The lollipop candles on this birthday cake inspired the theme for my daughter’s 10th birthday party. As soon as she saw them, about ten months before her birthday, she started planning a “Candy Shop” themed party.
Knowing we would have the guests watch the most classic candy movie, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, we invited her guests by hand delivering a “Golden Ticket” wrapped with a giant rainbow swirl lollipop. (The biggest ones we could find, of course.) 🙂
She imagined an abundant display of colorful candy and rainbow balloons. We had bowls of Skittles, M&M’s, mini-Starbursts, jelly beans, gummy bears, mini-marshmallows, mini-Twix (her favorite candy), and varieties of sprinkles. The centerpiece was a DumDum lollipop “topiary.”
The girls ate a lot of candy , but they also used it to decorate chocolate covered marshmallows and chocolate-caramel apple slices. We also had pretzels for toppings- so yummy with chocolate. We tried to coat Oreos with chocolate as well, but had technical difficulties.
We had other candy-themed activities at the party including making candy necklaces on kitchen twine. They used Fruit Loops, gummy pendants, and gummy lifesavers as “beads.” They also played a game with Jelly Belly jelly beans- identifying the flavors by taste alone. Even though is wasn’t a candy-themed activity, the kids probably had the most fun having an iMovie competition.
We had our traditional celebratory Number Cookies too. 🙂
Having a cake covered in a mound of sprinkles seemed to work with our theme! The Rainbow Sprinkle Birthday Cake is a homemade take on a “Funfetti” cake mix cake. It was so colorful and fun, but also really REALLY delicious- super moist with fabulous vanilla flavor. The recipe was adapted from The New York Times, contributed by Julia Moskin. I weighed the ingredients, increased the amount of frosting, and modified the decorating techniques.
Rainbow Sprinkle Cake
Yield: 8-12 Servings (1 layer cake or 12 cupcakes)
- ½ cup/110 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), slightly softened, more for pans
- 1 ½ cups/190 grams all-purpose flour, more for pans
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon fine salt
- ⅔ cup/158 ml whole milk
- 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup/200 grams sugar
- 1 whole egg plus 2 egg whites
- ⅓ cup rainbow sprinkles (not pastel, or naturally colored)
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 12 ounces cream cheese, slightly softened
- 3/4 cup/165 grams unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), slightly softened
- scant 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, more to taste
- 4 1/2 cups/450 grams confectioners’ sugar, sifted, more to taste
- 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup rainbow sprinkles (not pastel, or naturally colored), or more, as desired
Note: Frosting Proportions for a 3-layer Version: 16 oz cream cheese, 220 g butter, 600 g confectioners’ sugar, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/4 tsp fine sea salt.
Make the cake: Heat oven to 325 degrees, preferably on convection, and place a rack in the center.
- Butter and line the bottoms of two 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper. Butter the parchment. Flour the pans, coating the bottom and sides, then tap out any excess flour.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- In a small bowl, stir together milk and vanilla.
- In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Reduce speed to low and, with mixer running, slowly add egg and whites and beat until smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Scrape down bowl.
- Add half the flour mixture, then the milk mixture, then the remaining flour mixture, beating to blend after each addition.
- Scrape down bowl and blend once more.
- Remove bowl and use a spatula or spoon to fold in sprinkles by hand.
- Divide batter evenly between the pans (approximately 400 g per pan), and bake until the tops are just dry to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Rotate the pans halfway through baking.
- Transfer pans to a wire rack and let cool completely, at least 2 to 4 hours, before turning out.
- Make the frosting: In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese, butter and salt together at medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 minutes.
- Reduce speed to low and, with mixer running, slowly add sugar and beat until smooth.
- Beat in vanilla just until incorporated.
- Taste frosting; you should be able to taste the cream cheese and a little bit of saltiness, as well as the sweetness. If desired, add more salt or sugar. Keep refrigerated.
- Turn cooled cakes out of pans.
- Using a bread knife, cut off any domed or uneven parts of each cake to make flat surfaces.
- Place one of the cakes on a platter or a cake stand, cut side up.
- Using an offset spatula, frost the top.
- Stack the other layer on top, cut side down.
