HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Welcome to 2013 everyone!!!  I spent last night ringing in the new year with my best dental school friends over lots of snacks and a little champagne!  I baked this super easy but very festive 'fun-fetti' cake with buttercream icing for the occasion!

I chose to use a boxed cake mix (cheap!) because they are guaranteed to taste great--which isn't always the case with homemade recipes.  I've learned that the hard way!  When making layer cakes I think it's best to allow yourself at least 2 days of working time.   I baked this cake on Saturday and froze each layer, wrapped in Saran wrap and placed in a Ziploc bag, after leveling and cooling to room temp.  I never make icing until right before I'm going to use it, but it is much easier to do you crumb coat on a frozen cake!

Happy baking!

Ingredients:

for the cake--
1 box of Duncan Hines Classic White cake mix
3 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 cup water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp butter extract
1/4 cup jimmie sprinkles

for the icing--
1.5 sticks of unsalted butter
4.5 cups confectioners' sugar
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Directions:

for the cake--
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line the bottoms of 2 8-inch cake pans with parchment paper.  Grease and flour these pans and set aside.


In a large bowl combine all of the cake ingredients except the sprinkles and mix until well combined, about 3 minutes.  Gently fold in the sprinkles using a spatula.  Evenly disperse the batter between the 2 pans and bake for about 26 minutes. Check doneness by gently pressing on the center of the cake, it should spring back a little!


Place the cakes in their pans on a wire rack and allow to cool for 15 minutes.  Then remove the cakes from the pans and continue to cool completely.  Once cooled, level the cakes and wrap them in 2 sheets of Saran wrap and place in a Ziploc bag to freeze overnight.


for the icing--
When you're ready to make the icing,  combine the butter and sugar in a stand mixer and beat on medium high for about 3 minutes.  Slowly add the vanilla and heavy whipping cream and beat for an additional 3 minutes.  If you want to decorate the cake like I did, set 1 cup of icing aside and mix with your desired food coloring.

to decorate--

Remove the frozen cakes and place on an appropriately sized cake cardboard on a rotating cake stand sitting on top of a cookie sheet.  Place the first layer upside down and ice the top before placing the second layer upside down on top of that.  Begin by icing the the sides of the cake and then press handfuls of sprinkles into the sides (this is where the cookie sheet comes in handy).  Carefully ice the top of the cake, add sprinkles to the top of the cake if desired, and use a #3 top to write something fitting for the occasion.  Use a #21 tip and your colored icing to pipe borders on the top and bottom.

"In the New Year, may your right hand always be 

stretched out in friendship, never in want."