I made a Skylanders Portal of Power cake for my 8yo’s birthday last year, which was a big hit with the boys! So, when it came time to choose a cake design for the 6yo’s party, I wanted to make another Skylanders themed one.
Going straight to Pinterest (as you do!) I found lots of ideas, but the one that jumped out at me was a floating island. In no small part because I could immediately see how I could make two cakes quickly and easily.
Having been on holiday until three days before the party, I had limited time available. It had to be straight forward!
I baked the two cakes the night before the party. I decided to make a chocolate layer and a plain layer (cheating as usual with cake mixes, I was on a deadline!), and to make one round and one square cake (the square primarily as it would be easier to cut into blocks for the twenty six year olds I was expecting at the party!).
Come the day of the party, I had three hours in which to decorate the cake and this is how I made my Skylanders Floating Island Cake:
1. I gathered everything I needed: Fondant icing (white, brown, green and blue; premixed), fondant adhesive, buttercream icing, raspberry jam, black icing and icing pens (although I didn’t use these in the end), fondant rolling pin, knife, pizza cutter, chopping board, Hershey bars, Kit Kats (normal and snack size), chocolate drops.
2. I layered the two cakes, filling with raspberry jam and buttercream.
3. I dirty iced each cake with buttercream.
4. I rolled out sufficient green fondant icing to cover the top of each cake, with about an inch or so wrapped over the edge, for the ‘grass’. I really would recommend a proper fondant rolling pin for this.
5. I rolled out strips of brown icing, deep enough to meet the green icing. Using the pizza cutter makes cutting strips of icing much easier.
6. I wrapped the edges of the cakes in brown icing for the ‘earth’, using fondant adhesive as needed (although a dash of water would work too). Don’t worry if there are gaps, you will come back and fill these in with more green icing later.
7. I wanted to have a water feature (for a bit of interest!) so I moulded some white fondant to create some height for the start of my waterfall and then rolled out blue icing, cut strips and layered them up to look like water flowing (again using fondant adhesive if needed).
8. Next I went back around the cakes and filled in any gaps between the green and brown icing with ‘hanging grass/leaves’. To do this I rolled out some green icing, cut a jagged strip long enough to cover the gap, then used smaller triangles of icing to create layers, using the fondant adhesive to keep them in place.
9. The cakes I’d used as inspiration also had ‘log’ walls, using a variety of different things (Hershey bars, chocolate filled wafer tubes, Kinder Bueno bars!), but mine had to be nut free and use what was easily available. So, Kit Kats it was! I melted some chocolate drops to use as glue, and set about adding walls. I also added a wall around the top of my ‘waterfall’, which ended up being referred to as the exploded well instead!
10. Lastly, I added a Hershey bar as a ‘bridge’ between the two cakes, with a few cut down Kit Kats as bridge supports. Then it was time to pop on a few of my son’s Skylanders, as a finishing touch. And, I finished with time to spare :)
The cake was a huge hit at the party, with children and adults alike. My son declared it awesome, and that’s the best I could hope for! It was also demolished in about five minutes flat, so fast and completely that I never did have a slice myself…
wow that is an amazing cake i bet he loved it xx
He really did, thank you :)
So creative and look at how happy your son is with the cake! Thats so special and he is the only one who has got a design like that! #pocolo
Thank you Merlinda x
Wow!! That is *such* a fabulous cake! You are very talented :)
Should have said I was popping over from #PoCoLo x
Thank you so much Kate, I do enjoy it. Got my thinking cap on for my oldest who turns nine in a couple of weeks :)
I’m so impressed with this cake! My fondant skills are ropey to say the least. Your son looks SO thrilled to see the cake too – great job! #tastytuesdays
Thank you, I haven’t tried making my own fondant yet, but I do find it easy to work with :)
What a brilliant cake and fantastic instructions. This is a wonderful post xxx thanks for sharing #sharewithme
Thank you very much :)
Wow this cake is amazing! The perfect cake for any Skylanders fan x #tastytuesdays
Thank you! The boys loved it :)
That is just about the coolest cake I have ever seen EVER. I want you to make my birthday cakes too. This is awesome Sara truly mean that. You are so talented what a lucky boy. Thanks for linking up to Share With Me. #sharewithme
This is so clever Sara! I’m pinning it incase I have to do more Skylanders cakes!
Hi Sara,
That cake looks awesome! Based off his expression, it looks like your hard work really paid off!
Dennis