Spring Funfetti Cake Pastel (Printable version)

Light vanilla cake with rainbow sprinkles and smooth pastel buttercream topping for festive occasions.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Cake

01 - 2.5 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 2.5 teaspoons baking powder
03 - 0.5 teaspoon baking soda
04 - 0.5 teaspoon salt
05 - 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
06 - 1.5 cups granulated sugar
07 - 4 large eggs, room temperature
08 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
09 - 1 cup whole milk, room temperature
10 - 0.5 cup sour cream, room temperature
11 - 0.67 cup rainbow sprinkles

→ Pastel Buttercream

12 - 1.5 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
13 - 5 cups powdered sugar, sifted
14 - 0.25 cup whole milk
15 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
16 - Pinch of salt
17 - Food coloring gels: pastel pink, blue, yellow, and purple

# Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
03 - In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, approximately 3 minutes.
04 - Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in vanilla extract.
05 - In a separate bowl, whisk milk and sour cream until combined.
06 - Add flour mixture to butter mixture in three parts, alternating with milk mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Mix just until combined.
07 - Gently fold rainbow sprinkles into batter using a spatula.
08 - Divide batter evenly between prepared pans and smooth tops.
09 - Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
10 - Cool cakes in pans for 10 minutes, then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely.
11 - Beat butter until smooth and creamy, approximately 2 minutes.
12 - Gradually add powdered sugar, mixing on low speed until incorporated.
13 - Add milk, vanilla, and salt. Beat on high speed until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
14 - Divide buttercream into 4 bowls. Tint each portion with a different pastel color using food coloring gel.
15 - Dollop or pipe colored buttercream onto cooled cake layers as desired. Swirl colors together for a marbled pastel effect.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The sour cream in the batter keeps it incredibly tender, almost cloud-like, which nobody expects from a sprinkle cake.
  • You get to divide the buttercream and create your own pastel palette, so it feels like decorating art rather than just frosting.
  • This cake actually tastes sophisticated despite its playful appearance, perfect for fooling people who think sprinkles mean artificial flavor.
02 -
  • Never skip bringing your ingredients to room temperature, especially eggs and butter, because cold ingredients won't emulsify properly and you'll end up with a curdled-looking batter that affects the final texture.
  • The sour cream isn't optional flavor—it's structure, providing both tanginess and moisture that keeps the cake from becoming dense after a day or two in the fridge.
  • If your sprinkles start bleeding color into the batter, you grabbed nonpareils instead of jimmies, so hunt down the jimmies style next time and your cake will stay pristine white with pops of color.
03 -
  • Use an offset spatula for frosting between layers because it gives you far more control than a knife, and crumb-coat the outside first with a thin layer of buttercream, chill it for 15 minutes, then apply your final, pretty layer.
  • The secret to pastel colors that feel sophisticated rather than artificial is using gel food coloring instead of liquid, adding just a tiny bit at a time because you can always add more but you can't take it out.
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