These Day of the Dead Sugar Skull Cakes, without a doubt, were a lot of work but totally worth it. They turned out amazing, tasted fabulous, and we created some great, lasting kitchen memories in the process.
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I’m super excited to share these Day of the Dead Sugar Skull Cakes with you! It’s the first time I have made it, and I’m so proud of how everything turned out. I do admit, it took a while, but it’s only because I’m learning how to use Fondant. I’ll get faster the more I learn. Huge thanks to my sister for helping; we seriously had a blast.
Looking for a Halloween recipe that is a little less time-consuming but still totally delish? Check out this Oreo Cookie Monsters recipe.
DIY Day of the Dead Candy Stuffed Sugar Skull Cakes
To make these sugar skull cakes you’ll need a 3D skull pan which you can find on Amazon.
Inagredients:
- ½ cup butter
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 2/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ cup milk
- Coconut Oil
- Flour to prepare pan
For the sugar skull, you’ll need the following:
- Edible Adhesive
- White Fondant & other colors of your choice
- Fondant tools & plungers
- Eatable writing pens
- NERDS® Fun Size Candy
- NESTLÉ® BUTTERFINGER® Fun Size Candy
- NESTLÉ® CRUNCH® Fun Size Candy
Directions for the Day of the Dead Cake Skulls Stuffed with Candy
White cake instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Prepare your 3D Skull cake pan using grease and flour to keep the cake from sticking. Make sure to cover generously, so nothing sticks to the pan. Set aside for later.
In a medium bowl, cream sugar and butter beat in eggs; add vanilla and mix. Add flour and baking powder and mix. Add milk and mix thoroughly.
Fill each of the skulls in the pan about 3/4 of the way full.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until toothpicks are done.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Once the cake has cooled, you should be able to just dump the skull cakes out.
How to make Candy Stuffed Sugar Skulls:
Cut skull cakes in half and trim so they will fit back together.
Use a spoon to dig out a hole in the back of the skull’s head for the candy. (optional)
Load your skull up with anything you’d like. My kids love Nerds, so we decided to go with that.
Use an edible adhesive to glue the front and back of skulls together and allow to dry thoroughly.
If needed, trim the tops of the heads so they are even and add extra adhesive if needed.
Next, roll out a small strip of fondant and lay it over the top of the skull to cover where you glued the front and back of the head together.
Roll out your fondant. I found it easiest to roll it into a thin circle.
Sit the skull in an upright position and lay the fondant on top of the skull so you can work down using your fondant tools.
Draw the mouths using your edible markers and color in the eyes if you choose to go that route. My sister and I found it easiest to start with the mouths and then coloring in the eyes.
Now it’s time for the fun part and where you can get creative! Using your edible markers and fondant tools, decorate your Day of the Dead Skulls however you like.
Enjoy and have fun!
Most importantly, have fun. Also, if you’re not sure what the sugar skull represents, I suggest reading about it before making your own sugar skulls; it might influence the direction you choose to go when making your Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) sugar skull cakes. Plus, the meaning behind Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) and the Sugar Skull isn’t often what people think; it’s a beautiful celebration.
The pink and black sugar skull is my personal favorite. My sister likes the pink and green sugar skulls, but they are all amazing..
My sister and I had a blast making these. They took a bit of time, but I think they turned out awesome! The most important part is that we get to spend time together doing something we both enjoy.
Which do you celebrate—Halloween or Day of the Dead?
Day of the Dead Sugar Skull Cakes
Equipment
- 3D Skull Pan
Ingredients
White Cake Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 2/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup milk
- Coconut Oil
- Flour to prepare pan
Sugar Skull Ingredients:
- Edible Adhesive
- White Fondant & other colors of your choice
- Fondant tools & plungers
- Eatable writing pens
- NERDS® Fun Size Candy
- NESTLÉ® BUTTERFINGER® Fun Size Candy
- NESTLÉ® CRUNCH® Fun Size Candy
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Prepare your 3D Skull cake pan using coconut oil and flour to keep the cake from sticking. Make sure to cover generously, so nothing sticks to the pan. Set aside for later.
- In a medium bowl, cream sugar and butter; beat in eggs; add vanilla; and mix all together. Add flour and baking powder and mix. Add milk and mix completely.
- Fill each of the skulls in the pan about 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake for about 30 minutes or until toothpick done.
- Remove it from the oven and allow it to cool.
- Once the cake has cooled, you should be able to just dump the skull cakes out.
- How to Make Candy Stuffed Sugar Skulls:
- Start trimming the cake skulls so they fit together nicely.
- Use a spoon to dig out a hole in the back of the skull’s head for the candy. If you want to include more candy, you can increase the size of the whole thing by using the front of the skull too. Just to make sure everything lines up.
- Load your skull up with NERDS® Fun Size Candy, NESTLÉ® BUTTERFINGER® Fun Size Candy, or NESTLÉ® CRUNCH® Fun Size Candy. I found that when adding NERDS®, it was easier and more fun for everyone if I opened the box and poured them in. The Fun Size NESTLÉ® BUTTERFINGER® and NESTLÉ® CRUNCH® fit great!
- Use an edible adhesive to glue the front and back of the skulls together and allow them to dry thoroughly.
- If needed, trim the tops of the skulls so they are even, and add extra adhesive if needed.
- Roll out a small strip of fondant and lay it over the top of the skull to cover the gap where you glued the skulls together. It will help to hide the gap when you cover the skulls in fondant.
- Roll out your fondant. I found it easiest to roll it into a thin circle.
- Sit the skull in an upright position and lay the fondant on top of the skull so you can work down using your fondant tools. Working with Fondant takes some practice; as you can see, my sister and I are nowhere near pro status, but one day maybe. In the meantime, it’s super fun to learn.
- Draw the mouths using your edible markers, and color the eyes if you choose to go that route. My sister and I found it easiest to start with the mouths and coloring in the eyes. We tried to get ahead of ourselves and start adding all the fun bright colors and things, but ended up taking them off to draw on the mouth and color in the eyes.
- Now it’s time for the fun part, where you can get creative! Using your edible markers and fondant tools, decorate your Day of the Dead Skulls however you like.
- Most importantly, have fun, and if you’re not sure what the sugar skull represents, I suggest reading about it before making your own sugar skulls; it might influence the direction you choose to go.
