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Giant Freakshake Cake

You'll be seeing double with my rainbow coloured vanilla shake cakes!

With St. Patrick's Day right around the corner I couldn't resist making my version of a pot of gold, and this week you'll be seeing double! This is exactly what I would hope to find at the end of a rainbow, and the good news is you won't have to chase a leprechaun to indulge in these cakes. It's crammed full of all the sugar you'll need to keep you going through all of the celebrations!

To make these freak shakes I started with 18 pounds of my Ultimate Vanilla Cake, stacked in glasses coated with Irish green buttercream. It's all about decorating these shake cakes to your wildest dreams and for that I used classic Lucky Charms, coordinating sprinkles, sanding sugar, candy melts, marshmallows, rock candy, and giant lollipops. Don't forget cotton candy! Oh and doughnuts. And gummy candies. I think that's it...

Watch me cake these Giant Freak Shake Cakes in my latest YouTube video here

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Baking The Cake:

18 lbs Ultimate Vanilla Cake

Icing The Cake:

Italian Meringue Buttercream
Wilton Rose Pink Icing Color
Wilton Lemon Yellow Icing Color
Wilton Sky Blue Icing Color
Wilton Turquoise Icing Color
Wilton Kelly Green Icing Color
Simple Syrup

Decorating The Cake:

Lucky Charms Cereal
Pink, Blue and Yellow sprinkles (to match Lucky Charms marshmallows)
White Candy Melt Chocolate
Natural Colored Rock Candy
Gold Luster Dust
Clear Food Grade Alcohol
Edible Gold Foil
Large Marshmallows
Pink Sanding Sugar
Piping Jelly
Variety of Doughnuts (Sprinkled, Maple Glazed and Glazed Cake Doughnuts)
Multi-Coloured Gummy Candies
Rainbow Twist Lollipop
Heart Shaped Lollipops
Cotton Candy (purple and blue)

Item Name:	Availability:
3 x Rectangular Cake Pans, lined with parchment paper	Add to Cart -
Large and Small Spatulas	Add to Cart -
Small Straight and Offset Spatula	Add to Cart -
Simple Syrup Squeeze Bottle	Add to Cart -
Knives
Ruler
Large Glass Vase
Large Bell or Mason Jar
4 Circle Cutters (graduating in size)	Add to Cart -
Piping Tips: #809, #802 Round
Rolling Pin	Add to Cart -
Small Scoop	Add to Cart -
Decorator's Comb
Fondant Smoother
Cutting Board
Paint Brushes
Parchment Piping Cones
2 Sharpened Dowels
Small Hammer
3 Lollipop Sticks
Foam Core

Prepare Cake Batter

Prepare 18lbs of Yo’s Ultimate Vanilla Cake Batter. Divide into 3 equal portions of 6lbs each. Dye one portion yellow using Wilton Lemon Yellow Icing Color. Dye the next portion pink using Wilton Rose Pink Icing Color. Dye the last portion blue using Wilton Sky Blue Icing Color. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let cool completely in pans.

Prepare Buttercream

Prepare your Italian Meringue Buttercream. Once your buttercream is prepared, put your bowl aside to set at room temperature.

Prepare Simple Syrup

Prepare your Simple Syrup and set aside at room temperature.

Level Cakes

Once your cakes are completely cooled, remove them from their pans. Level all three cakes. Save the domed cake tops for later. Remove caramelization from the bottoms.

Cutting The Cake Slices

Cut a template to look like a slice of cake (a triangle with a rounded back). Use this template and a serrated knife to cut two slices from each color of cake. To get the cleanest cuts, make sure your cake is well chilled first! Use a ruler and serrated knife to cut the remaining pieces of each cake color in half horizontally. These pieces will be used to fill your FreakShakes!

