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Lego Head Cake Tutorial

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He’re the Lego head cake tutorial I shared last week at U-Create! I hope you enjoy it!


I made this same cake for my son’s 8th birthday last year and I get emails every week asking for instructions on how to make it! It’s a pretty easy cake, with a great impact and you can personalize it with any Lego face, or facial expression you want!  So let’s get started!

Cake circles!  This is where it all begins… kind of boring, but an important preparation.  My head was a 6 inch cake so I took a 6 inch cake circle and cut it down by an inch all around creating a 4 inch circle. I cut FIVE of these circles.

Then I took off another half inch around and cut THREE 3 inch circles!  Here I have the three stack of 3 inch on the left, and FOUR of the 4 inch stack on the right (one of the 4 inch circles is for later, so don’t lose it!)

Cover them with foil (I have a video tutorial for covering cake boards if you aren’t sure how to do this)

And now roll out your yellow fondant and cover your cake board!  I buy my fondant pre-colored when I want a nice BRIGHT color.  For more muted and pastel colors I color it myself.  Here are some tips and tricks with preparing the fondant.  Roll it out to just under 1/4 inch thick.  Cover your foil covered cake board with something sticky, either piping gel, or even light corn syrup works well!  Mold it around the boards and cut along the bottom.

Cover both, keeping the bottom edge as smooth as you can, after I cut my bottom edge I lift it up and take my finger and smooth it underneath all the way around.

Now for the logo on top.  You have two options- If you want to go the quick and easy route (and more expensive) you can buy a fondant alphabet set and cut out the letters, they are the right size…

BUT I like taking a bit of extra time (and less expense) and making the lettering as close to the correct logo/font as I can!  I downloaded this Legothick font and printed off a few different sizes and picked the size I felt fit the 3 inch circle the best.  I rolled out my fondant again, closer to 1/8 inch, and placed my printed paper on top.  Taking a straight pin I pushed the pin through the paper into the fondant along the lines.

You’ll leave an impression in the fondant you can use for cutting out.  This will take patience, the fondant is soft and easily messed up, so just be patient!

I tried a few different tools to cut this out as smoothly as I could.  All sorts of expensive fondant tools I won and everything (don’t use a knife it will cut your mat) and I ended up with the straight pin again!  I just slowly carved the excess fondant away (but not TOO slow, like don’t leave the fondant on the counter and take a break, it will dry out)

I placed the cut out letters back onto my printed paper, to let them dry a bit in the right formation/angle!  Pretty darn perfect!

Once they dry a bit use some clear vanilla or even some of the piping gel to stick it onto the fondant top (the 3 inch circle, NOT the 4 inch circles)

Now for the cakes!  I used two 6 inch cakes, each about 3 inches tall (how I bake tall cakes).  Using a serrated knife prepare the cake for carving by cutting off the top crusty part so your working with a clean surface/blank slate.

Now we’re going to created the rounded corners.  I took the same serrated knife and cut off the corner at about a 45 degree angle, all the way around leaving a nice 4 inch flat circle for the base to sit on.

Next, cleaning your knife often, carve the smallest bit from the corner edges to round it just a bit, and soften the edges a bit.

Since this is the bottom its going to be hard to frost once it’s right side up so I actually frosted the rounded bottom edge, then placed that one last 4 inch circled (covered with foil) on the bottom!  I like to use ganache, it seals in the moisture and has an amazing rich flavor.  Since it dries quite dense you don’t have to worry about it squishing out when you put the fondant on it.  Let the ganache cool down and to create a thicker frosting I like to whip it up in my bosch.

Flip it over, fill it with more ganache and place the next prepared layer on top.  Now we’re going to repeat the carving to create the rounded corner again.

Once your done with the carving frost the rest of the cake, make sure to fill in around the seam well!

Then let it dry, it will become more matte and lose the high gloss when it’s ready to go!

Time to cover it with fondant!!!  Roll out the fondant into a circle 1/4 inch thick.  Since our cake is 6 inches around and about 6 inches tall you want close to an 18 inch circle.  I like to fold my mat in half (fondant out) and lay the center of the fondant directly onto the center of the to of the cake, then peel off the fondant and let it start to hang down the sides.

With our fondant so thick it’s also very heavy so we want to work as quickly as you can, but don’t panic, you don’t have to work at warp speed!  I start by using a fondant smoother (if it sticks to your fondant use a bit of powdered sugar to keep things dry and sliding easily) to make sure the top if flat, with no air bubbles.

Now we’re going to work our way down. With your fondant thick it will press together without wrinkles as well as stretch a bit without ripping to help mold the fondant into shape.  Don’t just work one side at a time, work a bit of one side, rotate, work more, rotate, work more, rotate, etc..  work your way down and around as evenly as possible.  When you get it smooth down the sides take a sharp knife and cut along the bottom so the excess weight is gone and now we can work on smoothing it underneath!

There are a FEW creases here and there, but overall it smoothed together really well.  As you work your way around the ganache will warm up a bit and help adhere to the fondant and hold it into place.

