Rainbow Cookie Cake
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Recipe Intro From lisathompson
This colorful rainbow cookie cake tastes exactly like the cookies you’ll find at old-school Italian bakeries. The cookies can be quite labor intensive, but this layer cake is actually a little easier!
Recipe Description
My family only makes Italian rainbow cookies at Christmastime, but we all love them so much that I decided we should eat them more often and I turned those classic flavors into a layer cake. One thing that sets our recipe apart is using both apricot jam and raspberry jam to sandwich between the layers. (Most recipes just use raspberry jam.)
- Rainbow Cookie Cake Ingredients
- Ingredient Notes
- FAQs
- Recipe Card
Rainbow Cookie Cake Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
Almond Flour adds moisture to this cake and is traditional in a lot of Italian cake recipes.
Buttermilk activates the leaveners in this recipe and provides a light, fluffy texture.
Neutral Oil is liquid at room temperature, whereas butter is solid, which translates into the final result of your cake! This cake is oil-based and will have a softer crumb at room temperature.
Food Coloring I use a small amount of conventional red food coloring and green food coloring for this recipe. Natural food coloring does not make a good substitute because it often changes when exposed to the heat of the oven. I opted to use a lighter hand in my version, but you can use as much or as little food coloring as you prefer.
Test Kitchen Notes
Egg Foam This is the result of whipping the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar until pale, fluffy, and aerated. It provides structure to the cake. You will need to beat the mixture on medium speed for about 3 minutes.
Where’s the almond paste? Classic Italian rainbow cookies use almond paste (similar to marzipan) for flavor, but I wanted to remove one tedious step in the cake version of this recipe, so I rely on a hefty dose of almond extract and almond flavor to replicate the flavor of the almond paste.
Cake pans I always use 8-inch anodized cake pans. They are light colored metal and have straight sides which prevents too much browning and helps your cakes rise taller. You will need to divide the batter into 3 layers for this cake, but if you only have two pans, the batter will be fine at room temperature until the first two layers are done baking.
What’s the filling? My family uses both apricot jam and raspberry jam for our Italian rainbow cookies and tops them off with melted semi-sweet or dark chocolate. I cover the cake in my decadent chocolate fudge frosting.
Tools for the Job: You will need two to three 8-inch cake pans, parchment paper, an electric mixer or hand mixer, a piping bag, an off-set spatula, and a cake spinner, if you have one.
FAQs
What flavor is a rainbow cake?
Italian rainbow cookies and cakes feature almond flavored cake, raspberry and apricot jams, and semi-sweet or dark chocolate.
Are rainbow cookies a NY thing?
Rainbow cookies are prominent in New York because of the large number of Italian immigrants who settled there since the late 1800s- early 1900s. However, you can find these whimsical cake-like cookies in most Italian bakeries around the United States.
Is Rainbow Cookie a cake or a cookie?
These treats are called cookies because they are cut into bite size pieces, but they are essentially mini cakes. Typically the batter is made by grinding sugar and almond paste, then combined with butter, egg yolks, almond extract, and dry ingredients, then folded with whipped egg whites.
Recipe Card
For the Cake
ingredients
- 3 cups almond flour
- 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 5 large egg yolks, room temperature
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 1/4 cups buttermilk, room temperature
- 3/4 cups neutral oil, such as grapeseed or avocado oil
- 1 1/2 tablespoons almond extract
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Red food coloring
- Green food coloring
- 1/2 cup apricot jam
- 1/2 cup raspberry jam
For the Chocolate Fudge Frosting
ingredients
- 6 ounces semi-sweet or dark chocolate, roughly chopped
- 3 sticks unsalted butter, softened
- 3 cups organic powdered sugar
- 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons cold heavy cream
ingredients
- Rainbow sprinkles, for decorating (optional)
Make the Cake
Method
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350F. Coat two or three 8-inch round cake pans with non-stick cooking spray and line the bottoms with a round of parchment paper.
Step 2
Whisk all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl until no lumps remain.
Step 3
Combine buttermilk, oil, almond extract, and vanilla extract (you can do this in a large measuring cup with a spout for easy pouring).
Step 4
Add eggs, egg yolks, and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or into a large bowl, if using a hand mixer. Whisk on medium-high speed (6 on a Kitchenaid stand mixer) until thick, pale, and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Step 5
Alternate adding half of the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients in two additions, then give the batter a few good folds with a rubber spatula to incorporate any dry ingredients at the bottom of the bowl.
Step 6
Add 1/3 of the batter to one prepared cake pan. Transfer an equal amount of batter into a bowl (you can reuse the bowl used for your dry ingredients!) and stir in red food coloring. Add green food coloring to the remaining batter, folding gently until well combined.
Step 7
Bake for about 30-35 minutes, rotating pans in the oven half-way through to ensure even baking. Cakes are ready when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs and the tops spring back when gently pressed with a finger. Transfer pans to a wire rack to cool completely, then refrigerate until cold to make assembly easier.
Step 8
Cake layers can be baked up to 3 days in advance, stored in the refrigerator tightly wrapped.
Make the Frosting
Step 1
Bring a few inches of water to a rapid simmer in a small pot over medium heat. Reduce heat to low and place a heatproof bowl overtop. Add chopped chocolate and melt until completely smooth. Let cool for about 10-15 minutes.
Step 2
Add softened butter to the bowl of an electric mixer (or a large mixing bowl if using a hand mixer) fitted with the paddle attachment. Sift organic powdered sugar and cocoa powder together over the butter. Add the vanilla extract and salt.
Step 3
Stir on low speed until all of the dry ingredients have been absorbed, then increase speed to medium (number 6 on a Kitchenaid) and beat for about 3 minutes, until fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the melted and cooled chocolate and beat on low speed until well incorporated. Add cold heavy cream and beat on medium speed until very fluffy. The mixture will be a light cocoa color and have the consistency of thick whipped cream. Taste and add more salt or vanilla extract, if desired. Transfer half of the frosting to a piping bag.
Assemble The Cake
Step 1
Level the cake layers with a sharp serrated knife, if needed. This step is optional but makes for a neater presentation.
Step 2
Add a dollop of chocolate fudge frosting into the center of an 8-inch cake board or serving plate.
Step 3
Place the green cake layer on top of the frosting and press gently to adhere. Pipe a ½” thick border of chocolate fudge frosting around the edge, then fill the center with apricot jam.
Step 4
Place the white cake layer atop the green layer and press gently to adhere. Pipe another ½” thick border of frosting, then fill the center with raspberry jam.
Step 5
Place the pink cake layer atop the white layer and press gently to adhere. Fill any large gaps where the cake layers meet with more frosting, then spread a thin layer of frosting with an off-set spatula to seal all the edges of the cake. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Step 6
Frost the cake with the remaining chocolate fudge frosting, creating swoops as you go with an off-set spatula or a spoon for an easy but pretty design.
Step 7
Top cake with some rainbow sprinkles, if desired.
Step 8
The unsliced cake can be refrigerated uncovered for up to 48 hours. Bring cake to room temperature for 30-45 minutes before serving.