Swirled Easter Cake
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Posted: 03/13/24
Updated: 03/14/24
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With bright, fun colors this Swirled Easter Cake is so pretty! The best part is it’s easy to make because it starts with a boxed cake mix and is topped with an easy homemade frosting. Make this easy cake recipe for Easter or spring.
Looking for a super easy dessert for Easter brunch? Then you’re going to love this swirled Easter cake! Dressing up a box of vanilla cake mix with some fun colors and a homemade frosting is as easy as it gets. And trust me, the finished product will have your guests thinking that you made everything from scratch!
I love to make this swirl cake recipe during the spring time, and carrot cake bars are always made more than I care to admit. This colorful and cheerful cake is perfectly light, fluffy, and moist. With a homemade buttercream frosting and happy little Easter sprinkles, you can have a deliciously tasty cake in no time. Skip those bakery treats and make a quality cake in the comfort of your own home!
Why You’ll Love Swirled Easter Cake
- You can prep this cake in just under a half hour. The rest of the time is just to let it bake and cool. So there’s not too much active time in the kitchen.
- This super fun cake is easily adaptable! Change up the colors and sprinkles for any holiday throughout the year.
- Clean-up is minimal since this recipe uses boxed cake mix instead of making a cake from scratch. Just clean up the bowls, mixer, and measuring cups that you use.
Ingredients for this Swirled Easter Cake Recipe
- Sour cream – This is the magical secret ingredient to making a boxed cake mix incredibly moist and flavorful.
- Cake mix – I use white cake mix for this tie dye cake recipe, but you could also use yellow cake mix. Even a strawberry or lemon cake mix could be really fun!
- Egg whites – Egg whites help to keep this cake light and fluffy with a beautiful texture.
- Vegetable oil – Give your cake plenty of moisture and body by using vegetable oil in the batter.
- Water – Use a little water to help bring the cake batter together.
- Vanilla extract – This is also key in jazzing up boxed cake mix. Add a splash of vanilla extract to liven up the flavor. You’ll need some for the frosting too.
- Sprinkles – Grab some pastel Easter sprinkles to match the inside of the cake. You can find these on the baking aisle or seasonal aisle of your local grocery store.
- Food coloring – Use food coloring to make the swirly pastel Easter colors on the inside of your cake.
- Softened butter – To make homemade buttercream frosting, you’ll need a ½ cup of softened butter. I recommend using unsalted butter so that you can control the salt level.
- Powdered sugar – Use powdered sugar to sweeten and thicken the buttercream frosting.
- Salt – A little pinch of salt balances out the sweetness in the frosting.
- Heavy cream or milk – Use a little bit of heavy cream or whole milk to make the frosting thin enough to spread on top of your swirled Easter cake.
Helpful Tools
How to Make Swirled Easter Cake
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and then grease a 9×13 baking dish and set it to the side for later.
Then use a large mixing bowl and electric mix to beat together the cake mix, water, egg whites, sour cream, and vanilla extract. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds until combined.
Scrape the sides of the bowl and then beat for 2 more minutes on medium speed, scraping the edges as you go.
Pour 2 cups of the cake batter into the previously prepared baking pan. Then divide the remaining batter into 3 medium bowls. Add a few drops of blue, pink, and yellow food coloring to the batter — one per bowl. Stir well after each drop and add coloring until you reach the desired shade.
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Scoop spoonfuls of the pastel colored batter into random places on top of the white batter.
Then run a butter knife back and forth through the batter to swirl the colors.
Bake the cake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick can be inserted and come out clean. Cool completely before frosting it.
While the cake is cooling, make the frosting. Place softened butter into a mixing bowl and mix with a hand mixer for 1-2 minutes until fluffy.
Add the powdered sugar and salt to the butter and beat on low-medium speed for about 1 minutes until combined.
Add vanilla extract and heavy cream to the frosting mix and beat for one minute. You can mix in a bit more heavy cream if necessary to reach the desired consistency. If you do add more, mix for another minute until light and fluffy.
