A Spring & Summer Celebration Cake
Confetti “Funfetti” Chiffon Cake for Easter Sunday Tea – This delightful rainbow speckled cake looks bright and cheerful, is fun and tastes delicious! But, what’s in a name? Well, after some research, I discovered that these pretty and very colourful cakes were the invention of the Pillsbury Company, who introduced a new type of cake called a “Funfetti” Cake in 1989; one of their “white cake” mixes was sold with a packet of “rainbow sprinkles”, which were added to the cake batter before baking, resulting in a cake with brightly coloured “confetti” running through it. The cake was aimed at children, and especially as a birthday party cake, which is not hard to see why, but I think that it makes a wonderful cake for Easter, Mother’s Day, Spring and/or Summer, and I don’t see why the children should get all the fun, so I adapted a Chiffon Cake recipe to create today’s recipe for a Confetti “Funfetti” Chiffon Cake.
Using a Chiffon Cake recipe as a base, gives you a cake with a feather-light crumb and a delicious lemon flavour, and it’s also dairy-free, as it uses vegetable oil instead of butter. A chiffon cake is a low-fat (low-oil) recipe which is similar to Angel Cake or Foam Cake, well beaten egg whites are added to the egg yolk enriched basic cake batter, the beaten egg whites adding air to the cake, which results in a light (as chiffon) cake, hence the name. I was very pleased with how this cake turned out, and although some of my “sprinkles” were a bit random, the cake looked and tasted utterly delectable. To elevate the cake to a higher level and to add elegance, I decorated the cake with edible flowers, as well as the ubiquitous rainbow sprinkles. Talking about sprinkles, not all sprinkles are equal when making a Funfetti or Confetti cake – you need the wax-coated ones and not the sugar paste ones, as in traditional “hundreds and thousands”, as they will just melt into the cake batter and you will be bereft of any confetti! I used Rainbow Jimmies by Wilton, and if you cannot get them in your local Sugarcraft shop, you can order them on online from Amazon.
I decided to set the scene when I photographed my cake, for an Easter Sunday Celebratory Tea, and I think you’ll agree that the cake looks amazing on The Caravan Trail “Harbour Sands” plate, as well as it being a bright and fun setting with the matching individual tea-pot & cup and saucer set, as well as the coordinating Beach Break side plates. All that I needed to complete the Easter Tea setting was a small posy of freshly picked flowers from my garden, which look fabulous alongside the edible flowers on the cake. I served the cake with a pot of tea, for me, and a cup of fresh coffee for my husband, and even though he isn’t a massive fan of sweet things, he loved the light, lemony tasting cake, and especially the tangy lemon drizzle icing. The recipe for my Confetti “Funfetti” Chiffon Cake is shared below, on a printable recipe card, and if you want to make smaller cakes, such as Fairy Cakes, then I bet they will be really pretty too – I am having a go at making them next week, so I will let you know how they turn out! Have a FABULOUS Easter Weekend, and do try this cake, and let me know how it turns out for you, see you next week, Karen
Disclaimer: I receive samples regularly from The Caravan Trail free of charge, in exchange for recipe development and promotion on my social media channels. All views and opinions are my own and I choose to share this china on Lavender and Lovage, as it is a unique British designed (and British made in certain cases) company based in Staffordshire. I was not compensated financially for this recipe post. Pieces from the range can be bought here: Buy the The Caravan Trail
“Funfetti” Confetti Chiffon Cake
Print recipe
| Serves | 12 |
| Prep time | 20 minutes |
| Cook time | 55 minutes |
| Total time | 1 hours, 15 minutes |
| Allergy | Egg, Wheat |
| Dietary | Vegetarian |
| Meal type | Dessert |
| Misc | Child Friendly, Pre-preparable, Serve Cold |
| Occasion | Birthday Party, Casual Party, Easter, Formal Party, Valentines day |
| Region | American |
| By author | Karen S Burns-Booth |
Ingredients
Cake
- 7 free-range eggs (separated)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 325g plain flour (double sifted)
- 300g caster sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 100g rainbow sprinkles (NOT "hundeds and thousands" or nonpareils - I used Wilton's Rainbow Jimmies)
Lemon Icing
- 225g icing sugar
- juice of 1 lemon
Decoration
- Extra rainbow sprinkles
- edible flowers
Note
This delightful diary-free cake hides a fun secret - cut into its light as a feather crumb, and you will see a myriad of rainbow flecks inside, like confetti, hence its rather jolly name of a Funfetti or a Confetti Cake! Chiffon Cake recipe adapted from Woman and Home. (You MUST use the correct type of "sprinkles", the wax coated ones, and not the sugar paste ones - I used Rainbow Jimmies by Wilton from Amazon.co.uk)
