Skip the bakery lines and forget the boxed mix because this homemade funfetti cake is better than anything you can buy. I’m talking super moist, buttery vanilla cake layers made from scratch, loaded with rainbow sprinkles, and smothered in a simple vanilla buttercream.
I won’t lie… I’m fully obsessed. After months of testing, I’m convinced no celebration is complete without it. If you’re looking for a funfetti layer cake that’s colorful, nostalgic, and genuinely bakery-worthy, this is the one!
Not everyone’s a cake person…I get it! But if you’re still after that classic birthday cake flavor, my soft and chewy birthday cake cookies deliver it, complete with all the colorful sprinkles!
Table of Contents
Step by Step Instructions
1
In a stand mixer bowl, combine the dry ingredients and butter until they resemble coarse sand. This reverse creaming method is key to achieving a soft and tender cake texture. Just mix the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse sand.
2
Mix in half the wet ingredients until pasty. Scrape down the bowl well after this step, dry ingredients will always be stuck to the bottom!
3
Mix in the remaining wet ingredients and the rainbow jimmies sprinkles. You should have a smooth cake batter.
4
Distribute the cake batter into three 8-inch cake pans. You’ll know the cake layers are done baking when the edges are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out covered in a few moist crumbs. Let them cool on a wire rack while you make the frosting.
5
Make the vanilla buttercream frosting. It’s a super simple mix of butter, powdered sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla! I prefer using real vanilla for the buttercream for a better flavor.
6
Stack the cake with vanilla frosting in between each layer. Cover and decorate the entire cake with the remaining frosting. Garnish with sprinkles and enjoy!
3 Secrets to Getting That Boxed Mix Flavor
Unbleached cake flour: For a soft, tender crumb, cake flour is essential. It can’t be swapped for all-purpose, especially with this mixing method. Trust me, it won’t work!
Vanilla powder: Vanilla extract can bake off easily, but adding a concentrated vanilla powder keeps the flavor bold and deep.
Imitation Vanilla: Yep, it’s the secret behind that nostalgic, almost artificial (in a good way) vanilla flavor. But of course, if you prefer a real vanilla flavor, pure vanilla paste is my recommendation!
For days when you want the fun of funfetti but are in a brownie mood, my fudgy birthday cake brownies totally deliver. They’re soft, rich, and packed with sprinkles!
If you tried this or any other recipe on my website, please let me know how it went in the comments; I love hearing from you! Also, please leave a star rating while you’re there! You can also tag me on Instagram or Facebook so I can check it out!
Homemade Funfetti Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
Funfetti Cake Batter
- 2 1/3 cups unbleached cake flour, *See notes below*
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon vanilla powder
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 12 tablespoons cubed unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature
- 1/2 cup heavy cream, room temperature
- 1/2 cup sour cream, room temperature
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon imitation vanilla, for a classic box cake flavor, sub real vanilla if desired
- 1/3 cup rainbow jimmies sprinkles
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup salted butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla bean paste or extract
Instructions
For the Cake Batter
- Preheat the oven to 325°F/160°C. Grease and flour the sides of three 8-inch cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, vanilla powder, and salt.2 1/3 cups (300 g) unbleached cake flour, 1 1/2 cups (300 g) granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon (13 g) baking powder, 1 tablespoon (13 g) vanilla powder, 1 teaspoon (4 g) fine sea salt
- On low speed, mix in the butter until it has a sandy texture, about 2-3 minutes.12 tablespoons (169 g) cubed unsalted butter
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, heavy cream, sour cream, oil, and vanilla.3 (165 g) large eggs, 1/2 cup (120 g) whole milk, 1/2 cup (120 g) heavy cream, 1/2 cup (113 g) sour cream, 1/4 cup (56 g) vegetable oil, 1 tablespoon (8 g) imitation vanilla
- Mix in half of the wet ingredients and beat until smooth and pasty. Then, scrape down the bowl. Mix in the remaining wet ingredients and rainbow sprinkles until the batter is smooth and well combined.1/3 cup (80 g) rainbow jimmies sprinkles
- Evenly distribute the cake batter into the prepared cake pans (475 grams in each). Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out covered in a few moist crumbs. Let the pans cool on a wire rack for 20-30 minutes, then remove them from the pans and allow them to finish cooling on the racks.
