Here’s a little behind the scenes secret: when I was trying to create this watercolor cake tutorial, I actually started with an all-orange color palette and it did not turn out the way I wanted. The flowers didn’t go with it, so I thought I’d start over with a different color scheme. It was a happy accident though, because the cake reminded me of an Orange Creamsicle and I thought, hey, that would make an amazing cake flavor. And I considered it perfect timing because Summer is in full swing and what’s more Summer than an Orange Creamsicle anyway? 

After picking up some Orange Creamsicles from the store for inspiration, I got to work in the kitchen. I started with an Orange flavored cake and played around with the ratios of ingredients until the flavor was perfect and the texture was oh so soft and moist. The results actually made me want to revisit more of my already-soft cake recipes to make them even softer! I flavored the cake with a little vanilla, some fresh orange juice and lots of orange zest, which is where the majority of the flavor is found. It turned out so delicious, refreshing, and just a joy to eat! 

Vanilla buttercream ended up being the perfect pairing to turn this orange cake into an Orange Creamsicle cake. The flavor is spot on. It’s an American buttercream that I use for most everything I do, and I’ve tweaked the recipe to use less sugar so it’s not too sweet and just the right consistency for filling and frosting the cake, plus piping on the top. 

To decorate, I followed this watercolor cake tutorial with an orange and white color palette. Using AmeriColor Orange in different intensities, I created a light peachy-colored orange and a darker orange with my Vanilla Buttercream, then blended them all together with plain white to round out the Orange Creamsicle inspired color palette. I think the watercolor finish turned out so pretty! 

To top it all, I created a half drip with my white chocolate ganache recipe (tinted orange with more AmeriColor Orange), then piped a simple border around the top edge with Wilton tip 6B and the lighter orange colored buttercream. However you choose to decorate, one thing is for sure – this cake is downright delicious and just perfect for a Summer celebration (or just because)! If you’re looking for an easy cake recipe with an exciting flavor profile, this is the one for you. Enjoy!

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Orange Creamsicle Cake

Inspired by the classic Summertime treat, this Orange Creamsicle cake is layers of soft and moist orange-flavored cake paired with vanilla buttercream. The flavor is spot on, refreshing, and a joy to eat!

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Servings 15 slices

Ingredients

Orange Cake

• 1/4 Cup (60ml) fresh squeezed orange juice from about 1 large orange
• 1/2 Cup (120ml) whole milk, room temperature
• 2 1/2 Cups (260g) cake flour, sifted before measuring
• 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 Cup (170g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 1/4 Cup (260g) granulated white sugar
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 Tbsp orange zest from about 1/2 large orange
• 1/3 Cup (75g) sour cream, room temperature
• 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 drops orange food coloring (optional)

Vanilla Buttercream

• 2 Cups (452g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 7 Cups (840g) powdered sugar
• 2 Tbsp whole milk, room temperature
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

Make the Orange Cake

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF and prepare three 6-inch cake pans by spraying the sides with cooking spray and placing a wax or parchment paper circle into the bottom of each one. Mix together the orange juice and whole milk and set aside. Measure the cake flour by spooning into your measuring cup and leveling it. Place it into a medium sized bowl and add the baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
• In the bowl of your stand mixer (a handheld mixer works fine too!), cream the butter on high for two minutes until it's light and fluffy. Add in white granulated sugar and continue to mix on medium-high for another two minutes, scraping down the bowl and paddle as needed. Add the eggs one at a time. Add the orange zest, sour cream, vanilla, and orange food coloring (if using) and mix for one minute on medium-high, scraping down the bowl and paddle once more. It will look curdled at this point, but that is ok!
• With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Add the whole milk and orange juice mixture in a steady stream and mix until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and give it a few stirs to make sure there are no lumps. 
• Pour batter evenly between the cake pans and bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool the cakes in the pan for ten minutes before removing and continuing to cool on a wire rack or flat surface.

Make the Vanilla Buttercream

• With a hand mixer or paddle attachment on your stand mixer, cream the butter on medium-high until creamy and light (almost white) in color. About 7 minutes. 
• With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar a few cups at a time, scraping down after each addition and making sure each addition is fully incorporated before adding the next one. 
• Add the whole milk, vanilla, and salt and mix on low for another minute or two until fully incorporated. 

