It is a tall, towering confetti birthday cake crammed to the brim with rainbow sprinkles and completed off with candy vanilla buttercream frosting. It’s traditional and party-perfect in each approach! The recipe has lived on my web site since 2014 and has develop into a well-liked favourite, even scoring #1 (out of 9!) in a sprinkle cake bake-off. Under you’ll discover my detailed recipe, video, and finest success ideas.
Similar to Field Funfetti Cake
This thick, plush confetti birthday cake is stuffed with the flavors of childhood social gathering nostalgia–butter, vanilla, sugar, and rainbow sprinkles. Shut your eyes and you may virtually hear the sound of balloons being blown up and odor the extinguished birthday candles. However this cake shouldn’t be restricted to birthday events–or to childhood! This comfortable cake is a pleasure to serve and eat at any celebration. It’s just like the boxed Funfetti cake, however higher.
Why You’ll Love This Confetti Birthday Cake
- Utterly selfmade and a lot tastier than a field combine
- Loaded with comfortable colourful sprinkles
- Topped with candy & creamy traditional vanilla buttercream
- Smooth crumb from cake flour
- Fluffy from further egg whites
- Buttery & cakey from creamed butter & sugar
- Stick-to-your-fork moist (with out tasting greasy!) from eggs, oil, & buttermilk
- Additional taste from pure vanilla extract
This towering rainbow delight has been on my website for a lot of years, and through that point, I’ve made a pair small updates. This was a fantastic confetti birthday cake recipe earlier than; the truth is, it was rated No. 1 (of 9) within the Pancake Princess’ finest sprinkle cake bake-off, and got here in a detailed 2nd within the Kitchn’s Funfetti cake bake-off. However with 3 small updates, the cake is now even larger.
From the Kitchn’s overview: “This cake was severely scrumptious. It had a pleasant gentle texture however was nonetheless tremendous moist. The vanilla taste was daring with out being overpowering, and the cake was candy with out being cloying. I beloved how simple the frosting was to make and appreciated how easily it went onto the cake. My solely critique is that it’s important to whip the egg whites in a separate bowl, so it’s a bit tedious, however that’s the one unfavourable I can consider.”
I’ve some egg-cellent information: that egg-stra step is gone. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist.)
What’s New on this Birthday Cake Recipe?
- Add the egg whites similtaneously the entire eggs: 4 complete eggs present construction, moisture, and richness. 2 further egg whites maintain the cake lighter. Although whipping the whites individually does help in stopping a dense cake, in latest testing, I found that eradicating this whipping step will be offset by 2 different modifications to maintain the batter gentle. (Each are subsequent.)
- Decreased butter and added oil: Beforehand, the recipe known as for 1.5 cups of butter (3 sticks, about 345g), however utilizing all creamed butter in a cake can definitely crush the crumb. I like utilizing oil in cake recipes as a result of it provides moisture and a fragile texture. And I like utilizing butter in cake recipes due to its unparalleled taste. Discovering the appropriate proportion of every? Now that’s the candy spot, and I discover it right here by lowering the butter by ¼ cup and including in ⅓ cup oil as an alternative.
- Use cake flour: If you would like a fluffy and delicate bakery-style cake, use cake flour. The cake is GREAT with all-purpose flour, however higher with cake flour. In the event you don’t have cake flour, keep on with sifted all-purpose flour.
After years of testing cake recipes, I’m extra assured than ever on this up to date model. The cake intently resembles my vanilla cake, however makes use of a bit much less sugar as a result of we’re including candy sprinkles.
These Step Images Will Assist
Right here is the butter, sugar, and oil combination. You’ll cream butter and sugar collectively first, after which combine within the oil. Combination might be creamy and largely clean:
Jimmies sprinkles are the only option for this Funfetti-style selfmade cake. Anticipate a thick batter:
Divide the batter between 3 9-inch cake pans. You’ll be able to squeeze the cake batter in 3 8-inch cake pans if wanted, however you should definitely lengthen the bake time. Cool for 20 minutes within the cake pans, after which take away the nice and cozy truffles and place on a wire rack to chill fully.
Sprinkle Success Ideas
I’ve been baking sprinkle cake & cupcake batters for years and have discovered precisely which sprinkles work, and which don’t. Completely satisfied to share my finest recommendation:
- My high sprinkle tip: Don’t use nonpareils (the little balls) in cake batter. They’ll bleed their shade as you fold them in, end in a less-than-appetizing-color cake.
