Today we are continuing the birthday cake series with a checkerboard birthday cake. I love this idea because it will surprise your guests giving them a bit of a WOW factor when the cake is cut. It is a particularly great cake for the guys and the avid board game lovers in your life.
To make a checkerboard birthday cake (this is for a 6-inch, 4-layer stacked cake) youβll need: one box cake mix (white is preferable, but yellow or any light-colored mix is fine), one container of frosting, food dye or coloring of your choice.
At least 2 circular objects of varying diameter that can be used as guides to make concentric circles on the cakes (i.e. cookie or biscuit cutters, ramekins, cups, lids etc.). If possible, use objects of different sizes that will leave about an inch between the circles. For instance, a 4-inch and a 2-inch cutter was used for the 6-inch cake in this tutorial.
Make cake mix following directions on box (or, make your own cake recipe). For a two-colored checkerboard effect, separate the batter equally between two medium bowls. For the cake in this tutorial, I left half the batter plain yellow and put a couple of teaspoons of black food coloring and about a tablespoon of cocoa powder in the other half, mixing well.
Bake the plain and βchocolateβ batters in separate 6β³ inch cake pans (or take turns, bake the first cake and then the second if you only own one pan), about 35-40 minutes at 350F. Check for doneness. These are βtallerβ cakes and need to bake a little longer than what is directed on the box.
Remove from oven and place pans on a wire rack to cool. Flip cakes onto rack after 10 minutes and let cool completely. Then cut the domes off the tops of cakes. Halve each cake into two equal layers using a sharp, serrated knife. You will end up with four cake layers: two plain and two chocolate.
Position the different sized cutters on top of a cake layer. Place larger cutter about an inch from the edge, and then the smallest cutter βinsideβ β also about an inch all around from the large cutter. Make sure cutters are centered and evenly placed from each other (see photo for reference).
Gently press down on cutter until cake is cut; lift slowly and remove the cake piece. Set aside. Repeat with the next cutter. You will have 3 concentric circles from one cake layer. (If you use an object other than a cutter as a guide, you will want to use a knife to trace and cut into the cake to form the circle). Repeat this cutting process for the remaining cakes.
Now comes the fun part! You will alternate the colors for each layer, creating a sort of βtarget.β From the outside going in, your layers should be assembled as followed: >
- yellow cake (outside circle), chocolate cake (middle), yellow cake (center)
- chocolate cake (outside circle), yellow cake (middle), chocolate cake (center)
You will have two each of the different designs.
Note: This step is easily accomplished if you start your layers on a cake plate or stand. Assemble the first layer. Cover and spread frosting on this layer. Now assemble second layer which will have the opposite colors. Ex: if your first layerβs outer circle is plain cake, the second layerβs outer circle will be chocolate. Repeat with other layers, alternating the colors. Donβt forget to frost between each layer!
After youβre done stacking, apply a crumb coat to the cake. Stick in fridge for 15 minutes to chill, then apply the final coat of frosting. Thatβs it! When the first slice is cut, guests will wow at the checkerboard design inside.
Tips/notes:
- Checkerboard cakes can be done with a minimum of two layers but are visually impressive when there are 3 or more layers.
- Feel free to use your own recipe for cake, adjust accordingly depending on how many layers you want.
- Feel free to use different-sized pans β an 8- or 9-inch checkerboard cake can have more βsquaresβ since it is wider. Make sure you have enough batter for the number of layers you want.
- Donβt be limited to a black and white (or in this case, yellow and brown confetti) checkerboard for your cake β experiment and have fun with different colors. Make a pastel yellow/pink/green cake for Easter, orange and black cake for Halloween, pink and red for Valentineβs Day, and so forth. You get the idea.
- In the assembly stage, you can apply a small amount of frosting to the inner part of each circle before inserting the next cake piece. The frosting acts as a βglue,β and you wonβt have to worry as much about the cake falling apart as you cut slices.
Birthday Cakes is an original series, produced and photographed by Athena Plichta under the creative direction of Victoria Hudgins for A Subtle Revelry.
19 Comments
Sonja
March 7, 2013 at 7:28 amBeautiful cake!!! the idea of chess is very pretty ;)
Sarah | Sarah The Architect
March 7, 2013 at 7:40 amSo fancy!
Kate
March 7, 2013 at 12:25 pmI made a cake like this for Christmas but I piped alternate circles instead of baking and cutting. It looked fab.
Grace Baxter
August 16, 2018 at 4:01 amIβd love to see a picture of your cake. DId you take pics?
andrea
March 7, 2013 at 1:36 pmthis is SO awesome victoria!!! love.
Jordana @WhiteCabana
March 8, 2013 at 4:36 amThat is SO cool! And the how-to looks way easier than what I was imagining. Would be great for a games themed party!
Mar
April 13, 2013 at 10:24 amI absolutely love this idea!!! Itβs so surprising! I will try for sure!
All Colors of the World β Making Checkerboard Birthday Cake
April 15, 2013 at 4:30 pm[β¦] Source cakecheckerboard cakehow to makemaking cake [β¦]
35 Amazing Birthday Cake Ideas. | Femour.com
April 19, 2013 at 6:07 am[β¦] takes a little doing, but it looks sooooo coooool. Instructions here. [β¦]
lyndsay
April 23, 2013 at 8:18 pmso awesome⦠i have seen those pans⦠and man my mind is STILL blown on how it turns out all checkerboardy⦠such a visual treat! thanks for the lovely photos! ^__^
Food β Tips For Amazing Birthday Cakes | Everything Cool
July 18, 2013 at 2:50 am[β¦] takes a little doing, but it looks sooooo coooool. Instructions here. [β¦]
Checkerboard Cake (Lactose Free!) | the toasted sprinkle
August 14, 2013 at 6:41 am[β¦] (For a really beautiful tutorial check out the cake Victoria made over at A Subtle Revelry) [β¦]
The Wooden Spoons Singapore Life #15 - Checkerboard Cake Adventures Β» The Wooden Spoons
August 22, 2013 at 3:09 pm[β¦] took me two days and I must have read this post at least 50 times but I was very pleased with the [β¦]
Clouds in my Coffee β’β’ Checkerboard Cake
April 11, 2015 at 3:56 am[β¦] Made from this pictorial βrecipeβ from A Subtle Revelry. [β¦]
30 Surprise-Inside Cakes | Viral TalkTime
September 9, 2015 at 11:37 pm[β¦] Source/Recipe: https://asubtlerevelry.com/checkerboard-birthday-cake [β¦]
Marsha
March 13, 2016 at 7:55 amI made the checkerboard cake for a guys birthday. I used 4 full layers. It was a hit. Thank you
Seynee corrie
May 24, 2017 at 7:58 pmAmazing always wanted to know how to .make check board cake at last i got it . thank you Victoria for your great work well done
Becky
June 28, 2017 at 7:46 amCan this work with 9 inch pans?
50th birthday cakes, the Don Draper guide
February 1, 2019 at 12:21 pm[β¦] some unique 50th birthday games and bake this checkerboard cake for a relaxed and easy 50th birthday [β¦]