Indulge in the magical taste of this homemade chocolate unicorn cake. The rich chocolate cake layers are filled with a creamy vanilla buttercream and adorned with colorful unicorn decorations, making it a perfect choice for birthdays or any special occasion. This recipe takes a bit of time to prepare, but the end result is well worth the effort. Serve this whimsical cake to delight both kids and adults alike!
Ingredients
- For the chocolate cake layers:
- - 2 cups all-purpose flour
- - 2 cups granulated sugar
- - 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- - 2 teaspoons baking powder
- - 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- - 1 teaspoon salt
- - 1 cup milk
- - 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- - 2 large eggs
- - 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- - 1 cup boiling water
- For the vanilla buttercream:
- - 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- - 4 cups powdered sugar
- - 1/4 cup milk
- - 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- - Food coloring (assorted colors)
- For the unicorn decorations:
- - Edible gold stars
- - Rainbow sprinkles
- - White chocolate curls
- - Assorted colored fondant (pink, purple, blue, etc.)
- - Edible glitter
- - Edible silver pearls
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour three 9-inch round cake pans.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix well.
- Add the milk, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla extract to the dry ingredients. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.
- Stir in the boiling water. The batter will be thin, but that's okay.
- Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean.
- Remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Then, transfer the cakes to a wire rack to cool completely.
- While the cakes are cooling, prepare the vanilla buttercream. In a mixing bowl, cream the softened butter until light and fluffy.
- Gradually add the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth and creamy.
- Divide the buttercream into separate bowls and add a few drops of food coloring to each bowl to create different colors.
- Once the cakes have cooled, level the tops if necessary. Place one cake layer on a serving plate and spread a generous amount of buttercream on top.
- Repeat with the remaining cake layers, stacking them on top of each other with buttercream in between.
- Frost the sides and top of the cake with the remaining buttercream.
- Decorate the cake with edible gold stars, rainbow sprinkles, white chocolate curls, fondant shapes, edible glitter, and silver pearls to create a whimsical unicorn design.
- Serve and enjoy this magical chocolate unicorn cake!
