A light and fluffy, made from scratch ย funfetti cake (sometimes also called confetti cake)! ย This soft, snow-white cake is speckled with brightly colored sprinkles and iced with a sweet buttercream frosting — it’s the perfect homemade birthday cake!
If this funfetti cake looks familiar, you caught me, I shared it exactly one year ago in celebration of the first unofficial birthday of Sugar Spun Run.
Well, it’s been two years now since I almost completely deleted this whole website. ย Instead, I dug in full-force and have spent almost every spare second of my time developing and photographing (and now videoing) recipes to share with you.
As a brief review before we get to this favorite layered funfetti cake of mine, I originallyย bought the name, Sugar Spun Run,ย inย 2012 and published a few postsย super casually, photographed viaย iPhone-only, and focused on… whatever caught my attention that particular day. ย It was maintainedย sporadically, sloppily, and definitely without intention.
So in April of 2015 when I got the bill to renew my website, I almost canceled everything. ย I was literally one button-click away from doing so… and then decided maybe I’d give it one more shot.
Well, here we are,ย nearly 250 recipes later with a bright cheerful funfetti cake to show for it.
It’s now been twoย years of late, powdered-sugar filled nights, of re-making recipes over and over again (often only to decide that they really were just rightย the first time), of website code-induced headaches, and ofย desperately attempting to solve the Rubik’s cube that is my camera.ย Well over 200 lbs of butter have made their way through my kitchen, and my KitchenAid has become my near-constant companion.
And I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
So, whileย today can’t rightly be called my blog’s “birthday”, I wanted to commemorate this twoย year anniversary anyway. ย Today I’m celebrating Sugar Spun Run’s Unbirthday, and slicing up this confetti-colored, sprinkle stuffed, 3-layer, from-scratchย Funfetti cake just for the occasion. ย So let’s get down to it.
How do you make Funfetti cake?
Funfetti cake is typically a fluffy white cake with sprinkles mixed into the batter.
Light and fluffy, this cake is made with a combination of butter (for flavor) and oil (for texture and moisture). ย Developing this recipe took weeks, andย the ingredients and their ratios were calculated very precisely and carefully.
For maximum fluffy softness, this recipe calls for plenty of egg whites (no egg yolks). ย You’ll whip these separately with an electric hand mixer until they reach stiff peaks (that just means that when you lift a whisk straight out of the whites, the peaks stay and don’t recede back into themselves) and then fold them with a spatulaย into the cake batter. ย This is easy to do– it takes only about 5 minutes– and isย critical for a light and fluffyย white cake (don’t get me started on yellow funfetti cakes — there should be no such thing).
I used a buttercream that I flavored with a new emulsion that I found at my local cake shop (see notes in recipe), which accented the frosting with notes of citrus and almond. ย This kept the buttercream from being overbearingly sweet, but didn’t go over as well with Zach, who loathes lemon.
Vanilla extract (or any other that you prefer) can also be used, of course, and I included notes in the recipe.
Today, I’m cutting up this carefully-crafted funfetti cakeย into thickย slices in an Unbirthday celebration, and I’m so glad that you are here to join me.
Thank you so much for following along, for taking the time to read my postsย (or just look at the pictures, that’s OK too), comment, e-mail, and follow me on social media (your support as I tackle video on Facebook has been so helpful).
This space would be nothing withoutย you coming back day after day, and I know I wouldn’tย have made it this far without so many kind, encouraging comments (when I get a comment telling me that you tried a recipe and loved it, it makes my whole day).
Sugar Spun Runย is here to stay.
Never give up on a dreamย just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. ย The time will pass anyway. –Earl Nightingale
Funfetti Cake from Scratch (and an UnBirthday)
Ingredients
- 9 Tablespoons (127 g) unsalted butter softened
- 3 cups (600 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (236 ml) neutral cooking oil Use canola, vegetable, or avocado oil
- 4 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 cups+ 2 Tbsp (516 g) all-purpose flour (all of the flour goes into the cake batter, you will also need additional flour for preparing the cake pan)
- 4 ยฝ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ยฝ teaspoons salt
- 1 ยฝ cup (355 ml) milk
- 9 egg whites room temperature preferred
- ยฝ cup (80 g) sprinkles*
Buttercream
- 1 lb (453 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- ยผ teaspoon salt
- 6 cups (750 g) powdered sugar
- 6 Tbsp heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons LorAnn Princess emulsion or vanilla extract
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and prepare 3 8-inch round cake pans by generously greasing and flouring. Be sure to shake out excess flour.
- In stand mixer, beat butter on medium-low speed until creamy.9 Tablespoons (127 g) unsalted butter
- Add sugar and oil and beat until all ingredients are well-combined and creamy.3 cups (600 g) granulated sugar, 1 cup (236 ml) neutral cooking oil
- Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and then stir in your vanilla.4 teaspoons vanilla extract
- In separate bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, and salt.4 cups+ 2 Tbsp (516 g) all-purpose flour, 4 ยฝ teaspoons baking powder, 1 ยฝ teaspoons salt
- Measure out your milk.1 ยฝ cup (355 ml) milk
- With mixer on medium speed, gradually alternate between adding the flour mixture and the milk to the butter mixture, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Stir until each one is almost completely combined before adding the next.
- Pause occasionally to scrape down sides and bottom of bowl.
- In separate bowl, combine your egg whites and, with a hand-mixer on high-speed, beat until stiff peaks form.9 egg whites
- Using a spatula, gently fold your egg whites and sprinkles into your batter. Take care to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl so that ingredients are well-combined, and take care not to over-mix.ยฝ cup (80 g) sprinkles*
- Evenly divide cake batter into prepared pans.
