Tashina's Kitchen!: Layered Cheesecake Cake

I made this cake for Arlen's graduation. I was trying to make it "Tiger" striped for the Idaho State University Bengals. The layers showed some but weren't quite thick enough for the whole effect. This is how it is done! I used a cake mix but tweaked what was put in it. This is the first time I have tried to do a step by step tutorial. I am not a professional chef but I do love cooking and baking. I am hoping this makes sense, so let me know if you have any questions.

Cake Recipe:
1- Chocolate Cake mix
1- Funfetti cake mix (would have used white but didn't have it)
4- eggs (per cake)
1 Cup milk (per cake)
1/2 Cup Oil (per cake)
1Tbl Cheesecake pudding mix (per cake)
*Food Coloring

Mix and cook ingredients as per box directions. To get the "tiger effect" see below.

I used an orange gel food coloring for the funfetti cake, and a black food coloring to make the chocolate cake darker. Spray baking pans with cooking spray, AND line with parchment or wax paper. (This makes them come out nice and easy.)
Take one color and put a spoonful in bottom of pan. Put spoonful of other color on top of that and continue til pan is 1/2 full. Bake as normal.

When cake comes out, cool for about 10 min. Run knife along inside of pan to make sure the cake did not stick to the sides. Flip cake over (I use a small cooling rack) and peel off parchment or wax paper.

CHEESECAKE RECIPE:
5pkg Cream Cheese
1 Cup Sugar
3 Tbls Flour
1Tbls Vanilla
*1Tsp Almond extract (optional )
*Food Coloring (optional)

Mix Together
Add:
1 Cup Sour Cream
4 Eggs (add one at a time cream in between)

Bake 40 Min at 325F Degrees

I do not do a crust when using this cheesecake as cake layers. Instead line a 9 X 13 pan with parchment or wax paper and spray it with cooking spray. Leave the edges hanging over the pan so it is easy to pull it out once it is COMPLETELY cooled.

Above: Cut 9 inch cake into 2 Layers. Cut out a 9 inch circle in the cheesecake and place on first cake layer.

Side: Place second layer of cake on the cheesecake. For layer 2 I mixed 1/2 cup frosting (recipe to come), food coloring and cheesecake pieces from cutting out the circle. Put this "Paste" in a Ziploc bag and cut a small corner (making a piping type bag) Pipe onto cake then use knife to smooth out. Continue by alternating layers. For layer 3 of cheesecake I did not add frosting, just warmed cheesecake up a bit and mixed it up.

Butter-cream Cheesecake Frosting Recipe
1.5 cubes butter (REAL BUTTER)                 4-5 Cups Powdered sugar
3Tbl Heavy Cream                                          1Tbls Cheesecake pudding mix
1TBS Vanilla                                      1/2 to 1 cup Cheesecake scraps
Food coloring

Cream butter until it turns almost white (I used my new KitchenAid that Arlen got me for Mother's Day) Add heavy cream and whip for 4 minutes or so, the frosting will look gross as if it is separating for now but don't worry about it. Add 1Tbls Vanilla and Cheesecake and pudding mix. Then slowly start adding powdered sugar. I always seem to make the mistake of thinking I need more liquid. If you think it is too stiff let it sit 5 min and mix again. If it is stiff enough, the peaks from mixing will stay stiff and not run back together. If it becomes too stiff add a TINY bit of cream and mix again. Add food coloring to desired amount of frosting.

Put about 1 cup of frosting in the microwave for 10 seconds, then frost cake, I always put cake in freezer while I make the frosting so this layer will set up faster. With the frosting warm, you can poor it over the cake and frost it easier. It does not need to be perfect or thick since this is just a base layer.

Side: This is how I used 2 colors in one bag to attempt tiger stripes (this is also the easiest way to do one color with little or no cleanup) Lay out plastic wrap on table and place a spoonful of frosting, Add another color if want (you could add as many as you want but too much frosting can make this more difficult) I almost filled this too full. Fold over plastic wrap and twist both ends. Place one end in a ziplock bag with a small piece of corner cut out and cake decorating tip or coupler on, Pull it through until frosting is at the edge and snip the plastic wrap. (I was using an extra large tip so I don't use the coupler.) Now you are ready to go! You may want to test it out on wax paper before starting on the cake.