Dump Truck Cake

My son loves big trucks. My daughter and I made him a dump truck cake as a surprise. After moving to a new home, my son is obsessed with all the construction vehicles that are building the houses around our new home. It is so cute to see how excited he gets when he hears a truck coming. He runs to the front door and sits on his little red chair to watch the trucks through the window. There have been so many exciting days when we would make a picnic and set up a blanket in our front yard to watch all the trucks.

My son loves big trucks. My daughter and I made him a dump truck cake as a surprise. After moving to a new home, my son is obsessed with all the construction vehicles that are building the houses around our new home. It is so cute to see how excited he gets when he hears a truck coming. He runs to the front door and sits on his little red chair to watch the trucks through the window. There have been so many exciting days when we would make a picnic and set up a blanket in our front yard to watch all the trucks. 

How to Make the Ultimate Dump Truck Cake

I found the neatest cupcake shapes at the store one day. It was a Wilton puzzle set. The individual cupcake holders are made out of that plastic that is able to go right into the oven. You can use these cupholders and create a number of shapes. Today we made it into a dump truck. We used the Wilton cupcake shapes to create the cake shape from the pack “Puzzle-a-Cake Set”. Really the possibilities are endless of the types of cakes you can make with these shapes. The key is to line them up while cooking to easily transport them to a serving tray. At least I found it easier to do that this way. First, we placed the shapes on a cookie sheet to form the shape of the dump truck. It may sound silly but I strongly recommend having them on the cookie sheet before adding the cake mixture. The reason being that the sides are bendy and as they are portable they are awkward if you need to move them.

Then we mixed up a regular cake batter. We made a yellow cake mix because the icing was going to be yellow as well. We are also then able to have any type of ice cream and side of fruit with a yellow cake. Next, we filled the cup cake forms up to the fill line. The fill line is a little line on the inside of the cupcake form. Use a scoop with a small pouring area to fill with ease. If you have any small drips, clean it up before cooking. 

I found the neatest cupcake shapes at the store one day. It was a Wilton puzzle set. The individual cupcake holders are made out of that plastic that is able to go right into the oven. You can use these cupholders and create a number of shapes. Today we made it into a dump truck.

We used the Wilton cupcake shapes to create the cake shape from the pack “Puzzle-a-Cake Set”. Really the possibilities are endless of the types of cakes you can make with these shapes. The key is to line them up while cooking to easily transport them to a serving tray. At least I found it easier to do that this way.

First, we placed the shapes on a cookie sheet to form the shape of the dump truck. It may sound silly but I strongly recommend having them on the cookie sheet before adding the cake mixture. The reason being that the sides are bendy and as they are portable they are awkward if you need to move them. 

Then we mixed up a regular cake batter. We made a yellow cake mix because the icing was going to be yellow as well. We are also then able to have any type of ice cream and side of fruit with a yellow cake. Next, we filled the cup cake forms up to the fill line. The fill line is a little line on the inside of the cupcake form. Use a scoop with a small pouring area to fill with ease. If you have any small drips, clean it up before cooking. 

After baking the cupcakes, we pushed the cake formation onto a cooling rack to dry. While cooking the batter rose so the cake is all one on top and on the bottom it is like cupcakes. It is so magical. I found this perfect for a party setting. This way there is no cutting necessary during the party time. Just pull apart and ready to go.

Once the cake was cooled we iced the cake. I used a regular store bought buttercream icing. It is super simple to make buttercream icing as well. It can also be frozen if you make too much icing. 

We also used the Wilton coloring to dye the icing all the different colors necessary for the cake (Wilton 12 Icing Colors Set). I made yellow, black, gray and white icing. I placed some of the regular icing into a bowl and with a toothpick dotted in some of the dye to create the ideal colors. I used a bent cake spatula to put the icing on the cake and then to add some detail I piped on the edging using the Wilton #1A tip. This round piping tip is quite large and round which can cover your surface area quickly. This thick icing technique is necessary to create a cake like look for this dump truck cake. I then used the Wilton round cake piping tip #5. This piping tip looks very similar yet is smaller. This one can add finer details to the cake surface.

After the icing was completed my daughter and I had a great time adding a mixture of candy to the top of the dump truck. The candy really made the truck come alive. We had earlier gone to our local Bulk Barn and selected an assortment of candy that had more boyish colors (reds, blues, yellows, etc.). It was fun to collect and then to add to the top of the cake. The extra candies we placed in different heights of wine glasses beside the cake. This way all the kids could enjoy their cupcake and have their own selection of candies as well.

The best part of the experience was to see my son's face light up when we showed him his dump truck cake. I knew we wanted to make him a construction cake and I think this was a great choice creating this dump truck cake. After enjoying the cake the kids were able to go out to the backyard and  play with a variety of trucks in our sandbox.