Assembly

• After the cakes have cooled completely, torte each layer to the desired height, then fill and crumb coat the cake with vanilla buttercream. To create the look pictured, use this watercolor cake tutorial with orange food coloring to create a watercolor finish, then top with a white chocolate ganache half drip and pipe a simple border on top with Wilton Tip 6B.

Notes

Make Ahead Tips: 

1. The Orange Cake can be made ahead and stored at room temperature, covered tightly in plastic wrap, for up to two days. Alternatively, you can cover with plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to two months before thawing to room temperature. 
2. The Vanilla Buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and mix it together on low for about 30 seconds to bring it back to frosting consistency.

To Make As Cupcakes: fill your cupcake tins no more than 2/3 full, then bake at 350ºF for 15-17 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

Did you make this cake recipe? I want to know how it went! Leave me a comment below and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me. I love to see what you create!

The post Orange Creamsicle Cake Recipe appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

Watercolor buttercream is the perfect base for all sorts of cake designs, whether you want something simple or elegant. The cakes shown below are actually the same cake decorated two different ways! And as far as buttercream types go, any kind of buttercream that you can tint to your desired colors will work with this tutorial (I’m using my favorite Vanilla Buttercream Recipe).

Most of the watercolor buttercream tutorials out there show you adding all of the colors at once and then smoothing them all together. With this technique, I find that the result ends up being more streaky in nature than I like. So, I usually start out with that technique and then go on to add and smooth the colors one by one to better control the outcome. All of this is shown in the video below, so give it a watch before you move on to the written tutorial below:

If you’re into cake decorating tutorials like this one, head on over to my YouTube Channel. You’ll find all sorts of cake decorating tutorials, recipes, and my entire Cake Basics series in video format. I’m always adding new videos there, so be sure to hit the subscribe button so you’ll always be the first to know about a new one. 

You Will Need

• A cake that’s been crumb coated and chilled (mine is a three layer 6 inch cake, but any size will do)
• 1.5 batches of vanilla buttercream
• Food color gels of your choice (mine are varying amounts of AmeriColor Fuchsia and Orange)
• Bowls and spoons for color mixing
• Angled spatula
• Icing smoother
• Cake turntable

Step 1: Frost the Cake with a Base Color

First, frost the cake. You don’t need to worry about getting it super smooth this go round, but you will want to make sure it’s nice and level to serve as a base for the colors that will go on top. With your chilled and crumb coated cake on the turntable, add some buttercream to the top and smooth it down with your angled spatula until it’s level and reaches beyond the edges of the cake. 

Next, add a thin layer of buttercream to the sides of the cake and smooth it with your icing smoother as you turn the cake on the turntable. 

When the sides are level and smooth, you should have a little crown of buttercream that has formed along the top edge. Use your angled spatula to swipe that buttercream toward the top center of the cake to create sharp edges all around.

If you want to improve your cake frosting skills, check out this guide that shows everything you need to know about creating a smooth buttercream finish. 

Step 2: Color the Buttercream

Divide the excess buttercream into bowls, one for each color you’re planning on mixing. Add your desired amounts of food color gel to each bowl and mix it up until you’ve got the color palette you’re imagining. 

I mixed up four different colors using AmeriColor Fuchsia and Orange. The lighter pink is just a tiny amount of AmeriColor Fuchsia, while the darker pink is a little more of that added. I did the same with the Orange color – added a tiny amount for the light orange and more for the dark orange. If you want to learn more about buttercream color mixing, here is a post on how to get the colors you’re going for.  

Step 3: Add and Smooth the Colors

I start off the traditional watercolor buttercream way by adding all of the colors at once and then smoothing them with my icing smoother.

With this technique, the colors end up being pretty streaky, but make a good base for the next step where we’ll add more color and definition.

Step 4: Add More Colors One by One

To turn this streaky watercolor cake into a masterpiece, we’ll need to add the colors one by one. I like to add big blobs of one color (I started here with the dark fuchsia on top of those streaks), and smooth it all down before moving onto the next.

