Birthday Cake Donut Cake Decorating

Who doesn't get excited when they see a big pile of donuts? Sure, you could go to your favourite pastry shop, but you can easily make your own donuts at home. This Stacked Donut Cake is proof of that! And, it's perfect for any occasion!

STACKED DONUT CAKE

We love donuts of all shapes and sizes; all flavours too. Filling or no filling, they're all fun to eat. But, in my opinion, a donut isn't complete without sprinkles. I think one is never too old or too distinguished to enjoy a dessert loaded with sprinkles!

But, Dear Reader, you already know that about me! So, why a Stacked Donut Cake? Well, why not, right!?

To be perfectly honest, I was pondering over the idea for quite some time. You see, Dear Reader, I tend to struggle with my cake decorating skills. I just have not had enough practice. But, I'm quite happy with how I can bake, frost, and bedazzle a donut!

STACKED DONUT CAKE INSPIRATION

I've been seeing so many images lately on Pinterest which showcase these over-the-top, massive donut cakes. They look like a donut that has been formed using a bundt pan. I love the idea, but since my decorating skills are not up to the challenge, and I've never worked with fondant, the stacked donut cake was the next best choice for me.

I love the way this cake looks! It looks super festive, fun, and impressive too. I think if you placed this cake in the middle of an Easter brunch dessert spread, you'd be an instant star!

Now, here's the thing about a Stacked Donut Cake – yes, I fashioned this one after springtime with the pastel-coloured frosting and the pink, green, blue, and purple sprinkles. I even placed those beautiful flowers around the base of the cake stand to emphasize spring.

CHANGE THE COLOURS TO MATCH THE OCCASION!

But, truth be told, you can make this cake suited to any occasion! My mind automatically thinks birthday cake. You could frost the donuts to suit the theme of the birthday party. Every kid loves sprinkles, and lots of them! And, you can easily stick a bunch of candles into the top tier of donuts!

The possibilities don't end there though! Think about how pretty this cake would look with white, pink and red frosting for valentine's day. Or, what about red and green for Christmas? And, you just know that black and orange donuts would rock any Halloween party!

MY GO-TO SPRINKLE SOURCE

You can find sprinkles to suit any occasion too, which makes buying sprinkles almost as much fun as it is decorating and assembling this Springtime Stacked Donut Cake. I buy most of my sprinkles from Sweetapolita. They're the best and you should check them out. All of the sprinkles you see in this post were mixes I found at Sweetapolita.

ADDED BONUSES!

When opting to make a stacked donut cake over a regular layered or tiered cake, one avoids all of the drama associated with cake decorating. This donut cake is five layers high. With a tiered cake, I'm sure support dowels would be needed. These donuts are so light and airy that there's no need for support.

And, do you know what the coolest thing about this stacked donut cake is? It's not the beautiful colours. And, it's not the over-the-top display of sprinkles. No, it's not the five layers either! It's the fact that you don't need a knife to cut the cake!!!!

Not having to cut the cake not only eliminates the need for precise cutting so that everyone gets the piece they want, but when it comes to donuts, one doesn't need a fork or a plate. That means less dishes to wash up too! Who wants to host a party just to be faced with a sink full of dirty dishes once everyone leaves to go home? Not me!!

LIFE IS SHORT; EAT A DONUT!

No mess, no fuss; that's what this Springtime Stacked Donut Cake is all about! Just place a big cake stand right in the middle of your dessert table, pour up cups of hot tea or coffee for the adults, and a big glass of milk for the kids, and let them dig in. Everyone gets to chose their favourite frosting colour.

Life is all about doing what makes you happy, at least that's my philosophy. And, eating a donut every now and then makes me extremely happy. And, so does sprinkles. Lots and lots of colourful, bright, vibrant, joyous sprinkles!!! Enjoy, Dear Reader!!!

Stacked Donut Cake

Who doesn't get excited when they see a big pile of donuts? Sure, you could go to your favourite pastry shop, but you can easily make your own donuts at home. This Stacked Donut Cake is proof of that! And, it's perfect for any occasion!

Pin Recipe SaveSaved! Print Recipe

Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 10 mins

Total Time 20 mins

Servings 12 donuts

Calories 370 kcal

For the Donuts;

2 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 large eggs
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the Decorating:

2 cups confectioner's sugar
2-3 tablespoons milk
1-2 drops food colouring, your choice of colour
1/2 cup sprinkles, your choice of colour/theme

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly spray a 6-hole donut pan with cooking spray and set aside.
In a large bowl, use a hand-held mixer to blend together the milk, sour cream and eggs.
Next, beat in the butter, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract.
Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and sugar. Beat into the wet ingredients.
Dump the entire batter into a large Ziploc bag. Cut one of the lower corners off the bag, and in a circular pattern, fill the donut pan about 3/4 way full. Tap the pan firmly on the kitchen counter to get the batter to settle into the pan.
Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool.
When the donuts have fully cooled, whisk together the confectioner's sugar, milk, and food colouring until the icing is smooth and consistent. For a thicker icing, add less milk and for a thinner icing, add 1/2 teaspoon of extra milk at a time until desired thinness has been established.
Dip the donut, top side down, into the icing. Lightly shake the excess icing off the donut, or gently drag the iced part of the donut over the rim of the icing bowl.
Top the donut with as many sprinkles as you want.
Place the donut, iced side up, back onto the wire cooling rack and allow the icing to harden.
Once the donuts are completely cooled, stack in a cake-like shape onto a cake stand and serve!

The recipe as printed will yield 12 donuts. I made the recipe 3 times to get a total of 36 donuts. When I made the icing, I made it four times, each using a different food colouring. I dipped 8 donuts into pink icing, then 8 into blue icing, followed by 8 donuts into green icing, and the final 8 donuts into purple icing. You'll need all 36 donuts to achieve the height and size of the stacked cake you see in the photographs.