This strawberry Easter Bunny Cake is so delicious! Take the bunny and eggs off and make this any time you need an amazing strawberry cake. The cake is filled with strawberry lemon buttercream then covered in vanilla Italian meringue buttercream, which I LOVE because it’s so creamy and not too sweet. I piped the roses with a 127 tip on a piping nail then used a pair of scissors to transfer them to the cake.
I’ve made MANY strawberry cakes and loved each one but this is my favorite and coincidentally the easiest! Using strained strawberry jam gives all the flavor without the trouble of making a reduction, not that reductions are difficult, they just take a minute.
Want to up your cake decorating game?
Check out my How to Decorate a Cake post with a full how to video. I tried including all my tips and tricks for making a beautiful cake every time! I also have a post on making buttercream flowers to help you make gorgeous and very delicious flowers!
I love the pink to yellow pastel ombré, it’s so cheerful!!
A Few Hints and Tips
- 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.
- To get FLAT layers that are moist inside and out try using cake strips! You can buy a set on the shop page or make your own from foil and paper towels at home. I made a whole blog post on it so check it out if you’re interested!
Steps to Make This Easter Bunny Cake
How to make an Easter Bunny Cake
1. 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.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk wet ingredients.
3. Add wet to dry. Add a few drops of food coloring. Add baking strips to the cake pans. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. 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 buttercream a darker pink. Add the darker 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.
7. Pipe the strawberry buttercream between each layer. Crumb coat the cake with the strawberry buttercream. Smooth with a scraper.
8. Starting with the darkest pink, pipe the Italian Meringue gradient.
9. Smooth with a scraper. Chill the cake for about 10-15 minutes.
10. 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.
11.Place the chocolate bunny in the middle and scatter eggs.
12. Add buttercream roses.
If you’ve tried this Easter Bunny Cake then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Easter Bunny Cake
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
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