After smoothing down the dark fuchsia, I moved on to adding big blobs of dark orange wherever I felt like, then smoothed those colors down. Don’t even worry about mixing colors on top of one another here – blending those colors is what makes the finish look like a watercolor masterpiece.

 Next, I added the light orange and smoothed it down, followed by the light pink. 

You can continue adding and smoothing colors until it looks just right. 

Step 5: Continue Decorating (Optional)

From here, you can keep on decorating the cake however you want! This watercolor base is perfect as-is or with some simple piping on top (as shown below using Wilton Tip 4B).

Or you can go more elegant and add a chocolate ganache drip and some fresh flowers like I did here: 

It’s all up to you! This watercolor look can be dressed up or dressed down depending on what you want to do. 

Did you make this watercolor cake? I want to know how it went and what colors you used! Let me know in the comments below and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me. I love to see what you create!

The post Watercolor Cake Tutorial appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

I first created a cake with this approach for New Years Eve and the process was so freeing that I knew I had to try it again. It’s basically edible art therapy! After posting it on Instagram I got so many requests for a video that I decided to film this one, and I hope it’s as therapeutic to watch as it was to create. If you’re more of a visual learner, this video shows the techniques in action for you to reference as you create one yourself:

The only real decision that’s important to make before you start decorating is choosing your color palette. Each time I’ve used this technique to decorate a cake, I’ve chosen four different colors to make it come to life. I usually start by mixing up one bold mid-toned color, make a darker color to contrast it, then pair those with two lighter pastel colors to use for the spatula painted portions.

It will work with any color palette, so just choose four colors that you’re crazy about and run with it!

You Will Need:

• A frosted cake that’s been chilled
• ½ batch of vanilla buttercream (or other light colored buttercream)
• Food color gels of your choice
• Bowls and spoons for color mixing
• A cake smoother or bench scraper
• A small icing spatula
• Edible Art Paint in Glamorous Gold (optional)
• Food-grade paintbrush (optional)

Step 1: Mix Up A Color Palette

Divide the buttercream into four different bowls, reserving a bit of white buttercream just in case you need to lighten a color. Then, use your food color gels to create the color palette of your choice.

The color gels I used for this specific color palette are all Americolor: Eggplant mixed with Regal Purple for the darkest color, Fuschia for the mid-toned color, Peach and Lilac for the lightest colors.

Step 2: Create Bold Color Swatches

Make sure your cake has been chilled for at least 30 minutes and is firm to the touch before starting the painting process (aka where the fun begins!). Choose two different colors to use as your big, bold swatch colors. I always pick the darkest color and the mid-toned color, but you can use any colors you feel would be the most fitting. One by one, use your small icing spatula to apply color wherever you want on the cake, then use your bench scraper to scrape off the excess and create smooth color swatches.

It’s best to have a few paper towels handy throughout the process, because you’ll need to clean your bench scraper every time you smooth out a color to get a clean finish.

Repeat the process until you’re happy with how many swatches are on your cake, remembering to leave enough blank space for spatula painting.

Step 3: Spatula Paint

Wherever you feel like, use your icing spatula to apply the final two colors, spatula painting them on in strokes. There’s no right or wrong here, so feel free to overlap your color swatches and go with the flow on how long or short your spatula painted strokes end up.

Make sure you clean your icing spatula when switching colors, unless you want the strokes to end up with colors mixed together.

Step 4: Splatter Paint

I absolutely love splatter painting cakes, so I chose to finish the design by splattering some Edible Art Paint in Glamorous Gold all over my colors. You can use any kind of edible paint or luster dust mixed with alcohol for this part, but I love Edible Art Paint because it’s already pre-mixed and ready to go. Just pour a little bit into a bowl, dip a food-grade paintbrush into it, and splatter until you love what you see.

And that’s it! Three different cake decorating techniques combined to make art. The best part is that every cake design you create with this approach will look totally unique, and it’s so easy that you can just relax and enjoy the creative process. I hope painting with buttercream is as therapeutic for you as it is for me!

