Creating Kids Birthday Cakes
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This Spongebob cake demonstrates how easily kids birthday cakes, featuring your child's favorite character, can be assembled with pre-made edible images. My daughter selected this Spongebob Cake picture from the wide selection at Partyworks.com. Their website is so easy to use and tells you exactly when your images will arrive so you receive in time for the occasion. My order came in 2 days and was carefully packed, so there's no worry about damage in the mail.
Partyworks offers so many great ideas for kids birthday cakes. I highly recommend them, thanks to a very pleasant experience.
To recreate this SpongeBob cake, you will need the following:
2 - 9" cake layers, cooled and filled
buttercream icing (link) - 3 recipes
blue,green and purple food color paste (link)
blue & green food coloring spray
metal spatula
cake decorating tips #3,10,22
SpongeBob Edible Image
Wilton's green sparkle gel
pastry brush
paintbrush
light brown sugar
Make the buttercream icing medium consistency. Set aside 2 cups for decorating. Tint the icing a light teal by mixing blue and green food coloring paste. Beat and add additional food coloring as necessary to attain the shade you like.
Because I made chocolate cake, rather than spread the icing back and forth, I placed blobs down on the surface of the cake, then came back with metal spatula and blended them together. The key is to avoid touching the surface of the cake and to prevent dragging the icing. To smooth the surface, heat the metal spatula under hot water, wipe off with towel and use. Repeat as often as necessary to smooth icing all over cake. When finished, allow the icing to set for 10 minutes.
To duplicate the look of an underwater scene from SpongeBob Squarepants, I sprayed green food coloring back and forth across the top of the cake. Also spray along the sides on that half of the cake. On the bottom of the cake, I sprayed blue, along with the sides of the cake. Using the pastry brush, blend the colors from left to right across the entire surface. The blue and green should blend nicely in the middle. Allow the food coloring to dry before continuing to the next step.
I drew a line across the cake, marking where I wanted to create the "sand." I created "sand" by spooning light brown sugar on to the cake. Pat it down with a butter knife.
Once dry, place the edible image on the cake, following the instructions to remove it from the paper it comes on. 
The backing of the image is white, so I sprayed the food colors onto a dish and used the paintbrush to blend the white background of the image into the colors of the cake. (If you make a white cake, this step isn't necessary).
Tint some buttercream icing lavender using the purple color food paste. Pipe the Spongebob Squarepants "rocks" on the surface of the cake, as shown, using the number 10 tip. 
Pipe additional "rocks" coming up from the base of the cake, all around the perimeter of the cake.
Using the sparkle gel, create free form flowers on the top and sides of the cake. Repeat the same design on the top and sides of your kids birthday cakes using white buttercream icing and tip number 3. Use the same tip to write you birthday cake message on the top of the cake. Finish off the look by piping a number 22 rope border on the top and bottom edges of the cake.
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