My favorite flavor of cake is vanilla on vanilla...vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream frosting. It's simple and basic. It's the perfect cake for Spring, too! With Easter coming up, I wanted to create something that was colorful with a touch of chocolate.
In the 16th century, Spanish conquistadors brought vanilla beans from Mexico to Europe. However, it wasn't until 1889 that Sara Lee introduced her famous cake recipe in the United States. The simplicity of the cake, and it's ingredients, became a huge hit. The rest is history. Vanilla cakes are perfect for holidays, weddings, birthdays and Mother's Day.
The cake is very easy to make. If you have any questions about the recipe, just leave me a comment. I baked the cake layers earlier in the week and froze them. I like decorating frozen cakes because they are firm with less crumbs. The layers do not dry out. I usually bake mine ahead of time, wrap them in parchment, then plastic wrap, then foil, and pop them into a Ziplock or a reusable food bag. I love these gallon size bags to store cake layers, cookie dough and fudge bars. You don't have to use parchment paper but I think it helps with sticking and I don't really like plastic on my cake. I try really hard to re-use plastic or not use it at all.
Just trim the top of the layers with a serrated knife so they lay flat. Make sure to flip the top cake layer upside down so the top of the cake is easier to decorate. You want a level cake before you begin.
I added a layer of crushed Cadbury Mini Eggs on top of the middle layer of buttercream. It added a nice chocolatey crunch.
I'm kind of a novice when it comes to cake decorating. It takes a while for me to smooth out the buttercream. Once I get it as smooth as I can with a scraper, I use an icing spatula dipped in hot water to smooth any creases or bumps. If you like to make cakes often, I highly recommend a Rotating Cake Stand.
After smoothing out the buttercream, I added whole Cadbury Mini Eggs to the bottom edge of the cake instead of piping with frosting.
I used a Wilton 1M star tip for the buttercream swirls on top of the cake. I topped them with Mini Eggs and added Bunny Bottom Sprinkle Pop sprinkles.
Sprinkle Pop's Bunny Bottom sprinkles are super cute! There are plenty of the bunnies in the mix, too.
This cake is sooo good! Make sure you don't skip on the salt in the buttercream recipe. Salt is used to balance the sweetness. This cake will be overly sweet without it.
No salted butter on hand? Add a 1/4 teaspoon of fine sea salt per stick of butter. Voila, salted butter!
I get asked all the time...what do you do with the food? Well, I make smaller cakes (this cake is a 6-inch) and I share with my neighbors. If they are all "sugared out", I cut serving size pieces, wrap them just like I would a cake layer and store in the freezer for 3 months. I always have cake on hand for visitors and weekend movie nights! I never throw food away unless the recipe fails in taste and can't be salvaged.
*I am not affiliated with any linked companies in this post.