Celebration Cake

My sweet little nephew checked out a cookbook from his school's library, chose a recipe for Celebration Cake, and asked me to make it for his school's cake walk. Ok then, I'm making Celebration Cake. After looking at the photo I decided I didn't need the recipe. It's a two layer chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream to fill and frost. The sides though are to remain unfrosted so the layers and filling can be exposed. And to top it all off, sprinkles. Got it.

Here's what you'll need.
Your favorite box of chocolate cake mix
3 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1 1/4 cup of cold coffee
1 cup of softened butter
1/2 cup of shortening
pinch of salt
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
3 cups of powdered sugar

This is what you're going to do.
Preheat your oven to 325. Use a little shortening to grease your cake pans so the cakes won't stick. I used 8 inch pans but if you have 9 inch pans, just use those. Combine cake mix, eggs, oil, and coffee and mix until smooth. Divide the batter between two pans and bake for 25 minutes. To check doneness, insert a toothpick in the center of the cake. If it comes out dry, it's done. Also, when the cake is done the sides should pull away from the pan. You'll see. Let your cakes cool completely before frosting.
Using a stand mixer or electric beaters, mix the butter and shortening until smooth. Add vanilla and salt and mix. Then add 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time while mixing on low until combined. Now turn up the speed to medium and mix for six minutes.
When assembling, you'll need to trim a little of the round top off so the cakes are flat. Eat those scraps! Then slather the buttercream on both layers, stack, and add your sprinkles. Celebration Cake!

Celebration Cake

I have these cute 6 inch pans so I made three tiny cakes. My son saw what I was doing and wanted to help. Yes! A little baker! This was his first time frosting a cake AND he was using a piping bag. He also loved the sprinkles. He told me he was peppering the cake. How cute is he?!?!

Here are the three tiny cakes. I used a large star tip for all of them. I like how the two look like giant cupcakes.