Ube Mini Cakes

• 2 1/2 cups (300g) cake flour*
• 3 tsp (12g) baking powder
• 1 tsp (4g) salt
• 1 cups (242g) buttermilk
• 1/2 cups (120g) ube jam**
• 2 tsp (8g) ube extract
• 1/2 cups (114g) unsalted butter, softened
• 3 tablespoon (36g) oil (canola or other unflavored oil)
• 1 1/2 cups (320g) brown sugar***
• 4 large (60g) egg yolks
• 2 large (100g) eggs

Whipped Cream

• 2 cups (425g) heavy whipping cream, cold
• 1/4 cups (62g) granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 tsp (6g) vanilla extract

Bake the mini cakes

1. Make sure you have an oven rack in the middle and preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
2. Food-safe silicone is a naturally non-stick surface. No need to grease the pans as the cake will release easily after cooling a bit in the mold.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together your cake flour, baking powder, and salt for about 30 seconds.
4. In a measuring cup, combine your buttermilk, ube jam, and ube extract. Mix very thoroughly to completely dissolve the ube until your buttermilk turns a bright purple and is very smooth. Set aside.
5. In the bowl of a stand mixer, or a large mixing bowl, add your butter, brown sugar and oil and beat with the paddle attachment for a minute until it's combined.
6. Add your egg yolks to the butter-sugar, one at time. Make sure the previous yolks are blended in before adding the next. Then add your egg(s). Beat this on medium speed for one minute until it's a little lighter in color and texture.
7. We are now going to alternate flour-mixture (dry) / buttermilk-mixture (wet) ingredients. I like to do this step by hand with a spatula to minimize overmixing the batter. If you have good control over your mixer on it's lowest setting, feel free to use that if you like. Add the dry in 3 additions, and the wet in 2 additions as follows:
   1. Add half of your flour mixture to the bowl. Mix until all the flour has just been incorporated. Scrape down with a spatula.
   2. Add in half of your buttermilk, mix, and scrape.
   3. Next, add half of your remaining flour mixture, mix, and scrape.
   4. Add the rest of your buttermilk, mix, and scrape.
   5. Finish with the rest of the flour. You got it - mix and scrape ;)Fill each silicone mold cavity about 2/3 full. You want the baked cakes to reach the top edge of your mold. Don't worry if you cake domes in the middles, because we can trim the tops to get nice little even layers for you cakes.
8. Fill each silicone mold cavity about 2/3 full. You want the baked cakes to reach the top edge of your mold. Don't worry if you cake domes in the middles, because we can trim the tops to get nice little even layers for you cakes.
9. Bake the cakes for approximately 18-22 minutes. Start checking at 15 minutes if this is your first time with the recipe/your oven. You can use a skewer test to make sure there are no crumbs attached to ensure the cake is done.
10. Allow the cakes to cool in the mold for at least 10 minutes or cool to the touch. If the cakes have a domed top, use a serrated knife to trim off the excess cakes, using the mold as a guide.
11. Once your cakes are trimmed, carefully peel the silicone away from the cakes (not the other way around) and allow the cakes to cool completely on a wire rack before decorating. I like to make my cakes ahead of time (like a couple days before needed) then freeze them in neat little stacks. I put a small square of parchment in between each layer, wrap a stack of cakes in saran wrap, then place them in a freezer safe bag. They are much easier to decorate when frozen.

Make the whipped cream

1. Place your mixing bowl and whisk attachment in the freezer for about 15 minutes. A cold bowl helps the whipped cream develop nice peaks. Add heavy whipping cream and whisk on medium speed until slightly thickened.
2. Add granulated sugar and vanilla and continue to beat until you just reach soft peaks. It will droop slightly when picking up some with the whisk. When you scoop up a bit with your spatula it should retain its shape but still be super smooth and not grainy, which can occur if you overbeat your cream. Use immediately.
3. Continue to whisk on low speed with a stand mixer (or you can remove the bowl and use a hand whisk, which is what I do) until you reach your desired texture. It will be super smooth and form a peak on the end of the whisk that doesn't droop.

*For the ultimate velvety crumb, look for cake flour, which has a lower protein content. I use King Arthur's unbleached cake flour as it's always available at my local Target.

**I purchase my ube jam and the brand they have at my market is from the brand "Pinoy Fiesta", which is a little bit thick. Feel free to sub your homemade ube halaya, and keep an eye on the texture of my batter (I show you in the video) to make sure it's similar so you'll get a similar cake texture as mine.

***I love brown sugar in this cake! The molasses flavor I think enhances the earthy and nuttiness of ube, but feel free to sub out white sugar if you prefer. You can use the same amount (weight or volume).