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    HOW TO CAKE IT
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    Home › Recipes › Giant Crab

    Giant Crab

    This cake is clawsome!

    I don’t know if you guys know this but I am a total Cancer so I was inspired by my sign to make  a crab cake… but like a crab made of cake! 

    This giant Crab Cake is stacked with my Ultimate Chocolate Cake with Italian Meringue Buttercream and crumb coated in chocolate ganache (don’t worry, it doesn’t actually taste like crab!). I draped the cake in a bright red fondant then used sculpting tools, tweezers, and other various tools to create texturing and detailing. I gave my shellfish an extra shine with red paint and used lighter colors to add highlights. 

    Share this recipe

    • Ingredients
    • Tools
    • Instructions

    Baking the Cake: 

    5 lbs Yo’s Ultimate Chocolate Cake 


    Icing the Cake:

    1 batch of Simple Syrup 

    1 batch of Italian Meringue Buttercream 

    1 batch of Ganache 


    Decorating the Cake:

    3 lbs red fondant

    CMC (tylose powder)

    Red gel food coloring or dust

    Deep red gel food coloring or dust

    Pink gel food coloring or dust

    Orange gel food coloring or dust

    White gel food coloring or dust

    Nonpareils or small red dragees

    Black dragees 

    Item Name: Availability:
    6" round cake pan Add to Cart -
    9" round cake pan Add to Cart -
    Parchment Paper Add to Cart - $24.99
    Simple Syrup Bottle Add to Cart - $64.99
    Sculpting Tools
    Piping Tip #234
    Tweezers
    CMC or Tylose Powder
    Makeup Sponge
    Paint brushes
    Floral Stamens

    Bake Your Cakes

    Line your pans with parchment paper and preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare 5lbs of chocolate cake batter and bake as follows:


    6” round cake pan → 1.5lbs chocolate cake → 40 minutes

    9” round cake pan → 3.5lbs chocolate cake → 1 hour 10 minutes


    Leave your cakes in their pans to cool down.


    Carve

    Use a template to cut the body of your crab out of the 9” cake layer then round off all the edges. Use the excess cake and the 6” cake to cut and carve out the two claws. Continue to carve until you are satisfied with the shapes.


    Layer

    Once you are happy with the shape of your cake, layer the body into two layers. 


    Keep It Simple

    Use Sir Squeeze A Lot to soak each of your layers with simple syrup then set them aside to absorb.


    Put it Back Together

    Put your crab body back together by filling it with IMBC.


    Crumb Coat and Chill → Ice Ice Cakey

    Crumb coat each part of your cake with chocolate ganache including the claws and feet then let them chill in the fridge until firm. Ice once again with more ganache and chill. 


    FUNdant

    Roll out a sheet of red fondant and drape it over the crab’s body, smooth it out, then cut away the excess. Repeat for the claws and feet of the crab but for these parts, drape the fondant over the cake parts then flip the pieces onto a sponge and wrap the fondant around and trim away the excess. 

    TIP: When icing a cake with ganache, sometimes the surface can get a little dry so if you find that’s the case, brush it with a little bit of water before adding your fondant.  


    Legs

    Mix some CMC or tylose powder into your red fondant - about 1tsp per lb of fondant, then let it sit for a bit. This will help stiffen up your fondant making it perfect for sculpting. Use a template to sculpt each leg and extra part of the crab. Continue using an image of a crab to add extra details with your fondant including the face plate. 


    Texture

    Use different sculpting tools to add texture to your cake where you see fit (use an image of a crab for reference). Use tweezers to pinch the claws for a spiky look then add extra fondant spikes to the outside of the claws. 


    Paint

    Mix together a red paint that you like then paint the entire crab - all surfaces, with the one color. Create a thicker paint then use it to add depth to the grooves and the rougher areas by stippling the paint. 


    Texture

    Place some red dragees or nonpareils into a plastic bag then crush them up using a mallet. Take your crumbs and sprinkle them onto the legs to add more texture then paint over with your thick red paint.


    Highlights

    Add some white gel color to your red paint and paint it onto the face of your crab and the underbelly. Use this lighter pink color to highlight areas of your cake and use a dry brush or makeup sponge to blend. 


    Eyes

    Create two tiny little tubes for the eyes and place them under the front part of the shell above the face plate. Paint them with red paint then add a black dragee to each tube for the eyes. Paint the dragees with clear piping gel to make them shine. 


    Antennas

    Insert two floral stamens to the front of the crab’s face to make the antennas then paint them with the same red paint. 


    Congratulations!

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