Rainbow Sprinkle Cake
Published October 25, 2016
Romulo Yanes for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Vivian Lui.
- Total Time
- 1½ hours, plus cooling
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
FOR THE CAKE
½ cup/110 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), slightly softened, more for pans
1 ½ cups/190 grams all-purpose flour, more for pans
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon fine salt
⅔ cup/158 milliliters whole milk
1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup/200 grams sugar
1 whole egg plus 2 egg whites
⅓ cup rainbow sprinkles (not pastel, or naturally colored)
FOR THE FROSTING
8 ounces/225 grams cream cheese, slightly softened
½ cup/110 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), slightly softened
⅛ teaspoon fine salt, more to taste
3 cups/300 grams confectioners’ sugar, sifted, more to taste
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup rainbow sprinkles (see note)
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 to 10 servings)
93 grams carbs; 89 milligrams cholesterol; 629 calories; 8 grams monosaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 16 grams saturated fat; 27 grams fat; 1 gram fiber; 252 milligrams sodium; 5 grams protein; 78 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Make the cake: Heat oven to 325 degrees and place a rack in the center. Butter and line the bottoms of two 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper. Butter the parchment. Flour the pans, coating the bottom and sides, then tap out any excess flour.
- Step 2
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, stir together milk and vanilla.
- Step 3
In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and, with mixer running, slowly add egg and whites and beat until smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Scrape down bowl. Add half the flour mixture, then the milk mixture, then the remaining flour mixture, beating to blend after each addition. Scrape down bowl and blend once more. Remove bowl and use a spatula or spoon to mix in sprinkles by hand.
- Step 4
Divide batter evenly between the pans and bake until the tops are just dry to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Rotate the pans halfway through baking.
- Step 5
Transfer pans to a wire rack and let cool completely, at least 4 hours, before turning out.
- Step 6
Make the frosting: In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese, butter and salt together at medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low and, with mixer running, slowly add sugar and beat until smooth. Beat in vanilla just until incorporated. Taste frosting; you should be able to taste the cream cheese and a little bit of saltiness, as well as the sweetness. If desired, add more salt or sugar. Keep refrigerated.
- Step 7
Turn cooled cakes out of pans. Using a bread knife, cut off any domed or uneven parts of each cake to make flat surfaces. Place one of the cakes on a platter or a cake stand, cut side up. Using an offset spatula, frost the top. Stack the other layer on top, cut side down. Place remaining frosting on top of the cake and, working from the center outward, frost the top and sides of the cake.
- Step 8
Place a baking sheet under the platter or cake stand, to catch any fallen sprinkles. Sprinkle the top with a layer of sprinkles. Toss remaining sprinkles at the sides of the cake, or press handfuls of sprinkles gently up the sides to make a thicker coating. Gather fallen sprinkles and repeat until coated to your liking.
- Step 9
Refrigerate cake 30 minutes or longer to set. Serve cool.
Julia's house blend: 2 parts blue, 1 part yellow, 1 part orange, 1 part bright pink. It's best not to use white, light pastel or "natural" sprinkles. They just disappear (poof!) into the cake after baking.
Private Notes
Comments
Rather than cutting off the domed top of a cake, you can completely eliminate the dome by doing this: Cut a terry cloth towel into strips and saturate in water. Wrap the strips around the cake pan. Then bake as usual. The cake will come out of the oven as flat as a pancake.
This looks like a great cake, one that I'll definitely make on a snowy afternoon, or snow-bound during a blizzard. But I have two comments: the photo looks like it's a 3 layer cake but you only call for two. And your gram measures for the flour--and sugar-- are very inconsistent in many of your recipes from different authors. 1 cup of flour is either 120 or 125 grams of flour, depending on who you consult (King Arthur says 120)
I've baked three of these cakes for family gatherings, and the consistent success of the results has put this particular recipe at the top of my "go to" list for celebratory events requiring something colorful, delicious, and appealing to those with the wispiest threads of childhood still left in them. I follow the recipe's directions exactly, except that I double all the listed ingredients, including the frosting, ending up with three 8-inch layers. Highly recommended!
I use naturally colored sprinkles inside cakes all the time, and they don’t fade away. Artificial coloring is gross.
I doubled the cake recipe but not the frosting, and made two 9” layers which took 35 minutes to bake.
For any British bakers, this recipe is waaaay too little for a standard cake tin. I had to triple the recipe in grams just to get two fairly slim layers.