Cellular Peptide Cake with Mint Frosting

From the Star Trek: The Next Generation television series  

 

Some of you might assume that the Geeky Chef has mad cake-decorating skillz. Not so. I have terrible cake-decorating skills with an "s" instead of a "z." However, I’m actually quite proud of how this cake turned out. Even if your own cake-decorating skills (or lack of) aren’t great, I guarantee you can pull this off.

 

Now, I’m a huge Vulcan-saluting, Prime Directive-abiding, Starfleet-loving Trekkie. The Next Generation is my favorite Star Trek series, and "Phantasms" is one of my absolute favorite episodes. In that episode, the android Data has a program installed in his positronic brain so he can dream like a human. Apparently, androids don’t dream of electric sheep... They dream of Deanna Troi cakes and brain slurpees! The cake is described by an unusually excited Worf as a “cellular peptide cake with mint frosting.”

 

The dream sequence delves into surrealism, jarringly unusual for the series, and it’s absolutely hilarious. Here's a clip of what, in my opinion, is possibly the best two and a half minutes of Star Trek history. 

 

While "cellular peptide" isn’t actually a thing, it’s described in the episode as a chain of molecules found in living things. The recipe I’ve made is for a deliciously moist white cake with very blue mint-flavored frosting. I used yogurt as a moistener for the cake itself because yogurt contains living bacteria. If you’re feeling lazy, you can go the shortcut route and buy pre-made frosting, then add some mint extract to it. The main thing is really to make the cake look like Deanna’s Starfleet uniform. Whether you make the frosting from scratch or buy it pre-made, the cake will be mmmm... delicious.

 

 

Ingredients:

 

For the Cake:

• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 4 egg whites
• 1 whole egg
• 1 cup vanilla yogurt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract (optional)

 

 

For the Frosting:

• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 tablespoon butter or shortening
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• A few drops of mint extract (or to taste)
• Blue food coloring
• Black food coloring (or methods to create black frosting)

 

 

Directions:

 

Baking the Cake:

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream the softened butter and granulated sugar together until light and fluffy.
3. Add the egg whites one at a time, beating well after each addition, then add the whole egg and mix until fully combined.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
5. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, mixing until just combined.
6. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, vanilla extract, and almond extract (if using).
7. Add the yogurt mixture to the batter and beat until the batter is smooth and fluffy.
8. Pour the batter into a small square baking pan and spread it out evenly.
9. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
10. Let the cake cool completely.

 

Making the Frosting and Decorating:

1. In a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar, milk, shortening, vanilla extract, and mint extract (if using). Beat until smooth and creamy. If the frosting is too thin, add more powdered sugar to thicken. If too thick, add a bit more milk.
2. Split the frosting into two bowls. Stir the blue food coloring to one bowl, using enough to achieve a deep blue color. Add the black food coloring to the other bowl, stirring until uniform in color.
3. Once the cake has cooled, cut it into a T or torso shape by trimming the sides to create the desired silhouette.
4. Frost the cake with the blue frosting for the body and black frosting for the details, emulating this picture. Add a Starfleet com badge, if you have one.
5.  WAKE UP

 

 

This recipe has been reformatted and reworded for clarity. Some minors adjustments have been made to the method to enure more consistent results.