Keep a warm wet rag next to you because as you smooth the fondant into place you will get some ganache on you hand, keep your hands clean otherwise you’ll end up with a chocolate streak on your fondant (which if you do you either 1- get your finger wet and wipe it off, the water will change the look of the fondant a bit, becoming glossy and sticky in the one spot, but it will dry, or 2- make it the back of the cake!)

Now I used my plastic fondant smoother and just smooth out any bumps, imperfections, etc..  the ganache underneath warms and softens when rubbed and will just smooth right out!  I LOVE working with ganache under fondant!

Now for assembling the cake and adding our final details!  Place the cake onto your 4 inch tall fondant covered base!  I stuck the two together with a bit of the ganache (it’s great super glue, but don’t use too much, you don’t want it squishing out!)

Add your top the same way, a bit of ganache dabbed on the bottom of the 3 inch wide top piece!

BEFORE you add the top pick the FRONT of your piece, make sure the lettering is facing the right way!  You don’t want your LEGO logo crooked, and you definitely want your face on the prettiest side of the cake!

Voila!!!  Now is the time to take a break if you want, let your hands relax, you don’t want to cramp up or shake as you draw the face on!  Use this time to google Lego head images if you don’t already have one in mind!  Draw it out on paper for practice.  Then using a black edible marker draw it right onto your cake!!!  Start with thin lines- You can always add to the thickness of your lines, but once on your cake you can’t take it away!

Now it’s time to serve and enjoy! Don’t forget to take the top cardboard off before cutting, and remember white it’s only 6 inches it’s TALLLLLL so small servings work just fine. This cake is made from 8 cups of batter- that’s 2 boxes of cake mixes so a little goes a long way!

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Ashlee Marie
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Comments

    • Ashlee

      Thanks so much! And your so welcome! I got so many requests over the last year since I first posted it I HAD to make it again! My kids didn’t mind having an “extra” cake around either!

      Reply

  3. Four Sisters

    This is so fun, your son must have loved it! We have our first ever Beautify It Monday link party going on now and we’d love if you stopped by to link up – bringingbeauty.blogspot.com

    Reply

    • Ashlee

      He did! And remaking it for this tutorial so the kids had it a second time? they loved it. I usually don’t ever repeat a cake, they they were really thrilled!

      Reply

  4. Jodi

    This is such a great tutorial. I have always been hesitant to do any cake that doesn’t have a solid base…curving up like the head does. I think I need to find a different cake recipe for carving out shapes like this. Do you have a good recipe you are willing to share? I also love the pin idea. I’ve never seen that method. What great stuff you have here. Thanks!

    Reply

    • Ashlee

      pound cakes are a GREAT way to go… I actually haven’t posted very many of my cake recipes… Maybe I’ll start sharing them as I start talking more about carving, thanks for asking!

      Reply

      • Rachel Shenton

        Is this cake recipe enough to make both of the cakes that are put together to make this lego head cake? Thank you

      • Ashlee

        what cake recipe? Did you mean to include something? For this cake I used 6 inch pans, and my, from scratch, extra dense, chocolate cake. You don’t want to carve box mixes or use them with fondant, so something dense is important, like a pound cake. Each layer is 3 inches tall to create that boxy look to the head, 6 inches wide, 6 inches tall…. so whatever it takes for you to get that height.

      • Melissa

        Hi, I am trying to make your lego head cake. I did a test run with your chocolate cake you gave the recipe for. I used parchment paper openly at the bottom of my 6 x 3 pan. When I finished baking it I let it cool for 20 min or so. I turned it over to take it out and my cake broke in half. What should I differently next time? Thanks

      • Ashlee

        what chocolate cake recipe? I haven’t shared my chocolate cake recipe that I know of, just the chocolate cupcake recipe, which would NOT be good for cakes. Sound like your not using a dense enough cake.

      • Melissa

        There is a comment about a chocolate sour cream cake posted march 2012. It is your go to cake and it is made with unsweetened chocolate, flour, sugar, sour cream etc. was that not meant for a 6 x 3 pan?

      • Ashlee

        EEEEK! I did NOT realize I had made that public, that’s my not-so-secret-now recipe that I was going to share for the first time in my cookbook! Yes that’s the one I use, sounds like it might have been over cooked? what’s your climate and elevation, that effects baking a lot (I also use parchment on the sides of my pans as well)

  15. Elle

    Love it! Such an awesome way to do the letters, too. That was my biggest wonder when I saw the picture because they are identical to that logo! Thanks for sharing, this cake is gorgeous. 🙂

    Reply

    • Ashlee

      Thanks so much! It’s a super fun cake. And while I don’t do many link parties (spending time with my kids is my main focus) I appreciate they you like my stuff!

