Usually when Charlize’s birthday is a month or two away, we sit together at the computer and decide what we’re going to whip up for her birthday. We will sit for hours searching for that perfect cake. And there are so many out there. Its a fun process.
Now she was turning 10 this year. If you have a nine year old you know this is pretty big of a deal. Not in a I-want-a-big-party kind of way but definitely mentally, its huge. At least for this monkey it is. Its going into 2 digits after all. Never again, I joked, are you going to be a single number C! So she struts and preens, feeling oh so grown up at the idea of ten! How wonderfully innocent she is, how delightfully pure.
One day while it poured in Rotterdam, as it has been doing almost everyday, I left the house to pick up Charlize from school. As I approached school, it suddenly cleared with the most beautiful rainbow on show. I needed to take a picture for Charlize before it disappeared. I quickly whipped out my phone, but after taking some 5-6, I gave up. My iphone 4 is just not up to speed. And then I looked up to see my baby girls face as she left school to witness that spectacular scene.
We both marveled and walked away.
That rainbow must’ve left quite an impression because a few days later, she asked for a rainbow cake! SO, if a rainbow cake is what she wants, a rainbow cake is what she gets. I can never say no to cake requests from my baby! <3
I really wanted to make a monster of a cake and I certainly succeeded! And don’t let the way it looks fool you because this cake is easy. Very tedious but easy. If you have oodles of time and are super patience, love baking, then you will enjoy making this cake. Because its just a regular cake with colors at the end of the day!
The ingredients below are for 5 layers, so if you want you can stick to just 5. However, I wanted to make at least 7. I mean a rainbow has 7 colors. In fact I made 8 layers because I so wanted a pink layer but then realized the cake wouldn’t fit in the refrigerator!!!
All in all the birthday was a success thanks to a cake Charlize was very proud of. SO, Happy Birthday again baby girl. I certainly didn’t know what love was before I knew you…
- for 5 layers of cake (I doubled these ingredients)
- 2¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 170 grams unsalted butter, softened
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1⅓ cups buttermilk
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp vinegar
- food coloring ( you really need just red, blue and yellow to make all the colors)
- buttercream frosting, this is for 7-8 layers
- 675 grams butter, softened
- 8-9 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 tbsps vanilla extract
- 9-10 tbsps heavy cream
- To prepare the buttercream, beat butter 5 minutes with a mixer (I use a hand held one). Add around 7 cups of powdered sugar and mix on the lowest speed (so the sugar doesn't blow everywhere) until the sugar is fully incorporated with the butter. Increase mixer speed to medium and add vanilla extract, salt, and 7-8 tablespoons of cream and beat for another few minutes. If your frosting needs a more stiff consistency, add remaining sugar. If your frosting needs to be thinned out, add remaining cream 1 tablespoon at a time.
- To prepare the cake layers, preheat oven to 350°F/175°C. Butter and flour 7-inch round baking pans. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl add flour, baking soda and salt. Sift in cocoa powder then mix mixture 20 seconds, set aside.
- In another bowl whip together sugar and butter until pale and fluffy. Mix in vegetable oil. Blend in the eggs one at a time, mixing just until combined after each addition. Mix in egg yolks.
- In a pan whisk the buttermilk with the vanilla extract and vinegar. Working in three separate, beginning and ending with flour mixture, add ⅓ of the flour mixture alternating with ½ of the buttermilk mixture and mixing just until combined after each addition. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl with a rubber spatula to ensure everything is incorporated.
- Divide mixture evenly first in bowls so you can mix the color. Make a color of your choice, in this case it was red, orange, yellow, light green, dark green, blue, and purple. Once you have mixed in the colors to your satisfaction, pour into the prepared baking pans. I did 300 grams of each color separately and it worked out just right. If you want thinner layers you could do a little less.
- Even out the batter in your pan and bake in the preheated oven for 25 - 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean. Cool in cake pan, invert onto wire racks to cool completely. Once cool, you slice of the top if it is domed.
- To put the cake together, place the first layer of cake (according to the color scheme you have chosen), on a cake stand. Spread a thin layer of the frosting on (in my case it was around a cup). Place the next layer on top and repeat with all the layers.
- Frost the cake on the outside, putting a thin layer all around. I don't have a rotating stand so this was difficult to do with such a tall cake and even though I wanted a cake that was just smooth, I totally messed up! If this happens decorate with frill, swirls, whatever you like! 🙂
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This looks like the perfect birthday cake! So many layers of deliciousness 🙂 Love the way you decorated it with the silver pearls and the swirly frosting.
Gorgeous shots Rakhee! beautiful styling too. I literally wanted to eat the 2nd photo!
Oh yum! This looks so good. Love it!
OMG THIS IS AMAZING!!!! I mean rainbow cake?!!! I’ll take it! You’ve frosted this to perfection -love!!!!!