To make the cream cheese frosting
, beat cream cheese and butter on medium high speed until fluffy, about 1 minute.
Add powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed for a minute. Then increase the speed to medium high and continue to beat until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Transfer the frosting into a large frosting bag. You can use a round piping tip, if you have it, but it’s not necessary.
To assemble the cake, slice the cake into 3 even layers. (I use this cake slicing kit, but this’s a cheaper version.)
Place the bottom cake layer on a serving platter. (TIP: Place 3 strips of parchment or wax paper on the bottom to keep the serving platter clean.) Brush on 1/3 of chilled simple syrup evenly on the cake. Pipe the cream cheese frosting all over and smooth it with an offset spatula. Place the raspberry jello in the middle. Pipe frosting around the jello, creating a border. Pipe more cream cheese frosting over the jello and spread evenly with an offset spatula. Place the next cake layer and repeat.
Place the top cake layer upside down so that the top of the cake is nice and flat. Coat the entire cake with frosting and smooth it with an offset spatula.
Mix the remaining cream cheese frosting with freeze-dried raspberry powder and decorate the cake as desired. I used Wilton M1 piping tip to pipe the decoration on top.
Tips & Notes
Note 1: You can crush these freeze-dried raspberries with a rolling pin, or use this powder version.
Make-Ahead Tip: You can make all the components of the cake separately well in advance. 1. Cake can be made and frozen up to a month in advance, or refrigerated for up to a week. Thaw frozen cake in the fridge overnight. 2. Cream cheese frosting can be prepared up to 3 days in advance. Cover with a plastic wrap and refrigerate. Re-whip before using. 3. Simple syrup can also be made a week in advance. Refrigerate until ready to use. 4. Raspberry jello can be made up to 3 days in advance.
You can assemble the cake 1 day in advance and store it in the fridge. Bring it to room temperature before serving.
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