This week I made Rainbow Cake in a Jar for the Recipe of the Week. Overall, the results were okay at best: it tasted fine, but didn't really come out how the pictures showed it. So let's go through it...
You will need:
-box of white cake mix and all ingredients listed on the back
-food color of your choice
-mason jars
-frosting
-sprinkles if desired
First, preheat the oven to 350*F with the large pan filled 1/4" with water in the oven! The water needs to be up to oven temperature before placing the mason jars of cake batter in or it will keep the bottom most layer from cooking, which happened to mine. Make the cake mix as described on the back, and then split it into equal amounts. Since I used five different colors, I had about 3/4 of a cup for each color. Then go ahead and add your food coloring---I used both gel and liquid coloring and they both see to work well. You want the color to be really vibrant so that when you bake it, the color comes out nice.
Then, you need to spoon approximately three heaping spoonfuls of each color into mason jars that have been cleaned and lightly sprayed. I have found that using to much spray keeps the cake from sticking to the jar, which is good and bad: good because it is easy to get the cake out, bad because when you cook the cake, it pulls away from the sides to much...
The layered cake should be put in with more of each layer to one side, so that you have alternating "triangle" layers; otherwise, the cake batter just sinks into the previous layer as you pour it in. You might also want to try adding some flour or cornstarch to make the layers thicker so that they layer better. My layers sank into the center as I poured and I had to use my spoon to spread them around.
Place the mason jars into the preheated oven and pan! My water was not preheated so my purple layer did not cook... Cook until the cake is completely baked through. It might puff out the top, but that's okay, we'll scoop that out later.
When they are finished, pull them out of the water and let them cool completely before scooping off the top and adding the yummy frosting.
This is what the inside of the cake looked like--pretty nifty...
So, the finished project came out tasty, but only decent looking... It shrank away from the sides and needed to be microwaved to finish up the bottom. Next time, I would make sure the water in the pan is heated, thicken up the mix, and use baby food jars for smaller portions (using only one scoop of each color per jar)...
The cake can be stored with/out frosting for 3 days non-refrigerated and 5 days refrigerated, giving you enough time to send it in the mail or make it in advance for a party.
Next week we will be trying out Rock Candy!!!!
UPDATE: We found a house that we like, but can't move forward until we have been approved for the loan, which is proving challenging with little to no credit... Word of advice: MAKE YOUR KIDS BUILD CREDIT AS EARLY AS HIGH SCHOOL!!!!! Yeah, our parents said it, but having a credit card was not something we wanted and now we're feeling the affects... okay, okay, I can hear it now "I told you so..." Anyways, Jace is crawling around like crazy and of course is into everything except for his toys---typical. He's working on standing and will probably be walking before Chad and I ever were. We have an appointment with the allergist this week, although each day closer I doubt more and more that it is necessary for us to go; however, we will, if only just to talk to them and waste some time... He will gain weight at his own speed and so long as he is happy, healthy and advancing according to his age, I don't see any reason to be worried. We'll see how it goes... until next time!
