Cut the Rope Cake

 by wold630
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"Deliver candy to Om Nom!" I hear this phrase all the time. Both of my boys love Cut the Rope so for my son's third birthday he decided he wanted a cake with Om Nom - his favorite character, of course!

There are many beautiful and amazing cakes out there that have been covered/decorated with fondant. I am sort of a fondant hater. Mainly because it tastes horrible! I have bought fondant and made (marshmallow) fondant from scratch with the same outcome. The cake tastes great but the fondant has to be picked off and thrown away.

Now, if you don't have kids you might not think this is a big deal but when they don't like the taste of fondant and you have to take it off of their cake and all the frosting goes with it.......well, there are many, many unwanted tears to deal with!

So, in an attempt to satisfy my little birthday boy I tried my best to smooth out buttercream frosting instead of using fondant. A usual event for me when making cakes. With that said, there is no better way to create characters and/or graphic decorations than to use fondant. All of the dots and characters on this cake are made using store bought fondant.

To make this cake you will need the following:

two - 9 inch square cakes of your choice
buttercream frosting - white, green and blue
piping bags
two #3 decorating tips
couplers
toothpicks, misc. tools
cake board/cardboard for putting the cake on
waxed paper
food coloring
spreading knife
fondant and some creativity!
 
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Step 1:

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This is pretty simple to explain.

Get out fondant. Add food coloring of your choice and knead until the color is uniform throughout. I like using Wilton icing colors because the color turns out so rich. I have tried using the cheap liquid drop version with less luck. The color just isn't as vibrant in my opinion.

Years ago in painting class I was told to never use the paint right out of the tube. The paint should be mixed in some way with another color. I would recommend this when using food coloring just so it's not so typical. I understand that a color might be perfect so don't change it if you don't have to, but it's fun to experiment and get some new colors that you've never tried. Optional, of course but you might surprise yourself. Don't be afraid!!!

The hard part is sculpting characters and decorations you need. Try and try again is the best method. Using tools can be helpful. A knife, toothpicks, ceramic tools (clean please), cups, glasses, cookie cutters, etc.

Use your fingers to smooth out the fondant making sure there are no visible cracks. Use a tiny bit of water to get pieces to stick to one another. If you need very thin pieces roll out fondant between pieces of waxed paper coating the fondant lightly with cornstarch so it doesn't stick. When I cut out the green circles I left them out for a while so they were stiff and easier to work with. Once they sit on the frosting a while they get soft again so don't worry about having crispy pieces on your cake!

I will try to briefly explain how to make each character/design:

Om Nom - I decided after Om Nom was complete to enter this cake and start taking pictures so I don't have good pictures of the process to make him. He is two separate pieces. I started with a basic half sphere and then made the top of his head a little more pointed and indented the bottom part so his head would sit well on the base or bottom half of his body. Make a small little snake shape, rounded at the end for the top of his head. Use a dab of water to stick it on. For his eyes I just pressed out some white fondant but you could roll it with a rolling pin if you want. Get the shape you want and again stick the pieces on with a dab of water. Make two tiny black dots to complete the eyes. To make the bottom of Om Nom start with another half sphere. Using a table knife cut a square out of the front to make his front legs. You will have to shape them and smooth out the fondant where you cut. Make two cubes and stick them on the sides to make his back legs. Make four wide rounded triangles and put them underneath the top piece to make his teeth.

Stars - If you have a star cookie cutter that is the right size it would be great for this. I shaped them with my fingers since I don't have a cookie cutter and rounded the points. Make a small thin white shake and press it down flat. Edge the stars with the white to give them detail and add white dots.

Balloons - using light blue fondant make a circle that is somewhat rounded and not completely flat. Add a small triangle to one of the sides for the air spout. Using dark blue fondant make rounded squares and add to the center. Cut more rounded squares in half and put four on each side of each balloon.

Candy - Make a ball with yellow fondant and press it down to make flat sides. Make long red triangles and adhere four of them with points meeting in the center.

Spiders - Make a circle out of black fondant. Using a toothpick make indents all around the edge. Press out white circles and black dots for the eyes. These are simple!

Spikes - Using brownish fondant roll a thin snake and press it down flat. Make several gray diamonds and stick them along the brown snake.

Circles - To make the green circles I rolled the fondant out as thin as possible and cut them with the top of a small shot glass. Let them dry out to make them easier to stick on the cake.