Cut Cake Circles For Inside The Freak Shake

The first Freak Shake will be inside of the large glass vase. We want to layer circles of sponge in alternating colors inside of the vase, to match the rainbow marshmallows in Lucky Charms Cereal. First, measure the depth of the vase with a ruler. This will help you to determine how many cake circles you will need. Because the vase is an irregular shape, your circles will be larger on the bottom of the vase, smaller in the middle and larger again on toward the top. You can place your circle cutters right into the vase to see what sizes you will need to cut. Use your chosen cutter sizes to cut out circles from the leftover cake of each color. Make sure to cut a few extra of each size, just in case!!

Note: It can be tricky to get all of the right sizes. To see how I did this step watch the video here

Simple Syrup Layers

Soak all cake layers with simple syrup. Allow the syrup to absorb in to the cakes completely.

Build Your "Cake Slice" Cakes

You will need to make 2 identical cakes that look like cake slices. Start with a pink cake layer and spread a layer of Italian Meringue Buttercream on top, using a small offset spatula. Spread the buttercream as evenly as possible. When you get to the edges of the cake, drag the excess buttercream in toward the centre of the cake with the palette knife. This will keep the sides of the cake as clean as possible and help with keeping the buttercream level! Put a yellow cake slice on top and spread the buttercream just like you did on the first layer. Top with a blue cake slice. Do this again exactly the same way to make your second “cake slice” cake.

Note: keeping the edges clean isn't always easy. To see how I did this watch the video here

Crumb Coat and Chill

For these cakes, you will only need to crumb coat the tops and backs (rounded sides) of each. Try to keep the sides as free from buttercream as possible. Chill for 20 minutes.

Color Buttercream For The Freak Shakes

Color some buttercream a beautiful mint green for the inside of the Freak Shakes. To do this, put a small amount of Italian Meringue Buttercream in a bowl and add Wilton Kelly Green, Blue and Turquoise Icing Colors. The best way to do this is to make a slightly darker version of the color you want, then adjust by adding more white buttercream in.

Fill Your Freak Shake Vessels With Buttercream

Freak Shake in the Vase: We want to make it look like this one is filled with a mint green milkshake! To do this, use a spatula to place the green buttercream inside the vase, and gently pull it upward to coat the inside from the bottom to the top. Use a small offset spatula to further smooth the buttercream, leaving a large enough space in the middle of the vase for the cake circles and filling. Chill for at least 20 minutes.

Freak Shake in the Mason (Bell) Jar: We want this one to look like a marbled milkshake that hasn’t been fully mixed yet! To do this, use your small spatula to smooth some white buttercream up the sides of the jar, then smooth some green buttercream in spots here and there as well. Swirl the two colors together with your spatula, pulling it upward to the top. Chill for at least 20 minutes.

Note: Depending on your vase it may be hard to get the buttercream even. Watch the video here to see how I did this

Fill That Freak Shake!

Once the vase is well chilled, it is time to fill the inside with deliciousness! First, put a plain #809 tip in a piping bag and fill with your mint green buttercream. Place your smallest pink cake circle in the very bottom of the vase and use a rolling pin to press it down. Pipe a circle of buttercream on top, then sprinkle with a scoop of Lucky Charms Cereal. Next place in your smallest yellow cake circle, press down with the rolling pin, more buttercream, then more cereal. Top with your smallest blue cake circle. Continue layering in this repeating pattern until you get to the top of the vase. Remember to use the appropriate sized cake circles to match the curves of the vase! Smooth one final layer of buttercream over the very top and chill.

Fill The Other Freak Shake

Take the domed cake tops that you reserved when levelling your cakes. Level the tops of these. Cut this cake into large cubes. Also take any extra cake circles you cut in Step 6 and cut into wedges. Simple syrup everything!

Fit a piping bag with the #809 plain piping tip. Fill with plain buttercream. Fill the Mason Jar the same way you did with the vase in layers of cake (cubes or wedges) , buttercream and Lucky Charms. Follow the same color pattern with your cake layers. Smooth a final layer of white buttercream over the top and chill completely.

