Polly Fingerlings Cake

Get a big hug from this vanilla cake!

Nothing beats a nice big hug, and that’s what these Fingerlings are all about. Polly the Panda is here to show Sir Squeeze the love, but don’t get me wrong, it was PANDAmonium in the kitchen to bring this cake together with all my new Fingerlings friends “helping” me out.

Pretty Polly started off as 6.5lbs of my Ultimate Vanilla Cake dyed yellow, purple, and teal all swirled together. Stacked with Italian Meringue Buttercream, she gets her features from sculpting Rice Krispies before being covered in the perfect pink fondants. A little glitter for her limbs and cotton candy hair and Polly is ready to play!

Join in on the fun on my YouTube channel here!

Share this recipe

Baking The Cake

6.5lbs Yo’s Ultimate Vanilla Cake

Yellow, Purple, Teal gel food colouring

Icing The Cake

Simple Syrup

Italian Meringue Buttercream

Decorating The Cake

5 x Yo’s Sculpting Rice Krispies

5lbs Light Pink Fondant

3.5lbs Light Pink Fondant

8oz Black Fondant

6oz White Compound Chocolate

Royal Icing

Clear Food Grade Alcohol

Clear Piping Gel

Edible Shimmer

Cotton Candy

Item Name:	Availability:
2 5" Round Cake Pans
2 6" Round Cake Pans
9" Hemisphere Pan
2" Hemisphere Pan
Simple Syrup Bottle	Add to Cart -
Small Offset Spatula	Add to Cart -
Small Straight Spatula	Add to Cart -
Cake Boards
Dowels
Sharpener
Fondant Smoother
Dresden Tool
Circle Cutters	Add to Cart - $24.99
Heart Cutter
Floral Sponge
Masking Tape

Bake Your Cakes

Divide your batter into 3 portions and dye yellow, purple, and teal. Pour 1lb into each of your 5” pans, and 1.5lbs into each of your 6” pans, swirling the colors together. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour 5 minutes, and 1 hour 10 minutes respectively

Level & Decaramelize

Once completely cool, remove your cakes from their pans and use a ruler and knife to level them. Take this time to remove the caramelization from the bottom of your cakes as well.

This Part's Simple

Shower your cakes with simple syrup and allow to absorb for a few minutes before moving on.

Double Stacks

Stack both of your 5” cakes together with Italian Meringue Buttercream, and your three 6” cakes together with Italian Meringue Buttercream.

Carve It Up

Place your 5” cake on top of your 6” cake and carve the pear shape of Polly’s body, removing the caramelization as you go

Structured

Once your happy with the shape, remove your 5” cake. Place a cake board secured with buttercream to the bottom of your 6” cake, and insert dowels in a circular formation. Secure another cake board on top before placing your 5” cake back on top, and drive a sharpened dowel through the center of both cakes.

Crumb Coat & Chill → Ice & Chill

Crumb Coat your cake with Italian Meringue Buttercream and chill for 20 mins before icing your cake with more buttercream and chilling for another 20 minutes.

Time To Get A Head

Grease your hemisphere pan and use this to form 2 halves of Polly’s head with sculpting Rice Krispies. Press the back sides down onto your work surface to ensure they are flat, and use more Rice Krispies to build up a “snout” on one of the halves. Contour both halves to match the shape of Polly’s head.

Note: watch me shape it up here

Out On A Limb

Form Polly’s arms and legs with sculpting Rice Krispies as well. I find it easiest to do both arms, and both legs at the same time to ensure they are symmetrical!

Top & Tail

Lastly, form Polly’s ears and tail out of your sculpting Rice Krispie mixture.

Crumb Coat & Ice Part 2

Crumb coat all of your Rice Krispie pieces and chill before icing them. Not only does this help the fondant stick but it also smooths out all the lumps and bumps!

Light Pink Fondant

Cover Polly’s body in light pink fondant by thinly rolling out a sheet tall and wide enough to wrap around. Quickly wrap this piece around the body, and trim a clean seam at the back of your cake. Gather excess around the dowel at the top and use a fondant smoother to push it down then trim away excess. Cover both halves of the head with the same fondant, being careful around the snout so it doesn’t tear.

Note: Get some more tips and tricks in my video here

Dark Pink Fondant

Border your ears with a flattened cord of fondant, and then trim pieces to fit the inside. Press these into you hemisphere pan so they set with a curve. Cover the arms, legs, and tail with dark pink fondant as well, flipping them onto a floral sponge so they are totally covered.

Note: watch me cover my ears here

Hold On Tight

Secure a solidified Sir Squeeze (or any other similar object) to a base. Glue your body cake behind this with royal icing. Use dowels inserted right through Sir Squeeze to secure your arms and legs, with more royal icing as glue. Wrap masking tape around these pieces while they set in place. Attach her tail with royal icing.

Note: Watch me assemble this here

Polly's Face

Use your dresen tool to indent the markings on Polly’s snout. Using a template, cut out 2 oval “eye patches” of fondant and secure to the front of her face using piping gel.

She Needs To See!

Press balls of black fondant into small greased hemisphere pans, and allow to firm up in the fridge before removing. Use a circle cutter the same size as your hemisphere pans to remove the fondant from Polly’s face where her eyes will sit. Remove your eyeballs from their pans, and use a circle cutter to clean up the edges, as well as a knife to make them thinner if necessary. Attach an eyelid of your dark pink fondant to her eyes before placing in their sockets, securing with royal icing.

Two Become One

Carefully balance the back half of the head on a floral sponge, and apply melted white compound chocolate before securing the front half on top. Flip the head right side up and make any necessary adjustments before the chocolate sets.

Seam Hider

While Polly’s head does have a seam, it’s not as harsh as the one we just created. Make a paste with fondant and clear food grade alcohol and apply to the seam of your head to blend it in.

Cute As A Button

Create a hump of black fondant, and place in the fridge to chill. Use a heart cutter to punch out the shape ofs Polly’s nose, removing the point with a circle cutter. Refine the shape until you are happy, and secure on her snout with royal icing

Pilot Hole

To make it easier to attach Polly’s head, create a pilot hole with the same sized dowel that is sticking out of your body cake.

Sounds Good!

Insert dowels into Polly’s ears, and place them on her head.

Coming Together

Insert 4 more dowels into your body cake around the central dowel, and spread on some royal icing before placing your head on top, through the pilot hole.

Make It Shine

Slightly thin out piping gel with food grade alcohol, and mix in some pink shimmer. Apply this mixture using a paint brush to the arms, and legs of your cake

Finishing Touches

Use your dresden tool to mark in Polly’s fingers and toes, and attach a cotton candy ‘do with some more clear piping gel