Bento Cake
This charming Bento cake is a soft, two-layer vanilla mini cake frosted with creamy buttercream and designed to be fun, flavorful, and completely customizable. Whether it’s a birthday, a sweet surprise for someone special, or just a rainy day treat, this cake brings smiles in every slice.
Equipment
- Two 4-inch round cake pans
- Mixing bowls
- Hand or stand mixer
- Offset spatula or butter knife
- Cooling rack
- Parchment paper
- Sifter (for powdered sugar)
Ingredients
Cake:
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter softened
- 1 large egg room temperature
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ⅛ tsp fine salt
Buttercream:
- 6 Tbsp unsalted butter softened
- 1 ¼ cups powdered sugar sifted
- 1 –2 Tbsp whole milk
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
Optional Add-Ins:
- Gel food coloring for a pink bento cake, blue bento cake, or themed decorations
- Strawberry or fruit jam for layering
- Sprinkles edible glitter, or piped messages
- Mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C); grease and line two 4-inch pans.
- Cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
- Beat in egg and vanilla.
- Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl.
- Add half the dry mix to the wet, then milk, then remaining dry mix.
- Divide into pans and smooth the tops.
- Bake 18–20 minutes; test with toothpick.
- Cool 5 minutes in pans, then transfer to rack to cool completely.
- Beat buttercream ingredients until smooth and creamy.
- Frost, stack, decorate, and enjoy!
Notes
You’ll need two 4-inch cake pans for the perfect size. Feel free to add food coloring or filling to match the occasion - bento cake designs are meant to be playful!