Watermelon Impostor Cake Recipes

WATERMELON CAKE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, gelatin, water, eggs and oil; beat on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium for 2 minutes. , Pour into two greased and floured 9-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely., Set aside 2 tablespoons frosting for decorating. Place 1-1/4 cups frosting in a bowl; tint red. Tint remaining frosting green. , Place one cake layer on a serving plate; spread with 1/2 cup red frosting to within 1/4 in. of edges. Top with second cake. Frost top with remaining red frosting to within 3/4 in. of edges. Frost sides and top edge of cake with green frosting., Cut a 1/4-in. hole in the corner of pastry or plastic bag. Fill the bag with reserved white frosting. Pipe around top edge of cake where green and pink frostings meet. For seeds, insert chocolate chips upside down into cake top.

HOT DOG PULL-APART CUPCAKE CAKE

Steps:

• Color about 2 cups buttercream the color of a hotdog bun using ivory food coloring with a few drops of brown. Color about 2 cups of buttercream the color of a hot dog, using equal parts red and brown food coloring. Color a small amount buttercream (about 1/2 cup) deep red, for ketchup. Color a small amount buttercream (about 1/2 cup) deep yellow, for mustard. Color the remaining buttercream (about 1/2 cup) deep black, for grill marks.
• Arrange cupcakes in 3 horizontal rows, with 5 cupcakes in the top and bottom rows and 6 in the middle row.
• Use an ice cream scoop or large spoon to dollop about 1/4 cup hot dog color buttercream on the cupcakes in the middle row. Use an offset spatula to smooth the tops to make a long hotdog shape, curved at both ends. Smooth all the way to the edges of the cupcakes.
• Wash and dry the ice cream scoop and offset spatula. Dollop the hot dog bun color buttercream on the middle row of cupcakes and smooth all the way to the edges of the cupcakes, curving at the ends to resemble the hot dog bun. Dip the offset spatula in a little water and smooth the edges where the hotdog meets the bun last to keep the definition between the hotdog and the bun clean.
• Put the red, yellow and black buttercreams in separate pastry bags fitted with medium round tips. Pipe 5 evenly spaced diagonal lines with the black buttercream to make grill marks along the hot dog. Pipe a wavy row of red buttercream ketchup, then yellow buttercream mustard along the length of the hot dog. Snip the gummy bears into small pieces and scatter over the top of the hot dog for relish.

IMPOSTER DESSERT BLT

Steps:

• Toast the pound cake until light golden, then let cool. (For larger slices of pound cake, cut each slice in half. For a pound cake that is not as tall, in order to fake a full sandwich, 4 slices are needed.) Stack two sets of 2 slices, with the tops of the pound cake lined up with each other. Trim about 1/4-inch off the straight edged bottom of one stack and trim about 1/4-inch off the top edge of the other stack of two. When you put them together, they will look like one cohesive sandwich.
• Microwave the white chocolate on 50-percent power until just melted, about 20 seconds. Stir until smooth. Spoon into a small resealable plastic bag.
• Unwrap the chocolate candy log and break off two 2-segment chunks. Microwave the chocolate chunks until just pliable, 5 seconds or less. Roll flat and use a paring knife or pizza cutter to cut into 2 curved slices of "bacon." Snip a tiny piece from the corner of the plastic bag and pipe 2 squiggly lines of white chocolate on each slice of bacon to resemble bacon fat. Place on a plate and refrigerate until the white chocolate is set, about 10 minutes. The chocolate log pieces will remain pliable so you can form slight waves to make it look more like bacon.
• Slice the strawberries crosswise to get 4 to 6 thin slices, about 1/4-inch-thick.
• Unroll the fruit roll, tear pieces off and ruffle together to make it look like pieces of lettuce.
• To assemble, spread the vanilla frosting on the pound cake slices to resemble mayo. Add the strawberry "tomato" slices, "bacon" and "lettuce" to half the cake slices. Place the remaining cake slices on top, frosting side down. Secure each half with a toothpick.

WATERMELON 'CAKE'

Steps:

• Cut 2-inch-thick slice from both ends of watermelon; discard trimmed slices. Stand watermelon on cutting board. Starting at top of melon, use long thin sharp knife to carefully cut between rind and fruit all around watermelon to separate rind from fruit. Remove and discard rind.
• Pat melon with paper towels to dry; place on platter. Frost with COOL WHIP.
• Decorate with remaining ingredients to resemble photo.

