Ghost Cake

By ltrodrigu

It's quite a bit of work to make this ghost, but worth every bit of time! Friends and family will love the boo-tiful ghost cake at your next Halloween party.

Ingredients

• 1 box yellow cake mix
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 large marshmallows
• 1 (16-ounce) can, plus 1 cup vanilla frosting
• 1 large plain breadstick, or pretzel stick
• 18 white vanilla chews or taffy pieces
• 3 chocolate chews (such as Tootsie Rolls)
• 1 1/2 cups coarse sugar

Details

Servings 10
Preparation time 30mins
Cooking time 110mins
Adapted from parade.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 4-cup and a 2-cup glass measuring cups.

Prepare cake mix according to directions, but use buttermilk instead of water. Pour 2 cups batter into prepared 2-cup measuring cup. Pour remaining batter into 4-cup measuring cup.

Bake until toothpicks inserted in center of cakes come out clean, about 45 minutes for smaller and 50 minutes for larger. Transfer to a rack and cool 10 minutes. Turn cakes out of cups and cool completely.

Meanwhile, cut 1 marshmallow in half diagonally (you’ll use only one half). Cut bread stick in half crosswise.

Microwave 4 unwrapped vanilla chews until slightly softened, no more than 3 seconds. Press and knead chews together and roll out between 2 sheets parchment to a 3-by-2-inch triangle. Repeat process with 4 more chews. Soften remaining 10 chews the same way and roll out between parchment to a 5-inch equilateral triangle. Soften chocolate chews in microwave and roll out between parchment to ¹⁄8 inch thickness. Cut out 2 rounds for eyes and an amoeba shape for mouth.

Trim bottoms of cakes with a serrated knife to make level. Put larger cake, trimmed side down, on a small cardboard circle. Spread some vanilla frosting on top. Put smaller cake on top of frosting, trimmed side down. Form ghost.

Put sugar in a very large bowl. Spread most of remaining frosting all over cake, including chew triangles. Press sugar over cake to coat completely. Put cake on a serving platter. Attach chocolate chew eyes and mouth with dabs of frosting.

To Slice & Arrange Cake:
Using frosting, stick 1 whole marshmallow, on its side, to top of cake. Stick halved marshmallow, cut edge up, on top.

Insert bread sticks, cut side first, in either side of cake. Freeze cake until firm, at least 1 hour.

Spread some frosting along base of cake. Press one edge of large vanilla chew triangle into base of cake, allowing a tip to trail behind. Drape 2 smaller triangles over bread sticks.