Photo: Birthday Cake with Hot Pink Butter Icing Recipe
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 18 tablespoons (2 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3 cups sugar
- 6 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
- 8 ounces (about 1 cup) sour cream, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 lemon, zested
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
For the frosting:
- 3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3 pounds confectioners' sugar, sifted
- 9 tablespoons milk
- 3 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 14 drops pink food coloring (rose petal shade)
- Pink and white candy, for decorating
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter and flour a 9-inch cake pan, a 6-inch cake pan, and a 3-inch cake pan.
To make the cake, cream the butter and sugar on medium-high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. On medium speed, add the eggs, 2 at a time, then the sour cream, vanilla, and lemon zest, scraping down the bowl as needed. Mix well. Sift together the flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking soda. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir just until smooth. Finish mixing by hand to be sure the batter is well mixed. Proportionately divide the batter between the 3 cake pans. Smooth the tops with a spatula, and bake as follows: the 9-inch pan for 45 minutes, the 6-inch pan for 35 to 40 minutes and the 3-inch pan for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean in each cake. Cool in the pans to room temperature.
For the frosting, cream the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the confectioners' sugar, milk, and vanilla extract. Mix on low speed for 1 to 2 minutes, until thickened. Add the food coloring and turn the mixer off. Using a spatula, fully incorporate the color into the frosting.
Frost each cake separately, saving some frosting for decoration. Chill the cakes before stacking.
Place the 9-inch cake on a plate. Center the 6-inch cake on top of the 9-inch cake. Center the 3-inch cake on top of the 6-inch cake.
For the decoration, pipe or spoon the remaining frosting around the base of each cake and around the top edge of the 3-inch cake. Finish decorating with the pieces of candy
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By coopercook
Atlanta Georgia
on March 02, 2013
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This is a really nice basic yella cake recipe. Some of the reviewers perhaps didn't review how much batter is made with this recipe- it's for a very large birthday cake- three tiers!! I halve it and it makes a perfect sized little 8 inch round 2 layer cake. It's very tasty- and moist enough- I think boxed cake mix is fine, though it always tastes baking soda-y to me- and I don't want all the crap in the boxed mix going into my kid's bodies. I've made it four times now. You can flavor the batter however you like- I've cut the lemon and added almond, doubled the lemon, done orange zest instead- and this time just doing it as written. The basic buttercream is very good and easy as well- both recipes are easy enough that my 7 year old has helped me make his "half" birthday cake two years in a row. Nice job, Ina- she's my little boy's favorite "girl" on food network!
By mona_2378433
Datil, NM
on August 13, 2012
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Now I know why the majority of cooks go out and buy a boxed mix cake. I was really looking forward to making this cake. The idea of one with a hint of lemon flavoring from zested lemon was appealing. I made sure I had room temperature butter and room temperature eggs. I whipped it up with all the required ingredients. I didn't hedge on anything. But to my amazement, it FELL! I had enough batter for two 13 x 9 cake pans. Both looked like collapsed volcanoes! With the corn starch added, I expected these cakes to be light and fluffy. No way! They're coarse and dense as old bread. After using 3 cups of sugar, 2 1/4 sticks of butter, 6 eggs, 3 cups of flour, and a cup of sour cream, my pantry is empty, and I have no dessert. A one dollar cake mix would have done the trick. Help us out here, Ina. I love you and your show but this recipe was a nightmare for me. No birthday celebration here!
By chico.mendez197...
San Marcos, TX
on March 19, 2012
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i have made this cake many times...it is an amazing cake and the icing was amazing too...my only issue is that if i make the cake in the morning for a party in the afternoon or that evening, the cake tends to be dry. i have noticed though that the same cake, a day or two later, its always 200 times better. so if you are going to make this cake for a birthday party, make it a day or two in advance. the cake does taste amazingly delicious.
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