Scrambled Eggs, Cheese, and Avocado Tortilla Bowl Recipe
September 16, 2025
Easter Cake! Recipe
This Easter Cake shouldn’t be a lot a recipe as it’s an Easter Cake adorning thought! Three layers of Vanilla Cake are frosted with an enthralling pastel blue buttercream, speckled with chocolate and at last embellished with toasted coconut to type the nest for mini Easter Eggs.
It’s fairly as an image! And the speckling half is FUN to do!
I confess: I battle for dessert concepts yearly when Easter rolls round. I do know, I do know, a lot of you’ll level on the market are all types of conventional Easter dessert wonders from world wide … however I’m but to make one which will get me excited. *She geese as folks from everywhere in the world chuck rotten eggs at her*
I implore you to show me mistaken. Actually. PLEASE go away me a listing of fantastic conventional Easter desserts within the feedback under so I can hit them up subsequent Easter … and even properly earlier than then!
And in order one other Easter rolls round, and I’m presenting a dessert which isn’t a lot a conventional Easter dessert (properly, not at ALL), however moderately an Easter Cake adorning thought to channel the Easter spirit!
On the plus aspect? That is extra a information than a strict recipe. You should utilize any cake you need. Any adorning eggs you need. Any color of frosting you need. Oh the chances!
Listed below are the 5 elements for this Easter Cake:
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Vanilla Cake – 3 layers;
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Pastel Blue Vanilla Buttercream Frosting – fluffy as will be, in probably the most lovable duck egg blue;
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Speckles on the frosting – made with simply cocoa and water, however simply wait till you see how we do that!
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Toasted Coconut – for the “nest” and rim across the base of the cake; and
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Mini Chocolate Eggs – for adorning.
1. The Cake
I’ve used my Vanilla Cake for this Easter Cake. I selected it for it’s ultra-moist and tender crumb, and delightful vanilla flavour. The deal-sealer is that the cake stays 100% completely contemporary for 4 complete days which makes it perfect for utilizing as a make-ahead cake for vacation events reminiscent of Easter!
2. Pastel Blue Buttercream Frosting
Aside from the addition of blue gel to color the frosting, it’s simply your ordinary Buttercream Frosting substances!
Gel vs Meals Colouring
Gel works higher to realize the pictured pale blue color as a result of it’s stronger than meals colouring. Whereas which may sound counterintuitive for a pale pastel colored frosting reminiscent of what’s pictured, the problem is coping with the impact of the yellow color of butter: as a result of yellow + blue = inexperienced!
So should you use meals colouring which isn’t as sturdy as gel, you’ll find yourself with extra of a pastel inexperienced frosting color which, thoughts you, continues to be pretty.
However if you wish to obtain the pictured pale blue frosting color, you will have to:
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Use Navy Blue Gel colouring (this works greatest I’ve discovered – and I attempted fairly just a few blue gels!);
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Use a European butter (reminiscent of Lurpak in Australia) which is a a lot paler yellow color than Australian butters; and
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Beat, beat, beat the butter for 3 minutes which makes the butter rework from yellow to (nearly!) white by way of aeration.
Colouring methodology I take advantage of for pastel frosting
You will note within the step images above that I take advantage of what is likely to be thought-about an uncommon methodology for colouring the frosting! I’ve discovered this methodology to be the most secure when making pastel colored frostings as a result of it’s manner too simple so as to add an excessive amount of colouring and ending up with frosting that’s too strongly colored and never pastel. Particularly so when utilizing gel, and even utilizing the toothpick smearing methodology.
What I do is take away 1 tablespoon of frosting right into a small bowl, add gel colouring and blend up an intense colored frosting. Then I add that again into the frosting 1 teaspoon at a time, till I obtain my desired color.
It is a a lot safer methodology that permits you to management the depth of color much better!
3. Find out how to do Chocolate Speckles on Frosting
You’ll love this! It’s merely cocoa powder + boiling water which is gently flicked onto the frosting utilizing a toothbrush!!
This additionally works utilizing a pastry brush (those with bristles, not silicone) however I discovered {that a} toothbrush achieves the perfect gentle “spray” impact. It’s additionally the best to regulate to get probably the most even impact throughout the floor of the cake.
4. Toasted Coconut
I take advantage of coconut because the “nest” to pile the Easter Eggs into on the highest of the cake, and to brighten the bottom of the cake!
Only a mere 7 to 10 minutes within the oven is required to toast the flakes up till they’re good and golden! The bake time will range relying on how positive the flakes are, and likewise how a lot sugar is within the coconut. So simply keep watch over it.
TIP: Oven is far simpler than range, a) for a extra even color; and b) much less stirring = much less breakage.
5. The Easter Eggs
And lastly, the Easter Eggs! Pile them into that nest you simply created, and nestle them alongside the bottom as properly.
I used these sweetly pastel-coloured, sugar-coated chocolate eggs by a model referred to as Darrell Lea right here in Australia which I discovered at supermarkets. However actually, any mini eggs will do. Cheerful foil-wrapped ones would look terrific as properly, I feel!
As lovable and completely on-theme-with-Easter as this cake appears to be like, I feel a very powerful factor is that it is usually a very, actually good cake for consuming. I discover that every one too typically, the extra grandly the cake is embellished, the drier and extra disappointing it’s inside (consider just about each wedding ceremony you ever attended)!!
