Category: Recipes

A Black Buttercream Recipe That Won’t Stain Your Teeth

October 15, 2021

by Whitney

Spooky season is here and with it, lots of black buttercream cakes. I’m no stranger to the trend and before now I’ve stuck with a method of making my Favorite Chocolate Buttercream recipe and adding a few Tbsp of AmeriColor Super Black. Since this food color gel is tasteless, the black buttercream still tastes like chocolate buttercream but there is one little problem: it stains teeth temporarily (among other things). So I thought I’d do a little research and experimenting to see if I could create a black buttercream recipe that not only tastes great, it uses as little food coloring as possible to get a nice deep color.

German Chocolate Cake Recipe

October 6, 2021

by Whitney

A Pumpkin Pie Layer Cake Recipe That’s Easy & Eye-Catching

October 4, 2021

by Whitney

comments 2

pumpkin pie layer cake recipe by sugar and sparrow

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Every Thanksgiving, I look forward to a few things: 1) cooking all day with my mother in law with the music blasting our favorite dance-worthy hits, and 2) getting to make a delicious, eye-catching dessert that the whole family can enjoy. The Thanksgiving meal is my absolute favorite to eat too, especially when surrounded by my loved ones, so this holiday really checks all the boxes for me. And since I’m always on dessert duty (I take my role very seriously!) I’m always trying out new recipes to compliment the family favorites. This year, I thought I’d go a little above and beyond and translate the classic pumpkin pie into cake-form, which is how this Momofuku-inspired Pumpkin Pie Cake was born:

Stable Vanilla Buttercream Recipe for Hot Weather

September 17, 2021

by Whitney

comments 17

heat stable buttercream recipe by sugar and sparrow

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This Summer, something happened to me that has never happened before (to my knowledge at least): one of my cakes melted in the outdoor heat. I made a birthday cake for a dear friend’s daughter – my vegan vanilla cake with vegan vanilla buttercream. The party was outdoors and the temperature was around 85 degrees. I refrigerated the cake up until I needed to drive it to the party, thinking that would be enough to preserve it for a few hours. But about an hour after the cake was displayed, the thing started melting (along with my heart). Thankfully, these were the kind of friends who were able to laugh about it with me as it all fell apart. Here’s a before and after:

Homemade Marshmallow Meringue Frosting Recipe

September 13, 2021

by Whitney

Orange Creamsicle Cake Recipe

July 16, 2021

by Whitney

comments 9

orange creamsicle cake by sugar and sparrow

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Here’s a little behind the scenes secret: when I was trying to create this watercolor cake tutorial, I actually started with an all-orange color palette and it did not turn out the way I wanted. The flowers didn’t go with it, so I thought I’d start over with a different color scheme. It was a happy accident though, because the cake reminded me of an Orange Creamsicle and I thought, hey, that would make an amazing cake flavor. And I considered it perfect timing because Summer is in full swing and what’s more Summer than an Orange Creamsicle anyway?

Vegan Chocolate Cake Recipe

March 22, 2021

by Whitney

comments 18

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I know I’m not alone when I say my love for chocolate cake runs DEEP. I’ve just always had a soft spot in my heart for a good chocolate cake with chocolate frosting (bonus if it has sprinkles!). So when I went about making this Vegan Chocolate Cake recipe, I made sure it had all the essentials: extra moist, rich chocolate flavor, just the right balance of sweet and decadent, and has that melt-in-your-mouth crumb we all want in a chocolate cake. It’s a true rival to my (full-dairy) One-Bowl Chocolate Cake recipe and I could not be more satisfied with how the vegan version turned out!

Vegan Chocolate Buttercream Recipe

March 22, 2021

by Whitney

comments 4

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I am a chocolate lover to the core, so when I decided to create a vegan version of my favorite chocolate buttercream recipe, I was extra careful to make sure that not an ounce of flavor was sacrificed in the process. Rest assured, this Vegan Chocolate Buttercream is every bit as delicious as the real deal – it’s the kind of buttercream that I have to hide from myself so I don’t end up eating spoonful after spoonful! Whether you enjoy it straight out of the bowl or pair it with a cake (this Vegan Chocolate Cake recipe is it’s soul mate), it’s a frosting that’s sure to satisfy.

Vegan Vanilla Cake Recipe

March 12, 2021

by Whitney

comments 31

vegan vanilla cake with vegan vanilla buttercream by sugar and sparrow

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Ever since I published my favorite fluffy Vanilla Cake Recipe, I’ve gotten lots of questions about how to make it eggless or full-on vegan. The truth is, I’d been wanting to make a vegan vanilla cake for years, but everything I read about vegan baking scared me into thinking it was going to be a huge mountain of recipe testing I was going to have to climb (spoiler alert: it was). Still, I kept it on my list, mainly because I wanted an option to offer those asking for the vegan version of my vanilla cake recipe. But it wasn’t until I had my son and had to cut out dairy shortly after that it moved from the bottom of the list to the top. I rolled up my sleeves, put on my apron, and began my absolute OBSESSION with creating the perfect, fluffy, easy, flavorful, can’t-even-tell-it’s-vegan cake recipe. I can say with assurance after what seems like a hundred recipe tests that this is the one.

Vegan Vanilla Buttercream Recipe

March 12, 2021

by Whitney

comments 2

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I am a firm believer that having a go-to vanilla buttercream recipe is essential for cake making, and this Vegan Vanilla Buttercream is the one I reach for when I’m in need of a trusty vegan frosting. Not only does it frost like a total dream, it also holds its shape beautifully when piped and can be easily tinted any color under the sun. Oh, did I mention it tastes amazing too? Cause that’s pretty important!