Mermaid Merriment

Recipes

Mermaid Merriment

My eldest will be celebrating her fourth birthday soon, and accordingly, she has been planning her party for a couple months (she’s so my daughter). We’ve been throwing around theme ideas for a while, but can never get farther than her current obsession: mermaids!

Thus, I’ve been spying adorable projects for Charlotte’s party like a hawk, leaving no blog unread and no DIY tutorial unwatched. And when I noticed Maria Provenzano‘s adorable Sand Castle Cake on Home and Family, I knew I had found the perfect centerpiece for my little mermaid princess’s shell-ebration! Not only is it gorgeous, but it’s full of delicious chocolate and coconut, too. Yum! Below are the instructions (as provided by Maria Provenzano), as well as a tutorial video as seen on Home and Family.

By the way, beyond the chocolate-y deliciousness of this cake, I now have a bigger budget for other party stuff – like this amazing Mermaid Tail or this gorgeous stand-in Photo Booth backdrop! We are in beach heaven over here!

SandCastle

Ingredients
  • Chocolate Cake; I used 2 8 inch rounds for this specific cake
  • 5 icecream cones with flat bottoms
  • Buttercream Icing:
  • 1 cup unsalted butter; room temperature
  • 1 pound powdered sugar
  • 2-5- tablespoons whole milk; room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Sand
  • 2 cups ground graham crackers
  • 2 cups coconut, toasted and finely ground
  • White Candy Coating Chocolate
  • Candy Seashell mold
Instructions
  1. Buttercream Icing:
  2. Beat the butter until it becomes light
  3. Add in the powdered sugar and slowly begin to mix together
  4. Add in the vanilla extract
  5. With the mixer running (stand mixer or hand mixer works) add in a couple tablespoons of room temperature milk; add more if the frosting is too thick; you are looking for it to be spreadable and smooth
  6. For the “sand”
  7. Preheat oven to 350 degree
  8. Place the coconut onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and spread it out so it is in an even layer
  9. Place in the oven for 5-10 minutes or until lightly toasted, and the color of sand you are looking for
  10. Allow to cool
  11. Place the graham crackers and the cooled toasted coconut into a food processor and process until it looks like sand!
  12. White Chocolate Seashells:
  13. Place the white candy coating chocolate in a bowl over a pot with simmering water, being sure the water isn’t touching the bowl
  14. Stir frequently until the chocolate has melted
  15. Pour the chocolate into the clean candy molds
  16. Tap on the counter to help the chocolate spread throughout the mold
  17. Place in the fridge to harden
  18. Once hardened, the chocolate can be removed from the mold
  19. For the Cake
  20. Place the cake on a cake stand
  21. Apply the “crumb coat” which is a single layer of icing to hold down any crumbs
  22. Place in the fridge for 15-30 minutes
  23. Take the cake out, and immediately apply another clean layer of icing, smoothing it out with an off-set spatula to make it look clean
  24. Use your hands to apply the “sand” around the sides of the cake
  25. Cover the ice-cream cones with frosting, and coat them with sand
  26. Place the ice-cream cones around the top of the cake
  27. Cover the top of the cake that is still showing frosting with the “sand”
  28. Place the white chocolate seashells around the cake as desired

Check out the video for full instructions and a step-by-step tutorial!