Funfetti Cake from Scratch

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It's Chloe's birthday. She turned 19 and will soon be leaving to serve an LDS mission in Birmingham, Alabama—Spanish speaking. We are very proud of her and are excited to hear her adventures and all about the great things she'll be doing.

I asked Chloe what kind of cake she wanted me to make for her. She called my cell phone (from downstairs in her bedroom) to place her order. She requested a Funfetti cake. My initial reaction was, "You can't be serious!" I am not a big fan of cake mixes, and I have always thought the Funfetti cake was the worst of the worst. Chloe, however, has always loved it. How could Chloe, whose parents both love to bake, prefer a boxed cake mix with those nasty sprinkles. I just plain don't get it. Anyway, Chloe went on to clarify that she wanted a Funfetti cake made from scratch. Since it was her birthday, I was willing to compromise. Plus, she'll be far away next year.

For the Funfetti cake from scratch, I decided to make just a basic white cake and throw in a bunch of sprinkles. To frost the cake, I made a vanilla buttercream and threw on a bunch more sprinkles (And when I say "threw on," I mean it. Those little things were everywhere.) I added 19 colorful, curly candles, and the party was on.

The result? Chloe and the family really liked it. It was a little on the sweet side for me—but so is the cake mix version. I would recommend small slices of cake served with a simple flavor of ice cream. Next time, I think I'll try a cream cheese frosting, a strawberry butter cream, or find a white frosting that's a little less sweet. But still, it was a good cake, and I even liked it better the next day.

Happy birthday, Chloe!

I was very happy with how it turned out. This cake says, "Party!"

It was pretty a lit up, too.

This was the perfect size slice. Otherwise, it would be sugar overload.

Funfetti Cake from Scratch

Ingredients:

• ½ cup butter, softened
• 1½ cups sugar
• 4 egg whites
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1⅓ cups buttermilk
• ⅓ cup multicolored jimmies (sprinkles)

Grease two 9-in. round pans. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease bottoms of pans again and then flour the pans. Preheat oven to 350°.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg whites, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating well after each addition. Fold in jimmies.

Spread batter evenly into pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clan. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 6 to 8 cups confectioners’ sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Place butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups of the sugar and then the milk and vanilla. On medium speed, beat until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition, until frosting is thick enough for spreading.