Graduation Sheet Cake Buttercream Roses (Printer View)

Soft vanilla cake topped with smooth buttercream and piped roses for a festive centerpiece.

# What You'll Need:

→ Sheet Cake

01 - 3 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 2½ teaspoons baking powder
03 - ½ teaspoon baking soda
04 - ½ teaspoon salt
05 - 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
06 - 2 cups granulated sugar
07 - 4 large eggs, room temperature
08 - 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
09 - 1¼ cups whole milk, room temperature

→ Buttercream

10 - 1½ cups unsalted butter, room temperature
11 - 6 cups powdered sugar, sifted
12 - ¼ cup whole milk
13 - 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
14 - Gel food coloring in assorted colors for roses and leaves

# Method Steps:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line a 12x18-inch sheet cake pan with parchment paper.
02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
03 - In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, approximately 3 to 4 minutes.
04 - Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in vanilla extract.
05 - Alternately add flour mixture and milk to the creamed mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Mix until just combined, avoiding overmixing.
06 - Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
07 - Cool cake completely in the pan on a wire rack before proceeding with frosting.
08 - Beat butter until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, then milk and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes.
09 - Divide buttercream into separate bowls. Tint portions with gel food coloring for roses in red, pink, and yellow, and leaves in green. Reserve white buttercream for base layer.
10 - Spread a thin layer of white buttercream over the cooled cake to create a smooth base for decoration.
11 - Fit piping bags with petal tips for roses and leaf tips for leaves. Pipe roses and leaves across the cake, focusing on corners and borders.
12 - Using a small round piping tip, add a congratulations message or personalized graduation greeting to the cake.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The vanilla cake is ridiculously moist and tender, staying fresh for days if you need the breathing room before party day.
  • Buttercream roses look like you hired a pastry chef, but the piping technique is forgiving enough that messy first attempts still photograph beautifully.
  • At 24 servings, you're feeding a crowd without spending the afternoon in the kitchen.
02 -
  • Don't skip letting the cake cool completely—warm cake tears when you frost it and melts the buttercream, turning your roses into a buttercream puddle.
  • If your buttercream seems grainy after mixing, you either have lumps in your powdered sugar (sift it!) or your butter wasn't soft enough; beat it a minute longer or add a tiny splash more milk.
03 -
  • If you're piping in a warm kitchen and the buttercream softens too quickly, pop your piping bag in the freezer for 5 minutes between roses.
  • Gel food coloring won't water down your buttercream the way liquid coloring will, and the colors are more vibrant—it's worth seeking out at baking supply stores or online.
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