I have modeled this cake from the Fabric Box from Cut the Rope which includes: om nom, stars, candy, spiders, air balloons and the spikes that breaks the candy. Don't skimp on the details. It will take longer but the outcome will be well worth it!
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komecake says: May 25, 2013. 12:15 PM
This is super awesome!
wold630 (author) in reply to komecakeMay 27, 2013. 4:21 PM
Thank you!
owlyfreak says: Jan 4, 2013. 2:41 PM
Uhhhgggggg, I hate fondant... But I know somebody who loves it so mutch she could eat a ball of it.... She really likes sugar :/...
one-lightbulb says: Jun 15, 2012. 5:39 AM
Very nice! How long did it take to make such a lovely cake?
wold630 (author) in reply to one-lightbulbJun 15, 2012. 6:30 AM
Thank you. That's a great question. I didn't really keep track of time but I would estimate it took me about 5-6 hours.
marianinaberioso in reply to wold630Oct 16, 2012. 8:34 PM
quite long... Love your cake!
wold630 (author) in reply to marianinaberiosoOct 18, 2012. 8:59 AM
Thank you. It was worth every minute for all of those smiles from my son!
CRAFTYCHRISI31 says: Sep 26, 2012. 9:30 AM
The cake is Awesome!!!!!
How about much fondant do you think you used.

I hate spending hours kneading and coloring it, I was thinking of buying one box of the wilton pre-colored multipack and an box of the white.

Do you think that will be enogh my main cocern is having enough green( 4oz).


I know the other colors should be enough
wold630 (author) in reply to CRAFTYCHRISI31Sep 26, 2012. 10:00 AM
Thank you.

I had a standard box of Wilton white fondant and used less than half of it since the cake itself isn't covered in fondant. I haven't see the pre-colored boxes but my guess would be that it would be enough. You could always use another color to form Om Nom and just cover him with the green - that way you wouldn't run out of green and you could use up a color that you may not need.

The nice thing about coloring white fondant is that you get the exact colors you want. Please post a picture when you are done with your cake! I would love to see it!
CRAFTYCHRISI31 in reply to wold630Sep 27, 2012. 7:27 AM
Thank you for the advice I will definately post photos when I'm done.

I've decide to do an open mouth Omnom.

Cant wait.
rrkrose says: Aug 10, 2012. 9:38 PM
I didn't have a ton of time to make this so it didn't turn out nearly as well as yours but I was still happy with it. :)
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wold630 (author) in reply to rrkroseAug 11, 2012. 6:11 AM
Nice work! It looks great!
nycnyusa says: Jun 17, 2012. 11:05 AM
I love this!! I made it for my sister for her birthday and she did too. My fondant was homemade so it didn't look as smooth (it was also marshmallow) but we still love it! Thanks for the great cake!!
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wold630 (author) in reply to nycnyusaJun 17, 2012. 2:09 PM
Thank you for sending the picture, your cake looks great!! I'm so glad you made one! :)
rrkrose in reply to wold630Jun 23, 2012. 9:22 PM
I made one and it looked very similar to this!
wold630 (author) in reply to rrkroseJun 24, 2012. 5:31 AM
We would love to see a picture!
sholstenberg says: Jun 16, 2012. 1:10 PM
...it is an amazing cake!!! ...if you really do not like fondant, maybe you could try marzipan?! :) ...it tastes way better (if you like almonds) and you can color it the same way as fondant and if you add sugar powder slowly, you can get exactly the consistency you need to sculpt those absolutely adorable figures!! :)
wold630 (author) in reply to sholstenbergJun 16, 2012. 2:11 PM
Thank you, I'm glad you liked it.
sholstenberg in reply to wold630Jun 16, 2012. 9:21 PM
...oh, I just read that someone already suggested marzipan to you, so sorry for that! :) ...I have never heard of modeling chocolate before, but I looked it up just now and it seems a great alternative - with white chocolate, you can even color it... because I really love it that your cake is so colorful!!! ...wish I could vote in the baking contest... as I think I can't, I will keep my fingers crossed for you and will watch out for more of your work! ...thanks for sharing it!!
gotsparkles says: Jun 14, 2012. 2:09 PM
GREAT cake!! For the buttercream frosting, shouldn't there be powdered sugar in the ingredients? Or is this a different type of frosting? Am I just a ding-dong and missing something?? :)
wold630 (author) in reply to gotsparklesJun 14, 2012. 4:17 PM
Wow, good catch! I just edited the recipe. I do not think it would work without the powdered sugar, yes, it needs it! Thanks!
gotsparkles in reply to wold630Jun 14, 2012. 10:32 PM
I really love your work on this - just too stinkin' cute!! (Although I admit I have no idea what Cut the Rope is....) :)
wold630 (author) in reply to gotsparklesJun 15, 2012. 4:49 AM
Thanks again. Cut the Rope is an iPhone/iPad game with a little character named Om Nom (who is the centerpiece of the cake). You have to strategically cut ropes to get a piece of candy in his mouth. Sounds silly but it's very addictive.
MaidenSteel says: Jun 14, 2012. 5:12 PM
Have you tried using marzipan instead of fondant? It has similar qualities in that it can be coloured and moulded easily, and it tastes considerably better!
wold630 (author) in reply to MaidenSteelJun 14, 2012. 6:18 PM
Unfortunately I feel the same way about marzipan that I do about fondant. Someone did suggest modeling/molding chocolate. I might have to try that next.
askris says: Jun 14, 2012. 12:13 PM
Cute! And it looks so professional Love your attention to detail. Wanted to suggest you something, for the figures, haven't you tried molding chocolate? I hate fondant too and molding chocolate tastes good! Cons is that kids will fight to eat them. =)
wold630 (author) in reply to askrisJun 14, 2012. 1:08 PM
I haven't tried it but I will have to next time. I have heard it is good and I really hate fondant so that is a great suggestion. Thank you!
bitsy113 says: Jun 14, 2012. 11:45 AM
That is adorable!!;) I took cake decorating classes and I'm going to have to do this for my daughters birthday, she'd love it! Thanks so much for the great instructable!
wold630 (author) in reply to bitsy113Jun 14, 2012. 1:07 PM
I'm glad you enjoyed it. Send a picture if you make the cake. I'm sure it will be adorable especially since you have taken classes! You probably know more tricks than I do!
evilution says: Jun 14, 2012. 10:49 AM
OMFG! Too cute. I can just hear the noise he makes when he doesn't get the sweet.
wold630 (author) in reply to evilutionJun 14, 2012. 1:05 PM
It's the cutest sound isn't it??!!
HollyHarken says: Jun 14, 2012. 9:07 AM
There are some really fantastic fondant recipies out there that taste great. My personal favorite is from The Cake Bible by Rose Levi Beranbaum. I make it using Mexican vanilla and it is truly fantastic!!! I can't tell you how many pounds I put on eating the left over fondant! My sister uses a fondant recipe from allrecipies.com that she really likes. So don't give up and use the crap that Wilton sells. Most Michael's craft stores now carry fondant made by Duff Goldman. I haven't tried it, but I'm sure that it is so much better than the crap that Wilton puts out.

