A two-tiered sculptural birthday cake, based on the Kane Chronicles trilogy. Featuring a large red pyramid being encircled by the snake Apophis. Plus lots of Eyptian imagery in the hand-painted panels.
My kiddo is a huge fan of all Rick Riordan books so I’ve done several cakes based on his various series. I’ve also make a Percy Jackson and Trials of Apollo cake.
Below, I detail my steps and provided links to the tools and supplies I used to make this DIY Kane Chronicles themed cake. I am not a professional baker and this was for personal use only.
Special Supplies
Greek column Molds. Pyramid mold
Fondant: Gold, Ivory (instead of pure white), red,
Modeling chocolate
Red candy Melts
Edible food paint, food pens, food paint brushes
Red Pyramid Cake – Base Tier
The lower cake was 3 thick layers to get the height for the panels. The overall design include painted fondant panels for each side and fondant columns.
1st: Draw the Scenes
I sketched four scenes based on key parts of the story my daughter wanted and what made sense. I review book covers, fan art and graphic novels. I did not directly print images (food ink printers exist, but I don’t have one). So I sketched and then painted what things looked like onto fondant.
2nd: Create a Parchment Tracing & Outline
Next I traced the outlines onto parchment paper. Once done, overlaid it onto a 1/8″ thick 3″ x 5″ rectangle of fondant. Using a fondant stick tool with a pointed end (looks like stylus) I traced the lines over the parchment pressing into the fondant. I pressed firmly but carefully to not puncture the paper.
Using a very fine brush, I painted the outlines in a light color food paint. I referenced my original drawings to make sure I got the shapes right.
3rd: Paint character shapes, then fill in details
There were a lot of characters all intertwined, so I carefully worked up each character, positions. I focused on color groups from light to dark. It is easier to paint over a light color if needed.
Once the characters were roughly taking shape, I went back over with finer details.
4th: Paint backdrops
These images weren’t heavy with background, so I just added bits to it last. I used Ivory fondant for a softer look. Then added bits of brown around edges to age it.
5th: Let panels dry
Once panels were done and dried, I stored them in an airtight container, flat so they wouldn’t crack.
6th: Build and Cover Cake
I usually make the cakes well ahead and keep them frozen prior to decorating. This was a 3-layer cake with decent amount of frosting between layers to build up the height.
I did a standard even crumb coat and then a basic ivory fondant overlay. I covered up most of this fondant, so I wasn’t super focused on making everything neat as a pin.
7th: Glue Panels
Once the cake was covered in fondant, I made sure everything was still firm. This was in August, so I regularly put it back in the fridge.
I “glued” the panels on with just a bit of water. But you can also use an edible adhesive or royal icing if they are being troublesome.
9th: Add Edging & Columns
The upper tier sits right on top of the bottom tier, so there isn’t room to really pipe edging out of frosting. So I cut strips of the gold fondant to edge the top and bottom of the panels.
Then I used a Greek column mold to create gold fondant columns (Egyptians also used columns though a bit different). I attached while the fondant was still soft so the columns are flexible. Then I bent them around corners to cover gap around the edges of the panels. You could use modeling chocolate as well or a blend so it’s not too soft. They do warp a bit and the gold fondant was very soft.
10th: Add Cake Supports
To hold up the next large and heavy layer, I put in 4″ lollipop sticks throughout the bottom tier. Otherwise it would collapse on itself from the weight.
Red Pyramid Cake – Top Tier
1st: Make Pyramid Candy Topper
Instead of doing the whole cake as a pyramid, I opted to get a pyramid mold and use red candy melts to do the capstone of the pyramid. There is also part of the story where they are trying to keep a capstone from getting in place, so having it look a separate was purposeful.
Having a molded pyramid shape helped me greatly in achieving the proportions for the rest of the cake.
2nd: Build Cake Pyramid
The top cake was several layers of spice cake with maple buttercream frosting cut into the shape of a pyramid. I planned on using molded candy melts for the very top, so I worked on building the pyramid from below that point.
This is done through careful measurement and slowly cutting away each sit. Using the molded candy pyramid at the top, I could use a ruler make sure my angles were lining up.
2nd: Cover the cake
Because of the shape, I did four red fondant panels with overage, so they could drape over each other a bit. Then pinched them together and worked to smooth out the bumps.
3rd: Create Bricks
Using a thin plastic ruler, I indented to create horizontals line that connected across each side of the cake. Then I went in with a wedge to make alternative vertical line to get the brick shapes. To create some more depth and definition, I made a blue/black food color wash and painted around the cracks of the bricks.
4th Make the Snake
A lot of modeling chocolate went into making this snake. I actually ran out of the red, which is why the face ended up being white, but I think that look actually helped bring out more details.
Though I tend to keep things as edible as possible, at least the outside was. I used aluminum foil to build out a base model for the snake body. This helped me size it correctly and gave it some form as I wanted it to sit up. I then coated it in a thick layer of red modeling chocolate so not foil was exposed. I could then wrap it around the base of the cake, using toothpick to keep it in place.
Once in general position, I then started adding modeling chocolate up for the head. I used white modeling chocolate to build up the face area. Then covered with a cobra hood of red.
For the teeth, I use toothpicks covered in white modeling chocolate. This allowed a thicker build toward the mouth and nice points at the tips (without bending). Eyes were bits of yellow fondant with a black food pen for the iris slits.
To create scale textures, I used a small knife and made criss cross hash marks along the body.
5th Make Ancient Egyptian Symbols
With Apophis head would be upright on the front of the cake, I placed golden symbols on the other 3 sides. These included the Ankh, Eye of Horus, and Symbol of Isis. I drew them on paper first to get the size right. Then made a parchment pattern to help outline the tracing. It took careful cutting with a sharp Exacto knife and some smoothing tools to get these into good shape. I let these set up for a bit to harden before affixing to the cake.
6th – Travel Set Up
If I am going to another place with the cake, I do not fully assembly util there. This lets me box up the two cake tiers seperately and not worry something is going to fall over or off.
7th Assemble the Tiers
At the final cake destination, I place the bottom tier on the cake tray. Then I directly added the other tier right on top. I made some snake adjustments. Then glued on the golden Egyptian symbols in the center of the other pyramid panels.
Finally I added birthday candles in the only spot they would fit. I honestly didn’t plan that part very well, but we made it work.