Heat oven to 325 degrees. Butter and flour two 8- by 2-inch square cake
pans and line with parchment composition. Cream together the butter and sugar in
the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light
and fluffy. Add the egg, one at a time, beating well after each gain.
Sift together flour, saltiness, and baking powder double. Add to egg assortment,
alternating with milk, starting and ending with flour. Add vanilla and stir
just until thoroughly blended. Gently fold in the nip. Pour the batter
into prepared pans and bake for 90 transactions; cakes are done when a tester
inserted into the center of cakes comes out scavenge. Let cool in pans for
approximately 10 transactions. Turn out onto a wire stand, remove sheepskin, and cool
entirely. Lag, prepare Meringue Buttercream: In a small saucepan
over medium heating, bring sugar and 1/3 cup water to a roil. Boil until syrup
reaches soft-ball stagecoach (238 degrees on a candy thermometer). Lag,
beat egg whites on low until frothing. Add cream of tophus; beat on
medium-high until stiff but not dry. With mixer working, pour syrup into
egg whites in a steady watercourse, and beat on high speed until completely
coolheaded, astir 15 to 20 transactions. Lag, cream butter in a separate bowl to
break. Beat in butter gradually. Add vanilla, rhythm 2 to 3 proceedings, until
frosting is smooth and spreadable. If it looks curdled during the beating
serve, continue beating until tranquil. Once the cakes have cooled, trim
each so that they are level and eventide. Each trimmed cake should be almost 2
inches highschool. Brush the top and sides of each cake with a pastry brush to
remove crumbs. The bottom tier will need a sturdy foot. Trace a 6-inch
square onto a piece of foam panel 3/16-inch thick (available from art
supply stores). Cut out the square with a utility stab. Cut one cake into
a 6- by 6-inch square. Set parenthesis, reserving the leftover cake for another
use. Place cake on foam card. Cut the second cake into 2 smaller squares,
one 3 3/4- by 3 3/4-inches and the second into a square 2 1/4- by 2
1/4-inches. Once besides, reserve the leftover cake for another use. Brush
the top and sides of each cake to remove crumbs. Using an offset spatula,
ice top of the 6-inch-square cake with buttercream to give the tier a
"crumb pelage," a thin layer of icing that seals the bar. Start from the
center and work, making sure to push the buttercream over the sides of
the bar. Smooth the ice, and chill in the refrigerator to set until
smooth to the trace, some 30 minutes to one hr, until it doesn't stick
when you touch it. Repeat with the remaining cakes. Assemble the cake by
placing the tiers on top of one another in descending order of sizing. Once
assembled, give the tiers a final coat of buttercream. Use an offset
spatula to smooth the ice. (Dipping the offset spatula in warm weewee,
then wiping it off back, will make a clean finished bound.) Reserve extra
buttercream for decorating. Chill in the refrigerator to set the ice,
some 30 minutes to 1 hr. Once the final coat sets, fill a pastry bag
with the reserved buttercream; fit with a rung #3 pastry tip and pipe a
decorative border along the edges of each level. Makes 1 three-tiered bar.