A light and fluffy, made from scratch funfetti cake (sometimes also called confetti cake)! 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. 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 originally bought the name, Sugar Spun Run, in 2012 and published a few posts super casually, photographed via iPhone-only, and focused on… whatever caught my attention that particular day. It was maintained sporadically, sloppily, and definitely without intention.
So in April of 2015 when I got the bill to renew my website, I almost canceled everything. 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, nearly 250 recipes later with a bright cheerful funfetti cake to show for it.
It’s now been two years of late, powdered-sugar filled nights, of re-making recipes over and over again (often only to decide that they really were just right the first time), of website code-induced headaches, and of desperately attempting to solve the Rubik’s cube that is my camera. 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, while today can’t rightly be called my blog’s “birthday”, I wanted to commemorate this two year anniversary anyway. Today I’m celebrating Sugar Spun Run’s Unbirthday, and slicing up this confetti-colored, sprinkle stuffed, 3-layer, from-scratch Funfetti cake just for the occasion. 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). Developing this recipe took weeks, and 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). 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 spatula into the cake batter. This is easy to do– it takes only about 5 minutes– and is critical for a light and fluffy 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. 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 cake into thick 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 posts (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 without you coming back day after day, and I know I wouldn’t 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 Run is here to stay.
Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. 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 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 1 ½ cup (355 ml) milk
- 9 egg whites room temperature preferred
- ½ cup (80 g) sprinkles*
Buttercream
- 1 lb (453 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- ¼ 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 ½ teaspoons baking powder, 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- Measure out your milk.1 ½ 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.½ 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.¼ 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
Penny Greene
I will never make any other white cake because this one is perfection!! Beats any bakery cake I have ever bought. Thank you!
Amy
What is the big difference between your best white cake vs funfetti cake? I mean couldn’t you just add sprinkles to the Best White Cake?
I have been making that one for years. My girls bday is tomorrow and I was originally just going to make that and add the sprinkles but now I am wondering if I should make this instead?
Everything I have ever made from your website is delicious and has been a hit at our gatherings!
Sam
Hi Amy! The funfetti cake is 50% larger and has sprinkles. 🙂
Katina Koehler
Could I make this a two layer cake instead? If so, what would I change? Thanks!
Sam
Hi Katina! Follow my instructions/recipe for my white cake instead and add 1/3 cup of sprinkles. The recipes are the same, only that one is scaled down to fit 2 pans (and doesn’t have sprinkles). Enjoy!
Coleen
Hi Sam
Love love your site and your recipes. I made the funfetti cake today and it tasted great. One thing I’m having issues with it the cake sinking in the middle. I have an oven thermometer so my temperature is right. I do not open the door to check if it’s done until the minimum time which in this recipe was 30 minutes. I do mix in a stand mixer but I used a spatula to fold the eggs in and sprinkles. Is it possible to over mix the butter and sugar? Should I try mixing all ingredients by hand or with a hand mixer? Again thanks for all your amazing g recipes. ❤️
Sam
Hi Coleen! A couple of things to look out for here: Were the egg whites full whipped to stiff peaks? They provide most of the structure here. You want to make sure to fold the egg whites in gently by hand to avoid deflating them. Did you use the toothpick test to make sure the cakes were completely cooked? Another thing that could cause this cake to sink is cooling it too quickly or not handling it gently when removing from the oven. I hope this helps! 🙂
Coleen Steele
Thank you Sam for replying. I did watch your great video before going the recipe. I did beat the egg white to stiff peaks I finding them into the batter until they were dissolved. I did use the toothpick method as well. I am wondering if I may have overfilled my pans? Would that happen? I filled the batter a little more than half way in the pans? I turned off the oven opened the door half way and let the cakes sit in there for about 5 minutes.
Sam
What exactly do you mean by dissolved? They should be incorporated but not completely gone. The over-mixing there could be the problem.
Coleen Steele
Dissolved as far I didn’t see any of the eggs whites on the top of the batter it was incorporated in the batter do I could see specks of the egg whites. Should I only be golfing it in for a few min? I folded it about 5 minutes. I’ll try to fold it in within 2-3 minutes 😍
Sam
5 minutes is probably a bit much. You don’t really need to time how long you fold them in you just need to incorporate them. I think they were definitely deflated last time which caused your sinking. I hope it goes better with less folding next time! 🙂
Alyssa
Absolutely love the cake itself but the frosting is so freaking sweet I felt like I was having sour candy. But I’m sure my son will absolutely love it!
