Pac Man Cake: Pinky the Ghost

One of my best geek friends had recently had his birthday and I was in a hurry to make something nice for him, but I didn't quite have the time so I had to think and act fast.

Many visits to his place had given me a certain hint of that he likes Pac-man, so I decided to make a Pac Man themed cake with Pinky the ghost (you know, that annoying thing that always aims to be four dots ahead of Pac Man…)!

This cake can be made in less than three hours if you have the layers ready, and you can use pretty much any flavors you want to, regarding fillings as well as layers, as long as they're easy to cut: Use chocolate cake and coco mousse, lemon cake and vanilla cream, carrot cake and cream cheese filling - whatever you fancy. I used plain sponge cake and raspberry mousse. Also, you need not at all make a Pac Man themed cake, but can use this method for any flat 3D shape you would like to.

This Instructable includes recipes of sugar paste and raspberry mousse.

For the cake you'll need:

Plain cake, solid and without filling, home made or from your grocery's;

Any recipe for cake layers will do, so I will not post my own here. You can use any type of cake for this Instructable.

If you bake your own cake, you will want to let it cool before cutting it into two or three layers.

Tools for the rest of the process:

Food blender (or small mixer)

2 large bowls

1 small bowl

1 coffee cup

2 cooking pans

1 fork

Silicone baking mat

Knife

Rolling pin

Spoons

Pen/pencil

Paper

Ruler

1 round 7 cm (approximately 2 3/4") cookie cutter or a drinking glass with the same diameter

1 round 5 cm (2") cookie cutter or a drinking glass of the same size

1 brush

1 small cup of water

Cut your cake in two or three layers and make sure that the layers are even.

Before cutting the cake into shape, make the filling.

Raspberry mousse:

0,3 litres of cream

2 teaspoon of gelatine powder + 2 tablespoons of cold water

0,05 liters of sugar

1 tablespoon water

250 grams frozen (or fresh) raspberries

Put the raspberries, water and sugar in a cooking pan and bring to a slow boil. Mash the raspberries with a fork until you get a sauce like substance. Remove the cooking pan from the stove and let cool slightly.

Put the gelatine powder into the cup, add the cold water and stir before allowing it to swell for a few moments.

Add the gelatin substance to the warm raspberry sauce and stir carefully so that the gelatin is evenly spread. Pour the raspberry sauce from the cooking pan into a bowl and let cool. Do not cool it by putting it in the fridge, as it will cause the gelatin to turn solid. Let the raspberry sauce cool off in room temperature.

Whip the cream into a semi-solid substance.

When the raspberry sauce has reached room temperature, you may add it to the whipped cream, slowly and carefully using a spoon. Do not attempt to mix the sauce and cream before the sauce has completely cooled, or the mousse will not thicken or blend.

When the mousse is cool enough, blend it carefully with the cream and then put the mix in the fridge. Stir occasionally, and when the substance is solid like soft ice cream, it's time to fill the cake.

Spread the mousse evenly on the layers, one layer at the time. Start with the bottom layer then add the next layer; add mousse and then place the top layer, but do not cover it quite yet.

Place the cut-out on that you previously made onto the cake and use a sharp knife to cut around the outlines of the shape.

Cutting of corners of the cake will make it easier easier to wrap the sugar paste coating around it all. Now cover the top layer with mousse or vanilla cream.