Spring seems to unfold its melodious song one note at a time. Starting with the early daffodils, the bold yellow colors stand out against the brown, barren landscape, followed closely by vibrant pinks, purples, and reds. This juxtaposition of color and winter ground reminds me of a cake with chocolate layers and a contrasting spring-hued frosting.
This cake is adorned with pink raspberry buttercream frosting between the layers only, thus imitating the barren landscape with the early blooming of spring. It can be decorated with spring colors by using colorful fruit, cookies or edible flowers. While this is a simple cake to make, the decorations can sing spring, thus bringing it to life for a special celebration.
| Prep Time | 20 minutes |
| Cook Time | 40 minutes |
| Servings |
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- 2 boxes Duncan Hines chocolate cake mix*
- (2) 3.9-ounce boxes instant chocolate pudding
- 4 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 6 large eggs, lightly beaten and at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups lukewarm water
- parchment paper (optional)
- vegetable shortening and all-purpose flour (for preparing pans)
- 1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 1/3 cup raspberries, pureed
- 1 tablespoon milk (optional)
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake Ingredients
Raspberry Buttercream Frosting
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- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour three 8-ounce cake pans. Cut three circles out of parchment paper and place one in the bottom of each prepared pan. Grease and flour each parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, add all the ingredients and stir to combine. Then beat batter for 2 minutes until well mixed.
- Place wet, bake-even strips** around the outside of the cake pan and secure. (optional)
- Divide the batter evenly among the three prepared cake pans.
- Bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging to it but with no wet batter. Let cool for a few minutes. Then run a thin knife around the inside edge to release the cake. Turn the cake out on a cooling rack and discard the paper liner. Cool completely. (If not using baking strips, reduce the cooking time to 30 minutes and check for doneness. Bake any additional minutes until toothpick comes out clean.)
- Cream butter until smooth.
- Add vanilla extract and mix.
- Place ⅓ cup fresh raspberries in a food chopper and blend until pureed.
- Alternate powdered sugar and pureed raspberries and beat until smooth. If frosting is too stiff, add 1 tablespoon of milk and blend.
- Place a layer of cake on a cake plate. Frost the top of layer with ⅓ of the frosting. Stack the next layer and repeat process until all of the frosting is divided between layers. Finish the cake with fresh raspberries and other fruit, candy, macaron cookies or edible flowers.
*This recipe can be cut in half to make a two-layer cake, or to make it easier to mix together. **To bake a flat cake without a middle dome, use wet, baking strips around the cake pan prior to baking. You can buy these at craft stores in the cake-baking section, or you can make your own. To make your own strips, cut a towel long enough to fit around your cake pan and tall enough to fold over and make a double thickness. Wet the strip until very damp, but not dripping. Overlap the ends and pin the strip with safety pins until it fits securely around the pan. Then fill the pan with batter and bake until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. This method keeps the cake sides from baking faster than the middle of the cake. You may have to add additional baking time until the toothpick test shows cake is done.