Cakes Rainbow Cake 4.96 from 21 votes My Rainbow Cake recipe is an easy birthday cake idea or you can use it for any special occasion! By Gemma Stafford | February 19, 2014 | 70 Last updated on August 17, 2020 This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my full disclosure for details. Dessert Vanilla Birthdays Baking Pans Electric Mixer Hi Bold Bakers! I’m Gemma Stafford, a professionally trained chef from Ireland. I want to show you how to create over-the-top sweet and savory recipes that are sure to impress. My first recipe is an out of this world RAINBOW CAKE that is as beautiful as it is delicious. I know what you’re thinking…Rainbows. Irish. Yes, there’s definitely a pot of gold at the end of this recipe so watch and find out how to begin boldly baking outside of the boxed cake! Try These Recipes! Homemade Smash Cake Recipe For Your Special Little OneKnead To Know #2: Brandi Milloy, Blake Lively, And Cake Pizzas!Traditional English Sticky Toffee PuddingSteamed Sticky Toffee Pudding Watch The Recipe Video! Rainbow Cake 4.96 from 21 votes Print Recipe My Rainbow Cake recipe is an easy birthday cake idea or you can use it for any special occasion! Author: Gemma Stafford Dessert Vanilla Birthdays Baking Pans Electric Mixer My Rainbow Cake recipe is an easy birthday cake idea or you can use it for any special occasion! Author: Gemma Stafford Ingredients Amazing Rainbow Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting3 2/3 Cups all purpose flour (or cake flour)1 tsp baking powder1/2 tsp baking soda1 tsp salt1 1/2 Cup granulated sugar1/2 Cup light brown sugar1 Cup unsalted butter , melted2 Large egg1/2 Cup yogurt plain or sour cream1 1/2 Cup Buttermilk2 Tbsp vanilla extractFood dye (Good quality and concentrated) red, yellow, orange, violet, blue and greenCream Cheese Frosting1 lb cream cheese (at room temperature for easy creaming)1 stick (1/2 Cup) salted butter (at room temperature)2 1/2 Cups powdered sugar , sifted1 Tbsp vanilla extract Instructions Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Grease and line a 10 inch springform or baking pan. Set aside.In a medium bowl mix together all the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder, baking soda, both sugars and salt.In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt butter in the microwave and set aside.In a jug ,Whisk in the wet ingredients minus the butter- egg, yogurt, buttermilk, and vanilla extract until combined.Slowly mix the wet ingredients into the dry. Towards the end of mixing in the melted butter. The batter will be thick. Do not beat or over mix as this will toughen your cake.Divide the batter into 6 bowls. Add a generous drop of food dye to each bowl. Mix until you have reached your desired color. Try to add enough at the start to avoid over mixing your cake batter.Now for the fun part- Spoon the batter into prepared cake pan, alternating the color. Lay the colors over each other to create a beautiful marbled effect in the end cake.Bake for 1hr 10- 1hr 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. This is a thick cake so it will take some time.To make the frosting, beat cream cheese on medium speed with an electric or stand mixer.Add in Butter and beat for 4 minutes until smooth and creamy. Add in the sift powdered sugar spoonful by spoonful and vanilla extract with the mixer running, for 4 minutes roughly.Frost cooled cake as desired. There may be leftover frosting depending how much you wish to use. Cover cake and store at room temperature for up to 7 days. Submit your own photos of this recipe Upload Photo 14 Images Fatema98 vinniemt Anelia kittymom Pamela Correa Pamela Correa Load More
Thank u for sharing ur expertise w/us all , I luved making this cake & it turned out wonderful, I have learned alot from u, I make my own buttermilk, & all ur naks, I am Irish ( grandfather was from Dublin), we r a big family & I have been baking & cooking in the kitchen since I was 8yrs.old, I luv baking, sometimes I want something more involved & sometimes I want something easier, I luved the make ur own cookie flavor & it was fun to do w/ the kids ( 4,17,22 & 25 yrs. old,lol), I am excited to start the carrot cake, the 1 from Avoca Headweavers Cafe, I will post how it comes out, wish me luck!!!! Reply
Great to see a bold baker all the way from home, Megean! Delighted to hear that you’re making progress in baking with me! Keep up your good work! Can’t wait to see how your carrot cake turns out! Best, Gemma Reply
Hi, Gemma. I’m planning on making this for my son’s birthday in 3 6inch rounds. How long should I bake them if I put them all in the oven at once? Reply
Hi Gemma, can I make the different colour layers separately and can I make them in the microwave? I recently tried your microwave red velvet and it was a big hit !! Reply
