This ombre Citrus Layer Cake with vanilla, lemon and orange layers is colorfully decorated and adorned with helium-filled balloons - a fun birthday cake!
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Ingredients
Vanilla Cake Layer
¾cup+ 2 tablespoons sifted cake flour
1teaspoonbaking powder
⅛teaspoonsalt
¼cupmilk
½teaspoonpure vanilla extract
¼cupunsalted butterroom temperature
½cupgranulated sugar
1egg
Lemon and Orange Cake Layers
1 ¾cupssifted cake flour
2teaspoonsbaking powder
¼teaspoonsalt
½cupmilk
½cupunsalted butterroom temperature
1cupgranulated sugar
2eggs
½teaspoonlemon extract
1teaspoonfresh lemon zest
yellow food coloring
½teaspoonorange extract
1teaspoonfresh orange zest
orange food coloring
White Frosting
2 ½cupssolid vegetable shortening
2 ½teaspoonsCLEAR vanilla extract
10cupsconfectioners' sugar
5tablespoonsmilk
1Balloon Time Helium Tank
26gauge floral wire
rainbow nonpareils
colored candy for decorating
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. and prepare 3 8-inch round baking pans by lining the bottoms with parchment and spraying them with a floured baking spray.
Vanilla Cake Layer
Sift the flour with baking powder and salt.
In a mixing bowl, cream the butter until light. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
Add the egg and vanilla, and mix well.
Beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, add them to the butter, alternating with the milk.
Mix until just smooth.
Pour into one of the prepared baking pans.
Bake 25 - 30 minutes or until the edges shrink from the sides and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool on a wire rack for 5 - 7 minutes. Remove from pan by inverting onto the cooling rack and then turn right-side up to cool completely.
Clean the mixing bowl and continue with the remaining layers
Orange and Lemon Layers
Sift the flour with baking powder and salt.
In a mixing bowl, cream the butter until light. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix well.
Beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, add to the butter/sugar, alternating with the milk.
Mix batter until just smooth.
Pour half of the batter into a medium bowl and add the lemon extract, lemon zest and enough yellow food coloring to reach the desired hue. I added about 5 drops.
Mix until thoroughly combined.
Pour into one of the prepared baking pans.
For the batter in the mixing bowl, add the orange extract, orange zest and enough orange food coloring to reach the desired hue. I added about 8 drops.
Mix until thoroughly combined.
Pour into the the remaining baking pan.
Bake 25 - 30 minutes or until the edges shrink from the sides and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool on a wire rack for 5 - 7 minutes. Remove from pan by inverting onto the cooling rack and then turn right-side up to cool completely.
White Frosting
In a clean mixing bowl, cream the shortening until smooth and fluffy.
Mix in the vanilla.
Add the confectioners' sugar one cup at a time, scraping down the sides and the bottom of the bowl as needed. The icing will appear dry after all of the sugar had been added.
Slowly add the milk and beat until light and fluffy.
Cover with a damp cloth while not using.
Cake Assembly
Place the Orange layer onto a 8-inch cardboard round.
Using 1 - 1 1/2 cups of frosting, frost the top.
Place the Lemon layer onto the frosted top of the Orange cake.
Again use 1 - 1 1/2 cups of frosting to cover.
Place the Vanilla layer onto the Lemon, but do not frost.
With an offset spatula, spread a thin layer of frosting all around the outside of the cake, but not the top. This is the crumb coat and will prevent cake crumbs from being spread through the thicker frosting layer. At this point, be sure to evenly fill in any holes in between each of the layers.
Refrigerate for at least half an hour to set.
With a clean offset spatula, spread a thicker layer of frosting on the sides over the crumb coat.
Carefully pour the rainbow nonpareils onto a medium rimmed baking sheet.
Place an 8-inch round cardboard on top of the cake. Gently lift the cake and holding both the top and bottom, slowly and carefully roll the cake in the sprinkles until it is completely covered.
Place cake on serving platter. Frost the top of the cake with a thin crumb coat and then with a thicker layer.
Decorate cake with more frosting if desired using a 1M tip and additional colored sprinkles and candies.
Fill the balloons with helium and tie them with assorted lengths of ribbon.
Cut small pieces of the floral wire and tie the balloon string to it. Bend the edges and place into the cake. I placed 5 balloons, attached with wire into the top of the cake.
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