Directions
| Step 1 | Grease a 25cm round bundt cake or a deep loose-based cake tin with cake release spray, and if using a loose-based cake tin, line it with baking parchment. Pre-heat the oven to 150C/300F/Gas mark 2. |
| Step 2 | Using an electric hand whisk, beat the egg yolks together with the 60mls (4 tablespoons) water, the salt, lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla extract until smooth and well amalgamated. |
| Step 3 | Then with the whisk still on, add the flour, sugar and baking powder, until you have a thick, creamy and smooth batter. |
| Step 4 | Whisk the egg whites in a clean metal bowl, with the cream of tartar, until they are stiff and glossy. Gently fold the egg whites in to the batter, using a gentle cutting motion with a large metal spoon, as not to knock the air out of the mixture. |
| Step 5 | Add the rainbow sprinkles, mixing them in gently, as to avoid them bleeding into the mixture, and then pour the batter into the prepared cake tin. |
| Step 6 | Bake in pre-heated oven, on the lowest rack, for 50 to 55 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the cake. |
| Step 7 | Invert the cake immediately over a wire rack, and leave like this until completely cold, before removing the tin. |
| Step 8 | Sit the cake in a serving platter and make the icing; sift the icing sugar into a bowl and add the lemon juice gradually until you have a thick, smooth and glossy paste. Spoon the icing over the top of the cake, allowing it to drizzle down the sides. |
| Step 9 | Decorate with extra rainbows sprinkles and the edible flowers. |
More Easter Cake Recipes:
Apple, Lemon and Elderflower Drizzle Cake
Creme Egg & Malteser Chocolate Tiffin Bundt Cake
Easter Nest Cupcakes for the Easter Weekend Tea Time Table
Little Easter Cakes: Mini Chocolate Drizzle Bundt Cakes
Dom says
I mean this is just so pretty and such a brilliant idea. And perfect for Easter xxx
Karen Burns-Booth says
Thanks Dom – was a lovely cake to eat too, very lemony! Karen
Julie's Family Kitchen says
Oh wow Karen, this is such a pretty cake. Thanks for the tips about the sprinkles, I’ve learnt something new. x
Karen Burns-Booth says
You are welcome Julie, the sugar paste ones just mix in with the cake mixture to a nasty muddy colour! Karen
Nayna Kanabar says
This is such a pretty cake , it would be perfect for a kids party but also for any celebration as it looks gorgeous.
Karen Burns-Booth says
Thanks Nayna, it was a bit of a culinary triumph and went down very well! Karen
Katie Bryson says
Oh my gosh Karen this is such a pretty and fun bake – perfect for an afternoon tea with the girls or to make with the kids on a rainy day.
Karen Burns-Booth says
Thank you Katie – it is a very fun and girlie cake!
Janice says
Such a pretty cake and it matches the Caravan Trail plates perfectly!
Karen Burns-Booth says
It does match it very well doesn’t it?!! 🙂
kellie@foodtoglow says
What an extravagantly beautiful celebration cake, Karen. And I do love your glorious tea set too. It goes SO well with the cake!
Karen Burns-Booth says
Thanks Kellie, it was a match made in sprinkles heaven! 🙂 Karen
Emma @ Adventures of a London Kiwi says
This is almost too pretty to eat Karen. Almost!
Karen Burns-Booth says
Yes, I agree, almost! It’s all gone now though!
Jacqueline Meldrum says
My Friend Stuart made a chiffon cake for cake club and I was blown away by it. I just couldn’t believe how light and fluffy it was. Your cake looks gorgeous. I love the addition of the sprinkles.
Karen Burns-Booth says
Is that Stuart as in Cake Boi? I love chiffon cakes, so light and fluffy as you say! Thanks Jac. Karen
Crystal says
Wow! This looks amazing. The previous comment being almost to pretty to eat is certainly true. Being light and fluffy, I’ll have to give it a try. Adding this one to my Pinterest board for later. I’m gluten sensitive so will try a gluten-free flour, hopefully it will be just as good.
Nancy Perine says
Hello! I had fun roaming around your website/blog. Your recipe for Confetti Chiffon Cake caught my eye. It was very fun to make and gave me a chance to use my new bundt pan. We had company over for dinner and the cake topped it off for dessert. It was fun to see their expressions when they cut into the cake and saw all the colored sprinkles. Thanks for sharing your recipe. I’ll be back!
Karen Burns-Booth says
Thanks so much for your kind comments Nancy, I hope to see you back here soon! Karen
louise Gunstone says
Love the sound of this Confetti “Funfetti” Chiffon Cake and nice to get a bit of background on the name 🙂
Karen Burns-Booth says
It’s such a pretty cake, and so light too! Karen