I know it sounds like I have a lot of favorites but this animated short film, One Small Step, is honestly one of my FAVORITES. The short film is comes from Taiko Studios and it’s about a Chinese American girl named Luna who has big dream of being an astronaut. I don’t want to say too much because you have to watch the film for yourself but it was such a incredibly touching and captivating film.
This recipe for Luna’s birthday cake is inspired by one of the scenes in the film when Luna’s dad bakes a cake for her on her birthday. They never mentioned what flavor it was but the cake was just so sweet I couldn’t pass the chance to recreate it.
The following recipe comes from the amazing cookbook, Bake and Decorate, by Fiona Cairns. The recipe couldn’t be any simpler. Please enjoy!
One Small Step: Happy Birthday, Luna
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 1/4 cup self-rising flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 cups unsalted butter, softened
- 3 large whole eggs lightly beaten
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Filling
- 1/2 cup strawberry jam
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3-4 tbsp whole milk
- purple gel food coloring as needed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a 7" round cake tin with parchment and lightly grease with butter. Set aside.
- In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, sift in the flour and baking powder. Mix to combine. Add the butter, eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Mix on medium high speed until thoroughly combined, 2 minutes. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top of the batter with an offset spatula.
- Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown and a skewer comes out clean when inserted in the center. Remove from the oven and let it cool for a 15 minutes before removing the cake from the tin.
- Meanwhile, beat the softened cream for the filling in a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until smooth and light in color.
- Slowly, add the powdered sugar in 2 to 3 additions. Mix on low speed until well combined. Add the vanilla extract and mix to combine. Add the milk and beat again for another 3 minutes. The cream should be smooth and light. If you find it's very dense and heavy, add a bit more milk.
- Slice the cake evenly in half. Place some of the buttercream in a piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Pipe the cream around the circumference of the bottom layer. Fill the center with jam and spread it out evenly. Pipe more cream on top of the jam to create an even layer.
- Place the second layer of cake on top. Spread the buttercream around the cake in an even layer. Refrigerate to set.
- Tint the rest of the cream with the purple gel food coloring. Put the purple buttercream in a piping bag fitted with a small piping tip.
- Following the scene from the film, write, "Happy Birthday Luna" and draw a spaceship in the center. Smooth it out the cream with your offset spatula.
