How to make the cartoon SLICE cake

Unless you’ve been under a rock or not on the food side of tiktok, everybody has been going crazy over the cartoon slice cake designs coming from left and right. It looks like cake artist Tigga Mac started this trend, but we can’t be for certain. So without further ado let’s get cracking, This is probably an Intermediate level Cake decorating design, and took me about 2 hours to get through this including filming and taking photos.

Equipment needed for the cartoon Slice cake

Serrated Knife
12-inch or 16-inch piping bag
12 or 14 inch Cake Board
Clay Extruder (only used for fondant)
Roll Pin
Offset Spatula
Scissors
Xacto Knife
Paintbrush
Ruler, optional

Supplies needed for the cake

¼ sheet cake (single-layer)
4 cups buttercream
24 oz white fondant
4.4 oz green fondant
4.4 oz navy blue fondant
2 oz black fondant
A small cup of water
¼ cup powdered sugar or cornstarch/powdered sugar mix

Let’s get started!

Start with a pre-baked sheet cake. This was one box of cake mix in a 1/4 sheet pan. Slice 3 triangle shapes from the sheet cake.

You will end up with 4 but only need 3, the 4 will leave the cake non-sturdy.
Add frosting to the layers and stack the 3 layers
Chill if necessary (see notes)
Frost the outside of the cake with a fluffy buttercream or ganache.
Smooth out the buttercream, correcting the shape of the cake with buttercream.

Fondant Instructions for Panelling the Sides

Knead the fondant until it is soft like playdoh, there should be no cracks or creases, the fondant should be smooth.
Dust your work surface with powdered sugar (or the powdered sugar+corn starch mixture).
Roll out the fondant to ¾ inch thickness (just enough to cover one side of the cake). Do not flip the fondant over to roll, only roll on that one side.
Lay the fondant against the cold/frozen cake.
Cut out the shape of side one with the xacto knife.
Roll out more fondant and repeat for sides 2 and 3.
Lightly mist the icing or the fondant on the side being adhered to the cake.
Press gently onto the cake and adhere each of the sides to one another with a little bit of water.

Dust the surface again, knead and roll out the green fondant for the “icing” on top.
Roll it into a long triangle, and drape it over the top.
Lift up the overhang and add a small amount of water where you want the icing to hang over the sides.
Use a Xacto knife to carve the squiggle lines mimicking the appearance of a drip icing.
Roll the blue fondant into a log.
Press the log down with two fingers, the more imperfect the better for the “filling” in the slice of cake.
Adhere with a very small amount of water onto the blue fondant, it should be tacky, not wet.
Place on the side. (repeat twice per side)

Roll a thick, long log of white fondant for the “swirl of icing” on top of the cake.
Circle it around itself until you have the swirl, set aside.
- Outline in black
Add black fondant to the clay extruder, and use the small circle attachment (but not the smallest circle).
Outline your entire cake in the black fondant adhering with a tiny bit of water.
It’s best to apply it on the cake itself just get it tacky enough to stick.
If it breaks that’s super ok! It is supposed to look sketched! Broken black lines help make it look more like a cartoon.
Add additional embellishments if you’d like.

To clean up the cartoon slice cake design:

You can use vodka or lemon juice to get any remaining powdered sugar off the fondant once the cake has dried. The alcohol content in both will have it evaporate and dry quickly while leaving the cake without any extra powdered sugar on it.

Helpful Notes, Tips & Tricks from Chef Kim

It’s easier to work with frozen cake when stacking the layers and adding buttercream, it reduces crumbs, and the cake won’t break.

If you accidentally cut the cake too narrow or too wide and need to adjust it, you can use buttercream to build up any imperfections. Freeze between applications.

Keep the fondant covered in ziplock bags when not in use, this keeps it from drying out.

If an air bubble appears in your fondant after kneading it, use a small stick pin or push pin to release the air pocket and rub it gently with your finger

Water should hold the fondant pieces on, however, if it doesn’t you can create glue by taking a tiny bit of white fondant and mixing it with a little water until a small paste forms.

If you have tylose powder on hand – mix 1 tsp with 1 tsp water and it is the BEST form of sticking fondant to fondant.