- Rainbow sprinkles (aka “jimmies”) bought within the U.S. are intensely coloured, however sprinkles bought in different nations might lose their shade when baked. “Sugar strands” often is the identical form as jimmies, however they dissolve within the moist batter. For finest outcomes, attempt to use American-style rainbow sprinkles. The pictured cake makes use of Betty Crocker “Parlor Excellent” rainbow sprinkles. I additionally actually like Canadian-brand Sweetapolita sprinkles.
- Confetti quins (the little discs) are additionally nice to make use of in a sprinkle birthday truffles & cupcakes. They hardly ever bleed their shade in batter. These shimmery ones maintain their shade properly too.
- Naturally coloured sprinkles are great in cookies and as ornament, however–relying on the model–can lose their shade in cake batter.
Buttercream Frosting
I exploit the identical frosting as my 3 layer vanilla cake, however add slightly extra vanilla. It’s mainly my vanilla buttercream recipe solely scaled as much as yield sufficient for a tall layer cake. In the event you desire chocolate frosting, use the chocolate fudge frosting from my piñata cake recipe. (It’s sufficient for this dimension cake.)
For a much less candy frosting possibility, use this recipe for Swiss meringue buttercream.
Can I tint this frosting? Sure! Be at liberty so as to add gel meals coloring to the frosting to vary its shade.
Adorning Success Tip: Add a Crumb Coat
Because it’s so moist, the confetti cake could be a little crumbly while you’re adorning it. I like to recommend making use of a skinny crumb coat, which is a layer of frosting across the exterior of the cake to catch any crumbs. The frosting recipe beneath contains sufficient frosting for that skinny crumb coat, then one other skinny layer of frosting on high of that. Observe that I utilized a barely thicker crumb coat within the video tutorial beneath. Doesn’t matter both approach; you’ll simply have much less or extra frosting for that last frosting layer.
Use a flat icing spatula to unfold on the frosting. Icing spatulas are useful for those who adorn truffles and cupcakes usually. Then you may run a bench scraper across the sides of the cake to clean out the crumb coat in addition to the highest layer of frosting. You’ll be able to watch me use each within the video tutorial beneath.
Chill the crumb-coated cake for Half-hour, after which apply the ultimate frosting layer.
Searching for a enjoyable sprinkle cake that requires much less effort than a 3-layer cake? Attempt these recipes:
Description
Buttery vanilla layer cake crammed to the brim with rainbow sprinkles and completed off with candy vanilla frosting with piped pink and blue border.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease three 9-inch cake pans, line with parchment paper rounds, then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the truffles seamlessly launch from the pans. (See #6 on my high Cake Baking Ideas.)
- Make the cake: Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt collectively in a big bowl. Put aside.
- Utilizing a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar collectively on excessive pace for five full minutes till fluffy and creamed collectively properly. Scrape down the perimeters and up the underside of the bowl with a rubber spatula as wanted. Add the oil and beat for 1 minute till mixed. Add the eggs, egg whites, and vanilla extract and beat on medium-high pace till mixed. Scrape down the perimeters and up the underside of the bowl with a rubber spatula as wanted.
- Add dry elements and buttermilk in three additions and mixing after every addition simply till integrated. Don’t over-mix this batter. The batter might be velvety and thick. Gently fold within the sprinkles. Pour and unfold the batter evenly into every cake pan.
- Bake for round 25-26 minutes or till the truffles are baked by way of. Tent the truffles with foil after about quarter-hour to stop the perimeters and high from over-browning. To check for doneness, insert a toothpick into the middle of the cake. If it comes out clear, it’s completed.
- Enable truffles to chill within the pans set on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Run a knife across the edges after which take away heat truffles from pans. Place truffles straight on wire racks to chill fully. The truffles have to be fully cool earlier than frosting and assembling.
- Make the frosting: In a big bowl utilizing a hand-held mixer or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium pace till creamy, about 2 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar, cream, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat on low pace for 30 seconds after which change to excessive pace and beat for two minutes. Add extra confectioners’ sugar if frosting appears too skinny, or extra cream if frosting is simply too thick, or an additional pinch of salt if frosting is simply too candy.
- Assemble cake + apply crumb coat: First, utilizing a big serrated knife, slice a skinny layer off the tops of the truffles to create a flat floor. Discard (or crumble over ice cream!). Place 1 cake layer in your cake stand or serving plate. Utilizing a massive icing spatula or small offset spatula, evenly cowl the highest with about 1 cup of frosting. Repeat with 2nd cake layer, 1 extra cup of frosting, after which the highest cake layer. Unfold a skinny layer of frosting on the highest and across the sides as a crumb coat. Run a bench scraper across the cake to clean out crumb coat. Chill uncovered within the fridge for at the very least Half-hour and as much as 3 hours to set the crumb coat.
- Unfold the remaining frosting all around the high and sides. Garnish with further sprinkles, if desired.
