Double Decker Birthday Cake

I wanted to make Ella's birthday cake frosted in color of pink and blue. My thought is to decorate cake with snowflake theme for a little sweet birthday girl.

I have tried several cake recipes since I started making frosted cake but I haven't really found a recipe that I can say I want to use "the Joanne's cake recipe". So I hoping one of these days, I will land on the one recipe that I can say... I found my favorite cake recipe that I really really like.

This recipe seems to work very well for me. I doubled the recipe and mixing them separately I found that the results of both came out identical.... hmmm... this recipe could be a winner here! ;) I may continue to pursue other new recipe and return to this recipe to claim that this is the winner.

I found and used this yellow cake recipe.

Ingredients:
3 large eggs separated and at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 1/8 cups all purpose flour, plus 1/8 cup corn starch (total comes to 2 1/4 cups flour)
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup + 1 tbs vegetable oil
1 cup 2% milk (or any kind)
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Strawberry Preserves (or any preserves of your choice or just used the same prepared frosting)
Choice frosting, I used pink and blue buttercream frosting. buttercream frosting found ...(tba).

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350
Prepare 2 baking pans, I used oval pans, one medium and one small
Grease sides and line bottom of each pan with parchment ovals.

Beat egg whites until frothy then add 1/2 cup of the sugar (reserving the rest) a tablespoon at a time until egg whiles are stiff and glossy. Set aside.
Mix flour, remaining 1 cup sugar, baking powder and salt into large mixing bowl fitted with padded attachment.
Add the oil and 1/2 cup of the milk and the vanilla. Beat for 1 minute on medium speed, mixture will be quite thick.
Add the egg yolks and remaining milk and beat on medium speed for 1 minute.
Fold in egg whites and distribute into the baking pans.
Bake for 30-35 minutes. Cool for 10-20 minutes in the pan then turn out onto cake rack to cool completely.
Make the same recipe again for the 2nd layer.

Prepare buttercream frosting.
Set medium cake on cake plate.
Spread 1/2 cup of strawberry preserve (or frosting if using frosting instead of preserved) on top of cake.
Stack small oval cake on top of meduim cake.
Lightly crumb coat both cakes, starting on top and work your way to the sides and finishing to the top.

Set crumb coated cake in the fridge for at least 30 mins or longer.
Finish frosting the cake with finishing frosted decorations.

Here is the finished cake.... decorated and frosted in pink and blue.. dotted and sprinkled with star shapes ...like snowflakes