This one is a pure brag post. I’m sharing it shamelessly because it’s a cake I am SO, so, *so* proud of — the one I made for my son’s third birthday.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar is our favourite bedtime story, and this was going to be the first proper birthday cake I’d ever made for X-Ray. Even though his little birthday picnic had to be tiny thanks to Covid restrictions, I wanted the cake to be completely over the top. So I planned a three-tier number with chocolate, vanilla, and red velvet sponges. And for the décor? I skipped the sensible fruit and went straight to our favourite food page — chocolate cake, ice cream cones, pickles, cheese, salami, lollipops, cherry pies, sausage, cupcakes, watermelon… the works.
Chocolate cake, cupcakes, lollipops, ice cream cones — easy. For the cheese, pickles, salami, and sausage, I used fondant and cake-pop mix.
And then I made the cherry pies from scratch. Look at that tiny lattice on each one!
For the watermelon, I turned the 4" top tier into a mini watermelon slice using red velvet sponge studded with chocolate chips, then frosted it green and red. I absolutely hate making 4" cakes — but every time I do, I go “awwwww, so cute!” The cuteness levels on this one were ridiculous.
Once all the sponges and decorations were done, it was assembly time… and that’s when I hit the snag. Who on earth wants to saw through a three-tier cake in a park using a flimsy wooden knife?! Not me. Nope. So I redesigned the whole thing from scratch.
Remember this woodland creature cake? I used it as the new direction, but with all the bits I’d already made, I was terrified it would turn into a hot mess.
There was *so* much to add — so many fiddly decorations. I was really starting to regret everything. This is why bespoke cakes are a pain. So. Much. Thinking. And then so much *re-thinking*.
I frosted the two larger tiers as little logs using salted caramel and chocolate buttercream, and kept the top tier as the watermelon. Plonked together, they looked a bit odd — but once I piped the grass and leaves, it all started to make sense.
Then on went the décor. The fondant caterpillar, the pickles, the cupcakes, the salami… everything slotted in nicely. The cherry pies, though? They looked strange whole — so after all that painstaking lattice work, I had to cut them up. They did look extra adorable cut, so I forgave them.
The only thing I couldn’t squeeze in was the slice of chocolate cake — but one of the logs was chocolate anyway, so if X-Ray planned on complaining, I was fully ready to tell him to speak to the manager. Hah.
When he finally saw it, his whole face lit up. He squealed, he ran around it, he named every little piece — honestly, it melted me into a puddle. Totally worth every second of the faff. Happy 3rd birthday, X-Ray!
Love, Reshmi xoxo
If all this has inspired you, explore our adorable children’s cake collection — perfect for tiny (and not-so-tiny) celebrations.
Samantha Ward
November 21, 2021
This is my favorite book to read to my children and I’m obsessed with this cake. You’ve got a very lucky boy.