Are you ready to catch ‘em all and make the ultimate Pokeball cake? Get ready to level up your birthday party with a Pokeball birthday cake that will have everyone saying, “Gotta eat ’em all!” Whether you’re a fan of the Pokémon franchise or having a Pokemon themed birthday party, this tasty treat looks as epic as it tastes, and is sure to be a crowd-pleaser.
So dust off your apron, grab your baking tools, and let’s embark on a deliciously sweet adventure into the world of Pokémon cake. Get ready to bake, battle, and devour the most legendary dessert of them all!
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Pokeball Cake Ingredients
Wet ingredients: Most box cake mixes call for oil or butter. Using oil will give the cake a better texture; use something like canola, sunflower or vegetable oil. Not olive oil. You will also need eggs and either water or milk. I suggest using milk instead of water because milk adds density and flavor.
Unsalted butter: You’ll need unsalted butter to make the buttercream icing from scratch for this recipe.
Powdered sugar: Powdered sugar is used for the buttercream frosting.
Vanilla extract: Using pure vanilla extract will give your buttercream frosting a better flavor.
Cream: You can use milk or cream for your buttercream frosting to thin it to the desired consistency. I prefer using heavy cream.
Food coloring: Use a good quality brand like Wilton or Americolor for vibrant colored frosting. Some other cheaper brands of food coloring will deliver a more muted color. You can also buy store-bought red icing and black icing to use for this recipe but real homemade buttercream is easier to work with. I personally use buttercream frosting from scratch and Wilton Color Right drops.
How To Make a Pokeball Cake
Step 1: Mix Wet Ingredients
Mix together your wet ingredients if you’re baking from scratch or using a box cake mix. This will ensure your eggs are properly beaten and incorporated throughout your batter evenly.
Step 2: Mix Dry Ingredients
Mix your dry ingredients together if you’re cooking from scratch, using a whisk. Or add your dry cake mix to your bowl of wet ingredients and mix it all together.
Step 3: Bake Cake Layers
I used seven inch round cake pans. I suggest using two of these pans per one box of cake mix. A two layer cake will be just fine unless you’re feeding a large crowd. I made three layers as you’ll see in the photos below.
Step 4: Mix Frosting
While your cake is baking, make your buttercream frosting by beating together butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and heavy cream (or milk). For one batch of frosting, use one cup of room temperature unsalted butter, four cups of powdered sugar, two teaspoons of vanilla and 2-4 tablespoons of cream. Use a stand mixer or hand mixer; you won’t be able to do it with muscle and a whisk.
Step 5: Color Frosting
You’re going to need white, black and red frosting for decorating a Pokeball cake. The majority of your frosting will be white so you can use it as your crumb coat and between layers of the cake.
Scoop out about one cup of frosting that you will add red food coloring to. (After your crumb coat and white star tip frosting decorations you may have more white frosting left to add in, but setting aside at least 1 cup is a safe place to start.)
I only used about 3 tablespoons of black frosting and then divided my remaining frosting between two bowls and colored half of it red.
Step 6: Cool & Trim Cake
Take your cakes out of the oven and let them cool to room temperature in the pan. Once they are cool, remove them from the pan and wrap them in plastic wrap. They can chill in the fridge or freezer before you’re ready to decorate. A cold cake is easier to add frosting into and to decorate.
If needed, trim the top and edges of the cake with a large serrated knife (like a bread knife) to make them flat and symmetrical.
Step 7: Assemble & Crumb Coat Cake
Start by putting your first cake layer on a cake board. Use white icing between the layers of your cake and a thin layer of buttercream on the sides and top of the cake to create a base layer called a ‘crumb coat’. This will catch all the crumbs and give your next layer a good base to stick onto. To spread your icing evenly, use an offset spatula.
Put your cake in the fridge after adding your crumb coat and get ready to decorate.
Step 8: Decorate Cake
First, use a toothpick to draw outlines on the cake to help create symmetry. Use a round cookie cutter or glass to create a circle on top of your cake.
Use an open star tip and a piping bag to decorate your cake. I used Wilton Star Tip #21. Start with the white frosting first and add white stars of frosting to the round center of your cake and outline. Then fill in the white half of your cake.
Next, use a fresh piping bag and clean your star tip. Use the same #21 star tip with your red frosting to outline your red section and fill it in with red frosting stars.
Lastly, use a fresh piping bag and clean your star tip again for black. Use your black frosting to pipe a black circle around the white circle, and down the sides of your cake to finish your Pokeball look.
Pokeball Cake Tips
I can’t get my cake out of the pan.
If your cake has broken apart completely you may need to bake another and try again. Use cake release spray or a circle of parchment paper under your cake batter. When your cake is cooled, use a flat knife to separate the cake from the edge of the pan all the way around first. Then it should dump right out if it’s sitting on top of parchment paper.
The cake is breaking when I’m adding a crumb coat.
Try freezing your cake. Put your cake layers in plastic wrap and set them in the freezer. This will harden your cake and make it less prone to breaking. Store-bought icing can also be quite sticky and a difficult consistency to use. I find it’s easier to use homemade buttercream icing because it spreads more easily.
