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By
Anneka ManningAbstract
I first made a version of this cake for my daughter’s fifth birthday. At the time I thought it was completely original, very clever idea I had dreamed up with colourful sprinkles decorating not only the outside but also the inside of the cake.
Since then I have discovered that it wasn’t so original after all and that the Pillsbury Company had already packaged the concept into a cake mix some 15 years earlier and called it a ‘Funfetti’ cake! This version is a slightly more mature one - still just as fun and frivolous as the first but with a touch of elegance thrown in!
Don't be afraid to attempt this cake - the construction is very simple. Here are my pro tips:
Decorating the sides of a cake with sprinkles
There are various ways to get sprinkles to stick to the side of a cake to decorate it, but I find the easiest, and often the one that gives you the best results when you are after a slightly sparse, ‘confetti’ look, is to almost gently ‘toss’ them on. To do this, firstly make sure your buttercream is still ‘wet’ and a crust hasn’t formed so that the sprinkles will stick. Take a small handful of sprinkles cupped in your hand, hold the palm close to, and angled towards, the side of the cake. Then gently move your hand in short sharp motions towards the cake so that the confetti are tossed onto the side and stick. Move the hands up and down, and around, the side of the cake depending on where you want the sprinkles and how thick you want them in certain places (I quite like more of them at the base of the cake and then thin them out towards the top). You can leave any excess sprinkles that have fallen onto the plate or remove them carefully with a pastry brush and/or a pair of tweezers.
Piping buttercream
When piping buttercream the best way to hold the piping bag is to sit it in the palm of your right hand (or left if you're left-handed) with the twisted part held between your thumb and index finger so that it is held closed and the buttercream won’t be able to escape.
Hold the piping tip approximately 1 cm above the cake (the closer you hold it, the squatter the rosettes will be; the further away, the more elongated they will be) and perpendicular to the cake. Then use the palm of your hand to squeeze the bag gently while gently holding the bag steady with your other hand. When the rosette has formed, stop squeezing the bag before lifting it upwards.
