Spring Funfetti Cake Pastel (Printable)

Light vanilla cake with rainbow sprinkles and pastel-hued buttercream frosting for festive spring gatherings.

# What You Need:

→ Cake

01 - 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
03 - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
04 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
05 - 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
06 - 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
07 - 4 large eggs, room temperature
08 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
09 - 1 cup whole milk, room temperature
10 - 1/2 cup sour cream, room temperature
11 - 2/3 cup rainbow sprinkles

→ Pastel Buttercream

12 - 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
13 - 5 cups powdered sugar, sifted
14 - 1/4 cup whole milk
15 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
16 - Pinch of salt
17 - Food coloring gels in pastel pink, blue, yellow, and purple

# How-To:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
03 - In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, approximately 3 minutes.
04 - Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in vanilla extract.
05 - In a separate bowl, whisk milk and sour cream until combined.
06 - Add flour mixture to butter mixture in three additions, alternating with milk mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Mix just until combined.
07 - Gently fold in rainbow sprinkles with a spatula.
08 - Divide batter evenly between prepared pans and smooth tops.
09 - Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
10 - Cool cakes in pans for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
11 - Beat butter until smooth and creamy, approximately 2 minutes.
12 - Gradually add powdered sugar, mixing on low speed until incorporated.
13 - Add milk, vanilla, and salt. Beat on high speed until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
14 - Divide buttercream into four bowls. Tint each with a different pastel color using food coloring gel.
15 - Dollop or pipe colored buttercream onto cooled cake layers as desired. Swirl colors together for a marbled pastel effect.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It tastes like celebration without requiring you to be a pastry chef—the sprinkles do most of the visual heavy lifting.
  • The sour cream secret keeps the crumb impossibly tender and keeps it moist for days, which means you can actually bake ahead.
  • Four separate pastel buttercreams means you can swirl them however feels right in the moment, no two cakes ever look the same.
02 -
  • Room temperature ingredients are not a suggestion—they're the difference between a tender, fluffy cake and a dense hockey puck.
  • High-quality jimmies (not those tiny ball sprinkles) will stay bright and not bleed into the batter; cheap sprinkles will turn your beautiful cake murky brown.
  • Don't open the oven door to peek before 28 minutes, or you'll release heat and risk sunken cakes that won't rise properly.
03 -
  • Make the cake layers up to two days ahead and wrap them tightly in plastic wrap—they actually taste better the next day as the crumb sets and becomes even more tender.
  • If you don't have an offset spatula for frosting, a regular dinner knife dipped in warm water works beautifully and gives you more control than piping bags.
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