- Bake on 350F (175C) for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake layer comes out clean or with few crumbs (should not be wet). For best results, rotate your cake pans halfway through baking to ensure even baking.
- Cakes will be a light golden brown when done baking.
- Remove cakes from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes. Run a butterknife around the inside rim of each pan and invert each onto a cooling rack.
- Allow to cool completely before frosting.
Frosting
- I used this technique from I Am Baker to frost my cake. If you intend to use this technique as well it requires a lot of icing for the top and I recommend increasing this recipe by 50%. If you are just doing a plain covering that will not be needed.
- In stand mixer, beat butter on medium-speed until creamy.1 lb (453 g) unsalted butter
- Add salt and beat again for about 20 seconds.ยผ teaspoon salt
- Gradually, about 1 cup at a time, add powdered sugar, waiting until each cup is completely mixed before adding the next cup.6 cups (750 g) powdered sugar
- Tbsp at a time, add the heavy cream on medium-high speed, waiting until each addition is well-combined before adding the next 2 Tbsp.6 Tbsp heavy cream
- Add flavoring (vanilla extract or emulsion). and stir on medium-high for 30 seconds.2 teaspoons LorAnn Princess emulsion or vanilla extract
- Transfer one layer of your cooled cake to serving platter. Use frosting to ice the top. Add the next layer, ice the top of that. Add your third layer on top and ice the top, and then do a thin "crumb coating" around the entire cake.
- Transfer to freezer for 10-15 minutes, then remove and apply a clean, thick coat of frosting around the entire cake.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase anything through these links I will get a small commission at no extra cost to you. Please view the disclosure policy for more information.
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Recipe originally published 4/13/16 — text updated 4/13/17
Christin
Hi! I am excited to try this recipe. What size eggs do I have to buy for the egg whites? M or L?
Sam
Hi Christin! Use large eggs for this recipe. ๐
Suzanne
Hello! Do you have any recommendations for high altitude?
Sam
Hi Suzanne! Unfortunately I am not familiar with high altitude baking. Hoping someone else who is and has tried this cake might be able to chime in with a suggestion!
Suzanne Singer
Thank you! I might give it a try and will let you know my results. It looks delicious.
Allison
Hi there! Plan on making these for cupcakes. How much should I fill the liners and how long do these bake for?
Sam
Hi Allison! Fill 2/3-3/4 of the way full. They’ll need to bake about 17-18 minutes. Enjoy!
anya
Hi, how do I convert this recipe into imperial UK? how many grams is 9 tbsp of butter? very excited to make this recipe!
Sam
Hi Anya! It would be 127g of butter. ๐
Sarah
Hi there, this looks absolutely gorgeous. Iโm dying to make it soon. Just wondering though- How deep must the pans be. I have 3 8โ pans but theyโre only about 1,3 inches tall. Is that okay?
Sam
Hi Sarah! Mine are about 1.75 inches deep. Hope that helps! ๐
Stormie Hopes
Hello! I will be making this cake for my sons birthday party this weekend. Can I add more butter to help it from being dense? 9tbs just seems like so little butter.. or can you tell me how long Iโm supposed to mix it so I donโt over mix the batter?
Also, is there a way to tell if itโs over mixed before I bake it?
Sam
Hi Stormie! I do not recommend adding more butter, keep in mind that there is a cup of oil in this recipe as well.
I can’t really say how long to mix it as it depends on too many variables, but I do recommend mixing by hand from step 10 on. Just stir until everything is combined and then don’t stir any longer beyond that. I hope that helps!
Alison
Do you know how many cupcakes this would make, if I just did cupcakes? Canโt wait to try the recipe!
Sam
Hi Alison! This recipe will make about 45 cupcakes. If you don’t want quite as many, check out my confetti cupcakes recipe, they are very similar. ๐
Jane
Made this cake for sonโs 7th birthday. Iโve made cakes from scratch before and nothing compares to this recipe. Amazing flavor and so soft and moist. The whole family ate every last crumb!
Sam
Thank you so much, Jane! I am so glad everyone enjoyed it!
Natalie
This looks delicious! Is it possible to use melted butter instead of the canola/vegetable oil?
Sam
Yes just keep in mind that the cake won’t be quite as light and moist if you do and the color will be a bit more yellow too.
heather
for the cake…does it matter if itโs salted or unsalted butter?
Sam
Hi Heather! Use unsalted butter for the cake! ๐
Cindy
Can cake flour be substituted for the All Purpose flour in this recipe?
Sam
Hi Cindy! I have not tried it, but I don’t think it would be a problem. ๐
Lisa
Is there a specific type of sprinkles that will not run and turn the batter gray? Very disappointing that the batter did not stay white.
Sam
Hi Lisa, I just use regular sprinkles/jimmies. I’ve never had a problem with them bleeding, what brand did you use? I’m wondering if that might be the problem.
April
Does it matter what kind of sprinkles you use?
Sam
Hi April! I recommend using jimmies. If you use nonpareils they are much more likely to bleed in the batter. ๐
Christina
I made this cake and sadly it disappointed. With four cups of flour and two sticks of butter, it was just so dense. Plus it made enough for two 9-inch cake pans AND half a tray of cupcakes – way too much for us.
Great idea though!
Sam
Hi Christina! I am sorry you were disappointed in the cake. Is it possible that the batter got over-mixed? That will cause you to have a dense cake. The recipe is meant to make an 8 inch 3 layer cake so it does create a lot of batter. ๐
Lisa
It only called for one stick of butter
(8 Tbs) plus one extra Tablespoon, not 2 sticks (which is 16 Tbs). That may be why it was too dense for you.
Anyi Valencia
Can I use bleach rinsing flour instead of all purpose?
Sam
Hi Anyi! Do you mean bleached self rising flour? If so, I don’t recommend using self rising flour in this recipe.