Pink and Orange

My niece Talia turned two Sunday. To celebrate I wanted to make her a cake as vibrant and fun as she is! Next time I may do four different colors (like for Aria's fourth Birthday maybe...) or a gradation of one color from light to bright... The possibilities are endless! Begin by using this recipe for classic white cake. You will be doubling the recipe to make four layers - so begin by doing the first batch in a color of your choice.

Wilton Icing Colors really helped to achieve the perfect shade. They are sold at Michael's - where there is an entire isle devoted to the art of cake decorating! You can use a toothpick to drop the color in the batter. Begin with a small amount because you can always add but you can never take away. 

Work carefully! I am still finding globs of pink in the most surprising nooks of my kitchen... Also, don't wear your favorite dress and protect yourself with an apron!

Pour the batter into prepared tins. I wanted the stripes to be a little cooky by varying the width. Some tins were filled more than others to achieve the variation. If you decide to do the same, remember to pay special attention to the cooking time. The tin with the least amount will be fully baked before the other.

Clean up between batches! 

Make your buttercream frosting while the last batch of cake bakes. Your frosting will also be done in two batches, if you choose to use two colors. If you prefer to keep it simple, simply double your recipe. I decided to decorate with orange frosting between the layers (which was also used for the crumb coat) and pink for the exterior - pink being the Birthday Girl's favorite color... Remember to alternate the colors of the cake when stacking. 

I originally intended to make full use of my vintage cake decorating set from Martha by Mail but was pressed for time. Little rosettes seemed a girly choice and the pink sugar crystals added a little sparkle (and crunch!)

Time to party!

So pretty when lit...

Just seeing Talia's face lit up like a Birthday cake was well worth the effort! (somewhere along the way she lost her skirt!)

This cake was a hit! It tasted as good as it looked - moist and airy...

... some little people even went back for seconds!!