Log with branch

Take store bought log cake (could use a jellyroll or chocolate like I have here) roll over and slice off about 1/6th of the bottom.

Cut bottom of cake

Cut this piece in half vertically and place on top of each other to form another branch.

Place slice to make branch

Cut a slight diagonal off one end of the branch so it fits snug against the branch and juts out like a branch

Cut a slight diagonal off one end of the log

Chocolate buttercream icing recipe

60 grams of butter at room temperature
1 tbls of milk
1 ¼ cups of chocolate icing sugar (powdered sugar)-sifted

Here in Australia this comes already mixed. If you need to make it up yourself try using 1 cup icing sugar (powdered sugar) and ¼ cup of cocoa –sifted together

Either place all ingredients in a food processor and blend until combined and fluffy, or beat with a wooden spoon to combine then finish with electric whisk.

A more luxury version of buttercream frosting can be found here but use perhaps only half the recipe

Cover with chocolate buttercream icing.

Add chocolate buttercream

Use a nice thick coating

Use a fork to mark out bark like lines on the cake.

Use fork to make bark marks

Birds nest

Melt chocolate in a bowl and break into it “Shredded wheat” type cereal and mix together well.

Shredded wheat cereal

You can use cocoa pops , rice crispies/bubbles etc or other cereal.  I just use shredded wheat because it looks more like twigs.

Grease the inside of a ramekin, bowl or mug and form a nest shape in the base. Make sure the base is nice and thick.

Form nest in dish or ramekin

Then put it in the freezer for 10 minutes to speedily set.

Remove nest from container (you may need to stand the container in warm water for 20-30 seconds to help loosen it and perhaps run a knife along the top)

Place the nest in between both branches. I raised mine a little by using the thin wedge I had sliced of in the beginning underneath.

Place nest in between branches

Add candy and/or chocolate eggs to the nest.

Place eggs in nest

The finished Easter cake-log with nest

Of course this cake was put together with speed in mind and it’s totally up to you how much time you would like to put into the decorations.

As suggestions you could add alcohol or flavouring to the cake and/or the icing. Sprinkle some coconut coloured with green food colouring around the base of the cake. Add flowers.

There we have the easy, very fast Easter cake (or spring cake )in around half an hour.

The birds nests we made make fantastic Easter gifts. Make in muffin or fairycake (cupcake) cases. Add a chick and break open one of the eggs.  Great fun for kid’s and incredibly easy.

The nest makes a great cake on it's own

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Easter Bunny Cake

There’s the super easy Classic Bunny Rabbit Cake and then there’s this “a little bit more work, but isn’t he a charmer?” Easter Bunny Cake.

You can tell he’s an Easter Bunny because he’s so darn colorful — of course, if you prefer another color (even something bizarre like “brown” or “white”), all you have to do is select the appropriate color frosting. He doesn’t even have to be an Easter Bunny Cake, he’s equally happy to serve as the “pet rabbit cake.” Although, you might want to skip the bow tie — as pet rabbit cakes don’t usually enjoy dress up as much as Easter Bunny cakes.

Download the Bunny Rabbit Pattern

Creating the Bunny Rabbit Cake

1. Whip up your favorite cake batter (I made this white cake) and evenly divide the batter between one 9″ square cake pan and one 9″ round cake pan. Bake and cool cakes as your recipe requires. Remove cakes from pans.
2. Download the Bunny Rabbit Cake Pattern (the pattern is a .PDF file which requires the free Adobe Acrobat Reader). Print out and cut out each pattern piece.
3. Place the cut out pattern pieces on top of the 9″ square layer. Use a sharp knife to cut out the cake pieces.

   NOTE: The small piece marked “hair” is a fussy bit. I love the rakish charm it adds to the rabbit cake, but if you’re short on time or don’t like fiddly bits, you can omit this piece and still have a wonderful bunny rabbit cake.

4. Frost the round cake with frosting of your choice (I used the Butteriest Buttercream Frosting) tinted in the color of your choice.
5. Frost the hair, ears, and body pieces. Do not frost the edges that will be placed against the round (already frosted).
6. Place the hair, ears, and body pieces in position with the head. Add frosting to mask where parts are joined to the round.
7. Smooth the buttercream frosting by using the “paper towel” method demonstrated in this video.
8. Decorate with your choice of candies, different colored frostings, or, as I did, you can make pressed sugar decorations.

Now enjoy your utterly charming rabbit cake which can grace your bunny rabbit party or your Easter egg hunting party.

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Classic Bunny Rabbit Cake

Here we have the classic bunny rabbit cake that Grandma first whipped up a long time ago — and even more Grandmas got into the act in 1973 with a copy of the Baker’s Coconut Cut Up Cakes (see the second “Easter Bunny Cake”).

Classic Bunny Rabbit Cutting Pattern

It’s a fabulous cake for anyone who loves cake-retro or who wants an easy and extremely forgiving (coconut covers a multitude of sins) bunny rabbit cake.

The instructions are super simple:

1. Bake any cake recipe in two round pans.
2. Cut one cake round as shown in the diagram to the right. Leave second cake round whole.
3. Place two “A” pieces (see diagram) as the bunny rabbit’s ears and place the “B” piece as the bunny rabbit’s smart and fancy bow tie.
4. Frost entire cake. You may frost the bow tie in a contrasting color.
5. Sprinkle coconut over rabbit.
6. Use decorator tubes, colored candies, or pressed sugar decorations to create the bunny rabbit’s face.

I told you it was simple. He’s the perfect cake for anyone who loves bunny rabbits or as the featured guest at this year’s Easter Egg Hunt.

Easter Bunny Cake

Another Easter Bunny Cake

And if you’d like a slightly more difficult and contemporary cake, check out this Easter Bunny Cake.

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