What to do

1. Preheat oven to 325. Grease and line three 6-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.

2. In a medium bowl, gently mix flour, baking powder, soda and salt together. Set to the side. In a large bowl, using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (hand mixer also works!), cream the softened butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy (this will take about 3 minutes or so).

3. Pour in the oil, then the egg and egg whites, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Note: Don’t forget to scrape down the sides of the bowl as you go. Add the vanilla and mix again.

4. Alternating adding the dry ingredients and then the buttermilk. Start with a third of the dry ingredients. Then the buttermilk, then the dry, then the buttermilk and finish with the dry mixture. Mix on low speed just until combined. Do not overmix. Divide the mixture evenly into the 3 prepared pans. Bake for 25–30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Note: ovens do vary so please start watching your cakes at 25 minutes, but be patient as they may need 30 minutes.

5. Let the cakes cool in the pans for about 30 minutes. After the cakes cool, I like to wrap them in plastic wrap and freeze for a day or several (this makes for a cleaner frost job and, in my opinion, tastier cake!). It’s okay if you don’t have time to freeze the cake. If you are not freezing, let cakes cool completely, then run a knife along the edge of the cake in the pan a few times to loosen, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting or serving. If freezing, run the knife along the cakes to help loosen them later, wrap and freeze the cakes in their pans. When ready to frost, remove cakes from the freezer about an hour before assembly.

6. For the brown butter frosting, we need to begin with browning our butter. To do this, place butter in a medium saucepan over low-medium heat. Cook until butter foams and starts to emit a warm, nutty fragrance (this could take several minutes). Once butter is browned, immediately remove from the heat and pour into a heatproof bowl. Let the butter cool completely. Once the butter has cooled, using a stand or handheld mixer, beat butter and cream cheese until fully combined. Note: the consistency will be runny at first, but just keep beating and the mixture will eventually become fluffy and smooth (see FAQ’s below). Add powdered sugar and vanilla. Mix everything until you get desired consistency. Set to the side. If your kitchen is warm, place the frosting in the fridge while you prepare your peaches.

7. For the peaches, in a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the peaches, brown sugar, lemon (or orange) juice, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt. Stir gently to coat the fruit. While the peaches cook, in a small bowl, stir together the cornstarch and water until smooth. Once the pan mixture starts to heat and the juices release (about 2–3 minutes), stir in the cornstarch slurry. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, stirring frequently. Cook for 3–4 minutes, or until the mixture thickens and becomes glossy. Note: if your mixture becomes too thick, you can add a little water to help reach desired consistency. Just be sure to stir in the water and cook for another minute or so. Remove peaches from the heat and let them cool completely.

6. To assemble your cake, cut the top dome off of each layer so that the top is flat (I use a serrated bread knife for this) . Place about one third of the brown butter frosting into a piping bag, and cut the tip of the bag off. Place your first cake disc/layer on a plate or cake drum. Spread a thin layer of brown butter frosting and spread evenly. Then, with the piping bag, pipe a thick log like trail of frosting around the out perimeter of the cake. Spoon in a third of the peaches and nuzzle them out to the edge of log. The log of frosting serves as a damn to keep the peaches and juice for leaking through the cake. Top with another layer and repeat the process.

7. Once layers are stacked, you should have some frosting and a third of the peaches left. Using an offset spatula or rubber spatula is fine, begin frosting your entire cake. I start with the top, smooth out an even layer and then begin working around the sides. You can use a bench scraper to smooth out the sides and top. You can also use the rest of the frosting from the piping bag for the rest of the frosting on the cake. For fun, added flare, I like to do some piping around the crown of the cake and then top the cake with the remaining third of the peaches. It looks very pretty with the peaches peeking through.

8. Refrigerate the cake until you are ready to serve. But note, cake should sit out for at least 2 hours before eating, this makes for the best texture! Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days!

FAQ’s

Helpful tips

Here are some important Pro tips by Maude

• When measuring the cake flour, you want to spoon the flour gradually into the measuring cup. Do not scoop and level (this yields more flour than you need). Spoon in flour and scrape/level the top with a knife.
• I highly recommend freezing your cake layers before assembling and frosting your cakes! This step not only makes the cakes easier to work with (less crumbs) but also creates a super moist and delicious cake.

If you try this recipe, I would love your feedback! Please leave a star rating, a comment below or on the reel in Instagram! Also please share what you made and tag @eatmaudes !! Thank you so much for stopping by and making yumminess with me!

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