If you create a cake with this tutorial, I’d LOVE to see your artwork. Be sure to tag me on Instagram to show me!

Disclosure: this post does contain some affiliate links, meaning I may receive a small commission if you click them and purchase items I’ve recommended. Clicking these links won’t cost you any extra money, but they do help to keep Sugar & Sparrow up and running. Thank you for your support!  

The post Painted Buttercream Cake Tutorial appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

Cool, right?! Whether you’re needing a buttercream backdrop for your next Star Wars cake or other space-themed creation, this technique was so quick and easy with a few supplies I picked up at my local JOANN store. From the space-colored buttercream to the star textures and sprinkle accents, I found everything I needed to get the look in a one-stop shop!

This Galaxy Cake all starts with a watercolor buttercream technique in a spacey colored palette: pink, blue, purple, and black. I used the Wilton Color Right Food Coloring System for each of the colors, and found it really easy to make a pitch black buttercream with the concentrated gel. It helps that you (surprisingly!) only need a little bit of black buttercream for this project, so if you’ve ever struggled with making a deep black color with vanilla buttercream, you won’t have to worry about that this time around. Just a few drops of black gel added to about ½ cup of vanilla buttercream and you’re good to go! 

To really enhance the look of a star-filled galaxy, I splatter painted the cake with diluted vanilla buttercream, added these gorgeous Silver Edible Glitter Stars, and topped it all off with a few clusters of these Silver Sprinkles. It turned out so galactic!

Here’s a quick video of the process so you can see all of the techniques in action before you read all about it below:

You Will Need:

• A 6-inch round cake that’s been crumb coated and chilled
• Cake turntable 
• 1.5 batches of vanilla buttercream
• Wilton Color Right Food Coloring System
• Bowls and spoons for color mixing
• Angled Spatula
• Icing Scraper
• Food-Grade Paint Brush
• Wilton Silver Edible Glitter Stars
• Wilton Silver Sprinkles

Step 1: Frost The Cake

With your crumb coated and chilled cake on the turntable, frost a thin layer of vanilla buttercream onto the top of the cake and smooth it down with your angled spatula.

Add a thin layer of vanilla buttercream to the sides of the cake and smooth it with your icing scraper until the sides are smooth and even. Then, swipe the crown of buttercream that appears around the top edges of the cake inward to create sharp edges.

At this point, I like to chill the frosted cake for about 20 minutes to let the buttercream set up. Frosting white buttercream underneath the galaxy finish saves on the amount of black buttercream you’ll need to use to cover it. Aka, no black stained teeth once you get to eat it!

Step 2: Color The Buttercream 

While the frosted cake is chilling in the refrigerator, it’s time to mix up your space-themed color palette. Add about a Tbsp of white buttercream into one bowl and set it aside, then divide the remaining buttercream into four separate bowls.

Using the Wilton Color Right Food Coloring System, mix a little Pink into one bowl, a little Blue into another, and a mixture of Pink and Blue into the third bowl to make a purple tone. In the last bowl, add a few drops of Black and mix it up until you’ve got a deep black tone.

Step 3: Create The Galaxy Buttercream Finish

On your frosted and chilled cake, add a few dabs of the pink buttercream to the sides and top of the cake with your angled spatula, then smooth it all with your icing scraper.

Next, add a few dabs of purple buttercream to the sides and top of the cake and smooth it with your icing scraper. Repeat this process with the blue buttercream until you’ve got a nice watercolor finish on your cake.

Finally, add the black buttercream over the top of everything and smooth it with your icing scraper. Continue to add and smooth the black buttercream until the colors underneath peek through just a little.

When you’re finished, pop the cake back into the refrigerator for another 15 minutes to let everything set up. 

Step 4: Splatter Paint The Stars

In the bowl of white buttercream you reserved in Step 2, add a few drops of water and mix it all together until it becomes a thick liquid.

Dip your food grade paintbrush into the diluted buttercream and splatter paint it all over the cake to create the look of stars. 

