Confetti Cake – 3 1/2 cups 420g cake flour (such as Swan’s down, do not substitute homemade cake flour) – 1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp baking powder – 1/2 tsp salt – 6 large egg whites room temp – 1 1/2 cups 12 oz. whole milk, room temp – 1 cup 226g unsalted butter, softened – 1 1/2 cups 300g sugar – 2 tsp vanilla extract – 4 ounces pastel confetti quins

Lemon buttercream and décor – 2 cups/450g unsalted butter softened – 5-6 cups/640 to 770g confectioners’ sugar – 3 teaspoons lemon extract – Milk or heavy cream optional – Pink food color – 8 white chocolate frames see headnote – 20 wafer paper butterflies of varying size and color – Cellophane tape or light corn syrup – Cloth-covered stem wire – Plastic wrap

– Make the confetti cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease three 6×3-inch springform pans and line with parchment, or spray with flour-based baking spray. – Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. Whisk together egg whites and milk in a separate bowl; set aside. – Beat butter using the paddle attachment until soft and creamy. Add sugar gradually and beat until light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla.

– Add flour mixture alternately with the egg white/milk mixture. Begin and end with flour mixture and beat until smooth on medium-low speed after each addition. Fold in the confetti quins. – Divide batter between pans. Bake 6-inch cake at 350 for 30-40 minutes, or until the cakes spring back when pressed in the centers. Let cool slightly in pan, then turn out and cool completely. Level the cakes using a cake leveler or large serrated knife.

– Make the lemon buttercream: In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, mix together the butter and confectioners’ sugar. Begin on low speed until crumbly, and then increase to high and beat for 3 minutes. – Add lemon extract and beat again for another minute. If you find the buttercream is too stiff, you may add milk or heavy cream 1 tablespoon at a time until the mixture is spreading consistency. – Fill the cake layers with about 1/3 to 1/2 cup each of white 

them on a cake stand. Add pink food color to the remaining buttercream and whip until a pastel pink color is achieved. Frost the exterior of the cake with a crumb coat of pink buttercream; refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.  Generously frost the chilled cake with the remaining buttercream. Use an offset spatula warmed in hot water and wiped free of moisture to perfectly smooth the outer coating of buttercream.

– Decorate! While the frosting is still tacky, place the chocolate frames onto the buttercream, evenly spaced along the bottom edge of the cake stand. Place a large wafer paper butterfly in the centers of each frame.  Place two frames propped against each other on top of the cake. Attach butterflies to cloth stem wire using a small amount of cellophane tape on their backs, or use a dot of corn syrup to attach them tp the wire(extended drying time is needed for the corn syrup method; consider making