Hi there, You can make a substitute for this (https://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/homemade-buttermilk/). If you have cream then you can also use this to make sour cream for oyur recipes in this manner, Gemma 🙂 Reply
Hi Gemma, I tried it and it turned out pretty amazing. Posting the pictures. Thankyou for this recipe !! Reply
Hi Sasha, Thank you for getting back to me. The pictures are taking a little time to post right now as there is a glitch in the process, but I will post it when I see it, thank you, Gemma 🙂
Hi there, you can use buttercream frosting for this cake. (https://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/best-ever-vanilla-buttercream-frosting/). You could use a simple water icing, which is just powdered sugar mixed with very little water or milk, or this type of meringue frosting (https://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/lemon-meringue-cake/) No frosting at all if you choose! Gemma 🙂 Reply
We haven’t made this recipe yet, but my son (age 5 3/4) loves your website and wanted me to write a comment. He says “I like rainbow cake!!” We will try this recipe for his birthday. I have never been much of a baker but he is making me learn and improve! Thank you bigger, bolder, baking!! Reply
I have been looking for this! Nothing else even came close to what I had in my mind, until I came across THIS! You’re a lifesaver Gemma. You’re going to make this auntie the favorite auntie❤. Reply
A halved cake will cook much quicker, and could possibly need a lower temperature as well as a decreased cooking time. However, decreased time does not mean reducing it by half, but most likely it would be more than half the time listed in the recipe. So if baking time is 1 hour, you might have to bake it between 40 to 45 minutes. I hope this helps. Reply
Hello Gemma, One question: can I refrigerate the batter before baking? I wonder because there is butter in the Ingredients and I worry that it will solidify. Reply
Hi, Yes you can put it in the fridge no problem for up to 12 hours. I know what you are concerned about with the butter but it won’t solidify. 🙂 Best, Gemma. Reply
Hi Gemma, I have been making a cake similar to this that is a family recipe for 32 years now. I’m the 4th generation to continue the recipe. It’s much larger with no icing. Very dense & moist. Many people over the years would call it a rainbow cake. Family history is a marble cake. There is not one out there to my knowledge that compares. Sorry I can’t share any pictures I took an oath not to reveal the family secret. ???? Reply
Hi there, Well, an oath is an oath! I love this story, thank you for sharing it with me. We used to have a marble cake too, usually vanilla and chocolate, and very delicious it was too. That too was a dense cake, a bit like a pound cake. Gemma <3 Reply
Hi Gemma, I’m very fond of your recipies, and they come out really well. I have tried all your oven cupcakes????. This time I tried the rainbow cake , it came out really well , but it was very big in size for the two of us, that’s me and my daughter????????. If I want to make half the size of this cake , do I need to take half the amount of baking powder and baking soda as well , or do theys remain the same as in your original recipe and also can I make it in the same 10 inch pan or I need a smaller one. Thanking you Reply
Hi Nadira, What a good question! You need to halve all of the ingredients in a recipe for best results. I suggest you write out the recipe, and work through all of the ingredients for the measurement system you use, then divide each one. This is how to get it right, it is easy to forget one! Gemma 🙂 Reply
Thank you so much for appreciating my work. I love ur suggestion of Crumb layer as this will soften the cake and will keep it moist. Please if you can teach us to make pineapple upside down cake. Yours loving friend. Rabiya ???? Reply
Hi Rabiya, Thank you for being an active member of the Bold Baking community, I appreciate your being in touch. I have pineapple upside down cake on my list. I need to find a Bold way to do it! Gemma 🙂 Reply
Hello Gemma, Made this cake on Eid …nd turned out absolute scrumptious! Not a piece was left behind. This recipe is the best. One thing what I felt was if we bake cake a day before nd then refrigerate it the whole day before frosting, cake got little dry but then it was overcome by the frosting. So wat we should do like sprinkle sugar syrup or milk on the cake before refrigerating? Yours truly, Rabiya???? Reply
Hi Rabiya, I saw your cake, and it looked perfect, well done you. I would get this cake ready for the final frosting by using a crumb layer of buttercream all over the cake. This will set up nicely and prepare for the finish coat. It will also keep the cake moist. I would not use a sugar syrup for this purpose. Wrap the cake well and it should keep well, Gemma 🙂 Reply
