Before you scroll down the page, can you guess the surprise that's hiding inside this
Eagle Scout Reveal Cake?
When I set out to create this cake, I knew it had to be as special as the person for whom it was going to be celebrating.
My nephew is one of the most amazing kids I know and I'm not just saying that because he's related. He truly is special.
Not only is he trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent, everything a boy scout is meant to be, but he is also intelligent, athletic, handsome, and fun.
He's on the varsity football and varsity baseball teams, he get's straight A's in A.P. Honors classes, and he just became an Eagle Scout.
I was honored to help him celebrate such an amazing achievement and I delighted in seeing him cut into the cake that I created for his big day.
Have you guessed what's inside the cake yet? Drum roll, please...
We're you right?
Can you imagine what it was like to see Brian cut into this cake in front of 60 friends and family?
The crowds reaction was enthusiastic, to say the least.
It got even better when we served slices of the cake to everyone. People were coming up asking for the recipe, as well as, for the secret to creating a reveal cake.
They were all shocked to find out that I used cake mixes to create this amazing cake.
Creating a reveal cake is an incredible amount of work, so to reduce the time spent, I use cake mixes, but I doctor them up with sour cream, milk, and white chocolate pudding. It makes a dense yet moist cake that has a vanilla custard flavor.
This time I even added sour cream to the pound cake which was used for the letters, and I'll never make it any other way. We've been happily eating the scraps that were cut from the letters for days.
There's nothing more satisfying than serving a cake that looks and tastes incredible.
It's hard to impress teen age boys, so I was happy to see the big smile on Brian's face when he cut his cake. I knew he was as proud of his aunt as I was of him and his amazing accomplishment.
If you have a son, nephew, grandson or friend who will become an Eagle Scout, make him one of these cakes. He'll remember it forever.
Of course, this surprise inside technique can be used for just about any occasion.
To date I have created a Chocolate and Vanilla "Marry Me?" Reveal Cake, a Pink and Blue "We R Prego" Reveal Cake, a Raspberry Lemon "I Love You" Reveal Cake, and a Rainbow Tie-Dye Surprise Birthday Cake.
To create this Eagle Scout Reveal Cake, follow the recipe below to make the amazingly delicious pound cakes for the letters and the exterior red and blue cakes.
If you'd like to see detailed step-by-step instructions for creating a reveal cake like this, click over to my Chocolate and Vanilla "Marry Me?" Reveal Cake tutorial.
When I made this Eagle Scout cake, I used a metal baking core to get a more evenly baked pound cake. It worked great.
These cakes are really thick and the baking core really helped evenly distribute the heat. Now, I didn't use it when I baked the red and blue cakes, because I didn't want a hole in the cake, but I will definitely use it again for the pound cakes. I think the addition of the sour cream in the recipe and using the baking core really made this cake much more moist than usual.
You can decorate the outside of your cake, however you'd like using frosting or fondant.
My cake was actually decorate twice.
Why?
Well, it was not my intention, but the nice red, white and blue frosted eagle scout cake, pictured above, which was decorated using a piping gel transfer, looked great when I went to bed the night before the ceremony. Sadly, when I went to take some pictures of all my desserts the next morning, I realized I had made a huge mistake.
I was so nervous about cutting into the cake to make the big reveal in front of a large crowd of people, that I cut a slice about an inch into the front of the cake and down just far enough to see the tops of the letters. I wanted to make sure they looked right. Then I pushed the cake back together and frosted it.
I didn't want to cut into the cake and see a cake like this. I made this cake for a baby shower for my friend and you can see that I tried to put the baby's birth date in the cake and it didn't work. It was a bit of a mess. You can't even tell the bottom cake says 5-1-15.
I would not suggest trying to add small cut outs like the dashes in your cakes. I am not exactly sure why the letters rose up in such a strong curved pattern either. All I know is I used a different cake mix that was a little larger than the others, and it might have just been too much batter in the pans.
I cut into this cake in front of 25 party guests, and while they did "ooh and ahh," I was disappointed.
So, when my beautifully decorated eagle scout cake cracked, I had to scrape off the frosting and start over.
I spent 5 more hours decorating this new cake. UHG!!!
