I LOVE BIRTHDAYS! 🎂So when my good friend Lindsay asked me to make a funfetti cake for her birthday, I needed to make sure it was something special. I am a little extra, so this creation was no ordinary funfetti cake. It had many components and took me two days to finish. All of the work was so worth it for the taste and the look on Lindsay's face when I revealed it for her birthday dinner. It brings me JOY to make others feel happy and loved every day. People deserve to be celebrated!
My inspiration for this cake came from a Netflix documentary I watched last year in the series titled "Chef's Table". The series is about chefs from around the world that are revolutionizing the restaurant and bakery scenes. This is where I first learned about Christina Tosi and her MilkBar franchise. Her episode is under the volume titled "Pastry". I highly recommend it.
Christina Tosi's innovation in the kitchen stemmed from her childhood loves of CEREAL and SPRINKLES. When she was younger, she loved the taste of her milk after it has soaked in her sugary breakfast cereal. That nostalgia inspired her to use "cereal milk" as an ingredient in her recipes. At her stores across the USA, she sells cereal milk ice cream and other unique pastries that she created herself, such as crack pie and cornflake cookies. One of her most popular items on the shelf is THE BIRTHDAY CAKE. It has a signature look and now comes in many flavors. She and her baking staff thought that cakes should be decorated to see both the inside and outside of the cake. Her cakes are never frosted completely on the outside, so you can see the layers of filling and GOODNESS throughout.
I have been wanting to make my own version of the MilkBar Birthday Cake for a while now. The classic birthday cake consists of a vanilla FUNFETTI sponge cake with vanilla buttercream and special COOKIE CRUMBLES on the top. It sounds pretty basic, right? Sure! But there are some special components to this cake that sets it apart from other cakes out there.
Cake: There is a full recipe for this cake on the MilkBar website. I adapted my full recipe to bake my cakes with 8-inch rounds, rather than a sheet pan as suggested. I worked with another sponge cake recipe to accommodate for my baking pans. To make the cake look like the model, the edges of the cake needed to be shaved off with a serrated knife. This way the sprinkles can be seen and the cake had no rough edges. I found the process to be easier and less of a mess with the three round pans.
Icing: The icing had some interesting ingredients in it. When I read lemon juice and corn syrup on the ingredient list, I was a little skeptical. But I trusted the process. The flavors of the cake all complement each other so well in the end. Do not omit these essential ingredients!
Cake Crumbles: These are the most festive part of the cake. They are a salty and crunchy addition to the cake. I put some of the smaller pieces within the icing layers and saved the larger pieces for the top. I saved the extras in the freezer for ice cream toppings.
Cake Soak: Before putting the icing on each cake layer, a mixture of milk and vanilla is brushed onto the cake. This adds one extra kick of vanilla flavoring to the cake. I purchased clear imitation vanilla extract. I watched a video of Christina Tosi claiming that this type of vanilla is important for the cake to give it that "boxed-cake-like" flavor.
This cake is so FUN and FESTIVE. It has tastes of sweet and salty and BURSTS with color. I was so happy with the way this cake turned out. As you can probably tell by the photos, I was was being a little extra and got very into the cake "photoshoot". But it was a very PHOTOGENIC CAKE, so it deserved it. I plan on experimenting with other flavors of this cake and posting them to the blog soon. Stay tuned!
Birthday Cake with Funfetti Everything
THE CAKE (adapted from Completely Delicious)
2 sticks (1cup) unsalted butter
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 1/4 cup buttermilk*
2 teaspoons clear vanilla extract**
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites
1/2 cup sprinkles***
* To make your own buttermilk, combine 1 cup of milk with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Stir and set aside until milk starts to coagulate (about 10 minutes).
** I have watched many videos by Christina Tosi, and she claims that the clear vanilla extract is the key to this cake. She says it gives it the "boxed-cake-like" flavor.
