The Cake That Started It All

I've been on Deviant Art for about a year now, and I find it pretty amusing that one of my most popular cakes is still this here Oreo Cake:

The amusing part is it's pretty much the first cake I've ever really taken seriously.  I'm still impressed with it, considering how little I knew about baking at the time, but I think I've done better work since.  For some reason though, "Oreo Cake" is still getting a lot of attention. 

I thought this would make a really good first entry since its probably the easiest cake I've done and I've had a few people ask how to get the finished product. (Not to mention, I learned a few reaaally helpful things while baking this.)  I think I'll do this in the form of a lovely little story:

Once upon a time...

(It's a meeee!)

...there was a silly girl named Rachel who happened to have a crush on an even sillier boy named Steve.  It was the middle of a lovely summer, and Steve and his friend J.'s hair was getting a little too long for Rachel's tastes.  In a half joking tone, Rachel said she would reward the two boys with cakes if they committed themselves to getting haircuts. They accepted and soon Rachel found herself with two cakes to bake.  J, not being a fan of frosting, requested a pineapple upside down cake.  

(My buddy/assistant chef Holly!)

Steve, on the other hand, certainly did not have an aversion to frosting. In fact, he loved it!  (And still loves it for that matter. :P)   Baking for such a fan of sweets, Rachel took the second cake very very seriously.  Here's a few of the things she discovered in preparation for his cake:

1. To avoid getting a really lumpy cake.  Don't over-mix the batter.  Also, setting the cake on a piece of aluminum foil in the oven will help distribute the heat beneath it more evenly.
2. Leveling the two layers before stacking makes a much more presentable cake.  Use a big bread knife or thread pulled tightly to cut off any lumps. Then stack the layers with the cut side facing the middle.
3. Adding dry pudding mix to a box cake makes the finished product much more moist.

Most of what she found was probably pretty common knowledge, but Rachel had never heard these things before; They certainly did make a difference.   

So Rachel invited here two best buds over, Janey and Holly, and they began to bake.  To make the Oreo Cake, they simply used a chocolate box mix, followed the instructions, and added a box of chocolate pudding mix.  Rachel applied the above information to bake and assemble the cake, and then very carefully covered it in plain ole' store bought vanilla frosting.  She tore apart a few oreos and lined them up on the sides of the cake, and then commissioned her friends to do some oreo smashing in plastic bags: 

Rachel sprinkled the crushed Oreo on top of the cake, and wa-lah! The Oreo Cake was done!

And  a month (and a bit of drama) later, Rachel and Steve were happily dating.  And still are. :)  Oh, and Rachel kinda sorta loooves to bake now.

The End

See! Wasn't that nice?  Like I said, super easy, since none of it's really from scratch.  But in the end, you still have yourself a pretty impressive little cake.

Try it yourself and enjoy!

-Rachel :)