This fun and colorful cotton candy cake is perfect for birthdays and special occasions. This cotton candy flavored cake is made with 3 layers and will be the star of any celebration!
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Cotton Candy Layer Cake Recipe
I am so excited to share this cake with you! It’s a must for anyone with a cotton candy lover in their family!
This layer cake is so perfect to make for a birthday, and it will easily rival any bakery bought treat.
Make someone’s day with this cotton candy cake!
Be suer to check out my Circus Cookie Cheesecake which is great for birthdays too!
Why you’ll love this Cotton Candy Cake recipe
- Easy: Despite it’s fancy appearance, this cake is surprisingly straight forward to make with no complicated techniques required.
- Perfect for occasions: If you have a birthday coming up, this is the perfect cake to serve. Kids of all ages love it!
- Fun: This cake is super fun to make and serve. It’s bright colors and cotton candy flavor make it a real treat!
How to make this fun Cotton Candy Cake
Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!
- Combine the dry ingredients.
- Beat together the butter and sugar and add eggs, milk and flavoring.
- Mix in the dry ingredients.
- Split the batter in half and add food coloring to each batch.
- Spoon the two batters into cake pans and swirl.
- Bake and cool.
- Frost the cake with buttercream and decorate.
How long does it keep?
Another reason why this cotton candy cake is great for birthdays is because it can be made ahead of time for ease.
It can be stored in an airtight container or cake stand at room temp for up to 2 days or in the fridge for up to 5 days, fully frosted.
Can you freeze it?
Yes! You can freeze this cake once it is frosted, through I find it easier to do it before frosting. Either way, it will keep well frozen for up to 3 months, be sure to cover it well so that it doesn’t get freezer burn.
Thaw the cake in the fridge overnight before decorating or serving.
How many does it serve?
This three layered cake is made in 8 inch pans and will easily serve 12, so it’s great if you are planning a party. If you have leftovers, keep them covered in the fridge to enjoy later!
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- Your butter should be softened before mixing it. It will combine much easier and you will have an even texture throughout.
- Make sure the cake is fully cooled before frosting it. I like to bake the cake the day before and decorate it the next day so i know it’s fully cooled.
- This cake is perfect for bridal and baby showers too!
This candy cotton cake is so fun to both make and serve. You’ll be sure to impress with this, and make someone’s day super special!
More fun cake recipes we love
If you make this recipe be sure to leave us a comment or rating. Enjoy!
Cotton Candy Cake Recipe
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 4 cups flour
- 1 Tbs baking powder
- 1 ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup butter room temp
- 3 cups sugar
- 5 eggs
- 1 ¾ cups milk
- 1 1/2 tsp 2 drams cotton candy flavoring
- Blue and pink food coloring optional
For the Buttercream:
- 2 cups butter softened
- 7 cups powdered sugar
- Pinch of salt
- ¾ tsp 1 dram cotton candy flavoring
- Pink and blue food coloring optional
Instructions
For the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 3-8” cake pans with parchment paper and spray them with baking spray. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium high for about a minute. Add in the eggs, milk and cotton candy flavoring. Beat on high for another minute. Add in the flour mixture and stir just until the flour has been incorporated. Divide into two bowls and color with blue and pink food coloring.
- Alternately spoon blue and pink batter into the cake pans and gently swirl them together. Don’t swirl too much as the batter will turn purple and bake into a brown color. Place into the oven to bake for 20-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean or with moist crumbs. Once baked, remove from the oven and place onto a cooling rack and let cool to room temperature.
- While the cakes are cooling, make the buttercream. (see below)
- Once the cakes are cooled, place one layer onto a cake stand or plate. Top with about ¼ c of buttercream and spread to the edges. Place a second layer of cake on top and frost. Place the last layer of cake on top. Frost the top and sides of the cake with buttercream. Alternate between white, blue and pink frosting for a cotton candy, rainbow effect.
- For multi colored swirls, pipe onto the top in a clock formation. Pipe a swirl at 12:00 then at 6:00, then at 3:00 and 9:00. Continue in that fashion around the perimeter of the cake. Piping this way helps to keep an even and round circle of swirls.
- If desired, top with clouds or pieces of cotton candy.
- Once the cake is frosted, slice and serve!
For the Buttercream:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, powdered sugar, salt and cotton candy flavoring together. Beat first on low for about 2 minutes or until the powdered sugar is almost completely incorporated to avoid it from flying out of the bowl. Increase speed to high and let it whip for 4 minutes to create a smooth buttercream.
- Place 1 cup of frosting into two separate bowls and color with pink and blue food coloring.
- For neat multi colored frosting swirls, alternately spread some pink and blue buttercream onto sides of a piping bag fitted with a tip. Once you are happy with the mix of colors, fill the bag with white buttercream.
Notes
- Your butter should be softened before mixing it. It will combine much easier and you will have an even texture throughout.
- Make sure the cake is fully cooled before frosting it. I like to bake the cake the day before and decorate it the next day so i know it’s fully cooled.
- This cake is perfect for bridal and baby showers too!
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