In the end, the new cake was far superior to the first cake, but I was exhausted after spending the day before making Red, White and Blue Whoopie Pie Stars, Red Velvet Cupcakes, Chocolate and Dulce de Leche Mousse Cups, Red, White and Blue Cake Pops, an Eagle Scout Cheesecake, and White Chocolate Popcorn.
Thankfully my sister helped the day before and my husband came to my rescue the day of the event.
My husband isn't handy in the kitchen, but knew my back was hurting so he rolled out a 24 inch piece of fondant to cover this large cake. He's my hero!
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- 3 16 ounce boxes pound cake mix
- 1 ½ sticks ¾ cup butter, softened
- 1 ⅓ cups milk
- ⅔ cup sour cream
- 6 eggs
- 3 8.25 ounce packages Pillsbury Funfetti Red Cake Mix
- 1 ½ 3.4 ounce packages white chocolate pudding mix
- 1 ½ cups sour cream
- 6 egg whites
- 1 ¼ cup whole milk
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- 3 8.25 ounce packages Pillsbury Funfetti Blue Cake Mix
- 1 ½ 3.4 ounce packages white chocolate pudding mix
- 1 ½ cups sour cream
- 6 egg whites
- 1 ¼ cup whole milk
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
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Preheat oven to 350ºF.
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Line two 8x3-inch square baking pans with two strips of non-stick tin foil or parchment paper for easy removal.
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If using, place one metal cake rod in each pan (under or over the tin foil.)
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Pound Cake Letters:
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Combine the pound cake mix with the softened butter and beat on medium low speed to break up the butter into small pieces. Add the milk, sour cream, and eggs and beat on low for 30 seconds then on medium for 1 minute.
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Eequally divide the batter among the two 8x3-inch square pans.
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Bake for 65-75 minutes, until a thin wood skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
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Cool cakes in pans for 10 minutes, then remove cakes and set on a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.
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Trim off the domed top and about ¼ inch from the sides of each cake.
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Cut cakes into 8 slices, about ¾ inches thick. Lay the slices flat on non-stick tin foil or parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
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Set in the freezer for at least one hour.
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Remove 2 slices of cake from the freezer at a time and use small alphabet cookie cutters to cut out the letters needed to spell out “Eagle Scout”.
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Refreeze letters for about an hour.
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Cake Layers:
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Preheat one or two ovens to 350ºF.
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Line two 8x3-inch square baking pans with two strips of non-stick tinfoil or parchment paper for easy removal.
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Mark the front of each cake layer by cutting or marking the foil or parchment paper.
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Red Cake Layer:
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Combine Pillsbury Funfetti red cake mixes with the white chocolate pudding mix, sour cream, egg whites, milk and oil. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds the on medium for 2 minutes.
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Pour some of the cake batter into a piping bag.
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Pipe red batter into the openings of the "EAGLE" cake letters, filling them ⅔ full.
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Pipe a thin layer of red batter over the bottom of one of the square pans. Set the letters “EAGLE” in a row about ½ inch from the front of the pan. Continue to add letters, piping batter in between as you go, until you have 8 rows of letters in the pan.
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Pipe batter all around and over top of the letters.
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Bake for about 1 hour 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The top of the cake will get very deep brown and may crack.
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Repeat this process to create a blue cake layer with the word “SCOUT” inside.
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Note: If using only one oven, allow the first cake to bake completely before making the second. It will take about 40 minutes to prepare the second cake and it's best not to open the oven door at that point in the baking process.
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Allow the cakes to cool for 10 minutes in their pans, then remove to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.
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Cut off the domed part of each cake, being sure you don't cut into the letters.
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Set the blue cake on an 8-inch square cake board so that the letters face forward. Spread frosting over the layer.
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Set the red cake on top, making sure the letters face forward. Frost and decorate cakes.
