Pastel colored cakes like this one tiered fantasy are always in fashion. The combination of soft hues works for so many occasions. Today I’m showing you all the tips and tricks to make this beautiful, pastel colored, one tier cake with chocolate drips and topped with matching macarons. With a few easy steps, you can make this cake, perfect for birthday parties, bridal showers and baby showers.

I’m starting with four layers of my classic vanilla cake. There’s a link to the recipe below. Dab a bit of buttercream frosting to the cake board to act as glue and begin to stack that cake. Today I’m using my magic swiss meringue buttercream. It’s so easy to make and tastes a little like ice cream. It’s amazing and you can find the recipe for it here.

Continue stacking cake layers with frosting in between. Because this cake will be fondant free, I’m using a little extra frosting in between the cake layers. The frosting will extend beyond the cake and help aid when we make our crumb coat. I push down slightly on each layer of cake to squeeze any air out between the cake and frosting.

Let’s do that crumb coat. This base layer of frosting on the side of the cake gets its name from ‘catching’ the crumbs. Once chilled, it also functions by locking in the air from the cake. It doesn’t have to be very thick because there will be more coats on top. Make the top level by using a scraper to bring the frosting towards you. Then its off the fridge to firm up.

Before we decorate with our pastel colors, let’s add a second layer of frosting to this cake. This layer will serve by giving you a smooth surface around the cake and cover any cake that is showing. Add a good amount of frosting to the sides and then using a scraper, an offset spatula or whatever you have, smooth down the frosting into the cake. This gives a smooth cake surface for when you decorate or cover with fondant. You can then fill in any areas that need a little more frosting. Just keep repeating until you’re happy and then back to the fridge to chill.

While it’s chilling, let’s color our frosting for decorating. This cake is for my girlfriend’s daughter and she requested four pastel colors for her birthday, so I’m dividing my buttercream into four bowls and adding a few drops of gel food coloring. I’m partial to Americolor brand (no they don’t pay me to say that) because there are so many shades to choose from. The birthday girl asked for shades of lavender, light blue, mint green and soft pink. I love what she chose because they are girly, fun and perfect for both spring and summer.

Transfer each color to it’s own piping bag and tie off. Now we’re ready to decorate the cake. I’m starting with pink. Cut the tip of the piping bag or use one with a wide tip, and pipe stripes around the base of the cake. For this cake the colors do not have to be perfect as they will be bleeding into one another. Add green, then purple and finally blue towards the top.

Now using your scraper, push the icing into itself. The goal here is not to remove the frosting, but push it down onto the cake. See how the frosting is becoming smooth, that’s the look we want. Stop when you need to, to remove the excess frosting from your scraper. Like the second coat of frosting we did, add more to areas that need it with the corresponding color. I decided to add more blue to the top as well. You don’t need to do this since it will be covered by ganache.

For the top I decided to make macarons in the matching cake colors and use the rest of the frosting in between. The light blue, white, purple and brighter pink are going to make such a great statement. I even made her some heart shaped ones that She’s going to love! If macarons have troubled you in the past, check out my post on how easy it is to master making French Macarons.

I’m adding white chocolate ganache drips. For this I like to use a squeeze bottle for better control. Simply make your ganache and pour it into the bottle, then apply to your cake. I love the way the drips look. The colder your cake, the more the drips will stop, but I want them going all the way down today. Then cover the top of your cake in white chocolate ganache for an even look. Add your macarons and you’re done.

Bryce loved having this pastel colored cake for her birthday. I hope you enjoy making it for your own celebration.