Frost the completely cooled cake and decorate with Easter sprinkles. Slice and serve!
How to Store Leftover Swirled Easter Cake
This tie dye cake can be covered in plastic wrap, aluminum foil, or a lid and kept at room temperature for three to four days. Some people like to store their cake in the fridge, but I find that it changes the texture But you can do that if you’d like!
Can I use a can of store-bought frosting?
Store-bought frosting won’t have as good of a flavor as homemade, but you can use it if you want! Canned vanilla frosting or even cream cheese frosting would work. You can also make a different homemade frosting if you want to!
Pro Tips for the Best Swirled Easter Cake Recipe
- When adding food coloring to the frosting, start with just one or two drops. You can always add more if needed, but if you add too much it’s hard to fix.
- Feel free to decorate your cake with words in gel icing, Easter candy, or other fun toppings!
- Make sure to swirl the colored cake batter really gently. If you over-swirl it could mix the colors together too much and make some weird shades.
Serve this cheerful cake at all of your Easter gatherings! Everyone will love a cake with a happy surprise in the middle.
More Cake Recipes You’ll Love!
- Want some more cake recipes with a surprise in the middle? This Christmas Poke Cake is perfect for the holiday season.
- This easy Strawberry Cake is another favorite during the spring time!
- Chocolate Sheet Cake is an all-around perfect dessert that you can use any time of year.
- Lemon Bundt Cake is a classic dessert that is just the right combination of tart and sweet.
Did you make this? If you snap a photo, please be sure tag me on Instagram at @julieseatsandtreats or #julieseatsandtreats so I can see your yummy treat!
Swirled Easter Cake
Delicious Swirled Easter Cake is easy to make and so pretty!
pieces
Ingredients
CAKE INGREDIENTS
- 15.25 ounce box white cake mix
- ¼ cup water
- 4 egg whites
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup sour cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Blue pink and yellow food coloring
- pastel sprinkles
VANILLA FROSTING
- ½ cup butter softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2-4 Tablespoons heavy cream or milk
Instructions
CAKE DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 9×13 baking dish and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to beat cake mix, water, egg whites, oil, sour cream, and clear vanilla extract. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds or until combined. Scrape the edges of the bowl. Then beat on medium speed for 2 minutes more, scraping the edges occasionally.
- Pour 2 cups of the batter into the prepared pan.
- Divide the remaining batter between 3 medium bowls (about ½ cup each). Add a few drops of blue, pink, and yellow food coloring (one color per bowl) to the batter, stirring well after each drop, until the batter reaches the desired color.
- Place spoonfuls of each colored batter in random places on top of the white batter. Run a butter knife back and forth through the batter to swirl the added color.
- Bake cake for 30-35 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.
VANILLA FROSTING
- Place softened butter in mixing bowl. Then with an electric mixer, whip the butter for 1-2 minutes until it is lighter in color and a bit fluffy.
- Add the powdered sugar and salt. Beat on low to medium speed for about 1 minute until well combined, occasionally scraping the sides of the bowl.
- Add the vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons of cream and beat for one minute. Slowly add more cream, if necessary, to get the desired consistency. Whip for 1 more minute or until light and fluffy.
- Frost and decorate the cake with Easter sprinkles.
Tips
Store covered in plastic wrap, aluminum foil, or a lid and kept at room temperature for three to four days.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1piece, Calories: 326kcal (16%), Carbohydrates: 50g (17%), Protein: 3g (6%), Fat: 13g (20%), Saturated Fat: 8g (50%), Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 0.5g, Cholesterol: 32mg (11%), Sodium: 382mg (17%), Potassium: 67mg (2%), Fiber: 0.4g (2%), Sugar: 36g (40%), Vitamin A: 356IU (7%), Vitamin C: 0.2mg, Calcium: 102mg (10%), Iron: 1mg (6%)
Catherine says
I’m going to do the poke cake for Easter
Courtney says
Great idea!