Food and Recipes Desserts Cakes Confetti Cake with Vanilla-Sour Cream Frosting From birthday parties to weekend gatherings, this cake gives you a reason to celebrate. By Anna Theoktisto Anna Theoktisto Anna Theoktisto is a recipe tester and developer who's been working in Dotdash Meredith test kitchens since 2017. Her recipes and writing have appeared in over 10 nationally distributed print publications as well as on various digital platforms. Anna's recipes have been showcased on the covers of magazines such as Food & Wine and Southern Living. Anna earned her BS in agricultural education and communication from the University of Florida and a degree in culinary arts from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. She is a member of Les Dames d'Escoffier Birmingham chapter. When not in the kitchen, Anna enjoys hiking with her son, husband, and 2 dogs. She also loves fostering puppies for a local animal rescue group. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Published on January 10, 2022 Print Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Antonis Achilleos; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Styling: Mary Clayton Carl Jones Active Time: 30 mins Bake Time: 20 mins Cool Time: 55 mins Chill Time: 30 mins Total Time: 2 hrs 15 mins Servings: 12 Jump to recipe Nothing says "it's time to party" quite like confetti cake. This rainbow-speckled cake was a staple of our childhood birthday celebrations, and this grown-up, layered version is made to celebrate any occasion, big or small. Our Confetti Cake with Vanilla-Sour Cream Frosting puts a grown-up twist on the whimsical classic. This confetti layer cake boasts three layers of festive sponge cake—learn our top tip for upgrading your boxed cake mix here—sealed in with a sophisticated Vanilla-Sour Cream Frosting. Dress up your favorite confetti cake mix with an icing that's pleasantly tangy, thanks to the addition of sour cream. Salted butter also makes a difference here and balances out the sweetness of the cake. Of course, it's practically a requirement to decorate this fun cake with rainbow sprinkles. Recruit the kids to help and let their imaginations run wild. You can even add sprinkles right into the frosting for a stained-glass effect. Ingredients 1 (15¼-oz.) pkg. confetti cake mix (plus ingredients listed on box for preparing cake) Baking spray with flour 1 ½ cups butter, softened 4 ½ cups unsifted powdered sugar ½ cup sour cream 1 teaspoon vanilla extract ¼ cup rainbow candy sprinkles, plus more for garnish Directions Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare confetti cake mix according to package directions. Divide batter evenly among 3 (6-inch) round cake pans coated with baking spray. Bake in preheated oven until a wooden pick inserted in centers of cakes comes out clean, 20 to 23 minutes. Cool in pans 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto wire racks; cool completely, about 45 minutes. Beat softened butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. With mixer on low speed, gradually add powdered sugar, sour cream, and vanilla extract. Beat until fluffy, stopping occasionally to scrape down sides of bowl, about 3 minutes. (You will have about 5 cups frosting.) Set aside about 1 cup of frosting in a separate bowl, and fold in rainbow candy sprinkles. Place a cake plate on a stand or a lazy Susan. Put 1 cake layer on plate; spread 1 cup plain frosting over top, smoothing top using a bench scraper or an offset spatula. Repeat with remaining 2 cake layers and 2 cups of the frosting. Using a bench scraper or large offset spatula, spread a thin layer of frosting (about ½ cup) over sides of cake. Chill until frosting has firmed and set, about 30 minutes. Spread a thicker layer of reserved sprinkle frosting (about 1 cup) on sides of cake, smoothing as you go. Spoon any remaining frosting into a piping bag fitted with a medium round tip. Pipe dollops around top edge of cake. Garnish with additional sprinkles in center of cake. See our step-by-step instructions for frosting a smooth-sided cake with sprinkles here. Print