Little Chicken Cake

 

 

 

My baby is a year old! I wanted to make her a cute little cake to match her cute little personality. This chicken was probably the simplest cake I've ever made....and my favorite.

 

I was so happy with how it turned out and really quite excited with the tools and mediums that I used to create it! I saw a photo without instructions, but it was enough to start.

 

If you'd like instructions on how to create a darling little chicken cake, keep reading!

 

 

 

The birthday girl had the little chicken all to herself while everyone else had these little nest cupcakes.

 

For the cake, I made 3 small round 6" cakes. This took about a box and a half of cake mix batter. I used the leftover to make some of the cupcakes. I used cherry chip cake mix and homemade buttercream frosting.

 

I leveled off two of the 6" cakes, but left the 3rd with the slight dome on top that happens when it is baked. I stacked the cakes (with buttercream frosting in between the layers), placing the domed cake on top. Then I used a serrated knife and started shaving the sides to create an oval shape.

 

When the cake looked like an oval shape, I covered it with  white buttercream frosting and then patted it down with coconut. Lots and lots of coconut.

 

The eyes were made from a black jelly bean. Not a Jelly Belly, but a plain ol' jelly bean since it is larger. I cut it in half, placed a toothpick in the back of each section and placed it on the cake for the chicken's eyes.

 

Now here is the fun part...

 

 

 

I didn't want to make an entire batch of fondant for the detail pieces so I used Starburst candies! I was at the store, browsing the candy aisle for ideas and saw the Starbursts. They were the colors that I needed and I thought I'd see how they were to work with. The verdict? They were GREAT!

 

I used an orange one for the beak, just cutting it with a sharp knife into a triangle shape.

 

For the red section on top of the cake, I opened two red Starburst candies and warmed them in my hand for a few seconds. Then I pressed the two squares together in the center to form a rectangle.

 

I used a small teddy bear cookie/cheese cutter and pressed into the Starburst to create the shape that I wanted. Perfect. Then I did it with another two pieces of red Starbursts.

 

 

I added toothpicks to the bottom of the 2 red pieces and placed them on top of the chicken head. Once it was on top, I decided to take off one of the teddy arms from each red section so that they'd fit flush together in the center. when placed on top of the cake (not pictured, sorry)

 

I used the same technique for the feet, only using orange Starbursts and placed them (using toothpicks) through the cake on the bottom. I will definitely keep these in mind for the future.

 

 

I toasted some coconut in the oven and added it all around the base of the cake and it was finished!

 

 

The cupcakes were even easier. I used more of the toasted coconut and these fun Jelly Bellies that looked like eggs. They are the "Ice Cream Flavor" variety.

 

 

 

And here is the fun little spread! Ruby really enjoyed her cake. I was worried about her not liking the texture of the coconut, but she didn't let that stop her from sampling everything.

 

 

 

Oh little Ruby, how we love you! We are so happy you joined our family! It's been a great 365 days!