Wednesday, May 3, 2023

Chocolate Pretzel and Strawberry Birthday Cake

I asked Jen if she wanted me to make a dessert for Kenedy's birthday dinner last weekend and if so what Ken would like - Jen came back with the request for either chocolate-covered pretzels or chocolate-covered strawberries. Jen texted me 'well neither are really birthday desserts so good luck with that' hahaha. 


I had the thought that maybe I could stick dipped pretzel rods in the top of a frosted cake and googled to see if anyone had done that - and came across an idea to stand the dipped rods around the outside of the cake (click here). The inspo photo was so pretty, and it seemed fairly simple to make, so I went with that basic idea but then made it my own by topping the cake with dipped strawberries. So pretty!

I made a 3-layer 6-inch round cake which after filling the layers with strawberry buttercream equaled about 5" tall. The pretzel rods I bought are about 7" tall, which I didn't think would look right so I carefully cut the pretzels down to about 5 1/2" tall (using a serrated knife and gently sawed the pretzels down). Dip the cut end into melted chocolate wafers (I used white but there are lots of different colored wafer melts out there), lay on a piece of parchment until firm. Melt another color of wafers, if desired, and drizzle over the base coat of chocolate. Add sprinkles while the drizzle is still wet or they won't stick. 


For the strawberries I simply dipped them straight into the remaining melted white chocolate and did the same thing with the drizzle. Spread the remaining melted chocolate out in a thin layer on a piece of parchment and let it harden. Then break/shatter into little pieces, this will top the cake before adding the berries. 

To assemble: 

Trim the cake layers so they are straight across the top (if they bake up with a domed top). Put one layer down on a serving plate or cardboard round, spread with frosting. Top with second layer and repeat spreading with frosting. Add the top layer and frost the entire cake. Note you do not need to make the frosted cake 'pretty' because you are covering it all up with pretzels and berries - yay! See, like I said, easy hahah. 

Stand a dipped pretzel up against the side of the cake and lightly press it into the frosting to help hold in place. Repeat all the way around. It took 28 pretzels to cover the sides of my 6" cake. Fill in the top of the cake with the broken/shattered pieces of hardened chocolate. Top with the dipped berries and you're done. 

One other note - this made a tall cake that wouldn't fit in my standard cake carrier, just FYI if you are planning to transport the finished cake. 





Oh, just fyi in case you care - I made a doctored butter yellow cake (add an extra egg, pinch of coarse salt and 1/2 t. vanilla) and strawberry buttercream frosting (add about a tablespoon of strawberry jam to pink-dyed buttercream frosting). 

Buttercream frosting:
  • 1 stick of unsalted butter, softened
  • 3 1/2 - 4 cups confectioners sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • pinch of coarse salt (don't add salt if you are using salted butter)
  • enough milk or cream to give the consistency I want, maybe 2-3 tablespoons. I don't measure, just pour in a tiny bit at a time.
Beat the butter until fluffy. Mix in 1 cup of powdered sugar, add vanilla and salt. Slowly add the remaining powdered sugar alternating with a little milk each time and mix until the frosting is light and creamy. 

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