Oh my, my! This cake was a beauty and was so yummy. The colors were so vibrant and the taste goes so well together. My daughter saw this cake here and decided this is what she wanted for her birthday. It was a hit and totally worth the work. A note: I think it's worth it to make this cake the day before so it can sit and have the flavors meld together. It will taste even better.
2 boxes white cake mix
6 eggs
1 c. water
2/3 c. oil
1/2 c. raspberries
1/2 c. blueberries
1/2 c. blackberries
Zest of 1 orange + 2 T. juice
Zest of 1 lemon + 2 T. juice
Zest of 1 lime + 2 T. juice
Wilton Icing colors in red, blue, purple, orange, yellow and green
Skittles, optional
Frosting:
1 c. butter, softened
1 t. vanilla
4 c. powdered sugar
1 t. milk (or more, if needed)
1 large tub Cool Whip
* Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In large bowl mix cake mixes, eggs, water and oil for 2 minutes. Scoop about 1 1/2 c. of batter into 6 separate small bowls. In first bowl add raspberries (I blended my raspberries, blueberries and blackberries until smooth because my kids don't like things with chunks) and 1/4 t. red food coloring, stirring until smooth and color is completely incorporated. Add fruit and coordinating 1/4 t. food coloring to each bowl (blueberries and blue; blackberries and purple; orange zest, juice and orange color; lemon zest, juice and yellow; lime zest, juice and green) and mixed each thoroughly
* Prepare six (I only had four so I baked them in two batches) 9 inch cake pans by greasing and flouring each generously. Pour each color of batter into it's own prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake for 13-16 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans and cooling completely.
* When cake is cooled completely start the assembly process. If your cakes are not flat you might want to level them so the layers sits nicely on top of one another. Start with one layer on cake stand and spread the top with frosting (remember to keep this part light, not too much frosting) and add the next layer. Repeat until all layers are assembled. If these layers have a lot of crumbs in them, it's okay, no one will see this part. I then put this part in the freezer for at least one hour. This will make the cake so much easier to frost and will keep the crumbs out. When ready, frost the entire cake. (tip: right after I have frosted the entire cake, I take my flat spatula and dip it into a tall cup of hot water. Then with it, making sure it is clean of frosting, I run it over the frosting layer to give it a smooth finish. I continue washing the spatula in the hot water over and over until I like the results)
* Add skittles on top for decoration. Let sit out overnight before serving, will make the flavors meld together and be yummier.
Frosting:
Place butter, making sure it's at room temperature (otherwise you will get chunks of butter in your frosting), into mixer and whip together until nice and smooth. Then add 1 tsp of vanilla. Gradually add powdered sugar. It will be a bit chunky and not very smooth. Gradually add 1 tsp. of milk while mixing frosting. If it is still not the consistency you desire, add another tsp of milk until you get a nice thick frosting that is smooth. Then fold in Cool Whip. This makes a very light and creamy frosting. This is just enough for frosting this BIG cake. Make sure to go easy on the frosting between layers so you have enough to cover the entire cake.
