Instructions for a Glowy Ghost Cake

Go all out this Halloween with this Glowing Ghost Cake. It’s a terrific show stopper that seems difficult to construct yet is surprisingly simple. It’s quite appealing, and the kids will like it. It’s ideal for your next Halloween party, and yes, it really glows from inside.

Well, so do you believe in ghosts? I haven’t had any ghostly encounters, so I’m in the “don’t believe” camp, but that doesn’t mean I can’t have some ghostly fun, right?

This year for Halloween, I wanted to make a fun lesson and go all out with my lighted ghost cake.

The ghost is hollow on the inside, allowing you to light it from inside. It seems to be complex, but it is really fairly simple. It just takes a little tinkering to get your fondant draping exactly right.

The real cake is an 8-inch circular cake with orange buttercream on top and black piping at the bottom. I next used a little icing spatula to make ridge lines all over the cake. I wanted to keep the cake basic so it wouldn’t conflict with the light ghost on top.

To make the ghost shine, just use an LED tealight. The interesting part is that you can use one of those colored LED lights to create a red or green ghost if you wish. I just used a regular LED light.

I also tried this to ensure that it was safe to leave on for an extended period of time beneath the fondant. I kept it on for hours and it had no impact on the fondant since there was no radiated heat from the LED light.

Let’s get started with the lesson.

In addition, there is a video at the conclusion of this instruction.

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Supplies needed for the glowing ghost cake:

• I made 8 circular cakes. Make your tier a little taller by using three layers of cake. Favorite Vanilla Bean Cake and Quick Double Chocolate Cake are two of my favorite recipes.
• Buttercream in orange and black. Here’s how to make my buttercream: Buttercream with Vanilla Beans
• Smoother for Buttercream
• Spatula Assortment
• Skewer made of wood
• Press-n-seal wrap or another kind of plastic wrap
• Styrofoam ball 1 inch
• A piece of foam (to stick your ghost base in)
• Gumpaste or white fondant
• a trace of black fondant (for the eyes and mouth)
• Fondant roller, small
• Cornstarch

Preparing the Ghost:

To begin, take a wooden skewer and cut a piece approximately three to four inches long. It should be long enough to insert one end into the styrofoam ball and the other into the block of foam, but with enough space in between for the fondant to drape down. It will become clearer later.

Just insert the skewer piece into the styrofoam ball. It doesn’t have to go all the way to the top, just far enough in to be sturdy.

Take a piece of press-n-seal (you all know how much I adore that stuff), or any form of plastic wrap, but the press-n-seal will cling better…and wrap it around the styrofoam ball. Just wrap it around. You’re just putting a barrier between the non-food object (the styrofoam ball) and the fondant.

Put it in the foam block while you work on the ghost.

Roll your white fondant or gumpaste out. I used straight fondant since fondant containing tylose or gumpaste dried out on me too quickly, and draping may take a few of attempts.

You want to make a huge circle. It does not have to be a perfect circle, so don’t worry about that. My circle was around 14 15 in diameter. The size you need will be determined by the distance between the styrofoam ball and your block of foam.

If your fondant does not drape properly in the following stage, just roll it out again and try again. It’s not a huge deal.

Cornstarch should be sprinkled on both sides of the fondant. You don’t want anything to adhere to anything. Place your fondant on top of the styrofoam ball. To get the drape to appear correct, you’ll have to fiddle with it. If you’re experiencing problems, your circle may not be big enough. It must be bigger in order to drape properly.

Make sure the bottom of your ghost is hanging outward rather than straight down. Lift the bottom of the ghost out, otherwise your styrofoam ball may be difficult to remove afterwards.

After you’ve gotten the draping exactly right, let it to dry overnight. Wait no more than 24 hours before proceeding, but the fondant must be set up and solid before proceeding.

Pick up your ghost with care. I simply grabbed the top of my. With the skewer, carefully remove the styrofoam ball. If the skewer comes out of the ball, just grab the press-n-seal or plastic wrap and use it to pull the styrofoam ball out. Please go gently and cautiously to avoid breaking or cracking your ghost.

After you’ve removed the styrofoam ball, just place your ghost back onto the foam to firm up for another 24 hours.

Making the eyes and mouth:

This section is simple. Just take out your black fondant. Roll two little fondant balls and flatten them gently with your finger. These will be the eyes of the ghost.

Now, roll and elongate a little bigger quantity of the black fondant. Push down with your finger to gently flatten it out.

After your ghost is entirely dry, paint on some shortening for the eyes and lips.

Just put them on now.

Preparing the cake:

Spread orange buttercream on top of your cake. Add some black buttercream dots.

Smooth the buttercream around the cake using your buttercream smoother.

Make ridge lines around the whole cake with your little icing spatula. Be careful to wipe the spatula on a regular basis so that the black buttercream doesn’t run all the way up the cake.

Putting it All Together:

Okay, we’re nearly done! This is the exciting part. You may leave this till you’re ready to serve so you know your LED light has plenty of battery life.

Switch on your light and cover it in press-n-seal or plastic wrap. You’ll need a barrier since it’ll be sitting straight on the cake. Just place it on top of your cake and you’ll have a fantastic Halloween ghost cake to wow the kids!

All you have to do now is carefully place your final ghost on top!

Turn off the lights for a stronger glow. Isn’t it amazing?

Video for the Glowing Ghost Cake:

I hope you like it, and I believe the kids will enjoy it as well.

Remember to Pin it for Later!