Birthday Cake Recipe

Homemade Birthday Cake?
Here are some tips.

Craving Birthday Cake? We’re always happy to help. We’re breaking down exactly how we make our classic, rainbow-happy layer cake step by step, from cake and crumbs to creamy frosting.

YIELDS: Makes 1 six inch layer cake. Serves 8-12

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Birthday Cake

Ingredients

55g

butter at room temperature (4 tablespoons - 1/2 stick)

60g

vegetable shortening (1/3 cup)

250g

granulated sugar (1 1/4 cups)

50g

light brown sugar (3 tablespoons tightly packed)

eggs

110g

buttermilk (1/2 cup)

65g

grapeseed oil (1/3 cup)

clear vanilla extract (2 teaspoons)

245g

cake flour (2 cups)

baking powder (1 1/2 teaspoons)

kosher salt (3/4 teaspoon)

50g

rainbow sprinkles (1/4 cup)

Plus

25g rainbow sprinkles (2 tablespoons)

Birthday Cake

Step 1

Heat the oven to 350°f.

Step 2

Combine the butter, shortening, and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and cream together on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the eggs, and mix on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. scrape down the sides of the bowl once more.

There’s a reason for every step!

We use room-temperature butter and mix for a long time in our Birthday Cake recipe to make sure that our layers cake come out moist and fluffy — and we bake them in sheet pans so they’re easy to cut and stack (no worrying about misshapen cake rounds here).

Step 3

On low speed, stream in the buttermilk, oil, and vanilla. increase the mixer speed to medium-high and paddle for 4 to 6 minutes, until the mixture is practically white, twice the size of your original fluffy butter-and-sugar mixture, and completely homogeneous. don’t rush the process. You’re basically forcing too much liquid into an already fatty mixture that doesn’t want to make room for that liquid. There should be no streaks of fat or liquid. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Step 4

On very low speed, add the cake flour, baking powder, salt, and the 50 g (¼ cup) rainbow sprinkles. Mix for 45 to 60 seconds, just until your batter comes together. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Step 5

Pam-spray a quarter sheet pan and line it with parchment, or just line the pan with a silpat. Using a spatula, spread the cake batter in an even layer in the pan. Sprinkle the remaining 25g (2 tablespoons) rainbow sprinkles evenly on top of the batter.

Step 6

Bake the cake for 30 to 35 minutes. The cake will rise and puff, doubling in size, but will remain slightly buttery and dense. At 30 minutes, gently poke the edge of the cake with your finger: the cake should bounce back slightly and the center should no longer be jiggly. Leave the cake in the oven for an extra 3 to 5 minutes if it doesn't pass these tests.

Step 7

Take the cake out of the oven and cool on a wire rack or, in a pinch, in the fridge or freezer (don't worry, it's not cheating). The cooled cake can be stored in the fridge, wrapped in plastic wrap, for up to 4 days.