This stunning rainbow layer cake makes a very impressive birthday or celebration cake. Wow your friends and family with this show stopper!

Makes: 8 slices

Preparation time: 30 mins
Cooking time: 25 mins

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 230g butter, softened
• 230g caster sugar
• 4 medium free-range eggs, beaten
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 230g self-raising flour
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp milk
• 4g pink food colouring
• 4g green food colouring
• 4g yellow food colouring
• 5g orange food colouring

For the filling, frosting and decoration:

• 175g butter, softened
• 600g icing sugar, sieved
• 1 tsp rose water or vanilla extract
• 3 tbsp milk
• 50g Rainbow Drops

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C Fan/Gas 4. Grease and line the base of four 18cm/7in cake tins with greaseproof paper.
2. Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl, using an electric mixer, until pale and fluffy. Sieve the flour and baking powder together and add to the creamed mixture along with the beaten eggs, milk and vanilla extract. Whisk all together for a further 1½ minutes.
3. Divide the mixture equally into 4 mixing bowls. Add the various colours into each bowl and mix gently to get an even colour.
4. Spoon the cake mixtures into the four cake tins and gently spread out with a spatula. Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden-brown on top and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
5. Remove from the oven and set aside for five minutes, then remove from the tin and peel off the paper. Place onto a wire rack to cool completely.
6. For the frosting: whisk the butter in a large mixing bowl until soft and creamy. Gradually add half the icing sugar, then the milk, rose water/vanilla extract and the remaining icing sugar and whisk until you have a soft, smooth mixture (add more milk if necessary).
7. Divide the Rainbow Drops into 20g and 30g. Divide the 20g portion into 3.
8. Divide the frosting into 1/3rd and 2/3rd portions and divide the 1/3rd portion into 3. Spread over 3 of the sponges and sprinkle over the divided portions of Rainbow Drops.
9. Sandwich the cakes together. Chill in the fridge for 15 minutes. Remove from the fridge and gently cover the whole of the cake with the remaining frosting. Sprinkle the top with the remaining rainbow drops, allowing a few to trickle around the base.