- Place remaining frosting on top of the cake and, working from the center outward, frost the top and sides of the cake, as desired. I piped a border around the perimeter of the top of the cake to keep the thick coating of sprinkles on top in place.
- Sprinkle the top with a thick layer of sprinkles. Coat the sides with sprinkles as well, if desired.
- Refrigerate cake 30 minutes or longer to set. Serve cool.
Note: This recipe would also work well for cupcakes. Fill batter in 12 cupcake liners and bake 17-20 minutes, on convection.
One Year Ago:
Two Years Ago:
Three Years Ago:
Four Years Ago:
It was so tasty, I’ve already made it again! 🙂 I think it might need THREE layers next time. We all absolutely love it.
What a fun idea for a party! I bet the little ones had a blast.
It was fun planning it because my daughter was SO excited about the theme! 🙂
I bet 🙂
Wish I had a party like that when I was 10 everything looks so wonderful and a very Happy Birthday to your daughter.
Thank you so much, Suzanne. 🙂
Happy birthday to your daughter. 🙂 She’s lucky to have an amazing mom like you to do all this for her! Oh my at the candy-themed activities. It all looks fun. Love the cake!
Thank you, Eartha. The kids were a little bit wild after eating so much candy! 😉
Lol I can imagine. 🙂
What an awesome, creative party! It looks like everyone really enjoyed themselves Josette. The cake look amazing as well; so moist on the inside 😀
Thanks, Jess. It was hard to get a good picture of a slice with so many hungry kids waiting for a piece! 😉
What a fantastic party – what happened to my invitation??? Well done and I bet they all had a lot of fun on quite the sugar high I’m sure. When we decorated gingerbread houses every year the kids sure enjoyed the variety of candy, maybe more than they put on their houses.
My kids aren’t “allowed” to eat the gingerbread house candy! House rule. 🙂 Maybe that’s why they feel so candy deprived! They indulged at this party for sure. 🙂
I had 4 families decorating houses so I let the moms decide about the candy. Heck, the adults were eating it too 🙂
Wow, this party looks like a blast! Hope the girls had a great time, those treats look divine! 😋😋
Thank you so much. I hope they enjoyed themselves! My daughter’s friends are a terrific group of kids- she was so happy to have all of them here. 🙂
What a fantastic party! Happy Birthday to your daughter. She is creative just like her mom! I love the theme, the activities and the cake!
Thank you so much, Sandhya. ❤
It looks great. I like the floral cake side.
Thank you! I had made a “rose” cake for my daughter’s First Communion celebration and she absolutely loved it. She asked me to make them on the sides of this cake too.
I have to practice that myself. I’ve ventured into fondant and was quite successful the second and third time around. I need to do a post for my sons’ birthday cakes.
You do need to post your cakes! My kids LOVE looking at photos of their cakes on my site. 🙂
Awww what a fun party for your daughter and friends! Your birthday cake is a 10!
LOVE your rating! 🙂 ❤ Thank you!
It looks epic! 🙂 Happy Birthday to your daughter!
Thank you so much, Yana. We’re making memories over here! 😉
Ohhh wow this cake looks beautiful and sounds insanely delicious!! 🙂 thank you so much for sharing the recipes 😉😄
Thank you so much, Linda. The kids really enjoyed it!
An amazing creative party! Happy Birthday to your daughter, and hope you all had a great time.
Thank you so much, Sumith.
Congratulations to your daughter on her 10th birthday. February is the BEST month to have been born in. I’m prejudiced as I was born then too. 🙂
You set the b’day bar pretty high with your amazing creations. What are you doing next year?
Thank you! My daughter is planning a Parisian themed party for next year! 😉
BTW- June is the best birthday month. :)(mine!)
June … LOL
Parisian themed …. are you going to sculpt the Eiffel Tower in candy as a centerpiece? Or make a croquembouche? Oooh, I know, macarons in a rainbow of colours and flavours.
Berets for everyone. 🙂
Berets are on the list. Don’t give her any more ideas! (although yours are fabulous!)
Thank you. I’m all about the ideas … the execution is yours. Good luck 🙂
HAPPY FOOD. Unicorn approved. Makes me feel like a kid again and still. ❤
Thank you for the Unicorn approval! Made my day. 🙂
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