This cake is completely inspired by candy corn.  But not the  regular candy corn, Brach’s Indian Corn.
Candy Corn Cake
Ingredients
- 1 box white cake mix
- 1 box chocolate cake mix
- 3 containers white frosting or three cups
- 1 container chocolate frosting or 1 cup
- Optional: Orange extract
Instructions
- Bake chocolate cake in 8in round cake pan. One cake will be used, so you can wrap the other 8in round cake and place in freezer.
- For the white and orange layers, simply prepare white cake batter as you normally would. Divide batter in half and tint one half orange. (Add orange extract if you wish)
- Bake white cake batter in 8in cake pan and bake orange cake batter in 8in cake pan.
- For frosting, take one container of white frosting and tint it orange. I used gel food coloring and about 4-6 drops.
To assemble cake:
- Place chocolate cake on cake stand. Place thin layer of chocolate frosting.
- Place orange layer on top and cover in thin layer of orange frosting.
- Finally, place white cake on top and cover entire cake in crumb coat.
- Decorate as you wish.
Did you make this recipe?
Thank you for making my recipe! You took pictures, right? Well go ahead and post them on Instagram! Be sure to mention me @iambaker and use the hashtag #YouAreBaker.
Have you seen this type of candy corn? Â With the chocolate on the bottom? Â I found it to be the perfect cake inspiration! (picture below)
But I went wrong on this cake. Â I was in a hurry. Â A BIG hurry. Â I needed to have this cake done and be out the door in 57 minutes.
So I used all box mixes (which is fine with me!) and canned frosting (horrible mistake).
Something happened. Â I sampled the canned frosting and thought it tasted like cardboard. Â Even the chocolate. Â They were all just awful. Â I wouldnt feel comfortable serving this cake to anyone. Â Is it just me? Â I used to not mind them at all! Â (To be fair, I stuck to one brand. Â It could have just been that brand.)
I am a huge proponent of supporting  peoples choices in baking… if you want to use canned frosting I would never bat an eye.  Heck, I would support and encourage you for choosing to bake!
But for me, I think this was my very last time.
Here are the from-scratch recipes for this cake:
Here is a video of me decorating a cake with the same technique as I used on this Candy Corn Cake.
If you like this cake you will love my new book Surprise-Inside Cakes! Â (especially the Ombre Cake I share in the book!)
Yes, I would in fact use boxed cake mix and I do so very often. I can’t really tell the difference between them, so I don’t necessarily have a favorite. But I’ve heard the ones that used pudding in the mix can be quite tasty!
I use whatever is on sale.
I use box cake whenever I have to bake a gluten free cake. It’s just more reliable. Basco brand.
I always do this too! They really are so much more reliable than trying to get things right from a scratch recipe. Some of the mixes even taste nearly identical to a regular flour cake.
I forget the name of my favorite brand, but I remember where to get it! 🙂
Wow what an awesome cake and what an awesome giveaway from Wilton. Hopefully I am eligible.
Thanks
Trace
that looks amazing, I want to try it.
My best friend used boxed cake for her wedding cake, no one knew. She got several complements on how moist the cake was, we just laughed
Boxed mix, sometimes. It really is not bad if doctored up. I prefer homemade icing.
I love the idea of mixing candy with the cake, I think I’ll have to have a hunt and see if I can find something that I can do the same with and build up in layers like this. Maybe a rainbow cake, with MANY layers, but then I’d have to find some candy or something that matched :/
Thanks for sharing with us! (especially with so little time too!)
sammie x
I think the national brands of cake mixes are really good and I use them all the time. But I hate canned frosting and almost never buy it.
I made a pink champagne cake for my sisters wedding…for the practice cakes I doctored up one box cake mix, for the other layers I made scratch versions. Everyone at work preferred the doctored up cake box. There is no shame in boxed cake!
I use packet mix cakes sometimes, but I tend to mix up my own icing. Thanks for a great post, I do love to see decorating techniques, even if the cake was a non winner!