Not sure how my grandchildren seem to be growing faster than my own children did! Just one more reason to savor every moment! This is my first attempt at a unicorn cake. It’s all the rage with 6 year old girls – so this is a true HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my first born grand daughter Natalie!

I thought the INSIDE of the cake was just as important as the OUTSIDE – so I started with 3 – 8″ layers of vanilla cake, colored with “unicorn colors” (pink, teal, and purple) swirled together in the pans. I used about 1 1/2 boxes of my favorite King Arthur Flour Golden Vanilla Cake mix. I filled the layers of the cakes with a mascarpone whipped topping, and fresh cut strawberries.

Cool the layers completely, then level them with a serrated knife.

Next I whipped up a batch of my mascarpone whipped topping, and sliced some fresh strawberries.

Mascarpone whipped topping:Whip 1 1/2 c heavy whipping cream til stiff peaks form

Then add:  3/4 c granulated sugar, 1 tsp vanilla, and a pinch of salt.  Whip until well-blended and stiff.

Add 8 oz mascarpone cheese.  Add this by spoonfuls, while the mixer is on med.  Mix til well blended and smooth.  Don’t over-whip.

Place 1 cake layer on a cardboard cake round, and place on a revolving cake pedestle. Spread a thin layer of whipped topping over the 1st layer, leaving about a 1″ border UN-frosted. This will prevent the topping from oozing through the frosting. Top with sliced strawberries.

Top with another thin layer of whipped topping. Add another cake layer, and repeat.

Press layers together gently, and refrigerate while you make 1 batches of my butter cream cheese frosting. (see prior post).

Spread a “crumb coat” around the cake, filling in between each layer. You can pipe the frosting in between the layers if you prefer, but I just push some extra frosting in there with my offset spatula, for the same effect. Just want to keep the filling from coming out.

Refrigerate again for about 20 min.

Spread a final layer of frosting, and smooth sides and top. Refrigerate while you color the remaining frosting your desired colors, using paste food coloring.

For this cake design – I found my unicorn decorations at my local Hobby Lobby. So cute!

Place the decorations on the cake. Then decorate with a piping bag, and 1M open star tip, to create a “mane” of frosting. Sprinkles and edible glitter finish it off! What an adorable way to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY!