A wonderful homemade spin on traditional classic boxed yellow cake mix, made with saffron and turmeric for extra yellow color! Yellow cake is the perfect birthday cake staple. The saffron adds a nice unexpected pungent, earthy and complex flavor. Yes, it's a bit expensive to buy, but you don't need much--a little goes a long way with saffron, and you only need a few strands for this recipe. This Spanish saffron is a great value, and will last a long time. The turmeric is mostly for color and is undetectable to taste, although it compliments the saffron perfectly in Indian/Turkish/Mediterranean dishes and the two are commonly used together. Let's not forget the best homemade bittersweet chocolate frosting on the planet--this is perfection. Not too runny, not too dry, just the right amount of sugar and chocolate to sandwich between the tender and moist yellow cake!