With all the informative cooking articles online nowadays it’s a wonder that anyone still pays a bakery to make their birthday cakes and other celebration cakes. After reading a couple of articles an average person can create magnificent cakes that, in the past, only a bakery could provide. Some of the easy but luscious cakes you can make yourself include ice cream cakes, unusually-shaped cakes and even holiday versions. Another easy cake that a boy or a girl would love for a birthday party is a castle cake. You’ll be surprised at just how easy it is to make one and just how many options you have for making it a one-of-a-kind creation!
Follow the instructions on the package to bake two 9″ square cakes of any flavor to begin. Of course, you can also make the cake from scratch. Allow to cool. Choose the plate or platter you’re going to use and set one cake on it. Frost the top of the first cake and stack the second one on top. Frost both cakes with the main color of icing you want to use for the castle. Use white frosting for a boy or a girl and use embellishments which look more masculine or feminine – depending on which you want to create. Or, make a pink cake for a girl and a blue castle for a boy.
Ice cream cones which are pointed on one end are perfect for making the top of the castle. Turn the cones upside-down and set one in each corner. Stack three cones, turn them upside-down, then set then in the very center of the cake. Frost these with the same frosting you used for the cake. Before frosting the cones, break a tip off the top, center cone, then frost away. This will allow you a place to put a flag – homemade or purchased. Create designs in the frosted cones with toothpicks or other implements to make them stand out from the rest of the castle. Or, use candies, cereals or other goodies to decorate them.
When you’re finished with the design you want on the castle’s peaks top each one off with a wrapped Hershey’s Kiss. The banner that sticks out of the top of the Kiss makes for a cute look on the castle’s peaks. Top the center one off in the same manner (so you won’t need to break the tip off for flag placement) or go ahead and create or buy a flag for it. A flag can be made with a toothpick and a piece of cloth or even a picture cut from a magazine.
The top of the cake is complete unless you want to do other things to it. For example, go around the perimeter of the cake with Nekko candies, mini Thin Mints, square or circular cereals, sugar wafers or similar foods. Stand these on their sides to form something like a railing around the entire top perimeter. Other choices include small pretzels, Hershey’s Kisses, after-dinner mints and even gummy-type candies.
Decide which side of the cake will be the front and make a door by using candies, cereals or other goodies. Create windows in the same manner. You have many choices: make square and rectangular openings from circular cereals or candies. Or, make archway types with tiny dot candies. You can even make windows and doors from selected cookies. Each combination you use will give you an entirely different look. Where the front door is, place a graham cracker at an angle, to form a walk-up plank. A cookie or cracker can also be used. Make hedges by positioning frosted mini cupcakes in an area around the bottom of the cake. The cupcakes can be arranged so that they flank the castle, here and there, or they can extend away from the cake to create the illusion of a walkway.
You can further enhance the castle scene by placing tinted, shredded coconut around the castle. Make it blue to represent water or green for grass. Place horses and buggies out front or set up castle figures from a play set. Use small, plastic bushes and trees from a craft store to create landscape. There are many different things you can use if you look through a child’s toy box.
Castle cakes are fun and unique and they’re suitable for a boy or a girl. There are lots of different things you can use to make each castle completely different than the one before. Use foods you already have in your cabinet or purchase a few candies and such to decorate the cake. Spend little money and make a nice cake or spend a little more and make a much nicer version. That special boy or girl in your life will remember this birthday forever!
Reference:
- Purchase baking needs here: www.amazon.com
