Swimming Pool Cake
It is that time of year again, when thoughts turn to pool parties! Why not make a swimming pool cake to celebrate a special birthday? With a few simple steps it is fun and easy to do!
Start your swimming pool cake
First, bake a 10" or 12" round cake in the flavor of your choice. Mix up a batch or two of of your favorite frosting and have several colors of fondant handy. You can use toys for the pool or you can sculpt your own depending on your preference. I used a 10" red velvet cake with three layers of cake and 2 layers of cream cheese filling. Before adding the top layer of cake, I froze it and carved out a 6" circle. With the layer of cake frozen, it was easy to place it on the top of the other layers. Once all the layers are on the cake, finish with a light crumb coat and place it in the fridge to chill. During this time you can prepare for the next steps.
Cover your pool cake with fondant
Roll out your fondant. For a 10" cake that is approximately 4" tall, you'll need an 18" circle of fondant. Roll out your fondant, using cornstarch or powdered sugar underneath your rolling surface so that it doesn't stick to the counter. When the cake is sufficiently chilled, place your fondant on top of the cake. Use your hands and/or a fondant smoother to create a beautiful finished canvas to begin decorating.
Embellish your pool cake
Begin embellishing the cake. This pool is an above-ground pool, so the blue fondant represents the paneling on the side of the pool. Adding flowers and foliage jazzes it up a bit, too. This can be as simple or as complicated as you'd like it to be. Affix the panels and other decorations with buttercream or royal icing.
Add a slide, towel and umbrella!
Time for adornments! Simple paper umbrellas and a slide fashioned out of gum paste made my cake a lot of fun. The beach towel, girl in the pool, flowers and the ball are all made from fondant. If you like, you can use Disney Princess dolls, Polly Pockets or any other little dolls that you think will work. To make the water, use pre-made or homemade piping gel. For the small quantity needed for this cake, homemade works out great and is really easy. You can get the variations in the water by splitting your piping gel into two bowls and coloring one bowl a slightly different shade of blue than the other one.