Here is the fondant recipe from The Cake Bible.
1 tablespoon clear gelatin like Knox gelatin. One of the paper packets equals 1 tablespoon.
3 tablespoons water
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 tablespoon glycerine You can buy this at a cake decorating shop or at a big Jo-Anns ETC store.
2 tablespoons solid white shortening (NOT BUTTER FLAVORED!!!)
2 pounds of sifted powdered sugar
1 teaspoon of real vanilla extract Mexican vanilla is the best that I found.

Place the sifted powdered sugar in the bowl of the stand mixer. Make a well in the sugar to pour the wet ingredients into it.

Sprinkle the gelatin over the water in a 2 cup heatproof glas measuring cup and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Set in a small pa of simmering water and stir until the gelatin is dissolved, or microwave a few seconds on hig power. Blend in the light corn syrup and glycerine, then add the shortening and stir until melted. Remove from the heat. Add in the vanilla and stir.
Pour the wet ingredients into the well you made in the powdered sugar and mix with the dough hook until the fondant is well kneaded. If it seems too dry add several drops of water and knead well. If it seams too sticky, knead in more powdered sugar. The fondant will resemble a smooth, well shaped stone. When dropped, it should spread very slightly, but retain its shape. It should be malleable like clay, soft, but not sticky.
Store in an airtight bag at room temperature for up to a month. It can be frozen indefinitely. Simply thaw, knead and use as needed.

I hope that this recipe will help you make a flavorful fondant to cover or decorate your cakes with. Best of luck!
This works best if you have a stand mixer with a dough hook.
Place pow
wold630 (author) in reply to HollyHarkenJun 14, 2012. 1:05 PM
Thank you for the recipe. I will have to think about it since I can't bring myself to use shortening. I know the store bought stuff is probably worse but I still can't actually pick up the container of shortening!!! My hands just won't do it! Bummer! Thanks again.
HollyMann says: Jun 7, 2012. 4:52 PM
this is adorable! The game is awesome too! Really excellent job using that icing vs. fondant - looks amazing!
wold630 (author) in reply to HollyMannJun 7, 2012. 6:23 PM
Thanks! We are addicted to Cut the Rope too!
mrscoloradogal says: May 29, 2012. 9:19 AM
This is super cute! You did a great job sculpting all those little details, too!
wold630 (author) in reply to mrscoloradogalMay 29, 2012. 9:31 PM
Thank you - details make all the difference!!
canida says: May 24, 2012. 4:11 PM
Fantastic! I love the picture in Step 4. :D

The neat thing about putting fondant critters on top is that none of the kids will be fighting over who gets to eat it, and it will survive the party.
wold630 (author) in reply to canidaMay 24, 2012. 6:00 PM
Thank you! He played with Om Nom until yesterday when he was finally disassembled and destroyed!
TheMacyC says: May 22, 2012. 9:28 AM
So awesome !
Love it ! You got my vote + 5 star rating !
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