Okay, here it is.  I’m kind of happy with it.  All of the decorating is freehand and with pistachio buttercream (1/2 c. pistachio butter mixed with 2c. neoclassic buttercream).  I wish I’d known I’d have enough, as I’d have frosted between layers with it, becuase it’s really amazing, and it’s better than the buttercream alone, I think.  The pistachio buttercream is more green than it looks here—it looks a bit brown here.  Of course, having read cake wrecks, one worries about such things…....

The genome didn’t come out pefectly—the right side of it where it’s the widest should have been curved.

I literally threw pistachios at the side of the cake, and they stuck like noodles to a wall! 

I’ve also added a pic of the single layer with frosting only on top sprinkled with pistachios.  It’s actually prettier, I think!

Friday’s the day we’re eating it, so it’s in the freezer for now.

I am happies that I didn’t have to use any marzipan or other extra sweetened items on the top—no extra ingredients than the recipe clalled for.

Hi Anne, I’m sure that the recipients are going to be thrilled with your cake!  I think it looks great!  If it were too perfect, everyone would just think it came from a bakery, anyway.  Did you decide to put the marzipan between the layers, or did you omit it altogether?  I wish I could sample a piece!!  I bet you do, too…so hard to put it in the freezer when what you really want to do is cut a big slice and EAT IT right then!

Nice job, Anne!  I bet they’ll be thrilled with it.  Looking forward to hearing you tasting notes as well. 

Thanks, both of you.  It makes me laugh when I look at it, really, I have such a shaky hand, I guess!!

No, I didn’t do the marzipan.  I made it, but I didn’t like it.  Nothing to do with Rose’s recipe; I just tasted it and remembered why I don’t like marzipan!!! 

Then I made a sort of half marzipan—took some pistachio butter and mixed in powdered sugar, approximately half-half visually, and it tastes more like sweetened nuts—still has lots of pistachio flavor.  I was going to extrude that for the sticks, but the juicer warmed it up too much—and it goes fast and in 3 strands—so that didn’t work.

It’s really just like the cake—just decorated differently.  Even the pistachio buttercream (which is actually green) kept the proportions of pistachios to buttercream given in the frosting part—however many grams (I forget) of pistachios mixed into 1 batch of buttercream—perfect proportions!!

I tripled the batch, so I have a two layer cake, and I have a single layer cake for the hub and self (8”) plus a little loaf, which I’m leaving unfrosted for us (I always make a little unfrosted one since Rose’s cakes are so good).  Tomorrow, we’ll be tasting the 8”, so I’ll let y’all know!!

And I’ll let you know what everyone says on Friday.  If I’m too frightened of the design on the top by then, I’ll “swirl it”.  The hub says it’s borderline but passable and that he thinks frosted (but undecorated) cakes (except for say nuts or chocolate curls or whatever) preserve the beauty of the cake better, and I thnk he’s right (when an untrained hand grabs the squeeze bag).

It’s a cake among not exactly friends, but amiable co-workers.  And I’m not getting paid for it or anything, so….

I think it looks delicious, and great job piping that intricate design! It looks just like the photo you posted earlier in the week. Bet you can’t wait to taste it

Very cool design!  I really want to try this cake too, so write back and give a review on how it tastes.  I love pistachios!

This is so creative. I’ll bet the flavor is wonderful too. Great post, thanks.

Thanks, all!

First, a tasting update.  As you know, I made a smaller, single layer 8” cake for the hub and self.  This is done exactly like the receipe—frosted with buttercream and sprinkled with pistachios.  The only variation is I used roasted pistachios and didn’t blanch them.  I did skin them reasonably, but not obsessively, well.  Sorted them by “yellow” and “green” and put the yellows in and the greens on the outside (with some yellows).  As we were tasting (and I mean tasting, we eat 20g of cake after lunch and 20g after dinner each day), I was prattling on about something, and my hub interrupted me (which he never does) with “Oh my God.”  Then, “This cake is amazing,” and “This is incredible cake.”  “This is fabulous.” 

And it is.

Make it, as is.  You’ll be glad you did.  Except that the pistachios do lose flavor blanching, so I’m glad I used roasted, and I didn’t use the pistachio essence, either.

It’s a thrilling cake.  Delicate, yet amazingly flavorful, and, as always, perfectly balanced.  MAKE THIS CAKE TODAY!!!!!

I think, with respect to the design, what I should have done was put a piece of parchment over my drawing and piped onto that.  Then refrigerated it.  When it was set, press into the soft frosting on top of the cake.

Update.  I just scraped the design off the cake.  It already looks beter!  I’m waiting for it to thaw a bit so I can add a bit more frosting, blend in the little bit of green that remains, and sprinkle with pistachios.  Will post new pics when that’s done.  The cake tastes too amazingly delicous to have a less-than-classic appearance.  I still have the pics for a memory!  LOL!

Here it is, scraped and redecorated.  Now, THAT’s a cake!!!  It looks (almost) as good as it tastes!

(This post is brought to you by Rescue Cakes, Inc.)

That looks delicious Anne.  Thank you for the tasking notes.  I must add this to my list.

Looks beautiful, I love how well the pistachios convey the flavor of the cake!  I don’t know why, but I always like it when no one has to ask, “What kind of cake is that?”.

I agree completely!  Plus it’s a signal to anyone with allergies.  The golden/green of the pistachios is so incredibly beautiful with the color of the neoclassic buttercream, too.  I am so excited about this cake!!!

Oh, Anne, I loved your genome! It was awesome. Now it’s just a cake, though a really pretty one!

Thanks, Silke!  I liked the design, but I felt my execution of it on the cake had more of a tinker toys look than a spiraling genome look!!!!!!

That’s a beautiful cake, Anne! I really like your piping work on the top.