How to Make a Cat Shaped Birthday Cake
Translating the cat's graceful physique into birthday cake form takes a little planning, but it can be done with even the most basic baking supplies. A couple of round cake pans, a little carving and some creative frosting work are all you need. Learn how to make a cat-shaped birthday cake and you'll be able to create the perfect centerpiece for the party of a veterinarian, pet groomer or anyone who loves kitties. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Three boxes of cake mix or equal amount of batter
- 8-by-2-inch round cake pans
- Sharp knife
- Spatula
- 1 cup buttercream glaze
- 3 cups buttercream frosting
- Pastry tube
- Pastry tip #234
- Black licorice laces
- Black gel frosting
- Candies in various colors
Instructions
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Bake three round cakes. Cakes of 8-by-2 inches will be enough for a small family birthday party, but a larger party will require cakes of 10 inches in diameter or larger. When you choose a flavor, keep in mind the color of frosting you plan to use. If the cake is much darker or lighter than the frosting, it may show through and alter the color of the frosting.
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Cut out ear shapes. Cut one round cake in half and set one half aside. From the remaining half, cut out a triangle that's approximately 2 1/2 inches on all sides. The ideal size will be relative to the size of the round cake you'll be using for the cat's head. Set this triangle on top of the cake you cut it from and use it as a pattern to cut out a second triangle.
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Cut out the tail shape from the remaining half cake. Start cutting from the flat side and carve out a crescent shape that's flat on one end and pointed on the other. This should be approximately 2 inches across at the widest part.
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Fit the parts together to form a cat shape. Place the two whole cakes on a portable surface such as a large platter or sheet of plywood covered with aluminum foil. Use a spatula to spread a thin layer of buttercream glaze on one side of each of the two whole round cakes. Push the two glazed sides together to form a head and body. Spread glaze on the top of the head and attach the ears. Spread glaze on the bottom of the lower round cake and attach the tail shape so that the crescent curls in toward the cake.
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Frost the cake. First frost the entire cake with thin buttercream glaze. Let this dry for at least one hour. Prepare 3 cups of buttercream frosting and add food coloring as desired. For a multicolored cat such as a tabby or calico, divide the frosting into bowls and color each batch separately. Attach a #234 tip or "grass tip" to your pastry tube and fill the tube with frosting. Cover the cat's body by squeezing out short lines of frosting to look like fur.
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Add features to your cat-shaped birthday cake. Use candy for the cat's eyes and nose. Draw a mouth with black gel frosting and make whiskers with black licorice laces. To add a tongue, flatten a pink sugar-coated gel candy to get the wet and sandpaper look of a cat's tongue. Use light-colored frosting to paint the insides of the cat's ears. Draw legs and paws on the body section of the cat shaped cake with black gel frosting. Add a collar using gel frosting or licorice laces and place a candy or small cookie in the center for a tag.
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Tips & Warnings
For more realistic proportions, use a slighter smaller pan for the head than for the body or trim the edges off one cake to make it smaller. Using an oval-shaped pan for the body is another solution. You can also buy a cat shaped birthday cake mold that provides the details of the cat's face and legs. To make cutting out the shapes easier, freeze the cakes and they won't crumble when you cut them. To avoid damaging the look of the cake, use birthday candle holders with bases that sit above the frosting. Another option is to bake two cupcakes, use a #2 round pastry tip to decorate them as balls of yarn and place the birthday candles in these.
For a black cat birthday cake, buy professional-quality black frosting. Homemade black frosting requires a lot of food coloring, which can leave an unpleasant taste.
