Homemade Funfetti Cake with Funfetti Frosting — This cake is as close to store-bought funfetti cake mix that I’ve been able to replicate at home. I have no shame in admitting my love for that stuff, but it’s nice to be able to pronounce all the ingredients and prep a cake from scratch in literally 5 minutes!
Table of Contents
Easy Funfetti Cake … From Scratch!
I’ve always loved Funfetti. Who can resist all those sprinkles buried in soft, fluffy cake? None of us in my house can.
This homemade funfetti cake has sprinkles in the batter and also has a wall of sprinkles in the funfetti frosting. Sprinkle overload, such a beautiful thing.
The cake and funfetti frosting are both fast and easy to make, and the cake always turn out supremely moist, springy, and fluffy thanks to buttermilk, sour cream, and oil. That trifecta of moisturizing and tenderizing ingredients makes it impossible to have a dry cake!
Funfetti Cake Ingredients
To make the funfetti cake from scratch, you’ll need:
- All-purpose flour
- Granulated sugar
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Egg
- Buttermilk
- Sour cream
- Canola oil
- Vanilla extract
- Sprinkles
And for the homemade funfetti frosting, you’ll need:
- Unsalted butter
- Vanilla extract
- Salt
- Confectioners’ sugar
- More sprinkles!
How to Make Funfetti Cake
If you’ve never made a cake with sprinkles baked into the batter, you’re in for a real treat! Here’s how this easy homemade funfetti birthday cake recipe comes together:
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet in another.
- Gently stir in the sprinkles.
- Turn the batter into a greased 8×8-inch baking dish and bake until the center is set and not jiggly, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter.
- Once the funfetti birthday cake comes out of the oven, let it cool completely before frosting. The homemade funfetti frosting is as simple to make as whipping the ingredients together until light and fluffy!
Funfetti Cake FAQs
Nope! White cake is incredibly light, fluffy, and “pure” in flavor thanks to the multitude of egg whites in the batter.
Funfetti cake is made with a whole egg, buttermilk, sour cream, and plenty of vanilla to create a richer, moister cake that is — yes — loaded with sprinkles!
They’re the exact same cake! Funfetti cake is trademarked by Pillsbury, whereas confetti cake is the generic term for this type of sprinkle-laden cake.
Funfetti cake tastes like a richer version of a vanilla cake. It also has a subtle tang to it from the buttermilk and sour cream in the batter.
Get your hands on real buttermilk, if possible. Otherwise, you can make a buttermilk substitute in a couple of minutes. You can also use powdered buttermilk, which has a long shelf life and comes in handy for recipes like this funfetti birthday cake.
I used generic, store-brand sprinkles to make this funfetti cake recipe and they didn’t bleed into the batter at all. Long, skinny sprinkles work best for this recipe.
I have only make this with all purpose so really can’t say if cake flour will yield the same results with the same measurement of flour or not.
Cake will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 5 days (I’m comfortable storing frosted cakes at room temp, if you’re not store in the fridge) or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
I’m sure you can. You’d need to double the ingredients listed and bake the funfetti cake in a 9×13-inch pan. Note that your baking time will differ since you’re making a much larger cake.
You probably can, although I haven’t done so myself so I can’t say for sure. If baking this recipe as cupcakes, you’d likely need to bake them for around 18 to 20 minutes. Use your best judgement!
If you want to make a more “traditional” looking funfetti birthday cake, you likely can double this recipe and bake it in two 8- or 9-inch round cake tins.
To be safe, Google the volume of an 8×8-inch baking dish versus an 8- or 9-inch round baking tin to see how much of a difference there is between the two. This way, you’ll know if you need to double the recipe or 2.5x it, and so forth.
If you’re looking for a funfetti bundt cake recipe, I recommend making this recipe instead. I’ve tested it multiple times and know that it works in a bundt pan.
Tips for Making the Best Homemade Funfetti Cake
Sprinkles Tips
If you’re concerned with the sprinkles bleeding into the batter, I recommend being very gentle when stirring them in. If you overmix the batter after adding the sprinkles, it may change color.
