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
Dona HP
Hi. Could U use half and half, canned milk or heavy whipping cream for the milk?
Sam
I think canned milk will probably be your best bet but I am not really sure how it would turn out. If you try it out I would love to know how it goes. ๐
Jamie
I made this cake with 9 in. round pans, and it turned out great. When I did the same thing with 8 in. pans, the middle remained gooey while the outside edges burned.
Sam
I’m glad you enjoyed the 9 inch cakes. Does your oven happen to run a little high? It should bake fine in an 8 inch pan it would probably just need a minute or two longer. ๐
Siobhan Graves
Hi Sam,
I’m going to make this for my son’s 9th birthday. I have one question. Do I use both the butter and the oil, or do I choose one of those. Thanks so much!
Blessings,
Siobhan
Sam
Yes you need both the butter and oil here. ๐
Kelsi Allen
Iโm wanting to do these in cupcakes. About how many do you think this recipe would make? And also what timing and temp would you do for them?
Sam
Hi Kelsi! I think this would make about 45ish cupcakes. The temperature would be the same. Baking time would probably be about 17 minutes. Sometimes when this cake is baked as cupcakes, the cupcakes don’t hold their shape as well as the cake does. ๐
Amy
This is great but very sweet! Do you think it would work with less sugar?
Sam
Hi Amy! You could try cutting some of the sugar if you want, but you don’t want to cut too much or the cake won’t turn out. Unfortunately I don’t know what that amount looks like. I would love to know how it goes for you. ๐
Monique
Absolutely LOVE this cake!! I made this for my sons 4th birthday. It was a HUGE hit -even with people who didnโt really care for cake loved it. I want to make this again but a cupcake version. How long should I bake?
Sam
Hi Monique! I am so glad everyone enjoyed the cake so much. The cupcakes will probably need to bake for about 17 minutes. ๐
Nadya
Hi Sam
Do you think one could use this exact recipe for a sheet cake? I like that it has the oil and butter both.
Sam
That should work just fine. ๐
Nadya
Thanks so much! Will be making it tonight!
Heather W.
How many minutes did you bake using the sheet pan? Iโm using this recipe to make the numbers 21 so Iโm going to back on a sheet pan then cut out the numbers.
Sam
Hi Heather! While I haven’t tried baking this in a 9 x 13, I have had a reader tell me it took 30 minutes to bake. This recipe will also make more batter than fits in a 9 x 13 so make sure to not overfill the pan. ๐
Shagufta
Your cake looks amazing can you tell me where did you purchase your rainbow sprinkles as they are really bright.
Sam
I buy them from Country Kitchen Sweet Arts and I make a nice mixture for myself. ๐
Nicole
Hey there! Iโm trying to do a 3 layer sheet cake with this recipe!
14×11.5 pan. What would you suggest in terms of how much batter to put into the pan?
Thanks so much! Love your recipes and guidance!
Sam
Hi Nicole! This recipe as it stands would probably fill about one of those pans, but I haven’t tried it. You will want to take care not to fill the pan more than 2/3 of the way full. ๐
Patty
Hi Sam,
I can’t wait to make this cake. It looks amazing! Can you tell me what colors you used for the frosting you decorated the cake with?
Thanks,
Patty
Sam
Hi Patty! I use Ameri-color food gels. These food gels are my favorites and I use them all the time. I used electric pink, electric blue, lemon yellow, I think the purple was regal purple and the green I believe was mint green. ๐
Sue
We love this recipe and have used it often. Any suggestions on how to turn this into a lemon cake. We keep saying we need a lemon cake recipe that is as good as the Funfetti cake
Sam
Hi Sue! I’m working on a recipe now for a lemon cake. I have been playing with adding lemon zest and substituting some of the milk for lemon juice. I also like to use lemon curd as a filling in between layers. I hope to have the recipe perfected soon. ๐
Connie
Hi Sam,
I want to use your funfetti recipe for a smash cake using 2 or 3, 6″ round cake pans, so its small in diameter but tall. Could you tell me how long I should bake the cake based on 2 and 3 pans of the 6″ size? I will have to see how tall it is before deciding to use 2 or 3 pans.
Thank you!
It looks wonderful!
Sam
Hi Connie! Unfortunately I haven’t baked this batter in a 6 inch pan so I’m not sure how long it would need to bake. Just keep an eye on it so you don’t accidentally over-bake it. ๐
Brianna
Can you substitute cake flour for the AP flour? And if so what ratio?
Sam
Hi Brianna! You can use cake flour here. If you are using weights, it is the same weight. If you are using cup measurements, you need 1 cup + 2 Tablespoons of cake flour for every 1 cup of all purpose flour. ๐
Meg
Do you have any suggestions for baking at high altitudes? (5000 ft +)
Sam
Hi Meg! Unfortunately I don’t have any experience with high altitude baking but maybe someone else can chime in. I’d love to know how it turns out/if you do anything differently. ๐
Caroline
Any idea how long Iโd need to bake if I wanted to split the batter into 2 x 8โ pans? Iโm making my little one a smash cake for her birthday. Thanks. They pans are 3โ high if that makes a difference
Sam
Hi Caroline! These are made in standard 2 inch pans so a 2 3 inch pans would probably hold all of the batter. You would definitely need them to bake a little bit longer. ๐