The star tip frosting doesn’t look right.
Practice with your star tip if you’re a beginner. Use your white frosting and pipe stars in the side of your frosting bowl or on a sheet of clean parchment paper so you can dump it back in your frosting bowl and start again without wasting any.
If the stars are runny, your frosting might be too hot so cool it off in the fridge and try again. If it’s still too liquidy, try adding more powdered sugar a tablespoon at a time to firm it up.
If the stars are too solid, your frosting might be too cold or need a bit more heavy cream as liquid.
Pokeball Cake FAQs
- Cake Storage
- You can store this cake in an airtight container at room temperature for about two days before it starts to get dry.
- For longer storage, keep it in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Cake Flavors
- You can use any flavor of cake you’d like for the base of this cake.
- Gluten Free
- You can use gluten free cake mix to make a gluten free Pokeball cake.
More Tips For A Pokemon Themed Birthday
In addition to this awesome Pokemon themed cake, you can use the same principles to make Pokeball pizzas! Use pepperoni to create the red part of your pizza and white mozzarella for the white side. Olives make a good border option or you can try dark colored mushrooms but they won’t be as black.
Pokemon also offers balloons, pinatas, and lots of other Pokemon party supplies you can grab to make your party theme pop!
Final Thoughts on Making a Pokeball Birthday Cake
As the final slice of your Pokeball cake is devoured, you can bid farewell to this delightful confectionery quest. In your mission to catch ‘em all and make a great cake, you can also capture memories, creativity, and the joy of making a celebration truly legendary. Your kids might also love this recipe for peanut butter cake bars, check it out next.
Your Pokemon enthusiasts and birthday guests are going to love the magic of this cake!
Pokeball Cake
Equipment
- Parchment paper
- Open star tip
- piping bags
- Offset spatula
- bowls
- Mixer
- spoons
- Scissors
- 2 7” round baking pans
- Measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients
- Box Cake Mix Any flavor
- 3 Eggs
- 1 cup Milk
- 1/2 cup Oil or melted butter
- 4 cups Powdered sugar
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter
- 2-4 Tbsp Heavy Cream or milk for thinning frosting
- Food Coloring
Instructions
Step 1: Mix Wet Ingredients
- Mix together your wet ingredients if you’re baking from scratch or using a box cake mix. This will ensure your eggs are properly beaten and incorporated throughout your batter evenly.
Step 2: Mix Dry Ingredients
- Mix your dry ingredients together if you’re cooking from scratch, using a whisk. Or add your dry cake mix to your bowl of wet ingredients and mix it all together.
Step 3: Bake Cake Layers
- I used seven inch round cake pans. I suggest using two of these pans per one box of cake mix. A two layer cake will be just fine unless you’re feeding a large crowd. I made three layers as you’ll see in the photos below.
Step 4: Mix Frosting
- While your cake is baking, make your buttercream frosting by beating together butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and heavy cream (or milk). For one batch of frosting, use one cup of room temperature unsalted butter, four cups of powdered sugar, two teaspoons of vanilla and 2-4 tablespoons of cream. Use a stand mixer or hand mixer; you won’t be able to do it with muscle and a whisk.
Step 5: Color Frosting
- You’re going to need white, black and red frosting for decorating a Pokeball cake. The majority of your frosting will be white so you can use it as your crumb coat and between layers of the cake.
- Scoop out about one cup of frosting that you will add red food coloring to. (After your crumb coat and white star tip frosting decorations you may have more white frosting left to add in, but setting aside at least 1 cup is a safe place to start.)
- I only used about 3 tablespoons of black frosting and then divided my remaining frosting between two bowls and colored half of it red.
Step 6: Cool & Trim Cake
- Take your cakes out of the oven and let them cool to room temperature in the pan. Once they are cool, remove them from the pan and wrap them in plastic wrap. They can chill in the fridge or freezer before you’re ready to decorate. A cold cake is easier to add frosting into and to decorate.
- If needed, trim the top and edges of the cake with a large serrated knife (like a bread knife) to make them flat and symmetrical.
Step 7: Assemble & Crumb Coat Cake
- Start by putting your first cake layer on a cake board. Use white icing between the layers of your cake and a thin layer of buttercream on the sides and top of the cake to create a base layer called a ‘crumb coat’. This will catch all the crumbs and give your next layer a good base to stick onto. To spread your icing evenly, use an offset spatula.
- Put your cake in the fridge after adding your crumb coat and get ready to decorate.
Step 8: Decorate Cake
- First, use a toothpick to draw outlines on the cake to help create symmetry. Use a round cookie cutter or glass to create a circle on top of your cake.
- Use an open star tip and a piping bag to decorate your cake. I used Wilton Star Tip #21. Start with the white frosting first and add white stars of frosting to the round center of your cake and outline. Then fill in the white half of your cake.
- Next, use a fresh piping bag and clean your star tip. Use the same #21 star tip with your red frosting to outline your red section and fill it in with red frosting stars.
- Lastly, use a fresh piping bag and clean your star tip again for black. Use your black frosting to pipe a black circle around the white circle, and down the sides of your cake to finish your Pokeball look.
