Step 1

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Spray (8 or 9 inch cake pans with nonstick spray or Baker’s Joy. If desired, also line the bottoms of cake pans with parchment paper for easier removal. Set aside.

Step 2

Using mixer, mix together the cake mix, instant pudding, oil, milk, orange zest and eggs for 3 minutes on medium speed.

Step 3

Pour cake batter evenly into prepared cake pans and then lightly tap pans on counter to pop any air bubbles in the batter.

Step 4

Bake for 30-45 minutes depending on size pans you are using or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Step 5

Make frosting & filling while cakes are cooling.

Step 6

Let the cakes cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove the cakes from the cake pans and let cool completely on a baking rack.

Step 7

Use a mixer, beat the pudding mix, whipping cream and orange curd/orange extract together until until thick and fluffy. If mousse is too thick, mix in small amounts of heavy cream to reach desired consistency.

Step 8

Keep filling refrigerated and chilled before adding to cooled cakes.

Step 9

Using mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add confectioner's sugar, orange juice/orange extract, vanilla and cream/milk. If frosting is too thin, add a little more confectioner’s sugar and if it’s too thick, add a little more cream/milk.

Step 10

If you are adding extra frosting on swirls on the top, add some orange food color to tint your frosting and add colored frosting to piping bag with large star tip of choice and pipe swirls on top of cake.

Step 11

Place one of orange cake layers on the pedestal or cake plate. Pipe a dam of the orange vanilla cream frosting about 1/2 inch from the edge of the cake layer using a piping bag or ziplok bag with hole snipped off one of the corners. Fill the center with the orange cream mousse filling and add the next layer of cake on top.

Step 12

Frost the cake with orange vanilla frosting. Add colored swirls of orange colored frosting on top if desired. Even add orange slices or sprinkles on top for a pop or orange color.