Easter Egg Cake

Begin by sifting together the dry ingredients – flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar into a bowl. Whisk the mixture and keep it aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, sour cream, vanilla, eggs, and butter. You can use melted and cooled butter or very soft room temperature butter.

Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture.

Mix until just combined and then pour the batter into three buttered and floured six-inch pans. For flat layers, you can use cake strips.

Cream the butter and salt, sift the powdered sugar in batches, and mix until combined before adding the next batch. Add blue food coloring to get a Robin’s Egg color. If the butter is exceptionally white, add a drop of yellow.

Assemble the cake by piping buttercream between each layer. You can also sprinkle toasted coconut for added texture and taste.

Cover the cake completely in buttercream.

Smooth the top and sides of the cake with an offset spatula. Use the spatula to pull in the corners while slowly rotating the cake.

Create a slurry by mixing cocoa powder and vanilla in a small bowl. Dip a clean brush in it and use your finger to flick it onto the cake and chocolate eggs. Practice on a piece of paper first to get the hang of the distance to hold your brush from the cake and eggs and overall technique. Clean up any stray chocolate splatters.

Pipe a buttercream ring on top of the cake, press in the toasted coconut to make a nest, and finally place the chocolate eggs. This recipe yields three six-inch layers. Double the batter for an eight-inch cake and triple the batter for nine-inch layers.