      Reply

  17. Melissa

    First of all, I need to tell you that you are AMAZINGLY talented! I could look at your cakes all day long. As an amatuer baker I am in awe at what you are able to create! I have three boys and my oldest two are turning 5 and 7 this weekend. They are Lego fanatics and are begging me to make this cake. I am nervous but I think I can do it with your awesome tutorial. I have a couple of questions. Can I make it bigger? Since they are sharing the cake I wanted to make sure it made a big impact. I have a 9×3 round cake pan. Would that work if I used your tall cake method and stacked two together? Also, I have searched high and low for bright yellow pre made fondant and all I can find is pastels. Any tips on where I might find that awesome yellow, a brand name? How much fondant will I need? Wish I lived in Utah and could ust hire you to make it for me!

    Reply

    • Ashlee

      sorry I didn’t get to this earlier, I usually only respond to emails and comments once a week, I apologize since this was time sensitive… Anyway, you can make a cake earlier, but if you don’t keep it wrapped and sealed it will dry out. when I turn my cake out I double wrap it in plastic wrap as soon as I can touch it without getting burned. so that the steam doesn’t leave the cake, but stays in the cake and keeps it moist. DON’T refrigerate either, it dries out cakes, you can throw it in the freezer if you want, but not refrigerate.

      you can leave it on the counter once you’ve frosted it if you haven’t added anything that needs refrigeration, like filling or frosting with butter or milk. The Ganache and fondant is fine to leave out so if you’ve frosted it like I did it will be fine for a day or two.

      if you want to make it 9 inches around you just have to remember you need to make it taller too! The heads are quite square, mine is 6 inches x 6 inches, so if you go 9 inches you need to go 9 inches tall too!

      I always use Satin Ice fondant, Massa fondant is even better if you can find it, you can usually find it at a cake decorating supply store, not craft stores like Joann’s and Micheal’s, but a more specific store, most towns have one, I’ve always been able to find it, but it does take a bit of searching. The Wilton fondant is CRAP and terrible to work with, so don’t bother using it. Does the Duff fondant at Michael’s come in a bright yellow? I heard it’s okay to work with, if you remember to microwave it a bit to warm it up. you can always get white and use gel paste coloring and dye it yourself.

      Reply

  18. Estelle Munro

    Hi, This is awesome, and I am attempting it in a few weeks. Just wondering how much fondant will be needed? Thanks.

    Reply

    • Ashlee

      I’m so sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner, it’s been insane around here and responding to comments, sadly, has taken a back seat the past few weeks. I used a few pounds. I buy about 5 lbs at a time, and used not quite half!

      Reply

  19. Aimee

    Hi I’m about to attempt this cake for my boyfriend (still a Lego lover) but I can’t find any edible marker pens this may sound ridiculous but could I use a normal sharpie and tell people to avoid eating that area or should I try to make a fondant face?
    Any help would be great
    Aimee

    Reply

  20. Laura

    Thank you so much for posting this! I gave it a try this weekend, timing our son’s 11th birthday party with the new Lego Movie. The cake was a huge hit! I wanted to add a few tips for anyone trying fondant for the first time (like me) and stuck with Wilton white fondant. Your instructions are almost perfect. I’d only add that one box of Wilton fondant did turn out to be plenty, so anyone using Wilton can go ahead and use Ashlee’s thickness recommendations–no need to roll the fondant out super thin and get 18″. For my cake (6″ by 6″) a 16″ or 17″ circle probably would have worked. I rolled my fondant out unnecessarily thin and, while it worked, it was a little transparent and not quite stiff enough toward the bottom of the head. Also, I used Wilton’s “Golden Yellow” gel dye to dye the white fondant Lego-yellow. That was the perfect color. Unlike red or black, you don’t need a huge amount of yellow to color white fondant. It’s much easier than I had feared to get the color to come out nice and even, too. What a great project! Thanks again, Ashlee for posting this!

    Reply

  22. Kalli UK

    Hi Ashlee, I absolutely LOVE this cake – and will be attempting it for my son’s Lego party next month, even though I am terrified at how it is going to turn out. Really battle with fondant – but will be using all your tips and advice. Thanks for the tutorial, x

    Reply

    • Ashlee

      I would say that most people have trouble with fondant because they 1. use bad fondant (wilton is bad, i like satin ice or Massa) or the roll it too thin and get ripples, rips and pleats. Have fun!!!!

      Reply

  24. lea smye

    what a brilliant idea for getting the lettering right!! i have a lego cake coming up and will definitely be utilizing this technique. thanks so much!

    Reply

  25. Sarah

    Thank you from Australia for this cake tutorial and for the chocolate cake recipe Ashlee. It was so helpful and my 3 year old son absolutely loved his cake. I used the chocolate cake recipe from the chocolate cake and ganache recipe but I halved the amounts for 4 small 6 inch cake tins.
    The cake was perfect – seriously moist and delicious. I watched the tutorial on youtube – something I don’t normally do but found you to be a great teacher. Thanks again, your work is greatly appreciated.

    Reply

  26. Joanna

    Hi! Just wondering how much fondant did you use for this recipe? My son just watched your video tutorial and showed it to me and told me he’d reaaaallly like to have this as his birthday cake in January. Thanks very much!

    Reply

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