Description
This festive Christmas Tree Cake features beautifully marbled spice cake layers in shades of green, stacked and shaped into a tapered Christmas tree form. The layers are generously filled and frosted with a rich, creamy buttercream tinted in green, red, yellow, and white for a vibrant, holiday-inspired decoration. Perfect for holiday gatherings, this cake combines warming spices, moist textures, and colorful frosting techniques to create an impressive centerpiece dessert.
Ingredients
Scale
Spice Cake Layers
- 3 cups all-purpose flour (375g)
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar (300g)
- 1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar (300g)
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder (10g)
- 1 tsp fine salt (6g)
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon (6g)
- 1 tsp ground ginger (3g)
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg (2g)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (113g)
- 4 large eggs, room temperature (224g)
- 1 cup full-fat sour cream, room temperature (255g)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce (90g)
- 1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil (105g)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste (4g)
- Green gel food coloring (amount as needed)
Buttercream Frosting
- 3 cups unsalted butter, room temperature (678g)
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste (12g)
- 1 tsp fine salt (3g)
- 10 cups powdered sugar (1250g)
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, room temperature (120g)
- Green, yellow, and red gel food coloring (amounts as needed)
Instructions
- Prepare Cake Pans and Preheat Oven: Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line one 8-inch, one 7-inch, two 6-inch, and two 4-inch cake pans with parchment paper rounds and grease with non-stick baking spray to prevent sticking.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg until fully combined to evenly distribute spices and leavening agents.
- Add Butter: Slowly add the room temperature unsalted butter to the dry ingredients while mixing on low speed. Continue mixing until no large butter chunks remain, creating a crumbly batter base.
- Incorporate Eggs: Add eggs two at a time on low speed, mixing just until incorporated to avoid overmixing which can lead to tough cake layers.
- Add Wet Ingredients: Mix in sour cream, unsweetened applesauce, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract on low speed until just combined.
- Blend Batter Thoroughly: Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula and beat on medium speed for about one minute to ensure a smooth, homogenous batter.
- Divide and Color Batter: Divide the batter into two portions. Tint one half with light green gel food coloring and the other with a darker green shade to create a striking marbled effect in the cake layers.
- Fill Pans with Batter: Spoon alternating dollops of light and dark green batter evenly into each prepared pan, filling to about 1-inch height. Use a butter knife or offset spatula to swirl the colors together, achieving a marbled pattern.
- Bake the Cake Layers: Bake in the preheated oven for 28-33 minutes. Test doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center; it should come out with a few moist crumbs.
- Cool the Cake Layers: Let the cakes cool in their pans for 10 minutes. Run an offset spatula around each pan’s edge to loosen, then invert onto wire racks to cool completely. Once cooled, use a serrated knife to level the tops.
- Trim and Shape Layers: Stack the leveled layers and trim sides to create a tapered Christmas tree shape. Cake layers can be made ahead and frozen; thaw 20 minutes before assembling.
- Make Buttercream Frosting: Beat unsalted butter on medium speed for 30 seconds until smooth. Add vanilla extract and salt, mixing well.
- Add Powdered Sugar and Cream: Gradually add powdered sugar and heavy cream on low speed, mixing until smooth. Adjust consistency by adding cream or sugar as needed. Save frosting coloring until after stacking.
- Stack and Crumb Coat Cake: On a greaseproof cake board, fix largest cake layer with frosting. Stack layers from largest to smallest, spreading even layers of buttercream between each. Insert a wooden dowel or thick straw through center for stability.
- Chill Cake: Apply a thin crumb coat over the entire cake and smooth it out. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes or freezer for 10 minutes until firm to touch.
- Color Remaining Frosting: Divide remaining buttercream to color red, yellow, light green, and dark green using gel food colors. Fit each color into appropriate piping bags with specified tips.
- Pipe Decorations: Using the green frostings with open star tips, pipe rosettes around the cake. Fill in gaps with red, yellow, and white dollops for festive embellishments.
Notes
- You can use either a stand mixer or handheld mixer; the paddle attachment works best for batter and frosting but a whisk or hand mixer is fine.
- Make cake layers ahead of time and freeze to simplify the process and improve workflow.
- Buttercream can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to two weeks or frozen for up to a month; stir well after thawing.
- A frosted cake lasts up to one week refrigerated or one month frozen; the buttercream helps keep it moist.
- Cover any leftover cake sections with leftover frosting to maintain moisture during storage.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (approx. 1/24th of cake)
- Calories: 480 kcal
- Sugar: 38 g
- Sodium: 210 mg
- Fat: 28 g
- Saturated Fat: 16 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10 g
- Trans Fat: 0.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 55 g
- Fiber: 1.5 g
- Protein: 4 g
- Cholesterol: 85 mg
