Raspberry Champagne Cream Cake

A few months before our wedding, I made this cake for a party that my family was having. Needless to say we LOVED it and my mom asked if I would like them for our wedding cakes. Ummmm, of course I did!

At the time I was selling The Pampered Chef Products and had stumbled across the recipe researching for one of my home shows. Mom and I have since made the cake a few more times, most recently for my friend Heather’s wedding, and have made some adjustments along the way that make it much less time consuming.

The first step to save time. You DO NOT need to make the cream from scratch! With the vanilla extract it actually turns out off-white. It also tastes EXACTLY like Cool-Whip. Our trick has been to use Cool Whip and add about a quarter of a cup of marshmallow fluff, whipped in.

Secondly, we layer the raspberry sauce into the cake instead of using it as a drizzle. The recipe for the sauce also makes a TON of sauce and you will have plenty to freeze for future cakes!

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Ingredients

Cake

Nonstick cooking spray with flour
1 pkg (18.25 oz or 510 g) white cake mix
3 egg whites
3/4 cup (175 mL) pink champagne
1/2 cup (125 mL) milk
2 tbsp (30 mL) vegetable oil
1 tsp (5 mL) Double-Strength Vanilla
6 drops red food coloring

Sauce

1 1/2 cups, frozen raspberries
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1 cup (250 mL) pink champagne, divided
1 tbsp (15 mL) cornstarch

Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C). Spray two 9″ cake pans with nonstick cooking spray with flour; set aside. Place cake mix in large mixing bowl; whisk to break up lumps. Add remaining cake ingredients; whisk 2-3 minutes or until smooth. Divide batter between pans, spreading evenly. Bake 20-24 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in centers comes out clean. Remove pans from oven. Press cakes gently with a clean kitchen towel; cool 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto cooling rack, then invert again so cakes are top-side up; cool completely.
Meanwhile, combine raspberries, sugar, water, and 3/4 cup of the champagne. Cook on medium-high heat 6-10 minutes or until mixture comes to a boil. Combine cornstarch and remaining champagne in a small bowl; stir until smooth. Add cornstarch mixture slowly to pan, whisking constantly. Cook 2-3 minutes or until mixture is thickened. Strain into a small mixing bowl; discard seeds. Refrigerate sauce 1 hour or until cool.
In a large mixing bowl, beat Cool-Whip and marshmallow fluff on high speed of electric hand mixer until soft peaks form. Place one cake on a cutting board and carefully slice cake in half horizontally to form two layers. Repeat with remaining cake. Place one layer on your cake plate. Spread with 2/3 cup of the frosting, then add a layer of raspberry sauce; top with another cake layer. Repeat with remaining layers. Frost top and sides of cake with remaining frosting. Garnish with raspberries, if desired.

This cake was such a hit that hubby, who usually doesn’t eat a lot of sweets, will say, “can you make a wedding cake this weekend?”