For the Frosting
- In a stand mixer bowl or with a hand mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.1 cup (226 g) salted butter, 1 1/2 cups (339 g) unsalted butter
- Then add the powdered sugar. Pulse at first to combine, so the sugar doesn’t fly out of the bowl. Once combined, increase the speed to medium and beat for 4-5 minutes, until light, white, and fluffy.4 cups (480 g) powdered sugar
- Add the heavy cream and vanilla and mix until just combined.3 tablespoons (42 g) heavy cream, 2 teaspoons pure vanilla bean paste or extract
For Assembly
- Place your first cake layer on your serving platter or cake stand. These cake layers should bake very flat so you shouldn't need to trim them at all!
- Spread an even amount of frosting across the top, the place the second layer on top. Repeat this process one more time, placing the last cake layer upside down so that the top is flat.
- Spread a thin layer of the frosting over the entire cake, then refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.
- Spread the remaining frosting over the entire cake, using any extra to decorate if desired. Garnish with more rainbow sprinkles. Enjoy!
Hi! I made this for my son’s 2nd birthday and while the flavor was amazing the cake itself was very dense. What did I do wrong?
Hi Danika, this cake is naturally more dense than a standard creamed cake because of the reverse creaming method. If you think it looks denser than the photos, I would make sure your wet ingredients were all room temperature and not cold and that your baking powder is fresh and not old or expired.
Hi, does this recipe fill a 11x15x2 sheet pan? Or should I double the recipe?
I’m not sure if it will or not, if I had to guess, a double batch might be too much, you may only need 1.5X.
Hi, will doubling this recipe fill a 11×15 sheet cake pan? Also what temp and how long would I bake a sheet pan that size?
Hi Elaine, I really can’t say for sure as I’ve never baked the cake in a large sheet pan before!
This looks delicious! I’m doing a gender reveal party soon and needing finger food/desserts. Any idea how much time you think it should bake for MINI cupcakes? (:
Hi Lisa! Mini cupcakes will bake really quickly, I would start checking them around 12 minutes or so.
This cake tasted amazing! I made it for my birthday as a 3 layer cake and then also for fun as a sheet cake, it was incredible!! I love how tender the cake is and also how balanced the frosting is. The frosting is just the right amount of sweetness! The recipe was so easy to follow, I’m so glad I tried it!
I’m so happy to hear that Janet! Thank you so much for coming back to leave a review!
What brand of jimmies do you use? I’d like to try this recipe but I don’t want the sprinkles to bleed and melt into the batter. I’ve used the Fancy brand from Walmart but they don’t hold up. Thank you!
Hi Jen! I use Medley Farms Rainbow sprinkles and get them on Amazon.
If I make it in a 9 x13 pan how long should I cook it for and at what temperature
I would still bake it at the same temperature, and start checking it around ~25 minutes.
Absolutely delicious. This was my first funfetti cake and it did not disappoint. So moist. We couldn’t stop eating it. Thank you for the recipe. You are appreciated.
I appreciate you so much Tara! So happy you loved it, thank you so much for coming back to leave a review!
Hi Cambrea. I really want to make this cake, but I’m nervous about the 2 1/2 cups butter to 4 cups powdered sugar in the frosting. I’m wondering if it’ll taste like eating straight butter. Please confirm that I’m reading the recipe right and then I’ll proceed with confidence!
Hi Paula, the ingredients are correct. If you follow the instructions and whip it until extremely light and fluffy, it will turn out perfect.
How long can the cake sit out in a covered cake plate before needing to be refrigerated?
It’s fine for a day or two!
I tried it back in March and it was amazing but my only question is did you double the icing recipe because I didn’t have enough to decorate it and do another layer of icing so I had to improvise and do like a naked style cake with a border around the bottom and top and that was all I had enough for
Hi Ashley, no, I always do the batch as is. You may have just used more for the filling and had less to cover the sides. I would make sure you’re beating the frosting long enough to really incorporate air into the butter. If you don’t do this long enough, it will always yield less frosting.
Can you make this in 9in cake pans instead of 8in?
Yes! I would only do two layers though, otherwise the layers will be really thin.
The cake was moist and delicious but my batter was thin and all the sprinkles sank to the bottom. Not sure what happened. 🙁
Hi Andrea! Did you use a scale to measure the ingredients and did you make any substitutions? The batter shouldn’t be so thin where the sprinkles sink to the bottom.
Im so excited to use this recipe!! How many cupcakes does this make?
It makes ~15 cupcakes!
Thanks for recipe I would love to try this home made cake!
Is imitation vanilla the same as vanilla extract?
Imitation vanilla is clear vanilla, it’s different than real vanilla extract that is brown.