I have seen the rainbow cake images on google for some time and eyed them up as some serious cake loving fodder! I mean they just look totally amazing! So when it came to devising Burton’s birthday cake for his 3rd birthday, I decided that now was the time to make a multi coloured layered rainbow cake! I know that the majority of the rainbow cakes use a white chocolate frosting, but there is no way Burton would eat that so I opted for milk chocolate frosting instead which still looked great.
I actually made two cakes in the end as I foolishly thought that one wouldn’t be enough (I was wrong of course!) as there were going to be about 30 guests in total. The rainbow cakes were a little bit fiddly to make but the end result is so worth it when you hear the gasp as you cut into a seemingly ‘run of the mill’ chocolate celebration cake.
I based the recipe for the sponge from one featured on More Than Toast but my version has a lot less sugar as I figured that food colouring adds extra sweetness.
To Make The Rainbow Cake Sponge
Rainbow Cake
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Makes one 6 layered rainbow sponge cake
Author: Jenny Paulin
Recipe type: desserts
Serves: 18
Ingredients
- *For the Sponges*
- 225g butter, room temp
- 325g caster sugar
- 5 egg whites, room temp
- 2 teaspoons vanilla essence
- 425g plain flour
- 4 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 355 ml milk, warmed for 30 sec in microwave to bring to room temp
- Food colouring gels - I used the Dr Oetekar set which come in 3 colours red, yellow and blue which meant I had to make my extra colours (see photo below) but if you can buy other coloured food gels then do so
- *Chocolate Frosting*
- Ok I have a confession here, I didn't make my own frosting for these cakes due to timings and all the other party food I had to make so I used Betty Crocker chocolate buttercream to sandwich the sponges together and Betty Crocker chocolate fudge frosting to cover the outer of the cake. (FYI: This product is also dairy free!). I bought 2 tubs of each
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C /160 C degrees fan oven.
- Oil and line how ever many 9” cake pans you have
- Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- Cream together the sugar and butter, until pale and creamy.
- Add the egg whites a little at a time and then add the vanilla essence and mix until fully incorporated.
- Then, alternating between the wet ingredients and the dry ones, add the milk and flour mixture in two parts.
- Ok so now the fiddly part:
- Divide the batter between 6 bowls and ensure that the 6 batter quantities all weight the same to achieve the same size layers of sponge. Therefore, it is worth weighing your mixing bowl before you begin adding ingredients, and then subtract the weight of the bowl from the final measurement, once the batter is completed. Then you need to divide that number by 6 and add that weight of batter to each bowl leaving a little over for wastage.
- Add at least half a tube of food colouring into each bowl - the brighter the better really to make the sponge colours as vibrant as possible.
- Remember the colour of the batter pre cooked, will be the colour of the baked batter.
- Pour into the cake tins and bake for about 15-20 minutes each until cooked thoroughly.
- When cooked, allow to cool on a wire rack
- Then simply decorate as you wish I used lots of chocolates which Burton requested, namely white and milk chocolate buttons, chocolate fingers , smarties and malteasers
maltesers & white and milk chocolate buttons
Chocolate fingers and smarties
I think they looked pretty darn good even for my clumsy mumsy cake decorating
And NONE of my the party guests were expecting to see the tecno-coloured cake inside either!
If you get the chance to make a rainbow cake I highly recommend doing so, the extra effort is well worth the end result
I LOVE CAKE
For this months I LOVE CAKE the theme is
SHOWSTOPPER / CELEBRATION CAKE
because I Love Cake is 1 year old today 🙂
So please link up any amazing cakes you have made in honour of a celebration, birthday, wedding etc…
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Thank you xx
Thank you xx
Wow that is a show stopper alright, I would love to make it but not sure I would have the patients, if I did my kids would be so impressed!
I need to try & step up my game for Hanna’s birthday cake now then!! No pressure….
Your cakes look great…not much chocolate on them at all!! x
Mmmm that looks so lovely and so effective. I would love to have the patience to make this.
I will have to make myself a belated birthday cake so I can join in. I did make a yummy chocolate cake for Jonathans birthday in March but didn’t blog it.
Well done with this cake xx
I’m useless at making big cakes. You make this look so simple! I guess I could try a rainbow cupcake lol.
That looks amazing and all I need now is an excuse to make one!
What??? I love Cake is a year old? How did that happen! lol
Love the rainbow cake, I’ve been thinking for a while I’d like to throw a rainbow themed party, don’t think Leo would have been as impressed as he was with his Thomas one though!
These cakes are gorgeous! I used to always add the whole egg and then wonder why it tastes so eggy. I’ll use just egg whites now and try that.
that is a SERIOUSLY impressive cake you have made there misses!! wow! i’m not sure I’d have the patience, but it does look incredible, well done! xx
This is seriously impressive! I have seen some rainbow cakes recently, but this is the king of them all with all the decoration as well! I bet it was really yummy. x
I bow down to your great cakeness. I’m in awe. x
awww thanks although having seen your gingerbread creations, I am sure you could make this too 🙂 x x
thanks so much Katie! such a lovely thing to say x x
ps. yes it was very yummy x
thanks so much lovely. it did take a while to do but twas worth it xx
try it again – the sponges were so light x x
yes a whole 12 months old already!!! you should hold a rainbow theme party be brilliant! do it for louka’s 1st birthday maybe??? x
thank you lovely – you need a birthday as an excuse!! x
if i can make it look that good (and I am messy and clumsy!) then you can too lovely. give it a go its worth all the effort and make sure you show me your cake!! x
thanks and if you lived nearer i would have made you one for your birthday xx
not much chocolate ha ha wonder whose cake had more calories??? prob yours ha! x
thank you, you should x x
how pretty a gorgeous cake s
Thank you for this, it’s the best rainbow cake recipe I’ve found! Cooking it for my best friend who is 26 but really just a big kid at heart. He loves chocolate so I wanted something chocolatey, but was also really keen to do a rainbow cake this time! So this is perfect. Lovely blog 🙂
Thank you so much! I hope your friend enjoyed hers and it all went well for you x
glad you liked it and i hope your friend did too x x
A Gruffalo Party | Mummy Mishaps
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