Monsters Under the Bed Cake
- Prep Time
- Cool Time
- Cook Time
- Servings
- 20m
- 60m
- 35-45m
- 12-14
INGREDIENTS:
For the cake:
1 1/3 cups unsalted butter, plus more for preparing the baking sheets
6 tablespoons avocado oil
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for preparing the baking sheets
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
For the chocolate buttercream:
3 cups unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
8 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder, sifted
Milk or heavy cream, as needed
Black gel food coloring
For decorating:
1 (40-count) box store bought puffed rice marshmallow treats (or homemade 18”x13” sheet tray)
3 pounds satin finish white fondant
¼ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
Confectioner’s sugar, for dusting and rolling fondant
Candy eyes (and any other assorted candy monster themed pieces of choice)
PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Using the extra butter and flour, lightly grease a GreenPan Premiere Half Sheet Pan and Quarter Sheet Pan (bottom and sides), then dust with flour. Shake and turn the pans so they are evenly floured, then turn out the excess flour.
2. In a medium GreenPan saucepan, melt together the 1 1/2 cups of butter, oil, granulated sugar, and light brown sugar on the stovetop over medium heat, until the sugar is mostly dissolved, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add the cocoa powder to the saucepan and whisk until completely smooth and combined, with no lumps remaining. Reduce the temperature to low and slowly whisk in the buttermilk. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and vanilla. Gradually pour in the warm cocoa mixture, whisking constantly to combine evenly without cooking the eggs.
4. In a medium mixing bowl whisk to evenly combine the 3 1/2 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry ingredients into the wet and mix until completely combined and smooth, but try to not overmix or you’ll have a tougher cake.
5. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans, gently pushing to the edges and smoothing the tops as needed. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes mostly clean (keep an eye on the smaller quarter sheet pan, as that will cook 4 to 5 minutes faster than the half sheet pan). Transfer the sheet pans to a wire rack and allow the cakes to cool for 10 to 15 minutes.
6. While the cake is cooling, add the butter to a stand mixer fit with a paddle attachment, or a large mixing bowl if using a hand mixer. Beat on medium high speed until smooth with no lumps remaining, then mix in the vanilla and salt. With the mixer on low, add the confectioners’ sugar ½ cup at a time until all 8 cups are added, followed by the cocoa powder. Adjust the consistency of the frosting as desired with milk or heavy cream until it’s thick but spreadable. Add just enough food coloring to tint the frosting black.
7. To assemble the cake, begin by carefully removing the cooled cakes from the baking sheets by loosening them around the edges then flipping out onto parchment lined trays or wire racks. Cut the larger cake in half through the equator so that you have three equal rectangles of cake.
8. Arrange enough puffed rice marshmallow treats on a rectangular cake board or serving platter to create a 9”x13” rectangle – the same size as the rectangles of cake. Spread a thin layer of frosting over the top of the treats and carefully place one of the pieces of cake on top. Spread another thin layer of frosting on top of the cake. Repeat this process until you have four layers with frosting on top of each. Use the remaining frosting to make a thin coat on all four sides of the cake. Ensure the bottom half all the way around the cake is quite smooth, as this will be the ‘dark space under the bed’ to place the candy eyes
9. To create the headboard, lay enough puffed rice marshmallow treats out on a cutting board to create a rectangle roughly 10” by 7”. Squeeze the marshmallow treats firmly together so it makes a relatively solid piece (you can also help them stick together with toothpicks, if desired). Place the cocoa powder on a clean work surface and place 1 ½ pounds of fondant on top. Knead the fondant until it is soft and pliable, and the cocoa powder has fully worked in, making it a light brown color.
10. Dusting the work surface and fondant with confectioners’ sugar as needed, roll the fondant out into a large rectangle, large enough that it will easily cover all sides of the ‘headboard’. Place the rectangle of puffed rice marshmallow treats on top of the rolled fondant, with one of the long sides almost touching one of the long sides of the fondant. Bring the other side of fondant up and over the treats to wrap the headboard. Trip the sides and bottom edge as needed with a paring knife so you can create neat seams on those three sides, but with no treats showing. If needed, a small pastry brush (or your finger) dipped in water or vodka can help you seal the seams and make sure they stick together nicely. Press the headboard against one of the short sides of the cake (with the seam side down against the cake board), leaving about ½” hanging out on each side.
11. Clean and dry your work surface then lightly dust with confectioners’ sugar. Place another 1 ½ pounds of fondant on the confectioner’s sugar and knead until soft and pliable. (If you’d like, you can tint this with food coloring for the blanket and pillows, but it also looks great leaving it white!) Dusting with more confectioners’ sugar as needed, roll the fondant out into a large rectangle, roughly 12” by 17”. Trim the edges to make it more rectangle (it doesn’t have to be perfect. Cut 3” off a short end of the rectangle, leaving a piece that is about 12” by 14” – this will be for the blanket. Lightly dust the blanket with confectioner’s sugar and loosely roll it up over the rolling pin. Starting one inch away from the headboard, lay the end of the blanket down on the bed with an equal amount hanging over each side, and unroll off the rolling pin to drape the blanket over the full length of the bed.
12. Use the remaining piece of rolled white fondant to wrap two more small rectangles of puffed rice marshmallow treats to create pillows and lay them on the bed propped against the headboards. To finish the cake, press any candy eyes and monster candy pieces you desired into the frosting around the bottom of the cake, below the draped blanket, making it appear they are looking out from underneath – and have fun decorating and making the cake as detailed as you wish!
Tips
At any point when stacking or frosting the cake, if it feels unstable and difficult to frost, place the cake and frosting in the refrigerator for 20 minutes to firm – this will make it a lot more stable and easier to work with!
Fondant loves to stick! Keeping the confectioners’ sugar nearby and dusting your work surface and rolling pin lightly as you roll it out helps a lot, but don’t forget to also rotate and lift the fondant frequently so it doesn’t glue itself down—or you risk tearing when you drape it over the cake.
The puffed rice treat headboard should feel sturdy just pressed to the frosting on the cake, but if it leans, don’t hesitate to slide a couple of trimmed wooden skewers or thick toothpicks into the cake to support it. It’s better to anchor early than to risk shifting once it’s decorated!
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