• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Curly Girl Kitchen
  • about
  • faqs
  • recipes
  • portfolio
  • work with me
  • contact
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest

Watercolor Buttercream Cake with French Macarons

May 19, 2020 by Heather Smoke 4 Comments

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

One of my favorite decorating techniques is watercolor buttercream – soft pastel hues, blended together to create the look of a watercolor painting.  It’s just so pretty.  For this Watercolor Buttercream Cake, I chose pale shades of pink and orange, swirling them together into a soft ombre watercolor effect, finished with a little piping, swirls of buttercream and pink macarons.

Looking for more cake decorating inspiration? You might like this chai tea spice cake, strawberry almond cake, and neapolitan cake.

A cake on a white cake stand, frosted with pink and orange watercolor buttercream, topped with macarons and swirls of buttercream.

This site contains affiliate links.  As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.  This means that I may make a small commission if you purchase a product using those links.  This in no way affects my opinion of those products and services.  All opinions expressed on this site are my own.

How to Make a Watercolor Buttercream Cake

This is a technique I just love. One of my favorite bloggers, Tessa Huff of Style Sweet, does this watercolor effect so beautifully. I have both of her cake books, and they are total eye candy. Her gorgeous work inspired today’s watercolor buttercream cake.

Frosting a cake with watercolor buttercream is really very easy. Once your cake is crumb-coated, tint your remaining buttercream in 2-3 complementary pastel hues. I chose pale orange and pink for mine, but there are so many color combinations that would be really beautiful.

Then I dabbed the orange buttercream around the bottom half, and the pink buttercream around the top half. Lastly, I took a bench scraper and smoothed the buttercream all around the sides until I was happy with how it looked. You could also do a more swirly effect, by dabbing both colors all over the cake and blending them together.

And if you’re a visual learner, Tessa has a great photo tutorial for this technique that you can view on her website here.

Lastly, I added a little decorative piping around the sides, and topped my cake with some pretty (storebought) French macarons and big swirls of buttercream.

A slice of funfetti cake, frosted with pink and orange watercolor buttercream, topped with a macaron and swirl of buttercream.
Closeup of pink macarons and swirls of buttercream on a cake frosted with pink and orange watercolor buttercream.

Testing the Reverse Creaming Method

Today’s post is more about the cake decorating, than the cake recipe itself. And of course you can make this with any flavor of cake you like! I used my Funfetti Cake recipe, which you can find at the bottom of the post.

When I test my cake recipes, I like to test a few different variations with different mixing methods, adjustments to the leavening and other ingredients, etc, to come up with the best possible recipe. One method that I’ve long heard about is the “reverse creaming” method. Instead of first creaming the butter and sugar together, the butter is creamed with the sugar, flour and other dry ingredients until sandy and crumbly. Then the eggs and liquid are added at the end.

The purpose of the reverse creaming method is to coat the flour with fat, creating a luxurious mouth-feel and very tender crumb. I have to admit, it was a bit odd to me, since I’m so used to the standard creaming method. With the standard creaming method, you first cream butter with sugar, then add eggs, and lastly add the dry ingredients alternating with the liquid.

A slice of funfetti cake, frosted with pink and orange watercolor buttercream, topped with a macaron and swirl of buttercream.
A slice of funfetti cake with pink buttercream, on a white plate.

Results of the Reverse Creaming Method

The reverse creaming method finishes by mixing the batter on high speed after adding the remaining liquid, which threatened to fling batter all over my kitchen. But I forged ahead, following the recipe to the letter, and then folded in the sprinkles. The batter was thin, and I suspected that the sprinkles (which were very tiny nonpareils) would fall to the bottom of the pan, which they did.

In the end, though, the cake was delicious, soft, moist and tender, although in my opinion, not any more so than by using the traditional creaming method.  So, would I use this method again? Honestly, no. It was a more finicky method to follow, as well as messier, and didn’t really live up to the hype.

I’m completely happy with the results I get using the traditional creaming method. My recipe for Funfetti Cake is so incredibly moist, tender and fluffy, but also sturdy enough to suspend the sprinkles throughout the batter.

Closeup of pink macarons and swirls of buttercream on a cake frosted with pink and orange watercolor buttercream.

You Might Also Like

  • Strawberry almond cake with a slice being cut.
    Strawberry Almond Cake
  • Neapolitan cake with striped buttercream and an ice cream cone cake topper.
    Neapolitan Cake
  • Buttercream flowers on a pink frosted cake.
    Buttercream Flowers Cake
  • Vanilla rhubarb layer cake topped with candied rhubarb curls.
    Rhubarb Cake

Favorite Products


Did you love today’s recipe? Please rate the recipe and let me know in the comments what you thought! Also, be sure to follow Curly Girl Kitchen on Instagram, and tag me when you try one of my recipes so I can see all your delicious creations!

A slice of funfetti cake, topped with a macaron.

High Altitude Funfetti Cake

Heather Smoke
A fun and colorful, from-scratch funfetti cake, with vanilla buttermilk sprinkle cake and vanilla buttercream, covered in rainbow sprinkles and topped with French macarons.

All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet.