Finish the “Cake Slice” Cakes

Ice the tops and backs (rounded edges) of both “cake slice” cakes again, the same way you did with the crumb coat. Use a Decorator Comb to create a pretty pattern over the rounded edges of both. Clean the sides with your small offset palette knife and chill briefly.

Looking Sharp!

Once the cakes are chilled, use a ruler and serrated knife to cut a very thin slice from each of the sides. This will remove any traces of buttercream that may have been left, making them look as clean and sharp as possible.

Lay The Slices On Their Sides

We want to present these cakes lying on their sides, but first we need to make a cake board for each so they will be supported. Measure the side of each cake slice and cut a piece of foam core just a tiny bit smaller than those measurements. Do the same for the second cake. Spread a bit of buttercream on each foam core board to act as “glue”, attach one board to the side of each cake, then gently lay the cake down on top of the board.

Decorate The Cake Slices

Mix equal parts blue, yellow and pink sprinkles in a bowl. Sprinkle the entire top of each cake slice (the part lying down now). Also apply a sprinkle border along the bottom rounded edge of each slice. Place the cakes in the fridge to chill.

Prepare Your Freak Shake Decorations

You need some funky decorations to make these shakes truly freaky! Let’s do it!!

Gold Rock Candy Nuggets - Very carefully cut some naturally colored rock candy off the stick with a Chef’s Knife into chunks. Mix some gold lustre with clear food grade alcohol to make gold paint, then paint the entire surface of each rock candy chunk.

Sparkly Marshmallows - Brush marshmallows with clear piping jelly, then roll in pink sanding sugar to coat surface completely.

Donuts - Take the glazed cake donuts and paint them here and there with leftover gold from the rock candy. Brush some piping jelly on top of the maple glazed donuts to act as “glue”, then turn upside down into a bowl of Lucky Charms and press down to coat the top of the donut completely. You can just leave the sprinkle donuts “as is”. They are pretty enough!!

Decorate the Rim of the Freak Shake in a Vase

Get your vase from the fridge. Melt some white coating chocolate and put in a parchment piping bag. Pipe the chocolate all around the top rim of the vase and let it drip down the sides. Pipe a little dot of the white chocolate onto some marshmallows from the Lucky Charms box and stick them one by one onto the chocolate drips around the vase.

Place Cake Slice On Top of the Freak Shake

Place one of the “cake slice” cakes directly on top of the Freak Shake vase, making sure it is centered. To anchor it safely into the vase, sharpen the end of a dowel and hammer it though the cake and foam core board, directly into the centre of the vase.

Pipe a simple buttercream border around the bottom of the cake slice to hide the foam core base. To do this, use a piping bag with a #802 plain tip.

Note: if you're having a hard time doweling watch the video here to see how I get it done!

Have Fun and Decorate!!

Use lollipop sticks to hold on your donuts, and place some gold rock candy nuggets randomly here and there for some bling. Use white chocolate as “glue” to keep them in place. Decorate the rest of the Freak Shake however you like, with more donuts, gummy candies, rainbow twist lollipops, cotton candy, sparkly marshmallows, etc. Cover the top of a dowel in edible gold foil and insert it down into milkshake to look like a straw!

Time For the Second Freak Shake!

Take the Mason Jar Freakshake out of the fridge. Melt some white chocolate and color it mint green. Fill a parchment piping bag, then drizzle this all around the rim. Place some Lucky Charms cereal and gold rock candy nuggets on the drips, using dots of green chocolate as “glue”. Put a dowel directly into the centre of the jar, then use the exposed end to string on donuts. Skewer some sparkly marshmallows onto the dowel as well. Decorate with anything you like! I used gold painted heart lollipops, gummy candy, cotton candy and another gold straw!

And Now I Present….Freak Shakes!!

Present the Freak Shakes side by side, with the second “cake slice” cake on a plate to the side.