- Serve cake instantly or if it’s good to retailer it for just a few hours, place it in cake provider at room temperature for as much as 4 hours. For longer storage, refrigerate lined cake for as much as 1 day. Cake is finest served at room temperature, although, so advocate letting it sit out for Half-hour earlier than serving.
- Cowl leftover cake tightly and retailer it within the fridge for five days. Once more, I like utilizing a cake provider for storing and transporting.
Notes
- Make Forward & Freezing Directions: The cake layers will be baked, cooled, and lined tightly at room temperature in a single day. Likewise, the frosting will be ready then lined and refrigerated in a single day. When prepared to brighten, let the frosting sit at room temperature to barely soften for quarter-hour, then give it another combine with the mixer on medium pace for about 1 minute earlier than frosting cake. (Add a splash of cream to skinny out frosting if wanted.) See step 10 if you wish to retailer the frosted/embellished cake earlier than serving it. Frosted cake or unfrosted cake layers will be frozen as much as 2-3 months. Thaw in a single day within the fridge and convey to room temperature earlier than adorning/serving. See how one can freeze truffles for detailed directions.
- 2022 Replace: Recipe above was barely up to date in 2022. Previous model used to name for 3 sticks (about 345g) butter and no oil. The slight discount of butter and added oil promise a moister cake, however be at liberty to make use of the outdated model. Additionally, the additional egg whites at the moment are added while you add the entire eggs. You used to must whip them individually till delicate peaks type after which fold them in earlier than including the sprinkles. This step isn’t actually mandatory since we’re utilizing slightly oil and cake flour now. (See subsequent Observe.)
- Flour: Recipe used to name for sifted all-purpose flour as a substitute of cake flour. Recipe was up to date in 2022 to make use of the SAME quantity of cake flour as a substitute. You should utilize both, however know that the cake is barely lighter utilizing cake flour. In the event you use all-purpose flour, you could sift it in any other case your cake might be heavy. You may additionally use 3 and three/4 cups (443g) of this cake flour substitute, which is sifted all-purpose flour + some cornstarch.
- Eggs: 3 complete eggs present construction, moisture, and richness. 2 further egg whites maintain the cake gentle. I don’t advocate utilizing 4 complete eggs; keep on with the three egg & 2 egg white mixture.
- Buttermilk: In the event you don’t have buttermilk, you may make a DIY bitter milk substitute. Add 1 Tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to a liquid measuring cup. Then add sufficient complete milk to the identical measuring cup till it reaches 1 and 1/2 cups. (In a pinch, decrease fats or nondairy milks work for this soured milk, however the cake received’t style as moist or wealthy.) Stir it round and let sit for five minutes. The selfmade “buttermilk” might be considerably curdled and able to use within the recipe.
- Sprinkles: Keep away from utilizing sprinkles that may dye your batter. Steer clear from nonpareils, that are the little balls. The pictured cake makes use of Betty Crocker “Parlor Excellent” rainbow sprinkles, which I discover in my common grocery retailer. I additionally like to make use of these rainbow jimmies or pastel coloured quins. Observe that naturally coloured sprinkles can lose their shade in cake batter.
- Chocolate Frosting: Use the frosting from this piñata cake recipe. It makes sufficient for this dimension cake.
- Quantity of Cake Batter & Different Dimension Desserts: This recipe yields practically 8 cups of batter, which is useful for those who want it for various Cake Pan Sizes & Conversions. For a 1 layer cake, 12×17 inch sheet cake, or 6-inch layer cake, see checklist above this recipe. For a Bundt cake, use a 10-12 cup generously greased Bundt pan and bake for about 60 minutes or till a toothpick inserted within the heart comes out clear. Be at liberty to make use of 3 8-inch spherical cake pans as a substitute of 9-inch. The truffles might be thicker and take about 28-Half-hour to bake, however use a toothpick to check for doneness. You may even divide between 4 8-inch cake pans and decrease the bake time since these truffles could be thinner. There’s an excessive amount of batter for a 9×13 inch quarter sheet cake. I’ve 2 recipes on my web site that may work for a 9×13 inch sprinkle cake. You may use this gentle and fluffy white cake recipe and fold 1/2 cup (about 90g) sprinkles into the batter earlier than pouring into the pan. See these recipe Notes for a 9×13 inch cake. Or you should use this buttery sprinkle sheet cake recipe. See these recipe Notes for a 9×13 inch cake.
- Cupcakes: Use this batter for 3 dozen sprinkle cupcakes. Fill cupcake liners about 2/3 full to keep away from over-flowing. Or use my confetti sprinkle cupcakes or funfetti cupcakes recipes.
Key phrases: confetti birthday cake
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