6-in Small Batch Funfetti Cake
A delicious party cake that is perfect for smaller gatherings. This small batch funfetti cake is tender with an explosion of color!
Sometimes you only need a small cake for a celebration. I don’t know about you, but small batch cakes appeal to me. They require less ingredients, less frosting, and are easier to travel with.
This small batch funfetti cake is a scaled down version of my vanilla cake recipe with a few minor changes.
How Many Layers Does This Recipe Make?
This small batch funfetti recipe makes a 6-inch round, 2 layer cake. This make about 8-10 servings, which is perfect for a small party (with possible leftover cake for later – yum!).
You can also use this batter to make a 4-inch round, 3 layer cake. 4-inch cakes are even smaller and adorable! These are the pans that I use to make all my 4-inch round cakes. No matter what size the diameter is for my cakes pans, I always purchase pans that are 2-inches tall.
What Is A Funfetti Cake?
When you think about birthday parties you may picture a cake with party sprinkles. What gives a funfetti cake it’s name is folding rainbow sprinkles into the batter. When you cut slices of cake, you’ll see the colorful sprinkles. That first bite of cake tastes nostalgic as I remember the birthdays my mom threw us when we were young.
Something to keep in mind is that some sprinkles will bleed color when baking. The sprinkles that I use in this recipe are the Betty Crocker rainbow sprinkles. They have a nice crunch and you can find them in grocery stores here in the United States. I also like these crunchy rainbow sprinkles from A Great Surprise which come in bulk and Chefs Select Rainbow Jimmies.
Substitutions
This cake has ingredients that you may not have on hand. There are some ingredients I don’t suggest swapping out because it can change the texture of the cake.
- Unsalted butter – Using unsalted butter gives you more control of how salty your cake will be. This is super important because the right balance of salt adds flavor. If you only have salted butter, omit the ¼ tsp salt.
- Granulated sugar – I don’t recommend changing the sugar amounts or the texture won’t be soft and fluffy.
- All-purpose flour – This recipe works best with AP flour but you can sub gluten free flour. You can also sub for cake flour, just add an extra 2 tablespoons of cake flour per cup to equal the quantity in AP flour.
- Whole milk – You can substitute whole milk for buttermilk for a more tangy flavor.
Tips For Baking The Best Small Batch Funfetti Cake
- You must have all your cold ingredients at room temperature.
Your cake batter can curdle when you mix in butter or eggs or milk that are too cold. Because they won’t be incorporated properly, it’ll leave pockets of fat where the butter won’t mix in and creates a gummy or curdled cake texture.
- There is such a thing as too many sprinkles.
Believe it or not, too many sprinkles can be a bad thing in terms of flavor and texture. Adding more sprinkles than the recipe calls for can result in the waxy sprinkle flavor overwhelming the cake. There’s also more chances of coloring bleeding and the cake texture changing.
Bake Cake Layers In Advance
Baking cake layers ahead of time and freezing them properly breaks up the process and takes off some baking stress. This is my favorite way to bake when I’m having a party, because let’s face it, to bake a cake, make frosting, and ice a cake takes time.
You can freeze cake layers for up to 2 months as long as you wrap them correctly. When wrapped right, they taste just as good and have a nice smooth texture. Wrap cake layers when they’re still warm in saran wrap and then place them in a freezer safe zip-lock bag. The warm cake layers will hold in moisture. Stack them in a dedicated space so that other freezer items won’t crush them.
Make your frosting ahead of time to break up the process. Don’t add the sprinkles until you need the frosting or they can bleed color. Store the frosting in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1 month or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
When you need frosting, move it from the freezer to thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Then, take the frosting out of the refrigerator and leave it to reach room temperature. To make your frosting smooth, whip it back up in a stand mixer or handheld mixer on low speed.
