Red/White Check? La Course!

 

Double-layer White Cake with Almond Buttercream

I love a wonderful checkerboard design!  And I'm nearly like a moth to a flame when it comes to red/white checks.... or black/white shoes.  Seriously.  Send/Don't send help.

We returned from attending the final stage of Le Tour de France a week ago.  And this year, professional women cyclists participated La Course, a one-day stage on the Champs Elysees!!  It was so exciting to watch the women race and battle it out; many in the crowd near where we established our little beach head came to Paris specifically to watch the women. 

Note, the podium girls are dudes in suits for the women racers!
BikePortland.com (Photo: Luc Revel)

A few hours after the women finished, the men came flying through!  I really love attending the end of a stage of Le Tour.  The excitement and crowds and athletes all make for a good times.  And, my life partner and I get to hang out together.












Which leads me up to this cake... while the black/white checkered flag signals the end of many races, the map for La Course indicated the finish line with a red/check.  Oh yeah.  That's a cake!

Anyway, about a year ago I tried this checkerboard design with orange and yellow - and I loved how it turned out.  This time wasn't quite as successful, for this reason... I poured a few cupcakes thinking the layers would be tall enough, but trimming them down level would have made the layers simply too thin!  Gah.   Hot tip:  Don't skimp on layers when making a checkerboard cake - trimming down is exponentially more successful than having uneven layers that produce a wonky checkerboard. 

I used my fav White Cake, divided it in two, and tinted only one half of the batter (I used liquid red and barely a half-drop of blue).  The almond flavor of this White Cake is amazing; I don't know I rarely bake this cake...it's really delicious.  Pairing this cake with Almond Buttercream is a super combination.

 

With this design and all those little bits of cake, a crumb-coat is definitely in order.  I choose not to apply frosting between the rings, some bakers do....personal preference.  Either way, holding the whole mess together requires a sturdy filling. 

 

 

While I was less than thrilled with the layering, I was very happy with the colors and the flavor!  The cupcakes are simple and lovely and quite delightful.

 

This season of my life is pretty amazing and I know we won't always have these kinds of opportunities.  I'm grateful for my life partner and our time together.  I'm grateful for our people and the adventures we enjoy.  I'll get to rehab; I'll be grateful there, too.