BIRTHDAY CAKE WATERMELON PIZZA

Steps:

• Cut the round watermelon slice into 8 wedges and keep them together. Place on a serving dish.
• Combine chocolate chips and half-and-half in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Heat in a microwave oven for 25 seconds, then remove and stir until chocolate chips are fully melted into the cream. Continue heating in the microwave in 5- to 10-second intervals if necessary.
• Spoon melted chocolate evenly over the watermelon, stopping before the rind. Top with a generous portion of sprinkles.

GENIUS WATERMELON CAKE

Steps:

• -Make Your Batter-.
• Preheat your oven to 350°C Prepare 4 six-inch-round, three-inch-deep (6"x3") cake pans by spraying the bottom and halfway up the sides with baking spray and placing a baking paper round in the bottom.
• In a medium-sized bowl, combine your eggs, 1/2 cup of your milk, and vanilla and whisk to combine. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine your flour, powdered sugar, baking powder, and salt and mix on low speed for a few minutes until combined. Low speed is important here so as to avoid creating a burst of flour that will get all over your hair and maybe in your eyes, it is the worst.
• All at once, add in your butter and keep mixing to moisten your dry ingredients creating a crumb-like consistency, about 20 seconds. Begin streaming in your remaining 1 1/2 cups milk, half a cup at a time, continuing to beat on the lowest speed. When all the milk is added, raise the mixer speed to medium and continue to beat the batter for about 30 seconds. This process is important because it incorporates air into your batter.
• Scrape your bowl with a spatula, and then return the batter to low speed. Add your egg mixture in three batches, allowing each to incorporate fully before adding the next. Add 1 teaspoon of Watermelon food gel and beat again on medium for about 20 seconds. If you'd like to achieve a deeper color, add another 1/2-1 teaspoon of gel coloring and beat on medium to combine.
• Divide your batter between your four prepped pans and smooth the batter to level it. Bake for 40 minutes, then keep a close eye on your cakes for the next 5-7-you'll want them to bounce back when you press on the middle of the top of the cakes. You can also insert a cake tester, and it should come out clean with at most a few crumbs clinging to it.
• Remove your cakes from the oven and allow them to come to room temperature on a rack. Then, I like to wrap them up in plastic and put them in the fridge for at least half an hour, preferably overnight before I remove them from the pans. These cakes should rest in the fridge for at least 8 hours total before stacking.
• -Make Your Watermelon Simple Syrup-.
• Place your water in a medium saucepan and add your unwrapped jolly rancher candies. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, stirring occasionally until the candy dissolves completely. Simmer for an additional 10 minutes, then set aside to cool to room temperature.
• -Prepare Your Buttercream-.
• Whip up some Milkmoon Meringue Buttercream (recipe #536136), you'll need 2x the amount listed in the recipe. Reserve 5 cups of this buttercream for your filling, and set the rest aside.
• Combine the 5 cups buttercream with your mascarpone, beating well to combine thoroughly. Add drops of Watermelon food coloring gel until you reach the same shade as the cakes you baked (cut a small amount off the top of one of your cakes to take a peek at the color inside).
• Take 1/2 of your reserved white buttercream and add Super Black food gel into it until you achieve a strong black. Hot tip: this color will deepen as it stands. Set aside.
• -Prep Your Layers-.
• Start by trimming the domes off your cakes. We want flat disks of cake so we can accomplish a tall build!
• Now torte your layers out. Torting is the process of cutting a large cake into smaller layers, and I like to torte my layers super thin. You can choose instead to just trim the domes and leave the cakes as-is for a four-layer cake, or torte each cake in half for eight layers. The more layers, the cooler the seed affect in the slice reveal, however!
• -Build Your Cakes-.
• Prepare two disposable piping bags, one filled with your black buttercream and the other with your red. Cut off the tips of each to create a hole that is roughly 1/8 of an inch wide, fairly small.
• Using a turntable as a base, center your first layer on an 8" round cake drum with a small dab of buttercream in the middle to anchor the cake. Brush the layer with a small amount of jolly rancher syrup. Then, pipe a spiral of buttercream in the very middle of the layer, measuring about 1-1 1/2 inches wide. Smooth this buttercream, then pipe another spiral of buttercream starting about 1/8 inch away from the buttercream at the center, and extending all the way to the edges of the layer.
