Building Blocks Cake Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Grease or spray bottom and sides of 13x9-inch pan.
• Make and bake cake mix as directed on box for 13x9-inch pan. Cool in pan 10 minutes; remove from pan to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Refrigerate or freeze cake about 1 hour or until firm.
• Meanwhile, in small bowl for each color, tint 1 cup frosting red, 1 cup frosting yellow and 2/3 cup frosting blue with food colors. Leave remaining frosting white.
• Using serrated knife, cut rounded dome from top of cake to make flat surface; place cake cut side down. Cut cake crosswise into thirds. Cut one of the thirds in half crosswise to make 2 squares. Place cake pieces on tray.
• To seal in crumbs, frost top and sides of 1 square cake with thin layer of blue frosting and 1 square cake with thin layer of white frosting. Frost 1 rectangular cake with thin layer of yellow frosting and 1 rectangular cake with thin layer of red frosting. Refrigerate or freeze 30 to 60 minutes to set frosting.
• Add final coat of frosting to each cake. Frost 4 marshmallow halves with blue frosting; place in square design on blue cake. Frost 4 marshmallow halves with white frosting; place in square design on white cake. Frost 8 marshmallow halves with yellow frosting; place on yellow cake. Frost 8 marshmallow halves with red frosting; place on red cake. Store loosely covered.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Grease bottoms only of 2 (8-inch) square pans with shortening or cooking spray.
• Make cake batter as directed on box, adding almond extract with the water. Divide batter in half. Stir 2 drops blue food color into one half; stir 2 drops red food color into other half. Pour into pans. Bake as directed on box for 8-inch pans. Cool 10 minutes. Run knife around sides of pans to loosen cakes; remove from pans to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
• Place 1 cake layer on serving plate; spread with 1/2 cup white frosting. Top with second cake layer, bottom side down. Spread frosting evenly on side and top of cake. Decorate cake as desired to look like baby block, using decorating icing and decors. Store loosely covered at room temperature.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually add flour; beat just until blended. Stir in extracts. Pour into two greased and floured 9x5-in. loaf pans. Bake at 325° for 1 hour 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pans for 15 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely., For frosting, in a large bowl, cream butter until fluffy. Gradually beat in 4 cups confectioners' sugar. Slowly add milk and vanilla. Beat in remaining confectioners' sugar. Add additional milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, until frosting reaches spreading consistency; set aside., To make building blocks, cut each cake in half, then cut each half into four blocks for a total of 16 blocks. Gently trim crusts of each; blocks should measure 1-3/4x1-3/4 in. Frost sides and top of blocks. Smooth frosting using a warm spatula. Using tinted icing, decorate with letters and numbers (see photo). Carefully stack blocks on a serving platter.