A Patriotic Cake for Inauguration Day

It's a brand new year with a brand new president. It seems fitting to celebrate-yet again. Or else I'm just looking for excuses to perpetuate the party. And even though 2009 won't be without bumps and challenges, I also know that it will bring a measure of happiness and blessings to all. One thing's for certain, even in these uncertain times: I would never ever want to be President of the United States. (Why restrict it to the United States? I wouldn't even want to be president of anything, not even a book club, or the PTA, or even Penny Pinchers Anonymous, or the Rare and Exquisite Sock Hunting Club, or the Association of Disgruntled Dishwashers, or the Pink Ladies, etc, etc, etc and so on and so forth.) Nope. Poor presidential guy's got his work cut out for him. No matter who got your X on the ballot, the new Mr. President deserves our hope and respect. So bake up a patriotic cake and tune in to watch history in the making. And sit back and enjoy the fact that you're not in charge. Phew. Lucky for me, It's Tuesdays with Dorie and Mary Ann over at the deliciously prolific Meet Me in the Kitchen chose this adapatable recipe with a surprise filling. (Hence the name Berry Surprise Cake, Penny Pinching Estimate: $6.00 for half batch with frozen berries.) I chose not to use the actual cake portion of the recipe, since many fellow bakers reported problems with sagging middles. (I don't even like the sound of that, especially in January...) Any cake should work just fine, including a store bought angelfood cake if you're short on time. Besides its the creamy filling, berries and whipped cream icing that really make this cake a Yankee Doodle Dandy of a treat.

Bake one tall layer of cake. I used a moist buttermilk recipe from Joy of Cooking to make this 5 inch diameter dimunitive dessert. Slice the layers in half. Excavate a circle of cake to make a nest. Fill it with cream cheese thinned with whipped cream and sweetened with a bit of sugar. Nestle the berries atop the cream cheese filling. Use raspberries and blueberries to be extra patriotic. Mine were of the frozen defrosted variety, the only choice for winter penny pinchers.Replace the top. Frost with sweetened whipped cream and refrigerate until serving time.
Poke in a few American flags and leave it in the fridge till it's time to indulge. Try not to steal any whipped cream, OK? Oh, all right. I won't tell. But steal it from the back so you can still take a good picture.
P.S. I was able to squeeze out a couple of cupcakes for the two little charges, since they like surprises in every other context except food. The rascals.
Coming Next:

That Good For you Creamy Tomato Soup and Rosemary Focaccia