Patriotic Cake

Directions

1. 1
   Preheat oven to 350 F. Make sure all your ingredients are room temperature.
2. 2
   In a medium sized bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder and soda and mix. Set aside.
3. 3
   In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, blend butter, sugar and vanilla at medium speed until pale and fluffy.
4. 4
   Add eggs and egg yolks one at a time, scraping the bowl after each addition.
5. 5
   Reduce speed to low and add a cup of flour mixture followed by 1/3 of the buttermilk. Repeat this 3 times, until you have incorporated all the flour and buttermilk.
6. 6
   Separate batter equally into 3 bowls. Add red food coloring into the first bowl and mix (may take a few drops depending on what brand you use). Repeat with blue food coloring in the second bowl. Keep the third bowl white.
7. 7
   Grease two 8 inch cake pans. In the first cake pan, add 1/2 blue batter and spread it around the pan. In the middle of the blue batter add 1/2 of the white batter and spread out a bit, gently. Finally add 1/2 the red batter into the center of the white batter. Repeat with second pan using the rest of the 3 batters.
8. 8
   Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes or until a knife comes out clean. Remove pans from oven and set on a rack. Cool for 10 minutes then remove cakes from pan and allow to completely cool on a cooling rack.
9. 9
   For the buttercream frosting:
10. 10
    Beat butter and extract in the clean bowl of your stand mixer for 2 minutes. Add powdered sugar, salt and milk or cream. Beat with whisk attachment for 3 minutes on high. Frost cooled cake using your preferred method and decorate as desired.