Happy Thursday! With the start of October, I’m getting into the Halloween spirit and my bakes are taking a spooky turn! This week I’m excited to share these No-So-Scary Skull Cakes inspired by the ones served during Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. These delicious banana cake skulls are filled with a layer of dulce de leche and a pair of candy eyes!
On my trip to Disney in August, I was excited to attend Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. It had been a long time since I’d been and I loved all of the new entertainment and how many special themed treats were available during the party. One of the treats I was most looking forward to were the skull cakes and to be honest, I was really disappointed in them! They looked super cute and spooky but the banana cake was dry and powdered sugar coating was too much.
Although the park treats were not my favorite, I really loved the idea and the combination of banana and dulce de leche. So I decided to make my own version at home and when I spotted a skull cake pan on sale last week, I knew it was meant to be! Will I be using this pan to make a bunch more skull themed treats? You’ll just have to wait and see!
To make these Not-So-Scary Skull Cakes, start by combining the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. In a medium bowl, combine the mashed bananas, eggs, butter, and vanilla. Use a rubber spatula to gently fold the banana mixture into the flour mixture until fully incorporated.
Divide the dough among the baking cups in a greased skull shaped pan. I used the skull pan from Nordicware and loved how they looked (and also how easy the cakes came out of the pan)! Fill each mold about ⅔-¾ full. Gently tap the pan on the counter to remove any air bubbles and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing them and letting them cool completely on a wire rack.
To assemble the cakes, use a serrated knife to cut the cakes in half horizontally. Spread a layer of dulce de leche on the bottom half. I used a can of dulce de leche from Nestle. Replace the top of the cake onto the bottom half and fill in the eye sockets and nose with dulce de leche. Finally press some candy sprinkle eyes into the eye sockets. I used some small eye sprinkles from Wilton.
Enjoy these Not-So-Scary Skull Cakes! Happy start of the spooky season!
Not-So-Scary Skull Cakes
Ingredients
Banana Skull Cakes
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
- 3 ripe bananas, mashed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Filling/Toppings
- ½ cup dulce de leche
- candy sprinkle eyes
Equipment
- skeleton skull baking pan
Instructions
Not-So-Scary Skull Cakes
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Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease skeleton skull baking mold with cooking spray.
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In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
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In a medium bowl, combine the bananas, eggs, butter, and vanilla.
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Using a rubber spatula, fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, mixing until incorporated.
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Divide the batter between the skeleton skull mold cups, filling each about ⅔-¾ full.
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Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
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Let the cakes cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing and cooling completely on a wire rack.
Assembly
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Use a serrated knife to cut each skull cake in half horizontally.
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Spread a layer of dulce de leche onto the bottom half of the skull cake.
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Replace the top half and fill in eye sockets and nose with dulce de leche.
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Add two candy sprinkle eyes to the filled eye sockets.