Frosting Tips
If you’re in a time crunch you don’t necessarily need to make scratch funfetti frosting. You can cheat and use a tub of store bought frosting.
However, since you’re making a scratch cake, making scratch frosting is the way I would do things. It only takes a couple minutes to whip together.
Note that you must let the funfetti birthday cake cool completely before frosting it, otherwise you’ll wind up with a huge mess on your hands.
Pan Size Tips
If you decide to use a different sized pan for whatever reason — doubling the recipe, making a layer cake or cupcakes, etc. — be sure to Google the volume of the pan you plan on using and compare it to the pan I used.
You want to make sure you’re putting the right amount of batter into the right sized pan!
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Homemade Funfetti Cake with Vanilla Buttercream
Ingredients
Funfetti Cake
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- pinch salt, optional and to taste
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup buttermilk
- ⅓ cup sour cream, lite is okay (plain Greek yogurt may be substituted)
- ¼ cup canola or vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup sprinkles, or to taste
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- pinch salt, optional and to taste (helps offset the sweetness)
- 1 ½ to 2 cups confectioners’ sugar, I use 2 cups
- ⅓ cup sprinkles, or to taste
Instructions
Make the Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, optional salt; set aside.
- In a separate small bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk, sour cream, oil, and vanilla.
- Add the wet mixture to the dry, mixing lightly with a spoon or folding with a spatula until just combined. Small lumps will be present, don’t overmix or try to stir them smooth.
- Gently stir in the sprinkles, taking care not to overmix or they could bleed.
- Turn batter out into prepared pan and bake for about 30 minutes (start checking at 25 minutes), or until center is set and not jiggly, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter.
- Place pan on a wire rack and allow cake to cool. While cake cools, make the frosting.
Make the Vanilla Buttercream Frosting:
- To a large bowl, add the butter, vanilla, optional salt, and slowly add the confectioners’ sugar while beating with a handheld electric mixer until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Turn frosting out onto cooled cake, smoothing it lightly with a spatula or offset knife.
- Evenly sprinkle the sprinkles before slicing and serving.
Notes
- Cake will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 5 days (I’m comfortable storing frosted cakes at room temp, if you’re not store in the fridge) or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
- Cake base adapted from Vanilla Cake with Vanilla Bean Browned Butter Glaze.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Desserts Using Sprinkles:
Easy Homemade Funfetti Bundt Cake — No cake mix in this 100% homemade funfetti cake that’s loaded with sprinkles and tastes amazing! Fast, easy, and the best scratch funfetti cake recipe!
Funfetti Cookies — These funfetti cookies are essentially sugar cookies from scratch that have been loaded with sprinkles. They have that nostalgic boxed cake flavor but are 100% homemade!
Oreo Chocolate Chip Funfetti Cookies — The cookies are loaded with Oreos, sprinkles, chocolate chips, and are adapted from my favorite recipe for chocolate chip cookies. They’re soft, moist, buttery, and thick enough to sink your teeth into!
Funfetti Cake Mix Cookies — Jumbo, super soft, slightly chewy cake mix cookies that are loaded with rainbow and confetti sprinkles, and topped with vanilla cream cheese frosting!
Birthday Cake Cinnamon Rolls — The softest, fluffiest, most tender cinnamon rolls stuffed with cinnamon-and-sugar and rainbow sprinkles! Topped with tangy cream cheese frosting and more sprinkles!
Copycat Lofthouse Sugar Cookies — Just like real Lofthouse cookies, but with sprinkles baked in! These cookies are soft, buttery, and they just melt in your mouth!
Just finished making this cake, it ended up a bit undercooked and isn’t having much success here in France where they find the American icing too sweet and tasting “too much like butter” (well, obviously, it’s a BUTTER cream icing!) So I’m now the proud owner of a gigantic cake to eat all on my own. Yours looks much much better though!