Hi gemma. I made this into cupcakes. It came out too dense and the top was hard. I cooked it for 30 mins. The tooth pick came out clean but still it was like an underbaked raw dough. What could have I done wrong? Reply
Hi there, I really cannot say what happened! I do not have sufficient information. This is a soft cake batter, and I cannot figure out how it would not be baked as a cupcake in 30 mins, that would normally be too long, 15 – 20 mins more correct. Did you alter the recipe? What type of oven did you use? I cannot figure this out with your brief description, sorry, Gemma 🙂 Reply
Hi Gemma! I tried the recipe ! The kids enjoyed baking & decorating the cake with me. thank you so much! Reply
Hi there, That is so good to hear, kids love being in the kitchen with Mom, and the bonus is that one day they will do the baking, and you can put your feet up! Win win, Gemma 🙂 Reply
Hi Gemma, I tried making the cake but it dint turn out well. The top layer got burned and one side was still uncooked. What did i do wrong? I am new to baking. Thank you Reply
Hi there, It sounds like there is something wrong with your oven! If oyu bake this, or any cake, at a controlled temperature, then you should have a good result. Some times the thermostat in an oven may be off. If there is someone in your home using the oven for other things they will be able to help you with this. Something is not right, but it will be difficult for me to figure it out, I am sorry, Gemma 🙂 Reply
Thank you so much for responding to my query. Even though i could not get it right your recipe is very easy to follow. I made cookies following your crazy dough recipe and they came out absolutely delicious. You make baking really easy???? Reply
Hi Lynn, Thank you for your kind comments. I love waffles, and ice cream, and with really good chocolate sauce it is heaven! I will add this idea to my list, thank you, Gemma 🙂 Reply
Hey Gemma! How gorgeous this cake is. Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe. My question is that what brand food dyes you’ve used? I have Wilton icing colors. Can they be used in this recipe? Reply
Hey Gemma! Could you please tell me what brand food dyes you’ve used in this recipe? I have Wilton icing colors. Can they be used in this recipe and give me the same result as yours? Reply
Gemma can i halve this recipe my cakepan is really small 8 inches in length and 1 and a half inches width Reply
Hi Zainab, sure you can! I think you are describing what I would call a Sandwich pan. I would say 1 1/2 inches deep? that should work well for you, Gemma 🙂 Reply
Is this recipe better or your funfetti birthday cake one? This one has more flour and has yogurt. Reply
Hi Rahul, it depends on what you like! The funfetti cake is a type of vanilla cake, and vanilla cake is a very versatile recipe which can be used for all sorts of occasions. The Rainbow cake recipe is designed to take the colors! Check this one out, it is an easy one to remember, and always gives great results: https://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/vanilla-birthday-cake-recipe/. Gemma 🙂 Reply
Hi Gemma, I really love your recipes and I am really excited to try this recipe for my husband’s birthday next week. I have one question though: Can I substitute Vanilla Extract with something else? And also one tsp of lemon/ vinegar should be used in how much milk to make the buttermilk. Can’t wait to try this 🙂 Reply
Thanks for your question. You can leave the vanilla extract out if you do not have access to it. For every Cup of Buttermilk needed mix 1 cup of regular milk with 2 tablespoons of Lemon juice or white vinegar. Mix and let it stand for a minimum of 30 minutes before using. Reply
Can I use a buttercake batter to make this ? My cousin is allergic to marble cake for some random reason. Reply
I watched one of your videos and you said that you would leave the buttermilk recipe in the description box below but I didn’t see it. So, how do you make buttermilk? Reply
Hi Gemma! This is one of the first videos I’ve watched of yours. This so far is my most favorite. The presentation and music is wonderful. It truly was beautiful to see the different dollops of colored cake batter. Both you and your husband are very talented and I look forward to watching more of your creations! Reply
Hi Olga, Thanks so much for your lovely message, really glad you my recipes and baking videos. We have some really great videos lined up. Reply
hi gemma! i would really want you to know that my sister really loves your rainbow cake!!!!!!! her name is Kisha Reply
Hi Ish, Thanks so much, delighted your sister liked my rainbow cake. Thanks so much for your message and tell Kisha I said hello 🙂 Reply