Pastel Layer Cake

Five pastel layers form this colorful creation. You can also use the batter to make four dozen cupcakes or a two- or three-layer cake (bake each layer a few minutes longer than instructed). 

INGREDIENTS

• 3 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pans and parchment
• 6 1/2 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising), plus more for pans and parchment
• 3 tablespoons baking powder
• Salt
• 2 1/4 cups whole milk
• 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 10 large egg whites
• Gel-paste food coloring )
• Swiss Meringue Buttercream

DIRECTIONS

STEP 1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter five 8-inch round cake pans, and line with parchment (you may need to bake in batches). Butter parchment, and dust with flour, tapping out excess. Sift flour, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt into a large bowl. Combine milk andvanilla. Beat butter with a mixer on medium speed until very smooth. With machine running, gradually add sugar, and beat until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes

STEP 2

Reduce speed to low, and add flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with milk mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Beat until just combined; do not overmix.

STEP 3

Beat egg whites in a clean mixer bowl on medium speed until stiff (but not dry) peaks form, about 3 minutes. Gently fold egg-white mixture into batter in 3 additions.

STEP 4

Divide batter among 5 bowls, and tint each with food coloring to create different pastel shades. Spread each into a prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool completely in pans on wire racks.

STEP 5

Loosen edges of cake with a small metal spatula or paring knife; invert onto racks. Discard parchment. Reinvert cakes, top side up. Let cool completely.

STEP 6

Trim top of each cake to make surface even. Spread 1 cup buttercream onto top of 1 cake. Top with another cake. Repeat, spreading 1 cup buttercream between each layer. Frost cake with 1 1/2 cups buttercream. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Frost cake with 2 cups buttercream.

 

Make a Tree-Shaped Candles

Candles adorned with beeswax trees create an enchanting winter landscape indoors.

You don't need to melt any wax in order to make these candles; both taper and topper are made with beeswax sheets, available online and at crafts stores, where you can also buy wicking.

Tools & Materials

• Smooth wax sheet in white
• Wicking
• Tree-shaped cookie cutters
• Utility knife
• Ruler
• Hair dryer 

Tree-Shaped Candle How-To

1. Lay wax sheet on a baking sheet; apply low heat from a hair dryer. Cut 4 or 6 shapes (you'll stack either 2 or 3 on each side of the wick to achieve the desired thickness) with a tree-shaped cookie cutter.
2. With a ruler and utility knife, cut a wax sheet to be the width you want the height of your base to be. Cut wicking an inch or two longer than the combined height of the taper and cutout. Lay wicking near the edge of the sheet, aligning with wax at one end. Fold wax edge over wicking, and roll tightly until candle is desired thickness. Trim excess wax with a utility knife, and smooth edge with your thumb.
3. With a utility knife, cut a 1/2-inch-deep notch in the top of the candle, carefully maneuvering around the wick so as not to sever it; remove excess wax with the knife. Lay candle flat, and fit cutouts in the notch on either side of the wick, pulling wick taut; press them together with your fingertips, beginning at the center and working outward. When all shapes are in place, apply low heat from a hair dryer; press again. If necessary, soften excess wax with hair dryer, and use it to secure the tree in the notch to keep it from wobbling once the candle is upright.

Setting a Thanksgiving Table (Modern)

 

A Modern Table

This distinctive contemporary table begins with an emphasis on light and form. A homemade Ultrasuede table mat adds color and interest; it's cut with a rotary cutter just smaller than the table to create the illusion of a border. It protects the table without feeling fussy, and it's practical, since Ultrasuede can be machine-washed.

Sleek hurricanes filled with fallen leaves show off colors that contrast with the otherwise monochromatic palette. The clear glass of the goblets and hurricanes keeps the look clean. A leaf in the folds of a napkin and a handwritten place card -- a strip of paper inscribed with a white-gel pen -- welcome each guest to dinner.

 

Paper-Leaf How-To

Add these leaves to bowls of gourds, or lay a few along a tablecloth. We used light-green paper, but you can use any color you like.

1. Trace or print the leaf template onto the back of a piece of decorative paper, and cut out as many leaves as you want.

2. To give the leaves more dimension, fold them outward at notches and inward along lobes.

3. Use a length of paper-covered wire for a stem, and use hot glue to affix it to the center back of the leaf. Let dry.

4. Coil the wire stem around the handle of a wooden spoon or a pencil; slip off.

 

Modern-Table Napkin Fold

We used linen napkins for this project.

1. Crease napkin into thirds horizontally.

2. Fold following the creases.

3. From the center point, crease the napkin down on the left side at a 45-degree angle; repeat on right.

4. The napkin now has a tentlike shape.

5. Flip the napkin over; roll up both overhangs.

6. Holding napkin, including rolls, flip it.

7. Fold the right and left corners up at 45-degree angles.

8. Place a napkin at each place setting.