torte in the European tradition is called for.  Arguably, it is multi component, a more sophisticated cake, perhaps lower in height than our American layer cakes. I created this cake as a composite of my idea of several European cakes. I wanted a dense chocolate cake, with ground almonds in the batter, accented with orange liqueur and orange peel. The chocolate should be very good quality and bittersweet: 70% cocoa solids.
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I was gifted with an exquisite jar of marmalade, so I decided on a marmalade buttercream, the sides frosted with chocolate ganache. I used the back of a teaspoon to create rustic swirls along the top edge, framing the translucent layer of marmalade. A layer of marzipan or almond paste rolled over the top of the buttercream gave the marmalade a light background on which to sparkle. The marzipan also added to the old-world vibe of the cake and adds to the complexity. You can read my notes in the illustration below. I’m so glad I wrote it down since it was a cake with many parts. It was a hit at the birthday gathering, but who knows what I’ll do for the intrepid Polly next year.

The other birthday cake I make in January is a cheesecake for Mr. Vazquez. It is his longtime favorite. There are no photos, though, because cheesecake is not exactly photogenic. A good cheesecake will look pretty similar to an average cheesecake. I used to make the standard 9” cake for him but realized he just ate a few slices and was pretty much done with it. I have learned to scale down the recipe to fit a small sized pan. The ratio is one 8-ounce block of cream cheese to 1/3 cup of sugar to 1 or 2 eggs to 2 tablespoons cream which would fit into a 5 or 6-inch pan. Scaling up, my usual 9-inch cheesecake is 4 blocks cream cheese, 1 1/3 cup sugar, 4 or 6 eggs, and 1/2 cup cream. I add some salt, some vanilla, and some grated lemon zest as well. It is more forgiving than one might think, though there are a couple tips and tricks. For an extra silky- smooth cheesecake without the risk of cracking, bake the cake in a water bath, wrapping in a double layer of foil, if it is in a springform pan. I don’t worry about the top cracking because I like to top the cake with sweetened sour cream the last 10 minutes of baking. Topping a cooled cheesecake with lemon curd or fruit is also a good crack covering strategy. Cheesecake gets a bad rap for being finicky, but bakers should just relax; ​your cake will be delicious, and everyone will appreciate your home baked creation. Happy Birthday!