Properly, not this one. The Vanilla Cake recipe is one in all my signature recipes. It’s in all probability the recipe I’ve labored hardest on in my total life to make it as good as I may, with one of many key necessities being that it stays completely contemporary for not less than 4 days. This occurs to make it a perfect base when utilizing it to brighten for events like Easter, whether or not since you’re internet hosting and have a gazillion different issues to make contemporary, otherwise you’re taking it to a gathering within the subsequent days.
Moreover, it’s simply so darned scrumptious. I daresay anybody who thinks Vanilla Cake is bland hasn’t tried this one!! 😂 – Johnsat x
PS. The copious quantities of fluffy buttercream frosting helps tantalise the tastebuds, as does piles of Easter Eggs. 😉
Ingredients
- 1 Vanilla Cake , 3 layers (or other 20cm/8" cake of choice, Note 1)
- 340g/ 3 sticks unsalted butter , 1.25cm / ½" cubes, softened to 18°C/64°F (Note 3)
- 750g/ 1.5 lb (6 cups) soft icing sugar / powdered sugar , sifted
- 3 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 – 2 drops blue gel food colouring (or 1 – 2 tsp blue food colouring, Note 4)
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp cocoa powder (unsweetened or sweetened, doesn’t matter)
- 3 tbsp boiling water
- Toothbrush (or basting brush)
- 2 cups coconut flakes (or shaved)
- 200g/ 7oz small Easter eggs (I use pastel coloured speckled ones, Note 5)
Instructions
- Level: Trim the top of cakes if required/desired to make the layers level (for aesthetic purposes).
- Chill: Place cake layers in fridge until thoroughly chilled (this makes it easier to frost so crumbs don't go everywhere).
- Toast coconut: Preheat oven to 160°C/325°F (140°C fan). Spread coconut on a tray. Bake 6 – 10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, until golden. (Bake time depends on sugar level, so keep an eye on it). Cool.
- Cream butter: Beat butter in a stand mixer on Speed 8 for 3 minutes until it changes from yellow to almost white.
- Add icing sugar in 3 batches: Add icing sugar in 3 batches, starting the mixer on speed 1 until partially incorporated, then increasing until it's mostly mixed in.
- Vanilla, salt, and beat 2 mins: Add vanilla and salt, then beat on Speed 8 for 2 minutes until almost white, and it's beautifully fluffy.
- Colour (Note 4): Remove 1 tbsp frosting into a small bowl. Add 1 drop of blue gel, mix in. Add 1 teaspoon of coloured frosting back into main frosting, beat until incorporated (scrape down sides as needed). Add more coloured frosting 1 teaspoon at a time until desired tone is achieved.
- Mix cocoa and boiling water.
- Frosting: Spread 3/4 cup frosting between each cake layer, then using remaining frosting for side and surface (I usually have ~1/2 cup frosting leftover, but better safe than sorry!).
- Speckles: Place something behind cake as a backboard for the speckling mess! Dip toothbrush in cocoa mixture, then use fingers to flick speckles onto cake surface – sides and top. (Hint: Practice in sink first). TIP: When doing top of cake, angle toothbrush 45 degrees down NOT over cake, to avoid accidental big drips.
- Coconut Nest: Pile coconut in the middle to form a "nest" then pile a mound of eggs in it.
- Coconut Rim: Place a mound of coconut all along the base of the cake, then dot with Easter Eggs.
- Bask in praise: Take proudly to table and bask in the compliments!
Notes
1. Cake – You can use any cake recipe you wish. I used my Vanilla Cake, in 3 layers.
2. Frosting amount – This is the frosting required for a 3 layer cake. Yes I know it sounds like a lot but it’s better to make extra and be safe rather than sorry. We’re not going for a naked cake look here! You will probably have a bit leftover – freeze it (up to 3 months).
2 layer cake – Use the recipe scaler to reduce icing sugar/powdered sugar to 500g/1lb (click on Servings and slide down).
3. Butter softening – We don’t want the butter to soften too much because we want to beat it for quite a while so as to make it as white as possible. This is because butter is yellow, and yellow + blue colouring = green instead of the blue we’re targeting here. The longer you beat butter, the whiter it becomes due to aeration from whipping. If the butter is too soft starting out, the frosting will get too sloppy. At any point during making process, refrigerate butter if needed.
4. Blue colouring – When aiming for pastel coloured frosting, adding colouring directly into frosting is risky I find, as it’s too easy to add too much. Also, the amount of food colouring required to achieve your desired pastel blue colour will depend on the strength and exact colour you use. I used Navy Blue Gel Colouring.
The method used in this recipe makes it easier to control, ie. take out a bit of frosting, add colouring, then add that back in progressively until desired colour strength is achieved.
Green tinge: Butter is yellow, so blue + yellow = green. So the blueness (or rather, green-ness!) of the frosting will depend on how white the butter/frosting is before colouring. European butters (like Lurpak in Australia) are more white than economical brands which are much more yellow. Also, beating the butter for 3 minutes will make it more white.
But honestly? Pale green is just as lovely as pale blue, in my opinion!
5. Eggs – I used small pastel coloured speckled eggs from Darrell Lea (Australia). Any eggs will work here!
6. Storage – Depends on what cake you use, but for this Vanilla Cake, up to 4 days. See Vanilla Cake recipe for storage instructions and details.
Did You Make This Recipe?
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