Bake the Cake

• 1). Place one of your oven racks in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  
  
• 2). Fit the bottom of each pan with a piece of parchment paper. Rub a thin layer of shortening around the inside of both pans, or spray with cooking spray. Press the parchment paper against the shortening so it will stick, then grease the top side of the parchment with shortening, too.
  
  
• 3). Sift the cake flour, baking powder and salt together into a large bowl, and set the bowl aside.
  
  
• 4). Whisk together the eggs, milk and vanilla extract in a bowl, and set the bowl aside.
  
  
• 5). Beat the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer on medium speed until the mixture is light, smooth and fluffy. You shouldn't be able to see any individual sugar granules.
  
  
• 6).
• 7). Pour half of the cake batter into each of the cake pans, making sure that each pan has the same amount of batter. Smooth out the tops.
  
  
• 8). Bake the cakes for 20 minutes. Insert a cake tester into each cake to see if they're fully baked. The testers should come out clean. If the cakes aren't fully baked, bake them longer, checking them until they're done.
  
  
• 9). Cool the cakes in their pans on cooling racks for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove them from their pans and leave them on the racks to cool completely. If the cakes are domed, make sure the domes are facing up, and slice them off with a serrated bread knife before assembling the cake.
  
  
• 10
  
  Make the frosting while the cake cools.
  
  

Make the Frosting

• 1). Sift the powdered sugar.
  
  
• 2). Beat the powdered sugar and butter together until completely mixed and fluffy. This will take about 3 minutes with a hand mixer or stand mixer.
  
  
• 3). Beat in vanilla extract and cream until completely mixed. If frosting is too stiff, add more cream until frosting is easy to spread.
  
  

Assemble the Cake

• 1). Place a small dab of frosting on your cake board to hold the cake in place.
  
  
• 2). Place one of the cooled cakes in the middle of the cake board. If you sliced domes off the cake, face the cut sides downward.
  
  
• 3). Smooth ½ inch of frosting on top of the bottom layer, almost all the way to the edge. When you place the top layer on, the frosting in the middle layer will be squeezed out all the way to the edge. You will also be able to push frosting in between the layers while you frost the outside. If you're adding jelly to the filling, either mix the jelly with the frosting or spread the jelly onto the cake first. If you're adding fruit, add the fruit after spreading the frosting on.
  
  
• 4). Center the top cake layer on top of the bottom layer. Make sure the edges are even.
  
  
• 5). Scrape the rest of the frosting onto the top of the cake, and smooth it toward the edges of the cake. The frosting should be only ¼ to ½ inch thick on top of the cake, with the rest hanging over the sides. Keep constant contact and steady pressure with your spatula to avoid tearing the cake while frosting.
  
  
• 6). Sweep the overhanging frosting around the sides of the cake. Cover the side of the cake and all the way to the cake board until the entire cake is covered.
  
  
• 7). Apply decorations, such as sprinkles, chocolate shavings, chopped nuts, themed toppers, or fake or edible flowers. Finish off the decorating with candles.