• Pipe your black buttercream into the opening left, creating a black ring in the middle of the layer. Smooth your red buttercream, being careful not to disturb the black ring. Place your next layer of cake on top, doing your best not to drag it around too much as you center it. Repeat until you reach your final layer of cake, at which point you can wrap the whole thing in plastic and refrigerate stack until firm, at least an hour.
• Remove from the refrigerator when the cake doesn't wiggle when you shake it, and place it on a turntable on the counter. Using a serrated knife, go around the cake trimming off those crusty sides. Wrap the nude cake in plastic, and put it back in the refrigerator.
• -Frost Your Cake-.
• You can start by crumb-coating the sides of your cake with a small amount of your white buttercream and refrigerate 10-20 minutes to set, or skip the crumb coat if you're confident diving right inches Leave the top un-coated! This will help with the watermelon slice illusion.
• Begin frosting your cake by placing about a 1/2 cup dollop of buttercream on top of your cake, and smoothing it out to the edges, making sure the buttercream overhangs the edges of the cake by at least 1/2 inch all the way around. Refrigerate until the buttercream is firm. Using a paring knife, trim the buttercream back so it's perfectly flush with the sides.
• To create the white layer of rind, place about two cups of your white buttercream in a disposable piping bag and cut a 1/4 inch hole in the end. Pipe the buttercream in rings up the entire cake, making sure to over-pipe at the top so the white buttercream sticks up in a ring around the top. Use a straight-edge to smooth your buttercream on the sides-I use a 14" quilting ruler!-and refrigerate about 10-20 minutes.
• Take your remaining white buttercream and, using mostly Electric Green with a few squeezes of Leaf Green to deepen, create a bright green watermelon rind color.
• Repeat the piping process with the light green buttercream, working your way up the sides and then smoothing them down. Put the cake back in the refrigerator to firm up.
• -Paint Your Rind-.
• Melt down your remaining green buttercream in the microwave until it's a paintable consistency. Stir in more green coloring, including a few drops of Forest Green to deepen the hue. Using a flat or fan brush, brush your buttercream up the sides of your cake, creating loose, imperfect stripes. You can go for perfection if you like! You'll get a more cartoonish, less realistic look to your watermelon cake, which can be fun too. When you're finished, put the cake in the fridge again.
• -Trim the Top-.
• After 10-20 minutes when the buttercream is totally firm, use your paring knife to trim the white and green buttercream down from around the top of the cake, making it totally flush with the smooth watermelon red buttercream on the top. You'll reveal a perfectly smooth watermelon cross-section that will have your guests scratching their heads!
• Pipe about eight black seeds in a circle around the top using an Ateco 8" round tip, piping teardrop shapes by piping a small pearl and drawing it to the center while releasing pressure on your bag.
• -Drumroll, Please!-.
• Create a picnic spread and get ready to blow your guests' minds-it's time to slice your watermelon! Using a non-serrated knife, line the point up with the middle of the cake and, holding the knife completely level, slice down in a clean, confident motion until you hit the board. Remove the knife, wipe with a paper towel, and repeat to cut a slice that is perhaps 1/4-1/5 of the entire cake if you want it to be able to stand freely. Then, push an offset spatula under the slice, and lift up, using your other hand to stabilize the top of the slice. Pop the slice out from the bottom up, and remove to reveal... a slice of watermelon, complete with seeds and a perfect rind!
• Enjoy!

WATERMELON CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pans). Grease or spray two 8- or 9-inch round cake pans. In small bowl, toss 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips with 1 tablespoon of the cake mix. In large bowl, beat remaining cake mix, the water, oil, egg whites and drink mix with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in the 1/2 cup chocolate chips. Pour into pans.
• Bake and cool as directed on box for 8- or 9-inch rounds.
• In small bowl, stir 1 cup of the frosting with 10 to 12 drops green food color. Stir 10 to 12 drops red food color into remaining frosting. Frost sides of cakes with green frosting; press green jelly beans into frosting. Frost tops of cakes with red frosting; press remaining 2 tablespoons chocolate chips into frosting for seeds. If desired, cut cakes crosswise in half and arrange "slices" randomly on tray. To serve, cut into wedges. Store loosely covered.