Sometimes I use cake mix, this was one of those occasions. Since I knew I wanted a 3-layer cake, I knew I would have to bake a total of four 9" cakes. I also knew that light, fluffy, airy cake would not hold up to being stacked. So I used my tried & true doctored up cake mix cake. For each two rounds I used:
1 Duncan Hines French Vanilla Cake mix
1 4-serving Jell-O Instant French Vanilla pudding mix
4 large eggs
1/2 C vegetable oil
1 1/4 C whole milk
Follow the directions on the package to mix. Make sure you mix it on the correct speed for the amount of time called for. Once it's mixed, measure out two cups of batter in a measuring cup intended for liquid measure. Tint the 2 cups of batter whatever color you want but make it bold & bright!
I know a lot of people are confused about how to layer a zebra cake. It really is as simple as dumping scoops of batter on top of each other. I used ice cream scoops with the thumb release to portion out the batter. One thing I did note is that you need to make sure your prepared pans are on a level surface or the batter will not spread evenly. Also, I used pan release in a can to grease & flour my pans and it worked like a charm!
The first batch of cakes I made I did not measure out two cups of batter to tint, I eyeballed it and as a result had too much pink and not enough white batter. You can see it in the middle layer of the finished cake. If you want perfect zebra stripes, you need to make sure your scoops hold the same amount of batter. You also need to be mindful to dump each scoop of batter in the middle of the the last scoop of batter you dumped in.
I know a lot of people are confused about how to layer a zebra cake. It really is as simple as dumping scoops of batter on top of each other. I used ice cream scoops with the thumb release to portion out the batter. One thing I did note is that you need to make sure your prepared pans are on a level surface or the batter will not spread evenly. Also, I used pan release in a can to grease & flour my pans and it worked like a charm!
The first batch of cakes I made I did not measure out two cups of batter to tint, I eyeballed it and as a result had too much pink and not enough white batter. You can see it in the middle layer of the finished cake. If you want perfect zebra stripes, you need to make sure your scoops hold the same amount of batter. You also need to be mindful to dump each scoop of batter in the middle of the the last scoop of batter you dumped in.
After the cakes come out of the oven, cool them for 15 minutes before removing them from the pan. Then allow them to cool on racks until they are completely cool. Wrap them well in plastic wrap and stash them in the fridge to get cold before leveling, filling and frosting.
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