Thanks for trying the recipe and all ovens vary quite a bit and with the conversion from Celsius to Farenheit, cups/teaspoons to metric, the differences in ingredients, etc. I am just impressed you tried the cake! But that could account for the difference in baking time and probably just baking it a bit longer is all you need if you ever try it again.
As for the BUTTERcream icing, yes, it’s butter-based so tastes like American buttercream. The cake is so ‘classic American’ and the type of thing that probably unless you grew up eating cakes like this, it may be a new experience and not a familiar food. But thanks for trying to share an American dessert with your French friends!
Can this recipe be doubled? I’d like to use a 9 x 12 cake pan.
I’ve never personally tried doubling it but it’s probably ok in a 9×13. I’ve never baked with a 9×12 so not sure.
I was wondering if you tried using the 9 x 12 and if it worked? Thanks!
Thanks for your interest in the cake! I honestly recommend you make it as written for the first time. Get a feel for it. Then if you think you can adapt it successfully, go ahead and try! Good luck!
Hi! I want to make this for my sons first birthday! It needs to be dairy free tho, can I sub almond milk for the sour cream?
Thank you!
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Wow today I made the funfetti cake and the blueberry lemon one and they are absolutely the best! The white cake was exceptional. I have not in my life had such a wonderfully moist awesome tasting vanilla cake ever. Now that I have found your wonderful recipes that I cannot thank you enough for sharing with everyone, I will never ever buy a cake mix again because yours are simply the best ever. Thank you sooooo much
Thanks for trying two cake recipes and I’m glad they’re best you’ve ever had. That’s awesome to hear and that you’ll never buy cake mix again!!
I feel almost small compared to all these beautiful talented cake and pastry lovers. Is this recipe for anyone? can you use gluten free ingredients for example? Will it make a difference?
I have not tested this recipe using GF flour and so can’t say what will happen if you use it.
Pretty and sinfully delicious. I certainly heart my sprinkles just as much as Sally and Jessica!
Another winner Averie!!!!! I am making this right now as I type for my baby girls 15th birthday today!!! She loves sprinkles. :) I double the recipe and I’m using 8 inch round cake pans. Also im just mixing whatever sprinkles ive got on hand, and thats quite a lot!!!!Ill let you know how it turned out when we dig in.
I used a hodge-podge of sprinkles, too, from all my various bottles and tubs and collections from various holidays, stores, etc. It seemed to work though :) Glad that you did the same and happy bday to your 15 year old ‘baby’! LMK what everyone thinks about the cake!
This is one festive cake! Love all the colors!
Yayyy! I love Jess (she was the 1st food blogger I obsessed over) and love this fun funfetti cake!
LOVE the idea of a virtual baby shower! I love al the bright colors in this cake–just makes me want to smile!
What a perfect recipe for Jessica! This looks like so much fun and oh so yummy!
I love how y’all all got together to throw Jessica a virtual baby shower! What an awesome idea. I almost want to cry for her b/c it’s so cool. Also, I just so happen to be throwing my sister-in-law a baby shower in a couple of weeks, and I was going to use Jessica’s funfetti cupcake recipe, but I think I might try this instead since I’ve made hers before (which were amazing. Clearly). Oh, and I’m going to also be making a candy corn something of yours too since I just bought a butt load of the stuff for 75% off at Walgreens. #winning
How nice of you to throw your SIL a shower and if you end up trying this recipe, or others for all your candy corn (love sales!), LMK! :)
Vanilla cake is THE BEST!! Love this. Perfect for Jess! Thanks so much for contributing this recipe!
And thank you and Bev for everything getting off without a hitch!! :)
Looks amazing! Do you think the base would work as cupcakes? I have a last-soccer-game party for my kid’s team this weekend, and I would love to make these in cupcake form.
Probably would work but I haven’t tried it…but they’re for kids, not a big fancy wedding or something, so I say go for it because you’ve got nothing left to lose!
Craving this right now!
We LOVE funfetti cake for our birthdays, so I am so happy to now have a homemade recipe to share. Love this. Thank you!