Classic Swedish Princess Cake (Prinsesstårta) Recipe

If you're looking for a cake with the power to really wow, this Swedish princess cake from Tanika Douglas should be right up your alley! This traditional dessert consists of three layers of cake, raspberry jam, custard, and whipped cream, all topped with elegant green marzipan.

"This cake is truly fit for a princess," Douglas says. "Its stunning layers are a feast for the eyes, and the flavor and texture is the most glorious combination. The classic flavors of sweet raspberry, decadent cream, luscious vanilla, crème pâtissière, and light sponge are simply perfect!"

This elaborate cake does, in fact, come from Sweden. Also known as the prinsesstårta, the Swedish princess cake traces its origins to a 1942 cookbook by Jenny Akerstrom, a well known home economics teacher. She taught Prince Carl of Sweden's princess daughters how to make the cake, originally called "green cake" but later changed to princess cake in a subsequent edition of Akerstrom's cookbook.

To put together a Swedish princess cake, you'll need to make several different components. For the cake layers, you'll need superfine sugar, melted butter, eggs, flour, baking powder, vanilla extract, and salt.

To make the crème pâtissière and whipped cream filling, you'll need milk, cream, egg yolks, cornstarch, and 1 vanilla bean, in addition to the ingredients above. And last but certainly not least, you'll need raspberry jam, green marzipan, icing sugar, a marzipan rose and marzipan leaves to assemble this showstopper of a cake.

Preheat your oven to 350 F, then grease an 8-inch round cake pan and line the base of the pan with parchment paper.

Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl. Add the eggs and superfine sugar to a separate large bowl and beat them together until they form a mixture that is light, thickened, and pale. Douglas says, "The mixture should create ribbons as it falls onto itself." Fold the melted butter and vanilla extract into the egg and sugar mixture, then gradually mix in the dry ingredients until they have just combined.

"The sponge cake is incredibly important in this Swedish princess cake," says Douglas. "When folding the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, make sure your movements are very light so you do not overmix the batter. This will ensure the batter remains airy and light, creating fluffy sponge cake layers."

Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan and bake the cake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool in the cake pan. After a few minutes of cooling, remove the cake from the pan and transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.

Be sure not to rush the cooling process, as it makes the next step of slicing the cake into 3 even layers easier. "If the cake is too warm, it will crumble and not retain its structure," Douglas says. "Once the cake is cool, lay it flat and use a sharp knife to score the cake around the sides to mark out 3 even layers. Then use the knife to slice through the cake, using the marks as guidelines."

If that sounds a little daunting, you can also cut the cake using thread. Score the cake with a knife, then place a thread into one of the score marks. Wrap the thread around the cake and pull the thread through, repeating to separate the other layers.

The first step in making the pastry cream is to whisk the egg yolks, sugar, and cornstarch together in a medium bowl until they form a pale and creamy mixture. Next, slice the vanilla bean lengthwise, remove the seeds, and add both the pod and seeds to a saucepan of milk. Cook the mixture over medium heat, removing the pan from the flame just before the milk boils. 

Remove the vanilla bean pod from the pan, then gradually pour the hot milk into the egg mixture to create a creamy custard. "​​To ensure the mixture doesn't scramble, you need to pour the milk slowly in a thin, steady stream, whisking constantly," Douglas says. Once combined, pour the whole mixture back into the saucepan. Whisk it over low heat until the pastry cream thickens and bubbles gently. Pour it back into a bowl to cool slightly before whisking in the softened butter, then leave at room temperature to cool completely. Finally, cover the bowl of pastry cream tightly with plastic wrap and let it rest in the refrigerator.

To make the whipped cream, whisk together the cream, icing sugar, and vanilla extract in a bowl until the mixture forms stiff peaks. Whipping it to this stage is important: "If the cream is too soft, it will not be easy to shape the dome, and it won't have enough structural integrity," Douglas says.

To assemble the cake, start by placing one of the cake layers onto a plate. Spread ½ of the raspberry jam over the cake, followed by ½ of the crème pâtissière. Add the second layer on top of the pastry cream, then spread on the rest of the jam and crème pâtissière. Cover this layer with a mound of whipped cream (about ½ of it), smoothing it down evenly with a spatula — the other key to creating the Swedish princess cake's signature dome shape, Douglas says.

Place the final cake layer on top of the whipped cream, then cover the entire cake with the remaining whipped cream, smoothing out the cream to reinforce the dome shape.

Dust a clean work surface with icing sugar, and roll the green marzipan out into a large, thin circle. Carefully drape the green marzipan over the cake, using your hands to smooth and shape the marzipan topping. Trim any excess marzipan, then decorate the center of the cake with the marzipan rose and leaves.

Once you've placed the marzipan rose atop the cake's green marzipan dome, it's ready to serve! "This cake would work perfectly for all occasions," Douglas says. "I personally would make this for a friend or family member's birthday, as I think it would be the perfect way to celebrate their special day — though I'd happily have a slice of this irresistible cake any day!"

This Swedish princess cake should last 2-3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator, and Douglas advises against freezing it because of the delicate dairy-based layers. However, you can freeze the sliced sponge cake layers (wrapped in plastic wrap) if you'd like to make those ahead of time.