Plush Toy Master Cake

So cute you won’t know whether to snuggle with these plush toys or eat them! Four bowl cakes combine to make the body and head. Then each toy gets its own treatment with coconut, forked frosting, flavor painting, mini marshmallows, or candy clay to create a plush, overstuffed look.

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F and prepare two 1-quart and two 12-ounce (4½-inch) oven-safe glass bowls (see Please Release Me). Spoon 1¾ cups of the batter into each of the 2 prepared 1-quart glass bowls and ¾ cup into each of the 2 prepared 12-ounce bowls. Place the bowls on a large cookie sheet and bake until the cakes are firm and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes for the small bowls and 35 to 40 minutes for the large bowls. Transfer the cakes on the cookie sheet to a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes. Invert, remove the bowls, and cool completely.

2 Line a cookie sheet with wax paper. Trim the top of each cake with a serrated knife to level (see On the Level). Place one of the large cakes, trimmed side up, on a work surface. Spread some vanilla frosting on the trimmed side of the cake. Place the other same-size cake on top, trimmed side down, pressing to secure. Repeat the process with the smaller cakes. Spread a thin crumb coating of frosting (see Got Crumbs?) on the cakes, filling any gaps, and smooth. Transfer the cakes to the cookie sheet and place in the freezer until set, about 30 minutes.

3 Place the large chilled cake on a serving platter, flattest side down, as the body. Spread some of the frosting on top and add the smaller chilled cake, flattest side down, as the head. Insert a drinking straw down through the center of the small cake and into the large cake to help stabilize the cake, trimming the straw flush with the cake, if necessary. Return the cake assembly to the freezer to chill.