5 from 4 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 30 mins
Total Time 50 mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings16

Equipment

  • Stand Mixer with Paddle and Whisk Attachments

Ingredients
 

Cake

  • 1 ½ cups unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
  • 6 egg whites room temperature
  • 3 cups cake flour, spooned and leveled, then sifted
  • 3 ½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
  • 1 ½ cups whole buttermilk, room temperature
  • ½ cup sour cream
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tsp almond extract
  • ½ cup rainbow sprinkles, preferably quins or confetti sprinkles

Buttercream

  • 2 cups unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tbsp meringue powder (optional)
  • ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2-4 tbsp milk or cream, only if needed
  • 2-3 drops "soft pink" gel food coloring
  • rainbow sprinkles and French macarons, for decorating

Instructions
 

Cake

  • Preheat the oven to 350, and spray the bottoms of four 8-inch cake pans with non-stick spray.
  • In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed for 10 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally, until very light and fluffy. Beat in the egg whites, one at a time, beating each for about 15 seconds before adding the next egg white.  Scrape the bowl down and beat for 15 more seconds.
  • In a separate bowl, sift together the cake flour, baking powder and salt.  In another bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, sour cream, vanilla and almond extracts.
  • With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk mixture, starting and ending with the flour, being careful not to over-mix.  Add the sprinkles and use a large spatula to briefly fold the sprinkles in, as well as any remaining bits of flour.
  • Divide the batter between the pans, weighing each to make sure the batter is evenly divided.  Use a spatula to smooth out the top of the batter.
  • Bake the cakes on the center rack for about 28-30 minutes, until a toothpick in the center comes out clean or with moist crumbs clinging to it, and the centers spring back when lightly touched.
  • Set the pans on a wire rack, cover loosely with a clean kitchen towel, and cool completely before frosting. As the cake cools, it's normal for it to pull away from the sides of the pan, and for the top of the cake to settle and flatten, since this is a slightly dense, butter-based cake.

Buttercream

  • In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the butter for one minute until smooth.
  • Whisk together the powdered sugar, meringue powder and salt. With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar mixture by spoonfuls, mixing until combined.
  • Add the vanilla, then whip on medium speed for 4-5 minutes until very light and fluffy, scraping the bowl occasionally. Add the milk only if needed for desired consistency.
  • For the subtle blush color pictured, mix in 2-3 drops of "soft pink" gel food coloring.
  • Stack and fill the cooled cake layers with the buttercream, then frost all over with a thin crumb coat of buttercream. Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes to set the crumb coat. Frost all over with a final coat of buttercream.
  • Before the buttercream crusts over, place the cake over a baking sheet to collect any stray sprinkles. Scatter the buttercream with rainbow nonpareils and quins. Decorate the top of the cake with colorful French macarons.

Notes

Store leftover cake in an airtight container or cake carrier, at room temperature, for up to 3 days.
You can also bake this cake recipe in three 8-inch cake pans instead of four, and bake for about 30-32 minutes.
Keyword Cake, Funfetti, High Altitude, Sprinkles
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
https://curlygirlkitchen.com/

Filed Under: Cake Decorating

Previous Post: « Black and White Cheesecake
Next Post: High Altitude S’mores Cake »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. La Table De Nana

    May 20, 2020 at 2:13 pm

    Gorgeous.

    Reply
  2. Kinga

    May 20, 2020 at 7:43 pm

    sounds and looks so good

    Reply
  3. Shelley

    March 21, 2021 at 6:35 pm

    I love your website! Thank you for the recipe. If I wanted to decorate a cake with macarons, can I do it the night before? Or will the macarons wilt? Thank you!

    Reply
    • Heather

      March 22, 2021 at 11:20 pm

      I’ve done that, and it’s been just fine as long as the cake is refrigerated.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Welcome

I'm Heather, and welcome to my Colorado kitchen, where you will find high-altitude tested recipes for beautifully photographed cakes, baked goods and sweets. I believe that the kitchen is the heart of a home, and everyone is welcome in mine. So stay a while, sip a cup of coffee, and bake something delicious with me!

A graphic on how to make perfect American buttercream.
A graphic on how to stack, fill, crumb coat and frost layer cakes.

Recipe Index

  • Breads, Biscuits, Muffins and Doughnuts
  • Breakfast
  • Brownies and Bars
  • Cakes
    • Buttercream
    • Cake Decorating
    • Cheesecakes
    • Classic Cake Flavors
    • Holiday Themed Cakes
  • Candy and Snacks
  • Christmas and Thanksgiving
    • Christmas Cakes
    • Christmas Cookies
  • Cookies
  • Crisps, Crumbles and Puddings
  • Cupcakes
  • Drinks
  • Halloween
  • How To Guides and Resources
  • Ice Cream and Frozen Treats
    • Frozen Custard
    • Ice Cream Sandwiches
    • No Churn Ice Cream
    • Popsicles
  • Jams and Sweet Sauces
  • Pies and Tarts
A graphic on how I improved my food photography with Foodtography School.
A graphic on how to make flaky pie dough.

Recent Posts

  • High Altitude Big Chocolate Chip Cookie Birthday Cake
  • Bourbon Peach Sugar Cookie Shortcakes
  • Grapefruit Champagne Granita
  • Gluten Free Eggless High Altitude Chocolate Chip Cookies
  • Apricot Almond Oat Bars
  • Turquoise Floral Cake with Piped Buttercream Flowers
  • High Altitude Black Forest Cake
  • High Altitude Cardamom Almond Loaf Cake
  • Apple Rhubarb Puff Pastry Turnovers with Lemon Icing
  • High Altitude Almond Poppy Seed Cake

Archives

  • about
  • faqs
  • recipes
  • portfolio
  • work with me
  • contact

Footer

I'm Heather, and welcome to Curly Girl Kitchen, where you will find high-altitude tested recipes for beautifully photographed cakes and sweets. I believe that the kitchen is the heart of a home, and everyone is welcome in mine. So stay a while, sip a cup of coffee, and bake something sweet with me!

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Privacy Policy

About

FAQs

Work With Me

Contact

Copyright © 2022 Curly Girl Kitchen on the Foodie Pro Theme