Christina Tosi, who developed the Momofuku Birthday Cake recipe, actually calls it the Birthday Cake’s secret ingredient. Apparently, clear vanilla extract (so the fake extract all the good food bloggers warn you against!) is what gives their cake that typical boxed cake mix vanilla flavor. I don’t see why you wouldn’t be able to use almond milk, coconut milk, or rice milk (or something like it) either.Īnd the vanilla? Well, that’s another thing I learned from the Momofuku Birthday Cake recipe. More of casual mix-this-with-that thing… I use whole milk to make this, but you can use whatever milk you like (though buttermilk would be a bit weird, perhaps). So no, I guess the recipe included in this post isn’t really a recipe. Stir it together, drizzle it over a cake layer, spread on some frosting, and bam: deliciously moist, super flavorful cake. This is one of these recipes that make me think: ‘why didn’t I think of that?’ It’s so simple, just milk and vanilla. Sometimes you just want to moisten the cake and maybe add a hint of flavor. And sometimes you just don’t need that much sweetness.

One part water, one part sugar, actually. But the thing with syrups is that they are very sweet, because they’re made with a LOT of sugar. Of course, I was already familiar with using imbibing syrups to moisten cake layers and to add flavor. I use them all the time and usually, I’m thrilled with the results. Not only did it turn out beautifully (photos to be posted in about a week!), I also picked up some great tips. It looked so beautiful and fun that I just HAD to make it for my birthday. Have you heard of the Momofuku Milk Bar and all their cakes? I hadn’t actually until I stumbled upon their Birthday Cake on Pinterest. I love the fact that it doesn’t make cakes overly sweet!įor my birthday in the third week of February I made two cakes: a delicious Chocolate Espresso Cake and the famous Momofuku Birthday Cake. Use this subtle vanilla milk soak instead of imbibing syrup to moisten cake layers and to add flavor to your cakes.

Vanilla milk