This pink Swedish princess cake (“Prinsesstårta”) is a lovely twist to the traditional Swedish cake. It features layers of sponge cake, vanilla pastry cream, raspberry filling, whipped cream and a pink marzipan top. Prinsesstårta makes a wonderful dessert for special occasions.
Email me this recipe
We’ll send it straight to your inbox, along with weekly food inspiration!
I tried it several times in my life, but to be honest with you I never thought I would ever bake a “Prinsesstårta”. But last year, as we were planning our move (back) to Sweden, I started to read Swedish books to my daughter so she could get familiar with the language. One of her favorite ones was a book about a Swedish princess eating “Prinsesstårta” for breakfast. My daughter soon asked me to bake this cake for her 5th birthday. I thought it was the perfect introduction to the move to Sweden, so of course I said yes!
The traditional Swedish Princess Cake (Prinsesstårta) is usually coated with a light green marzipan layer, which I always found a little weird visually to be honest. And then I remembered a pink version of the Prinsesstårta that I’ve seen years ago. Maybe it was when the princess Victoria got married, or was it when her daughter, the princess was born, I’m not sure. But anyhow, this is the one I decided to bake for little L. birthday party!
What’s a Swedish Princess Cake (Prinsesstårta)?
The Swedish Princess Cake (“Prinsesstårta” in Swedish) is a traditional Swedish layer cake, consisting of layers of airy sponge cake, jam, and vanilla pastry cream, all topped with a dome of whipped cream and covered in marzipan, giving it a smooth, rounded top.
As stated before, the marzipan overlay is usually green and often decorated with a pink marzipan rose. My version however is pink, and topped with a tiny crown, referring to the three royal crowns. Also, the original recipe did not contain any jam, but the modern version usually features some raspberry jam – which I used here too.
The behind the scenes of the recipe
After doing a little research and asking my long-time friend and pastry chef at Fosch in Stockholm (who also baked my wedding cake), I decided to give it a go.
I searched for recipes in Swedish to make sure it would be as authentic as possible, and ended up finding Camilla Hamid recipe on her website. Guys, she’s such a sunshine to watch baking the cake in the little video (in Swedish) and such a baking queen! I followed her recipe almost to a T, except that I used pink marzipan instead of the green one. My version didn’t turn out as beautiful as her, but it was not too bad for a first, and the flavors were definitely there. It turned out to be an impressive birthday cake, that I topped with a tiny crown instead of the traditional marzipan rose. Because eh, a princess party for my little 5th-year-old little girl!
Also, the cake is surprisingly not that difficult to bake. It takes a few steps of course, but with a little organization it’s totally doable. Would I bake it again? Definitely!
The different layers of the Prinsesstårta
The Swedish princess cake consists of a multi-layer cake, divided as such:
- The cake bottom, which essentially consists in one single cake sliced lengthwise in 3 different parts in between each you will have the following fillings:
- Raspberry filling (raspberry jam).
- Homemade vanilla custard.
- Whipped cream. Note that the whipped cream is not sweetened, as the cake is already sweetened enough with the various fillings and the marzipan.
- The pink marzipan layer, covering the entire cake.
Pro tips for success
- Make sure the marzipan is at room temperature before rolling. A little friendly tip consists in lightly kneading the marzipan by hand to soften it before using.
- Roll out the marzipan onto a silicone baking mat (rather than on your countertop or parchment paper). Not only it prevents the marzipan from sticking to the bottom but it also helps to invert it nicely onto the cake without breaking during the process.
- Use an offset spatula to create the whipped cream dome, trying to make it as smooth and regular as possible.
- Place a glass with some baking powder in the refrigerator next to the cake covered with marzipan. It’s a little hack that goes a long way. The baking powder keeps indeed the environment inside the refrigerator dry so the marzipan cake retains its matte look even the next day, rather than sweating out.
- Whip the whipping cream until stiff peaks form and let the prinsesstårta chill (without the marzipan layer) as long as possible in the refrigerator so that the whipped cream dome has time to set. I recommend overnight if possible.
Can I bake the Swedish princess cake (Prinsesstårta) in advance?
Yes, and you should…, but! The Swedish princess cake is a baking project that requires several separate steps that can be prepared ahead of time. Here’s how I recommend you proceed:
- You can for instance prepare the vanilla custard up to two-three day in advance and store in the refrigerator, making contact with plastic wrap to prevent the surface from drying out.
- You can also bake the cake base ahead of time (a day or two in advance), wrap it in plastic and store at room temperature.