LA
Do you know the ratio to make this in a 9×13 pan?
Sam
You would likely have to reduce the recipe by about 30%. It may be easier to just bake the excess into cupcakes. 🙂
Tiffany
Hi,
Is it fine to use vegetable oil instead of avocado oil like you used in the video?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Of course! Enjoy 😊
Whittnie
Hi!
Could I use cake flour for this recipe?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Whittnie! Cake flour will work fine as long as you substitute properly. If you are using weights you can use the same weight when substituting one for the other. If you are using cups, you will need to use 1c + 2 Tbsp of cake flour for ever 1c of all purpose flour that the recipe calls for. Hope that helps!
Carmem
Am I able to make this cake ahead. say 3days ahead? if so do I refrigerated?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Since the fridge tends to dry out cakes, we’d recommend preparing the cake layers, letting them cool, wrapping in plastic wrap, and letting them sit at room temperature until you’re ready to assemble. You can prepare the frosting in advance too and store that in an airtight container in the fridge. Hope that helps 😊
Sarah
Should I double or triple the recipe for a half sheet cake with two layers?
Sam
Hi Sarah! This recipe will make about 12 cups of batter and I think you would need a little more than 40 cups of batter for a 2 layer 13 x 18 cake. I would probably recommend quadrupling it. Good luck! Let me know how it goes. 🙂
Courtney
This was seriously THE BEST CAKE EVER! I have tried soooo many white cake recipes and have never found one that I love. This was an absolute hit with my family and friends.It is now my go to cake recipe.
Samantha
Hi, I am thinking of using this recipe but instead of a layered cake doing cupcakes. is the cooking time roughly the same?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Samantha! We actually recommend making our white cupcakes and stirring some sprinkles into the batter instead. This recipe tends to cave in on itself when made as cupcakes.
Vanessa
(Edited comment)
Hi Sam! I absolutely love making your recipes. I have made several and they are always a hit! I’ve made this one twice already as a cake. I need to make cake and cupcakes this time round and notice that you stated to use the left over batter for cupcakes. I have a question though…I looked at your confetti cupcake recipe and you stated it’s a modified version (definitely smaller lol), but I noticed a slight difference though. In the cupcakes you use buttermilk, but in this cake recipe you use milk. I was just wondering why and what the difference is? I will be making (3) 6″ round and the rest will go to cupcakes. Or do you think I should just cut the cake recipe in half and then make the cupcake recipe separate? Thanks for your help and all your recipes!!!!
Sam
Hi Vanessa! I liked the slightly lighter texture using the milk for the cupcakes, but other than that the taste is very comparable. If it were me, I would just make the cake recipe and use the excess for cupcakes. 🙂
Kat
So, so yum! Be sure to read the directions carefully, I almost put the eggs directly in the wet ingredient mix but was able to whip the whites before and follow through with the rest of the instructions! So yum! My son loved it for his birthday and so did everyone else 🙂
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so glad it was a hit, Kat! Happy Birthday to your son 🥳
Jessica
Have you concidered including some high elevation adjustments? I think it kinda messed me up since my cakes took alot longer. I measured all ingredients to the T with my scale and still struggled a bit. otherwise super good.
Sam
Hi Jessica! Unfortunately I do not have experience with high altitude baking so I would struggle to provide accurate adjustments. 🙁
Maria B Rugolo
This recipe yielded 3 fluffy, moist, and delicious layers. a keeper for sure!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Maria! Thanks for giving our recipe a try 🩷
Erika
can you make this recipe with the whole egg to get a little firmer cake? and if so how many whole eggs?
Sam
Hi Erika! Unfortunately that will not work with this cake.
Ashley
If I’m looking to make a three layer six inch smash cake with this recipe would you think I cut the ingredients in half?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Ashley! That should work fine 😊
Erica
Girl. This recipe is sooooo good. Thank you for this recipe. I would definitely love to have some baking times for different sized pans and cupcakes. I did make cupcakes and a few little 4” cakes for a smash cake, but I don’t think I baked it for long enough since it sank a bit in the middle of them when they cooled. This is definitely the best vanilla cake I’ve had, and I’m not a huge fan of vanilla cake. My husband is though, and he said it’s the best he’s had too!
Zach
When doing the 4 inch pan sizes, did you half the recipe? or have excess batter?