Out Of Cake Decorations? Cereal Saves The Day

If you're out of cake decorations and have no idea how to pipe frosting so that it looks appealing, just grab some cereal. Since today's cereals have become so sugary, topping a cake with them feels like destiny calling. Whether you're baking an easy yellow cake or your everyday chocolate cake, decorating with cereal can create a masterpiece worthy of a special occasion.

Use whole pieces of colorful cereal like Cap'n Crunch's Crunch Berries or Fruit Loops to create decorative patterns with pops of color on a white frosted cake. For cakes with dark frosting, Honeycomb cereal can create some striking contrasts and designs. Or use cereal to create borders, like on a vanilla-frosted cake with Cocoa Puffs lining the edges, or sprinkle crushed or small cereal on top.

You can also use cereal to write out names, create shapes like flowers or stars, or form numbers. Picture the number one written in Cheerios atop a baby's first birthday cake — adorable! To make your decorating job especially easy, grab cereals that already have clearly defined shapes, such as Lucky Charms or Trix, and just press those into your frosting. Keep an eye out for holiday shapes and other special editions, such as Franken Berry Cereal, Cap'n Crunch's Christmas Crunch, and heart-shaped Cheerios.

If you're looking to elevate your cereal-decorated cake even further, consider using the cereal to make cake toppers. Classic Rice Krispies Treats — or any cereal treats — are perfect standing in as edible cake toppers.

Make your crispy cereal treats as usual, let them cool slightly, and then get creative with cookie cutters. Cut out a number, a heart, or a rocket ship, because the sky's the limit here. Just let your cut shape cool completely and then plop it on top of your cake! You might even stack a few cereal treat shapes to create 3D masterpieces, like a layered flower.

And let's not pigeonhole ourselves with plain old Rice Krispies treats. Use Cocoa Krispies to make chocolate Rice Krispies treats, add some mix-ins like crushed cookies for Oreo Rice Krispies treats, or make bright and colorful cake toppers using cereal treats with Fruity Pebbles. Grab a cereal box and let the most important meal of the day become your most important cake decoration.