• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour three 8 inch pans, adding a circle of parchment or wax paper to the bottom of each pan.
• Go ahead and separate your eggs, saving only the 6 egg whites for this recipe. Set them in a bowl to the side.
• In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt for 30 seconds and set aside.
• In another bowl, add the buttermilk, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract and peppermint extract. Set aside.
• In the bowl of your mixer, add the butter and cream cheese and mix at medium speed until smooth.
• Gradually add the sugar and mix at medium speed for 2-3 minutes.
• Mixing on low speed, add the 6 egg whites one at a time (it's fine to estimate), mixing to incorporate after each addition.
• With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and the milk mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture (We did 3 additions of the dry mixture, 2 additions of wet).
• Mix the batter just until well combined- be careful not to over-mix.
• Reserve 1 ½ cups of batter and place in a small bowl. Tint this batter red.

For the Marbling Step

• I spread about one cup of white batter into each of the three prepared cake pans. I then divided most of the red batter between the three pans, adding by the spoonful on top of the plain batter.
• Add the remaining white batter to each of the pans, and then any remaining red batter. Try to keep the batter amounts the same in each pan.
• Tap each of the pans on the counter to level out the batter, then run a knife through the batter in each pan a few times to create a swirled effect.
• Bake at 325 degrees F for 28-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Let cool for 5-10 minutes in the pans on a wire rack before turning out.
• This recipe makes 7 ½ cups of batter. Works for cupcakes also (although there will be little to no dome).

For the Peppermint Whipped Cream Filling

• Chill the mixing bowl and beaters/ whisk attachment in the freezer for 10 minutes.
• Pour the whipping cream, powdered sugar and vanilla into the chilled mixing bowl, begin beating on low speed gradually increasing to medium high speed.  
• The cream begins to thicken (approx. 1 ½ minutes) and soft peaks form....peaks that slightly bend over.  Watch closely as this happens quickly.  Do not over beat.
• Use immediately as the whipped cream will gradually begin to deflate over time.

For the Peppermint Buttercream Frosting

• Cream the (slightly softened) butter until smooth. Blend in the vanilla extract and peppermint extract.
• Add half of the powdered sugar and most of the milk. Beat at medium speed until the powdered sugar is incorporated.
• Add remaining powdered sugar and milk and mix at medium speed another 3 to 4 minutes scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. I slow down the mixer to very slow for 1 to 2 minutes. This will help eliminate air pockets in the buttercream. The texture will become very smooth.
• This recipe can be doubled or halved.
• Yields approximately 4 ½ cups of frosting.
• If your buttercream is too thin, add more sugar. If the consistency is too thick, add a bit more milk.

Decorating the Cake

• Place the first cake layer on the cake plate or pedestal. Pipe a dam of buttercream frosting around the edge of the layer (about ¼ inch from the edge). I do this with a disposable piping bag with the tip snipped away. Add the whipped cream filling within the dam.
• Top with the second cake layer and repeat. Top with the third cake layer and frost the cake as usual. I like to apply a thin "crumb coat" of frosting first, chill for 15 minutes in the freezer, and then apply the second layer of frosting. I added texture with a small offset spatula.
• I pressed crushed candy canes as a top and bottom border for the cake.
• RefrigerationBecause of the whipped cream in the filling, this cake should be refrigerated. We like to remove the cakes from the refrigerator 2 hours before serving so that the cake and frosting can have time to soften.