*** When it comes to sprinkles, choose “jimmies”. Jimmies will not bleed through the cake and stay put very well as the cake bakes. I chose a Betty Crocker brand that did not contain brown sprinkles. I wanted my cake to be very lively with color.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour 3 8-inch pans. I always use vegetable shortening and then flour. Make sure to coat up the sides of the pan as well.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the 4 eggs, 1⁄4 cup buttermilk, and vanilla extract.
In a separate bowl, combine cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture and alternate additions with remaining 1 cup buttermilk. Pause to scrape down the bowl as needed.
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks. (For this, I ended up using the whisk attachment on my stand mixer to speed up the process).
In two additions, gently fold the egg whites into the cake batter with the sprinkles.
Divide the cake batter evenly into the three pans and bake for 25-30 minutes. Cakes will spring back in center when finished, and a toothpick inserted into the center will come out clean.
Let cool 10 minutes in the pan. Flip cakes out, and let cool completely on a wire rack.
This cake has a lot of components, so dividing the tasks into two days is helpful. I wrapped the cooled cakes individually in plastic wrap and stored them in the fridge overnight before assembling the cake. Cakes will need to be trimmed around the edges and tops to reveal the sprinkles inside and give the cake its “naked” look.
THE COOKIE CRUMBS (adapted from livforcake)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons light brown sugar
3/4 cup cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons rainbow sprinkles *
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon clear vanilla extract
* When it comes to sprinkles, choose “jimmies”. Jimmies will not bleed through the cake and stay put very well as the cake bakes.
Preheat oven to 300°F.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine sugars, flour, baking powder, salt, and sprinkles. Mix on low speed.
Add oil and vanilla until ingredients form small clusters.
Crumble clusters onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. I tried to form some larger clusters for the top of the cake without making them look too perfect.
Bake for 15 minutes. Cool completely.
I also made the cookie crumbs the night prior to assembly. I stored them in a plastic, airtight container. Be sure to taste one once they have cooled! They have a salty kick to them.
THE FROSTING (adapted from livforcake)
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
1/4 cup + 1/8 cup vegetable shortening
3 ounces cream cheese
3 tablespoons corn syrup
1 1/2 tablespoon clear vanilla extract
2 cups powdered sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
In a stand mixer, combine butter, shortening, and cream cheese. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Be sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl.
With mixer on low, add corn syrup, and vanilla. Increase mixer speed and beat until shiny white. Scrape down sides of bowl as needed.
In a separate bowl, sift together powdered sugar, salt, and baking powder.
With mixer on lowest setting, gradually add sugar mixture and lemon juice. Once combined, turn mixer to med-high and beat until smooth and a bit fluffy.
I always think it is best to make the icing right before assembly. This icing is quick and simple to whip together.
THE SOAK (adapted from livforcake)
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp clear vanilla extract
Simply whisk together the milk and vanilla in a small bowl or measuring cup.
THE ASSEMBLY
Before you begin, trim the cake rounds using a serrated knife. I trimmed around the edges and a bit of the top to give the cake a naked look. Try not to cut off too much to mess with the shape of the cakes. Also set aside some of the larger cookie crumbs to use for the top of the cake. Leave the smaller pieces for the filling layers. NOW IT IS TIME TO START STACKING!
Layer 1: Place cake on a cardboard round. Using a pastry brush, coat the top of the cake lightly with milk soak. Let settle for one minute. In total, 1/3 of the frosting will be added to this layer. Start by completely coating the cake with a thin spread of frosting, then add some cookie crumble, and finish off with the remaining 1/3 of frosting. Be sure to spread the icing all the way out to the edges.
Layer 2: Place second cake layer on top. Brush with milk soak, and let settle for one minute. Repeat icing and crumble directions from "Layer 1".
Layer 3: Place third cake layer on top. Brush with milk soak, and let settle for one minute. Top cake with remaining frosting, and smooth the surface of the cake with a knife. Place larger cookie crumbles around the cake circumference. Sprinkle remaining cookie pieces if desired.
Shape up the cake around the sides with a butter knife. Be sure to expose both the icing and cake layers around the edges.
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