DIY Funfetti Birthday Cake and Topper
If you are like us, you are a little tired of celebrating birthdays at home with no friends. The pandemic has us all separated and it’s hard to make the day feel special when can’t go anywhere or see anyone. So how can you make a child’s (or your) birthday more special? With a cake! This cake is funfetti made from scratch, with a special topper that is easily customizable!
We have put together a printable that has everything you need to customize your cake topper. We have included letters and numbers in two different colours, as well as templates for tiny party hats. Feel free to use whatever figurine(s) you have already or go buy something new.
Tips for baking a light and fluffy cake:
Use cornstarch in your mix. Adding cornstarch to flour mimics cake flour and makes the cake more crumbly (in a good way!)
Make sure your ingredients are room temperature. This includes butter and eggs.
Buttermilk helps tenderize gluten with its acidity. If you don’t have buttermilk you can make some by adding one tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice into a one cup measure and filling it with milk. Give it a stir and let it sit for a few minutes. For vegan buttermilk, substitute soymilk for cow’s milk!
Bonus tip: Buttermilk freezes well, so if you have any leftovers you can freeze it to use later!
Cake:
This recipe makes three 6” layers. For an 8” cake double the recipe.
Ingredients
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup corn starch
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
¼ cup vegetable oil
5 eggs, room temperature
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup rainbow sprinkles
Recipe
Preheat your oven to 350° and prepare your cake pans with a layer of butter or oil and a dusting of flour.
Stir together flour, corn starch, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and set aside.
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Mix in oil and vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Add the flour mixture alternating with buttermilk. Mix until just combined. Gently fold in the sprinkles.
Divide the batter up between pans and bake for 30 minutes or until a knife inserted into the centre comes out free of crumbs. Allow the cakes to rest in their pans for a moment, then remove, place onto a cooling rack, and allow to cool completely.
Level the tops with a knife once cooled.
Basic buttercream:
Ingredients
½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 TBSP milk
Recipe
Using a hand or stand mixer, combine the ingredients and beat for at least five minutes. This ensures that your buttercream will be light and fluffy. Use a spatula to spread the buttercream between the layers of the cake and the top and sides. Note, this makes just enough buttercream to cover the cake with a thin layer of frosting between each layer, so if you would like more frosting, double the recipe.
Cake Topper:
Materials
Printable template, letters/numbers printed onto cardstock
Scissors or X-Acto knife
Thin string
Tape
Reusable straws
Steps
Cut out the letters you would like to use.
Cut lengths of string as long as the letter, both straws, and a little more for leeway.
Lay them out backwards and lay the string along the top of the letters
Tape the letters to the string
Thread the ends of the strings through the straws and out the other end. Lay tape around the bottom to secure the strings. Cut any excess string.
Party Hats:
Materials
Printable template, printed onto cardstock
Small pom poms
Glue
Tape
Small figurine(s) or animal(s)
Steps
Cut out the party hat template
Roll the hat as tight as you would like to make it. Secure with small pieces of tape on the inside and outside. Use a dab of glue on the pointy end and attach a pom pom. Allow to dry.