# What You’ll Need:
→ Cake Layers
01 - 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
03 - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
04 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
05 - 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
06 - 2 cups granulated sugar
07 - 4 large eggs, at room temperature
08 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
09 - 1 1/4 cups whole milk, at room temperature
10 - Blue gel food coloring, navy, royal, and light blue shades
→ Vanilla Buttercream
11 - 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
12 - 5 cups powdered sugar, sifted
13 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
14 - 3–4 tablespoons milk or cream
15 - Pinch of salt
16 - Dark blue gel food coloring
→ Gold Decoration
17 - Edible gold leaf or edible gold dust
18 - 1–2 tablespoons clear alcohol (vodka or lemon extract, if using gold dust)
# How to Prepare:
01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line three 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
02 - Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium mixing bowl.
03 - Beat butter and granulated sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, approximately 3 to 4 minutes.
04 - Add eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition. Blend in pure vanilla extract.
05 - Alternately add the dry flour mixture and whole milk to the butter mixture in three parts, starting and finishing with flour. Mix gently until fully combined.
06 - Split batter evenly into three bowls. Tint each bowl with varying blue gel colors to create an ombre gradient from light to dark.
07 - Transfer each colored batter to prepared pans and smooth tops with an offset spatula.
08 - Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes, then transfer to wire racks for complete cooling.
09 - Beat butter until creamy. Gradually incorporate sifted powdered sugar. Add vanilla extract, salt, and milk or cream, mixing until a smooth, spreadable consistency is achieved.
10 - Reserve 1 cup of buttercream for crumb coating. Tint the remaining batch with dark blue gel food coloring for final cake decoration.
11 - Level cake layers if necessary. Place the darkest blue layer on a serving plate, spread with buttercream, then stack the next lighter shade, repeating the process up to the palest layer.
12 - Cover the assembled cake with a thin layer of reserved plain buttercream as a crumb coat. Chill for 20 minutes to set.
13 - Smooth cake exterior with dark blue buttercream. For ombre effect, blend lighter blue tones toward the top as desired.
14 - Apply edible gold leaf or brush gold dust mixed with clear alcohol in decorative streaks or around cake edges.
15 - Refrigerate the finished cake until ready to serve.
