Rose Wilde's Sonora Vegetable Confetti Cake

Makes two 8-inch cake layers and one 6-inch cake layer

I first made this cake for a vegetable series while working as the pastry chef at Rustic Canyon under Jeremy Fox. I wanted to call to mind the confetti cakes of childhood, using the rainbow of vegetables available at the Santa Monica Farmers Market in Los Angeles. Many herbs are sweet and vegetables are actually all fruit, both begging for use in dessert! If you can’t find rainbow carrots, sub in some beets to keep the rainbow effect. This cake is based on a vintage silver cake batter, and its white bake really lets the colors of the vegetable pop. The smoked honey buttercream is a personal favorite that I pair with loads of flavors throughout the year. It is lovely here alongside whipped cheesecake and greengage plum jam whose flavor is like eating an emerald—bright, juicy, tannic, sweet. If you can’t find these beauties, use any plum for the jam. The key to a perfect dome is to chill it often and to add the final layer of buttercream slowly. Gently heating your offset spatula in hot water and drying it off before you run it across the buttercream will create a very smooth finish. The cake layers can be made a day ahead. Keep the assembled cake in the fridge for up to 3 days. Pull from the fridge an hour before serving.