Step 5: Add Glitter Stars And Sprinkles 

Finally, add some Glitter Stars wherever your heart desires in your galaxy. It’s best to place a few on your finger and gently press them onto the cake. Use that same technique to add some clusters of Silver Sprinkles to your galaxy cake. Simply dip your finger into the sprinkles to get a nice finger-full, then gently press them onto the cake.

And there you have it! When you’re all done with your Galaxy Cake, feel free to turn on “Intergalactic” by Beastie Boys and dance around the kitchen. It’s only fitting!

Now that you know how to make the perfect Galaxy Cake, all that’s left to do is make a trip to your local JOANN store and pick up the supplies. If you don’t live near a JOANN, fear not! You’ll find everything you need on their website. I’m so blown away at all the cake decorating tools and supplies they offer, so no matter what you’re creating in the kitchen, know that they’ve got just the thing.  

Disclaimer: I was compensated by JOANN for my work of creating this project, styling, filming, photographing, and writing about their products. As always, all opinions are honest and my own. Thank you for supporting brands that support Sugar & Sparrow.

The post Galaxy Cake Tutorial appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

Dreamy, right? It was so much fun to create. Here’s a quick video to show you how I got the look:

Now let’s talk about these SugarBear Sleep Vitamins. Sometimes after a long night of caking, I can’t seem to turn my brain off and get a good night’s sleep (anyone feel me?). I basically head to bed, close my eyes, and think. For hours. But these Sleep Vitamins work so well that even after a long night in the kitchen, I’ve been able to fall asleep quickly, stay asleep throughout the night, and wake up feeling refreshed (not groggy at all!).

What always impresses me about SugarBear Vitamins is the all-natural ingredients. Their Sleep Vitamins are 100% vegan and scientifically formulated with vitamins and minerals that promote healthy sleep: melatonin, magnesium, 5HTP and L-Theanine (mood boosters!), Valerian Root, Passion Flower, and Lemon Balm Leaf (to name just a few). In addition to all of these natural sleep aids, SugarBear Sleep Vitamins are also soy-free, gluten-free, and cruelty-free. I love how intentional they are about creating vitamins that are so natural, kind, and environmentally friendly.

Another perk about these Sleep Vitamins is that they taste amazing! They’re essentially berry-flavored gummy bears, which is the perfect pre-bedtime snack if you ask me. Just two of them 30-minutes before bed will get you all the beauty rest you need.

If you’re intrigued about SugarBear Sleep Vitamins and are in need of some more peaceful sleep in your life, you should definitely check them out here. They’re the tastiest vitamins ever and packed with everything you need for natural beauty sleep. Wishing you all the sweetest of dreams and if you do end up trying out these Sleep Vitamins, let me know how you like them in the comments below!

Disclaimer: I was compensated by SugarBearHair for my work of creating this cake, styling, filming, photographing, and writing about their products. As always, all opinions are honest and my own. Thank you for supporting brands that support Sugar & Sparrow.

The post SugarBear Sleep Vitamins Cake Collab appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

The photoshoot was hosted by StyledYou, which is a project by Mae & Co, and there were several amazing photographers there capturing all the magic. I wanted to share some of their photos and highlight all of the incredible people involved. Hands down, the best part was seeing everyone bring their own unique skill set to this shoot and work together to make something incredible! It just goes to show the power of collaborating with other talented people and letting the magic unfold.  

The vendors who collaborated on this shoot come highly recommended from me, and they’re all amazingly talented. Definitely consider them for your future events:

• Design and Styling: Mae & Co
• Venue: Ace Hotel Portland
• Floral Work: Good Seed Floral
• Rentals: Something Borrowed Portland
• Hand Lettering: Seek Paper Co
• Hair and Makeup: Makeup By Whit
• Dress: Claire La Faye
• Cake: Yours truly
• Model: Reed Alyson

Is this not the dreamiest wedding you’ve ever seen? Made me want to get married to my honey all over again! I’m blown away at how talented each of these photographers are and so humbled to be a tiny part of bringing this creative vision to life. Everyone involved brought such talent to this photoshoot and it was a thing of wonder. I’m into it. Can’t wait to experience something like this again!

The post The Dreamiest Wedding Photoshoot With Mae & Co appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.