How To Assemble A Small Batch Funfetti Cake
- Once cake layers have slightly cooled, place the layers in the freezer for 10-15 minutes – it’s much easier to level and frost cold cake
- Use a serrated knife to level your cakes
- Place the first cake layer on a plate or turntable
- Add frosting onto the first layer and smooth out with a knife or offset spatula
- Add the second cake layer and add more frosting
- Smooth excess frosting around the sides of the cake and add more frosting to the sides as needed
- Optional: finish with swirls using a piping bag with a #1M tip and sprinkle on some more rainbow sprinkles
RECIPE CARD
6-in Small Batch Funfetti Cake
Equipment
- Stand mixer or handheld mixer
- Mixing Bowls
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature (113g)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (200g)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour (180g)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 cup whole milk, room temperature (8oz)
- ¼ cup rainbow sprinkles
American Buttercream with Rainbow Sprinkles
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (2 sticks or 226g)
- 3 ¾ cups powdered sugar (469g)
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp heavy whipping cream (or milk)
- ¼ cup rainbow sprinkles
Instructions
Funfetti Cake
- Have the butter, eggs and milk at room temperature. Prepare two, 6-inch cake pans by spraying the sides with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper or use a method you prefer. Preheat the oven to 350℉ (177℃).
- In a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or a hand held mixer, beat the butter for 1 minute on high speed. Add the granulated sugar and cream together for 2 minutes on medium-high speed.
- Turn the mixer to low speed and add the vanilla extract and eggs one at a time. Turn off the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the stand mixer and mix on low speed. Add the milk and stop mixing when everything is just incorporated.
- Fold in the sprinkles with a spatula. Pour the batter equally into the prepared cake pans.
- Bake for 28-32 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool for 5 minutes. While still warm, use a knife to run around the pan to release the cake from the edges. Use potholders to turn the cakes out of the pans. Discard parchment paper.
American Buttercream with Rainbow Sprinkles
- Equip the paddle attachment to a stand mixer or use a hand mixer to beat softened butter on high speed for 1 minute.
- Turn the mixer off and add 1 cup of powdered sugar and mix on low speed for 30 seconds. Continue to add powdered sugar 1 cup at a time. After all the powdered sugar is added, scrape down the bowl with a spatula.
- Add the salt, vanilla, and whipping cream and mix everything on medium speed for two minutes. Then, change the speed to low and mix for 5 minutes. If the buttercream is too stiff, add 1 tsp of additional heavy whipping cream at a time until it looks smooth and silky but not wet.
- Pour in rainbow sprinkles and mix on low speed until incorporated. You can also stir them in by hand.
Assemble
- Place cake layers in the freezer for 10-15 to chill. Cold cake is easier to level and frost.
- Once cake layers have chilled, use a serrated knife to level cake tops. Then place 1 cake layer on a plate or turntable.
- Scoop about 1/4 cup frosting onto the cake layer and smooth with a knife or offset spatula. Add the second cake layer and add more frosting. Smooth the top and add more frosting to the sides. Smooth the sides with a knife or bench scraper.
- Optional: Finish the top with buttercream swirls using the #1M tip. Add more sprinkles!
Notes
- Sprinkles: Adding too many sprinkles to cake batter can cause color bleed, waxy taste, and different cake texture. If preparing frosting ahead to freeze, don’t add the sprinkles until you need the frosting.
- Tools: Electric mixers whip up frostings to a smooth and creamy texture. A stand mixer with a paddle attachment is very helpful, or a handheld mixer with whisk attachments.
- Buttercream: This recipe makes about 3 1/2 cups of frosting and is adapted from my easy American buttercream recipe. I make a full batch, more than enough to fill and frost a 6-inch, 2 layer cake with decoration. If you half the buttercream, you’ll have just enough to fill and frost the cake but not enough for piping swirls.
- Room Temperature Ingredients: Unsalted butter, milk, and eggs will incorporate better when at room temp.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, and should be used as an approximation.
I have 7 inch pans. Can it still work ? What do I need to adjust please 😊
Hi Georgina! The cake layers would be too thin for 7-inch pans. I recommend multiplying the ingredients by 1.5 to increase the amount of batter! Better to have more than less!
Yum!!!!
🙂