Recipes & Tips Blog

I recall requesting a bunny birthday cake for a number of my childhood birthdays. I was quite taken with the fact that such a sculpted wonder could be created from simple round cake layers.

I loved that it didn’t look like the birthday cakes that other kids had, and I loved that it represented the season of my birthday. For everyone else Spring starts on March 21st, but for me it’s Spring when it’s my birthday, on April 1st.

This year, for the first time in 25 years, I celebrated my birthday with my family. I knew exactly what  kind of cake I wanted to make – a bunny cake. Though I associate this cake with my birthday, it would make a perfectly festive Easter dessert too. You can use any cake recipe you like, yes, even a boxed cake mix and a can of frosting will work. It’s all in the assembly and decoration.

I know the bunny cakes of my childhood did not involve splitting the layers of cake, so this first step is optional. My cake layers were very thick, so I decided to slice them in half.

Making the body of the bunny is as simple as cutting the cake rounds in half and layering them up with frosting.

If your cakes have a domed top, use these as the outside layers so the bunny has a rounded body. If you are working with only two layers of cake use three of the half-circles for the body and the fourth one will be used for the head. My bunny is extra fat because I had so much cake.

Place the layers with the cut side down on a serving tray. You now have the body of the bunny. The head is made from the remaining half-circle of cake. cut it in half again to make two pieces.

I found I needed to trim a little from each of the straight edges to make the head size work relative to the curve of the body. Some of the trimmings can be used to fill in the gap between the head and body and the rest can be snacked on for inspiration. As I think about it now, it would make more sense to trim the front curve of the body off so the head section could sit flush against the body, and I think that might be the way my mom did it. My bunny head wasn’t as round as I remember it being, and slicing off a piece of the body would allow for a rounder head. It looks like the next birthday to cross my path will be getting a bunny cake so I can test my theory.  Though I’m sure a quick Google search would provide ample bunny cake construction diagrams, sometimes it’s fun to just work it out through trial and error.

Once the head is in place, coat the entire bunny with frosting and then pat on shredded coconut for the realistic furry effect.

Construction paper ears, jelly bean eyes and nose, spaghetti whiskers, and of course a marshmallow tail, complete the bunny. Garnish with Easter grass and jelly beans or decorated Easter eggs. It’s festive and delicious!

I have such fond memories of my bunny cakes and there wasn’t a moment’s hesitation as to what kind of cake I would make for my birthday this year once I realized I would be able to celebrate with my family. Thanks mom, for making my childhood birthday cakes so special. Even if it’s not your birthday, Spring and Easter are good reasons to make yourself a bunny cake!