How to Make a Ferris Wheel Birthday Cake

When a circus-loving child has a birthday, one of the best ways to help celebrate is to make a Ferris wheel birthday cake. This cake is simple to bake and only requires some decorating tricks. Your child will love his birthday cake, and you will love how easy it was to put together.

Things You'll Need

• 1 18.5-oz. box of cake mix (any flavor)
• 2 8-inch or 9-inch round cake pans
• Oil, egg and water as required by the cake mix directions
• Cooking spray and flour
• Large serving platter, at least 15 by 15 inches
• 2 cans of icing (any flavor)
• Spatula
• Knife
• Licorice or candy straws
• Cupcake liners
• Toothpicks
• Gummy bears or gummy people
• 2 round chocolate cookies

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to the temperature required on the cake mix box.

2. Prepare the two round cake pans by spraying both of them on the interior sides and bottom with cooking spray and dusting them with flour.

3. Mix the cake mix with the egg, oil and water as directed on the package. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans and bake per the package instructions until a toothpick inserted comes out cleanly.

4. Remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool completely.

5. Turn one round cake out of the pan onto the serving platter. Cut a triangle from out of the top of this cake in the center. It should be about 1 to 2 inches deep and as wide as the other cake is thick. This will be the base of the Ferris wheel. Place the other cake on its side in this slot to be the wheel. Place the whole cake gently on its side into this slot.

6. Spread icing over both of the cakes with the spatula. Attach the licorice or candy straws to the sides of the Ferris wheel in a star pattern. These will be the spokes of the wheel. The icing will help the licorice adhere to the cake.

7. Attach the cupcake liners to the edges of the cake by pushing toothpicks through one side of the liner and into the cake.

8. Place one or two gummy bears into the cupcake liners to be people riding the wheel. This is an optional step.

9. Spread additional icing onto one side of each of two chocolate cookies. Place one in the center of each side of the wheel where the licorice spokes meet.

Tips & Warnings

• You can also make this cake lie flat on a serving platter and only decorate one side of the wheel. To do this, place one whole cake on the top half of a 20-by-15 inch serving platter, and cut a wedge shape out of the other cake. Save the rest of the other cake for another use, or discard it. Place the triangle on the serving platter below the whole cake to be the base of the 2-dimensional Ferris wheel. Continue as above in Steps 6 through 9.

References

• Circus party ideas