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Items needed to create this cake can be found at Amazon.com (commission earned for sales)
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Lindsay
Beth, My son gets his Eagle October 11. I have been studying your recipe for months to prepare. I have two questions. The only letters I found are made by Rimobul, and they are the right size, but only 1/2 inch thick...will that work? Also, I don't have "decorator" writing, and was going to do the Congrats Daniel letters on the cake in red fondant. Will the red bleed onto the white Wilton frosting? I wish you were with me to help, but your instructions are so thorough and thoughtful, I am praying I can do this! 🙂 Lindsay
Beth
That's so exciting Lindsay. Becoming an Eagle Scout is such an honor. I just realized I had not added Amazon links to the recipe post and that the letter cutters I used are now linked to the post. If you have letter cutters that will work, but are thinner, you may just need to cut more cake slices so you can cut the cake using the letter cutters you have on hand. I'd suggest cutting one slice and seeing if you can get a good cut from the letters. The slice can be slightly thicker than the cutter, as the cake will compress a bit as you cut through it.
If you buy already colored red fondant and put it on a frosted cake that is at room temperature and you don't freeze or refrigerate the decorated cake, you should be fine. If the fondant and frosting become really cold then warm up, condensation can form and cause bleeding. So, if you freeze or refrigerate the cake at any point, just be sure you wait until the frosted cake comes to room temperature before adding the fondant. I have read that people who've used homemade red fondant have had bleeding issues. I love the new Wilton Fondant and it can be found at craft stores and even some Walmart stores.
For the NOAH cake, I used Betty Crocker red cookie icing. I made an imprint on the frosting with some letter stamps then frosted over them so my letters looked nice. I can't pipe letters freehand very well. I do think cutting them out is easier though.
I hope it all goes well for you and that everyone at the ceremony loves the cake! Be sure to snap some pictures and send them to me so I can share.
Karen @ Sugartown Sweets
WOW! Congratulations to Mr. Brian..and to you for making such a beautiful and amazing cake!
My back is hurting just reading about all the treats you made! What a sweet hubby to help you with your cake. It's totally awesome Beth. 🙂
Beth
Thanks, Karen. I haven't made that many treats for one event since last Halloween, and that party is coming up quickly! I'll be giving my kitchen a good workout in the next few months.
lisa@hooplapalooza
what do they say? the storm before the rainbow? (maybe someone shot that guy who said that huh? LOL!!!)
anyway, this cake is GLORIOUS! so there really was an eagle AND a scout in there-i know if anyone can do it, it would be YOU Beth.
BIG CONGRATS to Eagle Scout Brian!!!! a whole lotta love went into that cake!
and may i give your hubby a pat on the back for helping you? all my hubby does for me when it comes to desserts is eat them. HA!
this cake and ALL your cakes, including Noah's, are wonderful. and referring to your reply to Sandra, you keep being a nut Beth-i'm crazy about nuts! 😉
Beth
You always make me laugh, Lisa! I love nuts too, so I guess that's why I am one:) My husband is usually an eater too, this is one of the few times he's ever helped out in the kitchen and he really came through for me. I was shocked at how well he rolled out the fondant. I told him it's his new job! Ha Ha! He wasn't laughing, but maybe I'll get him to help me again, sometime. I was really happy to make Brian's day extra special. That's why we all make these crazy crafty foods, am I right?
Sue {munchkin munchies}
An awesome cake fit for an Eagle Scout! Great achievements on both counts! I'm glad your cake received the reactions from others (especially your nephew) that it deserved! What a labor of love to get it "just right"!
Beth
Thank you, Sue. It really was a true labor of love, that's is for sure. I was happy with the reaction too:)
Sandra Denneler
What a wonderful aunt you are to create such a memorable table of treats for your nephew - especially that show-stopping cake. Oh, my I almost had an anxiety attack after reading about your double-duty decorating dilemma. Sigh. I know that feeling too well... go to bed thinking all is great, until the next morning. You rocked it though! Awesome job, Beth. If bakers earned an award you'd get "Cake Master" for sure.
Beth
Thanks, Sandra. I was at my nephew's birthday party this evening and he once again thanked me for his special cake. I was so happy to make something so cool for him. I was in a total panic while I was decorating the cake for the second time. If it weren't for my husband rolling out the fondant for me while I got other things done, I don't know that I would have gotten the cake finished in time for the ceremony. The fondant decorations took so much longer than the frosted version of the cake. It sure wasn't the day I had planned. Every time I struggle to make a cake, I swear I'm never making one again! Then I do. I'm a nut:)