| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 2 hr 45 min |
| Prep: | 1 hr 20 min |
| Inactive: | 25 min |
| Cook: | 1 hr |
| Yield: | 8 to 10 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 1/3 cups vegetable oil, plus more for the pans
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the pans
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 teaspoons red gel food coloring
- For the frosting:
- 2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, at room temperature
- 4 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
- Pinch of salt
- 5 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 1 cup (one 3.8-ounce container) red, white and blue nonpareils
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Brush two 9-inch-round cake pans with vegetable oil; dust with flour and tap out the excess.
- Make the cake: Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Combine the granulated sugar, vegetable oil, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla in a large bowl; whisk until smooth. Whisk in the food coloring, then add the flour mixture and whisk until smooth.
- Spread 3/4 cup batter in each of the prepared pans (you’ll have a very thin layer of batter); set the remaining batter aside. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean and the top springs back when pressed, 16 to 18 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool about 5 minutes in the pans, then invert the cakes onto the rack to cool completely.
- Meanwhile, cool the pans under cold water, then wipe clean. Brush with oil and dust with flour again. Repeat to make 2 more cake layers, using 3/4 cup batter for each, then repeat again. You will have 6 layers.
- Make the frosting: Beat the cream cheese, butter and salt in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium-high speed until fluffy. Beat in the vanilla, then beat in the confectioners’ sugar in three additions until smooth.
- Put 1 cake layer on a serving plate and spread evenly with a scant 1 cup frosting. Repeat with the remaining 5 cake layers, then frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting in a thin layer (just enough so the nonpareils will stick). Refrigerate until the frosting is just set but still soft, about 10 minutes.
- Put the cake (on the plate) on a rimmed baking sheet. Cover the top and sides completely with the nonpareils, reusing the ones that fall onto the baking sheet.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 10 servings |
| Calories | 1317 |
| Total Fat | 87 g |
| Saturated Fat | 36 g |
| Carbohydrates | 129 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 2 g |
| Sugar | 98 g |
| Protein | 10 g |
| Cholesterol | 205 mg |
| Sodium | 505 mg |
Reviews
Very good but I only got to 5 layers
I’ve made this cake for three 4th of Julys in a row. Everyone raves about it. The keys are: don’t over-bake, use half of the cream cheese in the frosting that they recommend using, & use jimmies instead of nonpareils. They go everywhere both when you decorate the cake and when you cut into it. I also only make 3 larger layers because I like a ratio of more cake to frosting. It’s a favorite of my family.
Where is the icing that has milk in it?
I made this cake for a friend’s 50th birthday on July 4th so I wanted it to be a real showstopper and it was. I followed the recipe to the letter – measuring out the batter in a measuring cup to make sure it was even in the pans etc and it worked perfectly. I made the layers a day ahead and wrapped in plastic to keep them moist. The flavor of the cake was great and everyone at the party raved about it, most going back for seconds (it makes a lot). One tip: I applied the nonpareils on my picnic table in my yard so I didn’t have to worry about them bouncing all over my kitchen)
Icing was delicious, however the cake was very dry. Be mindful of baking times!
The frosting for this cake was good and it was a cute cake for the 4th of July, but I did not like the flavor of the cake at all. ‘IF’ I ever make it again, I will use butter instead of oil and make it the traditional way you would mix a cake. Cream butter and sugar, add eggs next and mix to dissolve sugar, etc. And, I will add more cocoa and less food color. I also made it in three 9″ cake pans and split the layers, as I normally would for a multi-layer cake. It was just quicker and easier that way for me.
I made this cake for the 4th of July festivities. It was beautiful but a little dry.