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Easter Bunny Cake
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Easter Bunny Cake

The perfect cake for every Easter brunch table! Delicious strawberry flavor with Italian meringue buttercream ombre, roses and the cutest little garden bunny!  
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 8 minutes
Servings 10
Calories 553kcal
Author John Kanell

Ingredients

INGREDIENTS:

For the Cake:

  • 1 ⅔ cup all-purpose flour 213g
  • 1 cup granulated sugar 228g
  • 1 tsp baking powder 3g
  • ¼ tsp baking soda 1g
  • ¾ cup unsalted butter 176g, room temp or melted
  • ¼ cup whole milk 63g, warm
  • ¼ cup strawberry preserves 46g, strained, warmed
  • ½ cup sour cream 133g
  • 3 tsp vanilla extract 10g
  • 3 egg whites large
  • Pink food coloring
  • 1 chocolate bunny medium size
  • 1 bag chocolate eggs pastel
  • pinch salt

For the Italian Meringue Buttercream:

  • 4 large egg whites room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 342g
  • Pinch kosher salt optional
  • 2 cups unsalted butter 456g, room temperature
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract 5mL
  • 1/3 cup water 40g
  • Dash of cream of tartar
  • pink food coloring
  • yellow food coloring

For the American Buttercream:

  • 1 lb confectioners sugar 462g
  • 2 sticks butter 228g unsalted, room temp
  • 1 tbsp strawberry preserve 20g, strained
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice 30mL strained

Instructions

INSTRUCTIONS:

    For the Cake:

    • Preheat oven to 340F. Butter and flour three 6-inch cake pans. Soak baking strips in water. Strain the strawberry preserves. 
    • Sift dry ingredients (including sugar). Whisk to combine.
    • In another bowl, whisk together wet ingredients.
    • Combine wet and dry mixtures. Whisk until combined. Add a few drops of pink food coloring until a desired consistency is reached. If the batter is lumpy, it’s okay!  
    • Add baking strips to the cake pans.
    • Evenly distribute batter into pans. I like to use a kitchen scale for precision.
    • Bake for about 35 minutes or until the centers are set and springy to the touch.

    For the Italian Meringue Buttercream:

    • Beat the egg whites, salt and cream of tartar, slowly add in 1/3 cup of sugar and continue beating until soft peaks form.
    • In a medium saucepan add the remaining sugar and 1/3 cup water then place on medium-low heat.
    • Stir until sugar melts and becomes clear. Maintain at medium-high heat until temperature reads 235-240F.
    • Drizzle the sugar into the mixer immediately.
    • Run the mixer until meringue is cool/tepid or for about 15 minutes. You can speed up the process by adding bags of frozen peas to the base of the bowl. 
    • Add room temperature butter into running mixer one tablespoon piece at a time.
    • Add the salt and vanilla.
    • Beat until butter is combined and mixture has reached a silky consistency.
    • Distribute into small bowls.
    • Use food coloring to create a gradient of colors.
    • Transfer to piping bags. Snip off the tips of each bag.

    For the Strawberry Buttercream:

    • In a stand mixer, cream the butter until fluffy.
    • Sift in half of the confectioners sugar. Mix, then add the rest.
    • Squeeze lemon juice and pour in 1 tbsp of strained strawberry preserves. 
    • Transfer 2 cups of the buttercream to bowl. Dye some a darker pink. Add the dark pink and the light pink to a piping bag fitted with a 127 tip for the roses. Transfer the rest to another piping bag. Snip off the tip. 

    For the Roses:

    • Cut a square of parchment paper. Use a tiny bit of buttercream to glue the paper to the piping nail for more stability.
    • Pipe a small cone of very thick buttercream in the middle of the square.
    • Use a 127 tip with the pointy side up to make the petals.
    • Start with a spiral for the center.
    • Pipe small arches for each petal, pointing the tip outward as you get towards the outer petals.

    For the Assembly:

    • Pipe the strawberry buttercream between each layer.
    • Crumb coat the cake with the strawberry buttercream. Smooth with a scraper.
    • Starting with the darkest pink, pipe the Italian Meringue gradient.
    • Smooth with a scraper.
    • Chill the cake for about 10-15 minutes.
    • Place the chocolate bunny in the middle.
    • Scatter the roses and eggs throughout the top of the cake.

    Video

    Notes

    • Whenever you make Italian buttercream remember to give it a quick whip right before piping it as it looses consistency quite quickly.
    • To achieve this ombré effect I used very small amounts of If you end up with extra Italian buttercream put it in a sealable plastic bag and store it in the fridge for up to two weeks or the freezer for up to two months. When you're ready to use it let it come to room temp and give it a quick whip to wake that consistency back up.
    • This is a six inch cake but it you want to make a three layer nine inch cake  go ahead and triple the batter recipe and double the buttercream.
    • You can substitute whole milk yogurt for the sour cream if desired, I do it all the time and can’t really tell the difference.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1g | Calories: 553kcal | Carbohydrates: 80g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 96mg | Sodium: 319mg | Potassium: 114mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 62g | Vitamin A: 500IU | Vitamin C: 13.2mg | Calcium: 90mg | Iron: 2mg