This colorful Funfetti Cake is easy to make from scratch and tastes so much better than a box mix! The cake is soft, light, and fluffy, and the addition of confetti disc sprinkles adds a fun touch to the finished cake. Best of all, you don’t need any special cake decorating skills to whip up this delicious homemade Funfetti Cake recipe.
Looking for more cakes as easy as this sprinkle cake recipe? Try our tasty Strawberry Dump Cake or this yummy Boston Cream Poke Cake.
I love to bake at home, but fancy cakes have always intimidated me. I don’t have any special cake decorating supplies or tools, so I love to use cake recipes that look fun and taste delicious but are also super simple. This Funfetti Cake recipe is perfect because the bright, colorful sprinkles make it look extra special, but it’s a cinch to whip up.
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Pastel Confetti Sprinkles – 1.7 LB
The original Pillsbury Funfetti Cake Mix is just a vanilla-flavored cake with confetti sprinkles. To make this from-scratch Funfetti Cake taste as fun and colorful as it looks, I added a little bit of extra flavor. The addition of Strawberry and Lemon extracts gives the cake a bright, fruity flavor that matches the rainbow colors. If you prefer the original vanilla-flavored cake, just leave out the extracts.
What is Funfetti Cake Made of?
For the most part, this cake recipe uses the usual cake ingredients. However, a few extra special ingredients help take this cake from good to great. Here’s what you’ll need:
Ingredients
Cake Flour – Using cake flour instead of all-purpose flour improves the structure and height of the cake. It will be lighter and fluffier with cake flour.
Baking Powder and Baking Soda – Using baking powder and soda gives the batter more lift, making this cake perfectly fluffy.
Sugar – Use granulated sugar for this recipe.
Vegetable Oil – I love butter, but when you want a lighter cake, oil is lighter than butter and won’t weigh your cake down.
Egg Whites – Using just the egg whites provides structure to the cake.
Buttermilk – Not only does the buttermilk help the cake rise, but it also keeps the cake from being too sweet. It adds that little background tang.
Vanilla, Strawberry, and Lemon Extracts – Traditionally, Funfetti Cake is just a simple vanilla cake. However, it’s fun to have the flavor match the bright rainbow colors. Adding Strawberry and Lemon extracts gives the cake a deliciously fruity flavor. If you prefer the vanilla cake, omit the additional extracts.
Confetti Sprinkles – Look for the confetti disc sprinkles. If you use nonpareils or candy jimmies, they will bleed their colors into the batter, and it won’t look like a Funfetti cake.
How to Make Funfetti Cake
Note: This recipe makes one 9-inch round cake. If you want to make a 9×13 cake or two 9-inch round cakes to layer, double the recipe.
To begin, preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Trace the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan on parchment paper and cut out the circle. Grease the cake pan, then line the bottom of the pan with the parchment paper, and then also lightly grease the parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, using a handheld electric mixer (or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment) beat together the vanilla, oil, sugar, egg whites, and buttermilk until creamy and smooth, about 2 minutes.
Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture and mix on low speed just until combined, being careful not to overmix. Fold in the sprinkles with a spatula.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 22 to 25 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool the cake completely on a wire rack before adding the vanilla buttercream frosting.
After the cake is frosted, add more confetti sprinkles. It’s delicious with a scoop of vanilla or strawberry ice cream!
Recipe Pro Tips!
How Long Does Funfetti Cake Last?
Well, in our house, a small funfetti cake would last only for the event, but if you have leftovers, then you can store them in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Carefully wrapped cake can be frozen and left for 3 months if needed.
Can I Make a Larger Cake?
If you want to make a 9×13-inch cake or two 9-inch round cakes to layer, double the recipe.
Can I Make this Cake into Cupcakes?
We haven’t tried that, but almost any cake can be made into cupcakes, like our Happy Birthday Cupcakes, which are similar. Follow this recipe for the best results.
DO YOU WANT MORE EASY FUN DESSERTS?
We love celebrating here but don’t have the time for intricate desserts, so here are some of our easy yet delicious offerings.
Funfetti Cake
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups cake flour leveled
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large egg whites room temperature
- 2/3 cup buttermilk room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup confetti sprinkles plus a few more sprinkles for the top
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract optional
- 1/2 teaspoon strawberry extract optional
Buttercream Frosting
- 1/2 cup salted butter room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream room temperature (more as needed)
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 or 2 drops each strawberry extract and lemon extract optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Trace the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan on parchment paper and cut out the circle. Grease the cake pan, then line the bottom of the pan with the parchment paper, and then also lightly grease the parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder and baking soda, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, using a handheld electric mixer (or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment) beat together the vanilla (and/or other extraxts) oil, sugar, egg whites, and buttermilk until creamy and smooth, about 2 minutes.
- Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture and mix on low speed just until combined, being careful not to overmix. Fold in the sprinkles with a spatula.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 22 to 25 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool the cake completely on a wire rack before frosting.
- To make the frosting, with a handheld electric mixer, beat together the butter and powdered sugar. Add the cream and extracts. If the frosting is too thick, add cream, a teaspoon at a time, until the desired consistency is reached.
- Spread frosting on the cake and add additional sprinkles if desired.
Comments & Reviews
Sherry says
What a fun cake and so easy to make too!