- When ready for assembling, divide the cake base in three layers, whip the whipping cream and assemble the cake with one layer of raspberries, one layer of vanilla custard and one dome of whipped cream. At this step, you should place in the refrigerator. Allow to cool for a minimum of 4 hours (I recommend overnight to ensure the whipped cream is set).
- On the D-day, carefully cover the prinsesstårta with the layer of marzipan. Dust with confectioners’ sugar, decorate as desired, and serve!
Get into Swedish baking with…
- Kanelbullar (Swedish Cinnamon Rolls)
- Midsummer Strawberry Cake
- Swedish Cardamom Buns
- Blueberry Vanilla Buns
- Swedish Chocolate Cake “Kladdkaka”
Pink Swedish Princess Cake (Prinsesstårta)
- Prep Time: 60 mins
- Cook Time: 35 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
- Yield: 10–12 servings 1x
- Category: Cakes
This pink Swedish princess cake (Prinsesstårta) is a lovely twist to the traditional Swedish cake. It features layers of sponge cake, vanilla pastry cream, raspberry filling, whipped cream and a pink marzipan top. Prinsesstårta makes a wonderful dessert for special occasions.
Email me this recipe
We’ll send it straight to your inbox, along with weekly food inspiration!
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 4 eggs
- 180g sugar
- 1 cup (120g) all-purpose flour, sifted
- ½ cup (80g) potato flour, sifted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the vanilla custard:
- 3 egg yolks
- ⅔ cup (150 ml) whipping cream
- ⅔ cup (150 ml) whole milk
- 1 ½ Tablespoons sugar
- 1 vanilla bean, cut lengthwise and seeded (or ½ teaspoon vanilla paste)
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch (plus more for rolling out the marzipan)
For the filling and topping:
- 7 ounces (200g) raspberry jam
- 2 cups (500 ml) whipping cream
- 2.6 ounces (75g) pink (or green) marzipan, at room temperature*
- Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
* For this recipe I recommend using the metric system (grams, milliliters), that is far more accurate and consistent than imperial (cups/ounces).
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and line the bottom and the sides of a 9-inch (23 cm) springform pan with baking paper.
- For the cake. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla with an electric hand mixer until pale and fluffy. Sift in the flour, potato flour, and gently fold together with a spatula until smooth.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake in the lower part of the oven for about 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool slightly, then invert onto a wire rack and allow to cool completely.
- Vanilla custard. Heat the milk, cream and vanilla seeds (together with the vanilla pod) in a saucepan to a gentle simmer. Remove from heat and take out the vanilla pod from the saucepan. In a medium bowl, whisk together yolks with sugar, then add the cornstarch and whisk until combined. Slowly pour in the hot milk over the yolk mixture, whisking constantly. Pour back the vanilla custard to the saucepan and heat on low heat, constantly stirring with a wooden spoon, until the mixture thickens. Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, making contact with the custard, and let cool completely before using.
- Assembling. Divide the cake base into three parts, lengthwise, and carefully place the bottom layer onto a cake stand. Fill the first layer with some raspberry jam and the second layer with the vanilla custard. Cover with the third layer of cake.
- Using an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer, whip 2 cups whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Place a generous layer of whipped cream on top of the cake and cover the cake with a thinner layer all around. Place the cake in the refrigerator to set for 4 hours or ideally overnight. Place a small glass with a little bit of baking powder next to the cake.**
- For the marzipan and decoration. Roll out the pink marzipan to about 0.1-inch (3 to 4 mm) thick onto a Silpat silicone baking mat, gently dusting cornstarch as you roll out to prevent from sticking. The marzipan should be larger than what is needed to exactly cover the cake. Invert the marzipan over the cold cake. Smooth out and cut off excess marzipan with a sharp paring knife. Dust the prinsesstårta with confectioners’ sugar. Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Notes
* If your marzipan is a little hard, you can knead it by hand to warm it up slightly and soften it before using. It’s also great to use a Silpat silicone baking mat to roll out the marzipan if possible. This way, you can lift the whole mat and turn it carefully over the cake without breaking. Then, just remove the mat and the marzipan will remain nicely on top of the cake.
** When cooling the cake, place a glass filled with a little bit of baking powder (one or two Tablespoons is enough) next to the cake in the fridge. The baking powder keeps the environment inside the fridge dry so the marzipan cake retains its matte look even the next day.
Did you make this recipe?
Lastly, if you make this Pink Swedish Princess Cake (Prinsesstårta), be sure to leave a comment and give this recipe a rating, letting me know how you liked it. And of course, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Thank you and enjoy!
